The Traveler's Diet

If even the author is miserable on it how can it be attainable in the long term? I been on diets like that and as soon as I goaled the binging began a new. I allow myself some chocolates but I have to make sure they are worth my calories.

I always pack myself a lunch, request a vegetarian (low fat if available) meal prior to flights and try to sleep the majority of the way if the trip is long.
I always carry a printout of major fast food places' nutritional facts and use common sense when going to restaurants (eg: mostly vegetables, no cream sauces, soup and salad first, little or low fat dressing. nothing fried etc.).
When it comes to travelling, I try not to get too hung up about what I eat: moderation and plenty of exercise. Stay away from rental cars whenever possible(I walked through all of Montreal in 3 days, while eating mounds of poutine, pancakes, fruit, desserts etc. and still lost almost 2 lbs when I got home). Makes things more enjoyable too.

This guy is odd... I just retrained my brain (easier said than done, it took me 3 years) I think I haven't eaten a candy bar (ok I had a hershey's chocolate bar) in about 2 years and don't miss it at all. There is just too large a variety of healthy foods, I'd rather try them all.

What about grains? Sure enough, he is missing on the "Snicker's bar" because of the sugar content in it. But cutting back on grains and whole grains is even tougher. I've lost 95 pounds, but I developed severe cravings on cereal and breads. I will try next week to start the day off on an apple and maybe a few nuts instead of junk cereal. It's however great that I develop a resistance towards cake, french fries, and sugary foods.

Trans fats, Sugar, Starch, and Grains. It's why we are obese.

And ask the food manufactures and this FDA to quit this nonsense lying and acting on our citizens, stop using hydronated oils, quit feeding our cows and chickens garbage, and stop the lying about grains and soy. Remember, our ancesters ate fruits, vegtables, nuts and beans, and wild meat, but no grains or processed sugar crap. Do cows eat grains? No. Cows eat grass.

James: Humans can't digest grass -- cows have four stomachs!

Surely our ancesters ate bread? (I realise it depends how far back you go -- but bread's been around for at least a few thousand years.)

There's nothing wrong with grains, particularly wholemeal ones. Sure, highly processed foods stuffed with fat/sugar/salt are never going to be great for you, but potatoes, wholemeal pasta, fresh bread, etc are fine. I'm not sure why you're so anti-carbs; they're needed for energy.

Grains are not fine. They contain carbohydrates. Although they are conplex, they act like simple carbohydrates that spike your insulin levels. Vegtables do contain carbohydrates, but these carbohydrates break down more slowly, and have a lower GI value in them. Plus, you have a longer term energy from eating vegtables. Fruits are richer in fiber, so the simple carbohydrates arn't as much as a problem.

Add these grain carbohydrates with gluten, plytic acid, and antinutrients that damages the cell receptors causing the immune system to malfunction and you've got mega problems. Breads may have around for thousands of years, but the human life expectancy thousands of years ago was only around 25 years. Before bread was invented, humans lived for as long as 65 to 75 years, and medicine wasn't available then.

Insulin levels rising after eating eating carbs is completely normal and a crucial function for the body! The only time this becomes a problem is when people eat only refined carbs and fats and not much else and their insulin levels go up and down. It creates even more cravings to sweets and refined carbs. This leads to obesity which will cause the insulin function to go nuts and the blood sugar levels will ultimately remain constantly high as the body's ability to control insulin diminishes. And this will lead to adult type diabetes.

I, for one, eat oat porridge or wholegrain bread every morning, lots of it, too. Just a month ago my blood sugar levels were checked 90 min after breakfast: my blood sugar level was 4.8 mmol/l, equal to optimal fasting levels (=no eating in 12 hours) of blood sugar (4 - 8 mmol/l). So much for grains spiking MY insulin.

The fibre that is in grains essentially slows the absorption of carbs. And grains are the best source of fibre by far. Sure there is fibre in fruit and vegetables, too, but the content is much smaller, and a big portion of the fibre is inulin which is absorbed in the intestines. The non-absorbing fibre that is in grains in essential in reducing the risk of developing an intestinal cancer.

There is no evidence that vegetables would give a longer term energy than grains. Studies regarding macronutriens have shown than protein is the best source of long-term energy and feeling of fullfillment. Grains are high in protein, too.

It is highly questionable to claim that grains would cause immune system malfunction. In western countries people live up to 100 years, never in human history have people lived so long. And most of these 90 year olds would say that it is not only medicine that has kept them going. If I get to see 90 years and then die because of "immune system malfunction" because I ate grains, so be it!

Where does this claim come from that before agriculture (and therefore, bread) humans lived for 65 years? Agriculture is said to be the only reason human civilization could ever have started to flourish. Nourishment improved dramatically thus enabling people to live longer. If our ancestors hadn't eaten their breads even James would not be sitting here and writing about bisons.

There is so much stuff in the comments about grains, I couldn't remember what the post was about. But I'll put my two cents worth in as well. I was diagnosed as a type II diabetic and put on glucophage. I lost weight and got off the meds. I'm still losing weight, and exercising everyday. Getting to the point, I eat grains every day, and I haven't had high or low blood sugar in a year. I believe is it the portions that people take in that causes obesity, as well as sloth. Just one man's opinion.

