Survival tips for the plant-powered business traveler

Let’s not sugar-coat the kale.

Eating plant-based — trying to eat healthy at all — while travelling for business is a pain in the ass. Powerful forces jackhammer at your will and decision-making, trying to break through your resistance to allow all the crappy food through.

But, with some prep and patience, you can outwit and outast the jackhammer and maintain your smart eating habits.

Drink less alcohol or none at all

Did you click away immediately after reading this tip? No? Good.

I used to have a bad habit of grabbing a drink before a business dinner. Then I went to the dinner and make awful eating choices I would never make at home.

I don’t do that anymore. Now it’s easier to make better choices.

(Further proof: 1/3 of vegetarians eat meat while drunk. Not shocking — we make lots of bad choices while intoxicated. So don’t get intoxicated.

Pack your own food

You can really help yourself out — and not take up much room in your bag — by bringing along some of your best go-to food.

Oatmeal packets, nuts, fruit, and vegetables like carrots and peppers are easy to pack and make a huge difference when you need a snack. Bring them with you and they’re even more convenient to grab in the hotel room than the 8-pack of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups at the snack shop.

Move

I don’t generally bring my running gear on trips — it takes up too much room and I’m obsessed with travelling light — but I do try to walk every day I’m on the road. Moving and exercise keeps health on your brain’s front burner, and you’re more likely to make good eating choices in that state of mind.

Plus, walking is a great way to learn about a city and see what’s available around you when it’s time to make restaurant choices.

Front-load your calorie intake for the day

It’s often easier to find plant-based options at breakfast and lunch than at a business dinner, so front-load your calorie intake. In the morning, get down to the hotel buffet, tiptoe past the bacon and load up on oatmeal and fruit. At lunch, eat a big salad.

If you eat more while the healthy options are most plentiful, you won’t be as hungry (and tempted) at that business dinner where your options may be more limited.

Prep for the rubber chicken circuit

Sometimes there simply isn’t going to be a vegetarian option at a dinner, like at a large banquet dinner. Plan ahead. Eat something beforehand. Then, at the dinner, so you can just eat the vegetables and and can skip the meat (and other unhealthy choices) without going hungry.

Sleep

I see so many people deprive themselves of sleep on the road, because they want to hang out at the bar or whatever. When you’re tired, you make worse decisions, including your eating choices. Sleep deprivation can even make you crave bad food.

Get your sleep. You’re not missing anything at the hotel bar.

Drink lots of water

Travel dehydrates you, which adds to fatigue and the aforementioned bad-decision making. Dehydration can also make you eat more as your body looks for any way it can to restore hydration. So drink a lot of water.

Just persist

Sometimes you’re running through an airport, and it seems like it’s too hard to find a good plant-based option. Or you’re in a part of town with seemingly limted options. Don’t give up. Keep looking. More and more plant-based choices are popping up all the time.

Choose hotels with a fridge in the room

If you’re staying in a town for a few days, having a fridge in your room can make a huge difference. Get to a local grocery store and load up on the good stuff and have it at the ready.

Give yourself healthy options that are instantly available so you can continue to make good choices.

Add it all up: Make it easy to make good choices

All these suggestions boil down to two things:

Take care of yourself so its easier to make good choices
Make it as convenient as possible to pick good foods.

That’s it. If you do all you can to make it easy to make healthy eating choices, then you’re more likely to do so. That’s it.

(By the way — if youre thinking about eliminating meat from your diet, the Rich Roll podcast and Dr. Garth Davis’ Facebook page are good places to start learning.)