BLOG
Successful Traveling Part 3 - Hotels
Hey Hey Diva friends! This is the 3rd installment of my travel series - if you missed part 1 - airport click here. Part 2 - driving click here.
Today it's all about the hotel and/or friends house you may be staying at. For this blog we are assuming you have access to a refrigerator at your location.
Having a fridge and microwave makes the biggest difference! This way you can stock up on all the good stuff. We like to scope out a grocery store or Whole Foods nearby and pick up the following items:
- Veggies
- Hummus
- Hard boiled eggs
- Plantains
- Sweet potatoes ( you can microwave them if the room has a microwave)
- Sweet potato or root veggie chips like Jacksons Honest or Terra
- tuna/salmon packs for lunches or snacks
- Guacamole single serve packs
- Almond/coconut milk
- Green juices
You might also pick up a few things like a cold brew coffee you like, sauerkraut or a apple cider vinegar shot to stick to your gut health habits that you've incorporated at home!
Depending on where you might be staying you'll have access to a lot of great foods or none at all. Some hotels have an awesome breakfast and others make it truly difficult. If you think you'll have trouble accessing breakfast at your location make sure you think ahead and make some paleo muffins, bring some GF oatmeal (if you tolerate it), focus on fresh fruits, and green juices to get all the nutrients in each day!
If you have access to make breakfast or to purchase it, eggs, veggies, and fruit is always a great way to choose a balanced, fresh, breakfast! I will often use Shakeology as my breakfast when traveling as well - protein, probiotics and greens at least keeps me satisfied until I can find more food!
What tips or tricks do you have for travel food?
I'd love to hear them below!
Successful Traveling Part 2- Driving
Hey Hey Diva friends! Welcome to part 2 of my travel series - giving you all the tips you need to stick to your goals when traveling! If you missed part 1 check it out here.
Today it's all about DRIVING! Driving is awesome because it gives you the chance to take MORE of your own foods that you really love without stressing about having to find them at a local grocery store when you get there.
I recommend stocking up on your favorite snack bars and pre-making a few staples like breakfast muffins or homemade trail mix. Once you arrive you can always stock up on fruits, veggies, and extras!
Check out the list below for some ideas:
- Breakfast muffins like these! Easy to make and easy to travel...
- Rise bars
- Raw Revolution Bars
- Thunderbird Bars
- Fruit
- Nuts
- Seeds
- Trail Mix
- Nut Butters (try these single serve easy to carry packs!)
- Simple Mills crackers (Bring one of their box mixes along if you have the time or ability on your travels to make some pizza crust or desserts!)
- Plantain chips
- Chikpeatos (roasted chick peas)
- Paleo granola (make ahead or bought)
- Shakeology ( I drink it every day and its so easy to travel with!)
A little bit of planning, a little bit of packing and you're good to go! Next up....what to stock your hotel room with!
What are your favorite travel snacks? Share below!
Successful Traveling Part 1 - The Airport
Hey Hey Diva friends! So I always get a lot of questions about traveling. From navigating the airport, to being in a new place, to working around the feelings of relatives who made food....I'm going to answer all of your questions in a short blog series all about travel and food!
I recently took a short trip to Michigan and I would say this is the most difficult trip in terms of food that I've had in quite a while! BUT I'm also here to tell you - if I can do it YOU CAN TOO.
Me with a RISE bar - my new and current obsession...
So let's lay the foundation for the whole series:
Priority #1 YOU MUST KNOW YOUR BOUNDARIES. Because let's face it. If we don't have them, we will break them....because they don't exist. It's the same as stealing when you have no moral absolutes. Who's to say it's wrong?
What are your non negotiables? Do you have any? If not - set them. NOW. I
ll give you mine. My #1 non-negotiable is that I will not eat anything with wheat or gluten in it knowingly. This is for several reasons. a) I know enough about how it affects your body now to know it's not good whether you have coeliac, a sensitivity, or no observable reactions to eating it. It still causes inflammation and gut damage. So it's not for me! b) I've had a documented HIGH sensitivity to it. Again. Not worth it.
What will I negotiate on? Dairy and sugar. These are 2 things I normally don't have in my home but when in a pinch I'm not as concerned about them sneaking into my snack bars or restaurant orders. You might have a severe dairy reaction however, which would make that a non-negotiable for you. Gas? Skin rashes? It might be better to skip it....
Ok. Now that you've laid the foundation this allows you to easily make choices and know what you're willing to say yes or no to on your trip. So let's get right down to it and talk about airport foods.
Airport snacks
This one can be tricky as it varies from airport to airport due to size and city! There are however, a few staples that most airports provide. Keep in mind, these are not necessarily foods I recommend make up a majority of your diet - this is surviving on your negotiables in sticky situations.
- Nuts (just avoid the mixes with chocolate and sugar added)
- Chips (when possible choose a better brand like Terra or Jackson's Honest)
- Yogurt or parfait ( go for greek, high protein and low sugar options)
- Fruit. Most airports have stands with apples and bananas
- Snack bars. Cliff bars, kind bars, Lara bars and That's It bars are usually available. Just make sure to read all the labels s you don't get some of your non-negotiables in there accidentally. No one wants a gassy neighbor on the airplane.
