Eating Healthy On The Go!

With last-minute summer vacations and sunny daytime activities filling your calendar, chances are you’ll often find yourself outside the house when hunger strikes this season. And if you aren’t someone who remembers to pack a healthy lunch or who stashes nutritious snacks in your beach bag, you might find yourself turning to unhealthy options (think venti Frappuccinos and mammoth coffee shop pastries) to satiate your appetite when you’re out and about.

But with a bit of forethought, you can learn to eat well on the go and keep your waistline in check. Whether you’re forced to grab breakfast on the run or need to snag a snack at the airport between flights, here are the strategies you need to make healthy eating and a busy lifestyle jive.

Start the day off right. When you’re facing a busy day, breakfast is often the first meal you let slip. “A lot of times we wake up and have coffee and that suppresses our appetite,” says Tara Coleman, a San Diego–based clinical nutritionist. “Then you are consumed with activities, and suddenly it’s two o’clock and you haven’t realized you are hungry because you are so busy.” The solution: start the day off with a healthy breakfast. You’ll have more energy and ensure a more balanced diet for the day. If you have time to eat before leaving home, enjoy a quick bowl of whole-grain cereal or a few whole wheat toaster waffles topped with protein-rich peanut butter. For breakfasts on the run, stock options like hard-boiled eggs and small cartons of low-fat yogurt in your kitchen so you can still eat well when you’re in a rush.

Pack your own snacks. Why should you rely on other people to provide your meals when you can take matters into your own hands? If you store healthy snacks like homemade trail mix or fresh fruit in your purse or car ahead of time, you won’t be caught by surprise when hunger strikes on the road. And if you know you’re headed to a healthy-food desert such as the airport or an amusement park, you can pack a well-balanced lunch or dinner in a cooler so you won’t have to turn to on-site vendors to meet your dining needs.

Map out healthy pit stops. It’s inevitable: you will find yourself stuck on the road and starving at some point this month. You can prevent the need to visit the roadside mini-mart for a coke and a candy bar by making a mental map of healthy food choices in your neighborhood or vacation destination. Explore the options in your surrounding environment for places that serve certifiably healthy food. Your neighborhood grocery store might have an extensive salad bar, or the corner coffee shop might serve delicious, fresh-fruit smoothies. Knowing where you can go to get healthy foods any time of the day goes a long way toward eating well on the run.

Have a backup plan. Whether you’re headed out on a midsummer road trip or are just spending the day shopping at the local mall, sometimes a vending machine, a fast-food chain, or a gas station mini-mart will be the only available dining option. In these situations, the educated consumer wins. If you familiarize yourself with a variety of healthy, widely available foods in advance, you’ll be able to find nutritious options everywhere. At convenience stores, for example, fresh or dried fruit, low-fat dairy products, and fiber-rich granola bars are generally good choices, as are whole-grain crackers and satiating nuts. If you’re stuck dining at a fast-food joint, plan to skip the double cheeseburger and select a meal off the healthy-choices menu instead.

Become a label reader. When you’re forced to eat packaged foods to fight hunger, nutritional labels can be your ally. Take the time to study nutrition labels (and nutrition facts on fast-food menus) to better understand the benefits and drawbacks of potential picks. Look at the calories and fat content as well as the serving size and sodium content. And always pay attention to the claims listed on the fronts of packages, which can draw you in with deceptive wording that makes a product appear healthier than it really is. For example, a bag of chips that reads “only 80 calories per serving” on the front might actually contain four or five servings—and far more calories—in every bag.