Greetings from sunny California!
I’m here for a blog conference on behalf of Overstock.com, who I learned has WAY MORE to offer than just furniture and home goods, BUT I am loving this adorable hideaway dog (or cat) bed ottoman that I might purchase for my office for Murphy, so he doesn’t need to sit on my lap while I work. Thirty pound dog + hours of sitting at computer + a bad back = no bueno.
So, I had quite the full day of travel from Boston to Santa Barbara on Tuesday (I set my alarm for 3:31 AM), so I wanted to share my eats from the day. Traveling cross-country always makes me super hungry. Maybe it’s because I’m sitting on a plane with nothing else to do? Or maybe there’s just so many options TO EAT while waiting at the airport/during layovers? Or maybe because I gain an extra 3 hours flying westward, so I just need more food to fuel my day? It’s probably a combination of all these things, but, ultimately, I’m just HUNGRY. With that, here’s what I ate in a day (and why!) traveling cross-country!
On the drive to the airport: Iced coffee with cream and collagen for a little extra protein boost. (FYI: 2 tbsp has 12g protein. FYI #2: I mix the collagen with a little bit of warm water first and THEN mix it into my iced coffee, so it doesn’t clump together.) It was 4:00 AM when I left my house, so… coffee.
At the airport: Iced Americano from Starbucks with one pump of pumpkin spice syrup and milk. It was still a total sugar bomb, but less so than a regular PSL.
Breakfast from home: Scrambled eggs with breakfast potatoes and roasted zucchini. I made the eggs and put everything together in Tupperware the night before, so I ate it cold the next day, which surprisingly wasn’t terrible. I usually try to pack my own breakfasts when I travel because I feel like finding a healthy and satisfying one at the airport is usually a little tough. If I don’t pack breakfast from home, I will usually get the oatmeal from Starbucks and add a packet of nut butter, collagen, and/or protein powder from home for some staying power.
On the plane: Two hard-boiled eggs (purchased from ABP at the airport), Coconut Chocolate Rx Bar (from home), and a Granny Smith apple (from home). I have no idea why I didn’t think to hard-boil eggs at home, but I totally could have saved $4. Whomp whomp. I packed a bunch of snacks from home for “lunch” because I wasn’t sure if I’d have time to grab a real meal during my layover. I’m glad I had a few things on hand because I barely made my connecting flight to Santa Barbara!
On my second flight: Biscoff Cookies! I totally didn’t “need” these cookies, but, OMG, they’re so good. I couldn’t resist!
At the conference: Snack-size salad. When I arrived, lunch was being served and it was 3:30 pm EST, so I was definitely ready for a snack. I kept it semi-light with lots of greens, roasted potatoes, and a small serving of both chicken breast and steak.
Afternoon snack after meetings and a workout: Cookies & Cream Quest Bar. After a bunch of afternoon meetings, I hit the hotel gym for a super sweaty, 45-minute workout, so I refueled with a Quest Bar.
At the hotel bar: Wine time! A glass of Sauvignon Blanc because… wine.
Dinner started with: A piece of freshly baked Focaccia bread that I dipped into balsamic vinegar.
Dinner is served: Tuna tartare! So yum. I hardly ever eat fish at home, so I often order it when I’m dining out.
Overall, it wasn’t a terrible day of eating, especially since I was traveling and didn’t always have the best options available to me. I ate more sugar and relied on protein bars more than I usually do, but, like I mentioned above, I’m always more hungry when I travel, so I definitely could have made worse choices.
Question of the Day
How do your eating habits change when you travel? What are your strategies/tips/trick for sticking to a mostly healthy diet?
P.S. Be sure to enter the giveaways on CNC this week: Win a sports bra from the Moving Comfort Collection at Brooks Running and win a prize pack from CocoaVia. I will pick two winners early next week!