In flight food
Depending on your flight, if it's really long, at the right time of day, or first class you might have the option to get an in meal flight. They usually have a gluten free option that includes a salad and protein. Skip the yucky dressings and extras. Top your salad with some nuts and skip the alcoholic beverage options. Go with water or black coffee if it's before noon. Oh - and skip that warm cookie they serve up at the end :P
If you aren't on a flight that serves a meal no worries! Sometimes they offer snacks like popcorn, chips or nuts. If they don't, that's ok too because you planned ahead and packed some snacks in your carry on!
Carryon Snacks
These are good for in airport, on your vacation or on the plane....anytime!
- Fruit ( grapes, apples, oranges and bananas travel well. Just be careful of the last two if you have blood sugar issues).
- Nuts
- Shakeology ( I bring mine every trip along with a shaker bottle so I can get some cold water and drink it up whenever I'm hungry!
- Lara bars
- Thunderbird bars
- Jerky (read the labels to avoid lots of sugar and/or wheat which is usually in soy sauce)
- Simple Mills crackers
- Mediterra Bars (a really nice and delicious way to actually get some greens while traveling)
- Rise Bar (whey or vegan protein available) a great tasting protein bar with only 3-4 ingredients that you can pronounce.
- Water - had to throw this in there. DRINK ALL THE WATER when you travel it's SO important to stay hydrated. Ever notice you get constipated when flying? It's super easy to get dehydrated when traveling. My tips to stay hydrated:
- Drink water before you fly
- Drink a bottle during flight
- Drink a bottle during your layover
- Drink a bottle on your second flight
- Grab another bottle when you land.
Airport Meals
Ok, so you have a super long layover and you are SO TIRED of SNACKS. Ugh I know, I get it. So here are some options:
- Bunless Burger
- Nachos with corn chips
- Smoothie from Jamba Juice or whatever smoothie bar they have at that airport
- Meat and Rice ( just avoid soy sauce and asian meats dipped in sauces you don't know about)
- Omelet
- Steak and veggie side
- Sushi
- Salad ( either from one of those kiosks or a restaurant)
Yup! All of those are options at an airport!! Will it be as good as home? No way. But stick to those non-negotiables, drink your water, and your tum tum will thank you when you finally get home :)
What are YOUR travel tips (or questions!) Post them below!
Next up....how to navigate family when traveling (or they're visiting)
Best Veggie EVAH!
Hey Hey Diva friends!
As I go through my Autoimmune protocol training there is a heavy focus on nutritional approach for management and healing. While it's obviously very specific for autoimmune conditions with lots of science and targeting for treating those diseases, much of the information is generally beneficial for all health too...
So of course, it reinspired me to get more nutrition and more vegetables into our daily meals. Patrick and I then found ourselves at WholeFoods a few weeks ago and I stood in the produce section looking for new vegetables to try in an effort to diversify our nutrient intake as much as possible....this led me to discover an amazing root vegetable called sunchokes.
My friends, if you've already known about these amazing roots WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME?! And if you don't....I'm going to share the deliciousness!
Jerusalem artichoke (sunchoke) is a root vegetable related to sunflowers. They are rich in potassium, iron, vitamin C and....flavor.
Similar in appearance to turmeric or ginger, you might think they need to be peeled, but happily, the skin is edible. You can eat them raw or cooked!
Patrick googled how to cook them and since it was SO delicious, we haven't tried eating them any other way yet. The recipe we use is below!
Ingredients:
- As many sunchokes as your grocery has :)
- Olive Oil
- Pan that can go on the stove and in the oven
Directions:
- Turn the oven on to 375
- Slice the sunchokes in half
- Fry them in olive oil for 5 minutes, sliced side down
- Transfer them from the stove top to the oven for 42 minutes
- Let them cool and enjoy warm and crispy!
This way of cooking them leaves you with a crispy outside and soft inside. It's similar in taste and texture to potatoes! We haven't tried salting or seasoning them but I'm sure there are many ways to enjoy these simply delicious veggies.
Have you tried them yet? If so, what's YOUR favorite recipe?
Slices Sunchokes
A batch frying in oil and a batch ready to go in the oven! (You can use one pan if it's big enough)
My favorite "processed" foods
Hey Hey Diva friends! Another week, another Friday!!!!
Recently I was taking to a friend of mine and one of the struggles she had was thinking of things to eat as a snack. When you're making a lifestyle change it can be totally daunting I get it! I've been there - multiple times.
I always like to keep it simple and encourage my clients to go back to the basics. Just eat real food. Did it come from a tree? Or did it come from a factory? You get the picture....
In todays world where we are constantly on the go whether it be trekking 4 kids to different activities or working in our busier than ever world, often we need something fast that we didn't have to make, that still falls within our goals and nourishes us as if we made it at home.
While this is a little more tricky, it's still doable. The TRICK is to read the label every time. If the label has a few ingredients that tell you you could make this item at home then go for it. If the label has 50 ingredients, half you don't recognize, and many -ides, -ates -oses and chemicals.....then skip it.