You know what though, there are a lot of things that are less than fun about having to travel regularly for business. Yes, eating well while traveling may be miserable, especially if you've been used to squelching lonliness and alienation with a huge plate of cheese fries. But if you chose that sort of job, it doesn't excuse you from being responsible about your weight. Even if it's a lot more enjoyable to treat every business trip as a diet vacation.

Grains were a staple for our ancestors. Just look at the Bible -- they ate wheat, bread with and without yeast, and barley. They even ate the wheat still out in the fields. The feeding of the 5,000 included barley loaves.

But for traveling (in U.S., with a vehicle) and staying healthy: we usually get sandwich supplies at the local grocery store (Walmarts are conveniently located in many towns, but other grocery stores if not), keep a few basic foods in a small cooler, and prepare sandwiches for each day. It's also easy to buy basic fruits and vegetables to eat during travel, such as baby carrots, apples, bananas, raisins, etc. and keep the eating-out to a minimum, maybe once or twice during a week-long trip. Often motel rooms will have a microwave if heated food is desired. Small room refrigerators are also often available.

This book seems to be yet another printed guilt trip to stare at us from the book shelves.

I admit that I tend to snack while driving - that's why I've finally taken the effort to provide myself baby carrots or grapes instead of relying on junk food from convenience stores. That's a small change (that still takes effort) in a long built habit, but it still adds stress to my trip (you know, expending energy fighting off the urge to just get a bag of chips for something crunchy/salty?).

Most travel is stressful enough without worrying about keeping food fresh, bringing utensils for preparing it, figuring out where to prepare it, keeping it from sogging in the cooler when the ice melts, etc. I mean, when we go on a nice family vacation, where we're driving and our only schedule is "be at this hotel on Saturday," that's fine, I can pack a cooler and make some sandwiches and plan for which meals are out and which are prepared by us. But, for business or time-table traveling, I SHOULD be able to do the same preparations, but can't. There's too much stress from getting somewhere on time, being prepared for meetings, following directions, driving in a strange area, etc.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that this author will get rich off the sales of a book that really isn't going to help anyone. We all know what we could do to keep on track while traveling. It's the same thing we do at home: eat right and exercise - every town has a grocery store and almost every hotel has a gym. Buying this book will just make people feel even more guilty about the fact that they give up a healthy lifestyle for the conveniences/indulgences of diet-vacations while traveling.

Finally, my tips for keeping on track on the road: Pack a cooler with bottled water and finger fruits and veggies. This way, rest stops have one less purpose and you're not limited to the selection of the vending machines. Oh, and if you see a Dairy Queen, keep on driving, do not turn in, do not buy ice cream.... :-)

-Danielle

It does have some decent points, but as you have said, the reader has to pick through it quite carefully.

Definitely not for someone who is a "beginner"....

Again with the grain wars...sheesh, I'm getting sick of it. No one's forcing anyone to eat grains, but they are a great source of energy for those of us who need it (ie, ATHLETES!) James, I wonder if you work out very strenuously? Because you'd have to eat a LOT of fruits and veggies to get the carb content of a bowl of say, stone ground oats or barley or quinoa or brown rice. Whole grains don't spike your blood sugar, refined carbs do since there's no fiber with them to slow the absorption.

But getting back to the travel thing...On planes, I order the kosher or vegetarian meal (just call ahead, they'll prepare one for you) and pack my carryon with fresh veggies and fruit to snack on. In restaurants, I know the key words to look for...steamed, fresh, grilled, raw, with broth,etc. And also ones to avoid...cream, bechamel, hollandaise, rich, hearty, gravy, cheesy, crispy, fried, etc. I try to get a salad (most places offer one) and get the dressing on the side.

it's not about diets, it's about lifestyle changes!!! eating healthy shouldn't be something you do "sometimes" following a diet in a book ;-)

I travel with my job, and he stated it very well: it's HARD to get with a routine when you feel like your equilibrium is thrown off.

For me, for some reason, whenever I travel, my cravings FLY THROUGH THE ROOF. Does nayone else ever have this? I'm trying to get on a routine and train myself, it's been a slow process in "brain training", but the travel makes this process even slower. Another advice any of you have?

I also travel with my job- in fact, my entire job is traveling. I'm a dancer on an international tour with a broadway show at the moment, so obviously the problem of what to eat while traveling is one that I am faced with constantly. I find that the best way for me to survive the airport/plane ride portion of travel is simply to go to the grocery store first and stock up on healthy portable snacks like fruits, nuts, yogurt (can't wait too long to eat it, but it keeps for a while), and sandwiches.

I've actually found that the harder part for me isn't finding healthy food during the actual getting from one place to the other, but is instead the finding of healthy food once I have arrived at my destination. We travel throughout Europe and Asia, so it's incredibly difficult to even find foods you're familiar with, much less HEALTHY foods you're familiar with. The real problem comes when you've been eating Lord knows what covered in spicy, oily sauces for weeks and then suddenly stumble across a random McDonald's or KFC. The simple longing for something familiar is enough to have you running in, ordering a double quarter pounder with cheese, no onion, large fries, and a Strawberry Shake, and devouring it all in five minutes flat. What I need, if anyone knows where to find this, if it even exists, is some sort of nutrition information on local foods all over the world. If not, any tips on how to avoid this situation would be much appreciated. Oh, and Krista, with the cravings thing...totally right there with you!