Travelling Light
By WLR Dietitian
Your holiday or day out might start from the moment you
leave the house, but don’t use this as an excuse to forget
about healthy eating. Travelling long distances, whether by
car, bus, boat, train or plane, can mean a constant flow of
food and drink. But this doesn’t have to mean the end of your
diet.
Top Six Tips for Travelling on a
Diet
1. However you’re travelling, pack some healthy, tasty
snacks such as low-fat crisps and sandwiches, fruit, diet
drinks and low-sugar cereal bars so that you’ll be less
tempted to buy higher-fat snacks. It’ll save both lbs and
pennies!
2. It might be tempting to eat at every opportunity when
you’re travelling because you don’t know when you’ll next have
the chance. But if you’re relying on food from service
stations, airports, buffet cars and ferry terminals much of it
is likely to be high in fat and calories.
Fortunately, most
sandwiches, rolls, crisps, ice creams and chocolate bars
contain calorie information on the packaging, so use this
information to choose the healthier options.
3. Sucking the odd ‘travel’ sweet won’t do any harm, but
try not to work your way through the whole tin! Boiled sweets
can easily contain up to 20 calories each – and they soon add
up on long journeys. Keep your mouth busy with sugar-free gum
and save those calories for a holiday cocktail instead.
4. If you’re flying, avoid eating just before taking off.
Even if you're not hungry, you'll probably eat the in-flight
meal out of boredom. Airline meals provide around 600 calories
and even though you’re eating them at altitude, the calories
still count!
5. Skip all the extras that come with in-flight meals. Give
the butter and roll a miss, avoid the cheese and don’t add the
salad dressing if it’s in a separate sachet. Also skip those
little packets of savouries that are served with drinks – each
pack can contain around 100 calories.
6. Don’t drink too much
alcohol when you’re flying. It
might be free, but too much will leave you dehydrated (which
can make jet lag worse), give you a headache and pile on the
pounds. Mini bottles of spirits such as gin, vodka, whisky and
rum provide a double measure so allow 100 calories per bottle
and ask for slimline mixers. Beer tends to come in small cans
so allow around 95 calories per can, while a small bottle of
wine contains around 150 calories. Fruit juice is just 50
calories per glass, but it’s easy to drink vast amounts on a
long haul flight so if you’re feeling thirsty, have water
instead.
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