My top 5 favorite "processed" foods
1. Simple Mills crackers. Simple Mills is an awesome brand that not only makes crackers, but they make cookie mixes, dessert mixes, pancake mixes, and even pre-baked treats as well. The reason I like them is because they try to not only keep the ingredients natural and healthy, but their goals is also to keep the ingredients minimal. That means, excluding spices, you'll normally find only 4-5 ingredient in each treat. And the ingredients are ones you don't have to worry about to boot.
My favorite flavors are Sun Dried Tomato and Natural Sea Salt.
2. Lara Bars
LaraBar brand's motto is "we believe in simplicity". Well, they also believe in flavor and each bar tastes amazing. Like I mentioned earlier, could you easily make your own Lara bar at home?! totally. I've done it, I've shared the recipe on this blog even. But when convenience without compromise is the priority, grab some Lara Bars and keep them in your purse! They now have crunchy seed bars and greens bars so you'll definitely be able to find a favorite, or two, or three :)
3. Rx Bars.
R.X Bars say it right on the label: "No B.S". You'll recognize every ingredient listed and get a nice boost of protein in each one too! I enjoy Chocolate Sea Salt and Maple Sea Salt but there are many others as well! They even have "kids" bars which are just smaller versions.
4. Shakeoogy. Truly one of the most nutrient packed snacks you can take on the go. This Shake is filled with superfoods from around the world, probiotics, digestive enzymes, and yes, some good ole protein too. I prefer the vegan version and my all-time favorite flavor is Vegan Chocolate. Legit tastes like cake - especially if you mix it with unsweetened Vanilla almond milk! Take it on the go, or add some PB or extras to beef it up as a meal!
5. Wild Rice Cakes.
They might be a little messy, but they are a great serving tray for some PB or almond butter! If you don't have an issue with rice or grains (always avoid grains with gluten, or genetically modified grains. Choose organic as much as possible) then wild rice cakes are a nice little treat. Top with PB and raisins, eat them plane, or create a savory snack with hummus and seaweed. I like the Lundberg brand!
Don't forget the fresh food snacks that are easy to take on the go as well like apples, bananas, grapes fresh off the vine, nuts, seeds or chocolate-free trail mix!
What's your favorite on-the-go snack? I'd love to hear about it in the comments below!
Healthy Tips for Travel
Traveling can be tough. We all have to do it periodically whether for business, vacations, road trips, or last minute emergencies. So how can we still prioritize our health when on the road?
Here are my top 3 tips....
Traveling can be tough. We all have to do it periodically whether for business, vacations, road trips, or last minute emergencies. So how can we still prioritize our health when on the road?
The simple answer is: Don't compromise on your long-term health and nutritional values
That's probably a little TOO simple, so I thought I would share few more details.
Here are my top 3 tips:
1. Pack Snacks
Packing snacks has saved me from compromising choices many times! I. GET. HANGRY. Anyone else? No? Just me.....well if you're anything like me, when the hanger strikes then anything goes lol. So I always bring snacks and it changes from trip to trip but it generally includes things like:
- Beef jerky
- Crackers
- Nuts/Seeds/Trailmix
- Clean Snack Bars
- Dark Chocolate
- Shakeology
For this specific trip I had some fun things in the house and if you missed my live video you can check it out below:
p.s. the Brami beans were no bueno :(
2. Know your non-negotiables
For me, my non negotiables are dairy and gluten. I will, however, relax on sugar when traveling which allows me some more freedom when I eat out! When you know for certain what you won't compromise on, it actually gives you freedom (and less stress) when eating out! For example - I usually stick to a meat and vegetable dish and will occasionally splurge on something fun like a gluten-free bun or gluten-free dessert! When going out to eat choosing a protein and vegetable is usually a great choice.
Bison Burger with butter carrots and a gluten-free bun! The lemonade was hand squeezed and I'm sure full of sugar - but that was a treat!
My 2 days away:
Tuesday (on the road in the afternoon):
Dinner: Texas Roadhouse: 6oz steak +vegetables side + some of the crispy potato skin from the baked potato (+snacks in the car)
Wenesday:
Breakfast: scrambled eggs with some fresh chopped salsa from the hotel continental breakfast + coffee with some dairy free creamer.
S: Starbucks tall mocha with coconut milk no whip
S: snacks in the car ( see video)
Lunch/Dinner: We stopped at Ted's and I had the above bison burger with a gluten free bun, butter carrots, and hand squeezed lemonade :)
3. Relax and have a good time - 2 days away won't kill you!
If your vacation is only a few days try to relax and not stress out about the details. If you are consistent in your day to day life at home then a few days will not ruin that. As long as it doesn't break your non-negotiable then enjoy yourself! If you are vacationing somewhere for more like a week, do try to plan ahead, utilize the hotel room refrigerator, google restaurants and menus in advance, and make sure to have those healthy snacks on hand!
p.s. Never miss a blog post! Make sure to "sign up" at the bottom of the page for regular updates, newsletters, and recipes!
