Healthy Eating Tips for Road Trips- Abbey Sharp on The Marilyn Denis Show
For more great tips, recipes and news check out
www.abbeyskitchen.com
@AbbeysKitchen
Abbey Sharp, Registered Dietitian, offers her top tips for healthy eating on road trips. First you should pack snacks – almonds are one of my favourites because they have fibre, protein and healthy fats. If you do have space for a cooler, pack things like whole grain crackers with some cheese, fresh fruit with lemon and cinnamon, baby carrots with hummus, and of course lots of bottled water. Sometimes no matter how much you pack in that snack cooler, you need to stop at a road side fast food joint or diner for a bite. So if you’re at the coffee shop, a lot of people think the bran muffin is healthier, but it can have as much calories, fat and sugar as a doughnuts or cookie. Ideally get the little cups of yogurt with fruit, or whole grain oatmeal which is available now, and if they kids are really begging for a treat, go for choose biscotti which are naturally lower in sugar and fat or even just 1-2 mini doughnuts each. Portion control is key.
For some healthy eating tips on road trips when you stop at the gas station, ignore the Monster sized soft drinks and go for a citrus flavoured sparkling water to give that same fizziness as pop but for zero calories. For snacks, skip candy aisle, and head to the fridge section where nowadays they often have fresh fruit, yogurt, hard boiled eggs, and part skim cheese.
Finally, when you stop at fast food or restaurant chains, the key here is to avoid having super heavy or greasy meals that will leave you feeling lethargic, gassy and bloated. There are three things to remember when navigating the menus at your fast food.
1) Crispy on a menu always means battered and fried, which means twice the fat and extra calories, so always go for grilled options with your fish or chicken.
2) Sandwiches fillings like chicken salad or egg or tuna salad sound healthy b/c of the salad in the name, but they’re loaded with mayo and believe it or not have twice the calories as a BLT. Ideally, go for basic deli meats, lots of veggies and go for calorie free mustard instead of mayo.
3) Be smart with sides. Swap those fries for a baked potato, apple slices, a broth based soup, or a side salad. And choose your dressing wisely.
All of these healthy eating tips will help you eat better and feel better on your next road trip.
0:40 Abbey talks about almonds as her favourite snack because they dont need to be refrigerated
1:51 Abbey talks about packing a snack cooler
2:25 Abbey talks about healthier food picks at the coffee shop
4:00 Abbey discusses some of the best choices for healthy food at the gas station
5:20 Abbey discusses her top three tips for ordering on menus at the diner or restaurant