I don’t know about you, but I get giddy every time a road trip draws near.  Driving with the windows rolled down, our favorite tunes on the radio, and the feeling of freedom as we explore whatever our hearts desire . . . what isn’t there to love about all that?

This week, I had multiple clients reach out and ask what they should do for their upcoming road trips; they wanted to make sure they avoided dining on gas station hotdogs and soda and keep things healthy along the way.  And, since this is our “road trip” season of the year, I thought y’all might benefit from some healthy ideas too.  The more prepared we are, the better we feel today and always.

Tips to make your next road trip a healthy one:

• Prep ahead:  plan out your meals and snacks for the time you’re on the road.  Grocery shop and prep all food ahead so you can pack the cooler and food tote with nourishing noshes!

• Simple meal ideas to nourish you well:
  • Salad in a jar:  Build a variety of mason jar salads to store in the cooler.  The salads will last a few days and provide a full meal!  The build is quick and easy:  1)  put the dressing in the bottom of the jar  2)  layer multiple vegetables/fruit  3) then add nuts/seeds  4) pack 1.5 – 2 cups of leafy greens tightly into the top of the jar and close with the lid.  Keep jars upright and DO NOT let the dressing touch the greens before you consume the salad, or you’ll be in for one slimy meal.  Pack paper plates/utensils.  When you’re ready to eat, pour the contents of the jar onto your plate and it’ll create a beautiful salad.  Pack meat, egg, beans, or cheese in separate containers and top your salad with them. 
  • Picnic style dinner:  select a variety of organic, nitrite/nitrate-free deli meats, grapes, cherries, a variety of vegetables, organic cheese, crackers and hummus for a picnic-style lunch or dinner.  Enjoy!
  • For breakfast, you can purchase travel-size nut-butter packets to squeeze on a piece of fruit, enjoy a GoMacro, or RX Bar on the road, or bring along oatmeal/grain cereal bowls (prepackaged) and get hot water from the hotel or gas station to mix.  You can bring chopped nuts and fresh fruit to add to your breakfast bowl as well.  

• Snacks:  snacks are great to have on a long road trip; just make sure you are mindful about how much you’re consuming (it’s easy to nibble all day long if you’re not careful).  
  • Homemade trail mix:  my favorite includes a variety of nuts/seeds, raw coconut flakes, dried cherries and dark chocolate baking chips.  
  • Chopped veggies & hummus.
  • Organic tortilla chips and premade guacamole.
  • Fruit.
  • Homemade oat/nut/chocolate/dried fruit cookies.

Consider how you can make some of your favorite meals ahead of time.  If you desire a hot meal while on the road, you can make a pot of soup or chili ahead of time and put it in a large thermos for the road.  

Stay well hydrated!  We carry reusable water bottles and for a treat, we’ll flavor our water with TrueLemon packets or Nuun tablets.  Depending on available space, we’ll bring extra water along, or fill up at every stop.  

Most importantly, a healthy road trip begins with a healthy mindset.  Honor your body whether at home, or on vacation.  There’s no need to go off the rails, or “eat whatever I want to eat” just because I’m on vacation.  Enjoy a treat here and there if you’d like, and stick to what you know serves you best.  Your body will love you for it and you’ll feel amazing all vacation long.  

It’s always an honor and joy to serve and support you in health and happiness.  I’d love to hear from you; feel free to connect with me: connect@angelagaffney.com.

Believe it can be!

xo,

Summer fun sometimes calls for a little nutrition reset.  This light, refreshing salad is one of my favorites and offers the body a fresh start.  It’s full of color and powerful phytonutrients to boost health, increase energy and detoxify.  Enjoy, and feel free to get creative; swap ingredients if you’ve got something else in the fridge, add a filet of wild-caught salmon, or top with grilled organic chicken.

It’s always an honor and joy to serve and support you in health and happiness.  I’d love to hear from you; feel free to connect with me: connect@angelagaffney.com.

Believe it can be!

xo,

On the flip side of that (I always enjoy being the devil’s advocate) the quality of a calorie can be drastically different. Let’s take a look…

200 CALORIE COMPARISONS

You can eat an Original Glaze Krispy Kreme doughnut for 200 calories.

OR

For the same 200 calories you could sauté the following list of vegetables and enjoy as part of your meal:
½ cup tomatoes
½ cup bell peppers
½ cup spinach
½ cup mushrooms
½ cup broccoli
½ cup asparagus
½ cup onion
½ cup carrots
½ cup cauliflower

That’s right, for 200 calories you get the whole list of vegetables, that’s 4 ½ cups of goodness!!!

It is more important to think of the quality of your calories versus just worrying about calorie consumption. If you choose the 4 ½ cups of vegetables you’re not only receiving the 200 calories you desire for energy but you’re filling your body with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals to fight disease and keep you healthy!

The Krispy Kreme doughnut is void of antioxidants, lacks vitamins and minerals and is high in trans-fat and sugar. This food product will disrupt your system and feed disease in the body.

While it is important to consider calories in –vs- calories out for weight loss and weight management, it is even more important to make sure the fuel you put in your body comes from nutrient-dense whole foods. It would be pretty challenging for anyone to eat 4 ½ cups of vegetables in one sitting because there would be too much volume, compared to our ability to eat the Krispy Kreme in a few minutes. Outside of a check-in here and there, I am not a believer of calorie-counting and would rather have you focus on giving your body the right fuel for best success. When you live this way, you will have a healthy relationship with food, without restriction.

Life is full of choices and we cannot expect ourselves to be perfect 100% of the time. My hope for you is that you choose wisely 80% of the time (or more); eating plant-based, nutrient-dense foods so you can soak up all the health benefits and feel well. For the other 20% of the time, enjoy a special treat if you desire…of course, try to choose a whole food treat to avoid trans fats and large amounts of sugar. 

So is the answer TRUE or FALSE? I’ll leave it up to you to decide.