Healthy Snacks for Travelling

By Aarti Sanan, REDBOOK

My recent trip to India made me realize how hard it is to maintain a healthy lifestyle while traveling. I did try to stick to my healthy eating plan and avoid carbs, but more often than not the non-carb dishes were more unhealthy than the ones with carbohydrates. I needed to create some sort of survival travel pack that would fend off the lure of fried food and stale airport croissants. I turned to super nutritionist Stephanie Middleberg for some tips.

1. Snack Mixes: These mixes travel well, but be warned: They can have a surprisingly high caloric value. Unless you're planning to scale energy, consider an option from The Good Bean or Sheffa Foods. Both use chickpeas as a key ingredient, which means nonperishable proteins without all the carbs.

Related: 50 Under $50 Frugal Finds for Spring

2. Protein Bars: I lived on these in India, which is why I probably ran out in two days. Maybe you shouldn't follow my lead and eat five protein bars a day, but definitely load up on them for when you feel the urge to order dessert or fries. Some energy bars are packed with sugars and synthetic proteins or processed so look for bars with under 10 ingredients and between 150-220 calories. Kind, Lara Bar, Pure Organic, and Raw Crunch are some of my favorites.

3. Flax Packs: Travel messes with your daily fiber and vitamin intake. Keep things regular with Flax Packs or Chia, which you can sprinkle on cereal, yogurt, eggs-basically anything! I buy the seeds and grind them in my coffee grinder.

Related: 25 Snacks Under 150 Calories

4. Go Nuts: Remember those days when they actually gave you complimentary snack packs of nuts on flights? Well, not anymore, so carry your own. Load up on nuts, seeds, and nut butters that contain pure, simple, and natural sustenance. I always carry some packets of nut butter or Sunbutter for a quick pick-me-up.

5. Crispbreads: You know those nut butter packets you were carrying? Well, they go great with crackers. Stephanie recommends crackers like Wasa Light Rye or Finn Crisp. "My rationale here is simple," she says. These are good, but not so good that you're going to eat the whole box. You can eat these whole grain crisps for breakfast with nut butter in the hotel room, or have a few to take the edge off your hunger while waiting for a late dinner.

Related: Easy Ways to Burn 100 Calories

So there you have it. Arm yourself with these few travel supplements, and you are good for the long haul. What's in your healthy living travel survival pack?

More from REDBOOK:


redbookstamp
redbookstamp



Permissions:Reprinted with permission of Hearst Communications, Inc.