“How can I travel and stay healthy?”
I get that question all the time from clients that are afraid to travel for fear they won’t be able to find restaurants or hotels to accommodate their new and improved eating habits.
It’s much easier to retain health and wellness while traveling than you may think.
By using my three easy tips, you will probably come back from any trip feeling even more vibrant than ever.
Here’s how…
Stay at an airbnb!
When traveling, I like to ensure that I can cook for myself and/or my family. Not every meal, of course. But, certainly breakfast and a few dinners.
We all know that vacations and travel can be expensive. And, eating out three times a day for seven days (or longer) can compound that expense and contribute to financial stress.
If you’re stressed out, you won’t be able to fully enjoy your time away.
That’s why access to a kitchen is non-negotiable for me.
I’m not talking about a microwave and a coffee pot. I’m talking about a fully stocked kitchen with pots and pans, utensils, and knives.
Thankfully, this is available at most Airbnb’s, as opposed to hotels or motels.
I’m not knocking hotels and motels. They are great for short stays (1-2 nights). But, for a weeklong trip, or even a long weekend, I gotta have a kitchen!
For example, check out this kitchen at an eco-friendly Airbnb in Nevada.
It’s got a ton of counter space to slice, dice and prep food (pictured above).
And, everything we need to get cooking; pot, pans, cooking utensils, knives, and a stocked spice rack.
As an extra bonus… there’s an outdoor grill by the pool which makes my hubby very happy!
Knowing I have access to a kitchen, the next part of my journey is finding local and seasonal food.
This helps my body become acclimated to any type of new environment.
When the physical body is properly aligned and supported by eating ingredients from the surrounding fauna and flora, guess what happens to your energy?
You get connected to the planet you are living on and feel a natural boost.
It’s kinda like plugging in your phone when it needs to be charged. Except, you are plugging your human body into the local environment.
A quickie example is eating a hearty, warming New England clam chowder if you travel to Maine during the cold weather months, or a refreshing mango salad if you land in Sub-tropical sunny south Florida.
Making wise food choices in each environment and climate where you travel to, gives your body the fuel it needs to thrive.
I cover that ancient healing wisdom more in depth here: Can eating pineapples for breakfast be healthy?
With that in mind, how can you find local food if you’re unfamiliar with the area?
It’s easy!
Use Localharvest.org.
Simply enter the zip code for wherever you are and you’ll get a listing of all of the food co-ops, farmer’s markets and farms that supply local, seasonal and naturally raised foods in that area.
When I entered the zip code for this Airbnb in Nevada, I got access to 29 places where I could source local, seasonal great quality ingredients (fruits, veggies, pastured eggs, grass-fed meats, mushrooms, herbs, artisan products and more).
And, if you would rather shop at a traditional market for good quality food, you’re bound to find a local Whole Foods Market in most major cities, including this one.
Beyond food, one of my favorite ways to remain healthy and happy while traveling is to get my feet on the ground and do some hiking or walking.
This is one of the BEST ways to prevent/reduce symptoms of jet lag.
Getting outside in nature for a morning walk (or a hike) resets your circadian rhythms and helps you sleep better.
Trust me, it works like a charm!
Simply enter the city or state where you would like to find a hiking trail or an outdoor nature path into Alltrails.com or Gaiagps.com and voila!
You get access to the great outdoors, get yourself grounded, and reset your bodily rhythms.
When I entered the “Las Vegas” area into the alltrails.com website, it showed me 182 trails!
Holy cow! Who knew all of that outdoor goodness was available in sin-city.
Take a look for yourself: https://www.alltrails.com/us/nevada/las-vegas
The picture above is from Red Rock Canyon National Conservation in Nevada. If you haven’t seen the red rocks yet, it’s worth a trip.
Using the three simple tips above, I’ve got a place to stay with a fully-stocked kitchen where I can cook local and seasonal food (and save some money), relieve jet-lag naturally, boost my energy, and feel fabulous!
Plus, with the money I save from cooking some of my own meals, I can head over to the Las Vegas strip and catch a star-studded show, and eat out at a 4 star restaurant. Life is good!
Take some simple travel savvy with you, and no matter where you land in the world, you will easily ensure that you’ll be healthier, happier and feeling fabulous by the time you get back!
Happy trails!
Andrea Beaman is an internationally renowned Holistic Health Coach, Natural Foods Chef, Speaker, Herbalist and best-selling author. Named one of the top 100 Most Influential Health and Fitness Experts, she is also a recipient of the Natural Gourmet Institute’s Award for Excellence in Health-Supportive Education and a Health Leadership award from The Institute for Integrative Nutrition. Since 1999, Andrea has been teaching people how to harness the body’s own preventative and healing powers using food, herbal remedies and alternative medicine.
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