Tag Archives: Travel

All or Nothing?

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This past week, I was out in Los Angeles with the basketball teams that I work with. It was a great trip (fun, sun, and basketball, how can you go wrong?), but it also threw me way off  my fitness and nutrition routine.

InNOut

Instead of home cooked meals, I was at the mercy of college basketball players to decide where I would be eating. Don’t get me wrong, In ‘N Out Burger is pretty damn tasty as far as burgers go, but it doesn’t settle well in a stomach that’s used to home cooked goodness with lots of veggies.  Along the same lines, instead of my weight room, I was stuck with a fitness center that included, you guessed it, cardio equipment and weight machines.

Anyone who follows along with my workout routine knows that I don’t do much work on machines, except the occasional cable work. I don’t spend a ton of time on the treadmill normally, but in a gym like this, there wasn’t much else available. There weren’t even any dumbbells!  I realized, after being in there for 5 minutes, that I was either going to have to get creative, or I was going to have to sell my soul to the devil and do squats on the Smith Machine.  Don’t worry, my soul is still intact.

I also would have gone to run hills outside, except for the fact that I saw multiple Coyotes in the hills around our resort during our stay there, so that was kind of out of the question.

But instead of throwing up my hands in frustration because I couldn’t get my normal workout in, I decided that something was better than nothing, and started figuring out what I could do in there.

I used a few machines here and there; I put the treadmill on a serious incline and power walked a few times; I did plenty of push-ups; I grabbed the plates off of the Smith Machine and did farmers walks back and forth; I also flipped those plates up into rack position and used that for squats/split squats/and reverse lunges. And when I needed to take my workout outside (I was in California afterall!), I ran up and down the 3 flights of stairs outside while bumping Girl Talk on my iPhone. (No Coyotes on the stairs, you see).

And then on the last morning we were there, my co-worker and I got up early to hike up to the Hollywood Sign. Combining touristy activities with a workout? WINNING.

LAHikeOn top of LA… You can see half of the H from the Hollywood Sign behind me

So while it wasn’t my ideal week of lifting, and I didn’t really get any heavy lifts in at all, it was better than nothing. I was able to partially offset my less-than-stellar food intake enough to avoid feeling like a total blob, and now I’ll be ready to get back to my routine much more so than if I had avoided the gym all together.

I also tried to salvage my diet by buying this drink one day…

veggiedrinkIt had plenty of nutrients that I needed, but don’t let the label fool you. It tasted… salty. 

Yuck.

Anyways…

So many times when we travel, or even if we’re at home but there’s a lot going on, people get stuck in the mindset that if they can’t do their normal routine, that it’s not worth doing anything at all. In fact, just Saturday, I knew I wasn’t healthy enough to hit the gym hard yet due to a lingering cold, but does that mean I need to sit on my ass all day? Nope, I went out for a nice long walk to get some fresh air and get my blood pumping. Hard workout? Not at all. Good for me and better than doing nothing? You bet!

So next time you’re stuck in a crappy fitness center with no squat rack in sight, or entertaining your in-laws with no more than 20 min to yourself, remember that anything you can do to get your blood pumping is much better than avoiding it all together. Hate running on the treadmill? Do an incline walk or interval run. Hate weight machines? Either suck it up or use your creativity to come up with something better. Find a hill and walk/run up it (but avoid the coyotes, they’re vicious. They eat cats.)  The point? Do something.

This also goes for New Years Resolutions/Goals. If you’re stuck in an all-or-nothing mindset, you’re basically doomed when it comes to your fitness/nutrition goals. Keep yourself on track by knowing that some things are just out of your control, but as long as you keep moving forward, even if it’s only by the tiniest of baby steps, you’re headed in the right direction.

Did you get stuck in a fitness/nutrition rut over the holidays? What steps did you take to make sure you didn’t get totally off track? What’s your plan of action when you can’t go through your normal gym routine?

7 Travel-Healthy Tips

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The volleyball team I work with recently won their conference championship (Yay!) and made it into the NCAA tournament. The first round of the tournament was held in Connecticut, which is a few hours away from us in Boston.  This required an overnight stay at the very least, and up to a 3 night stay depending on how well my team did. Since I didn’t know how long I’d be gone, I didn’t want to chance missing out on 3-4 days of workouts, so I made some effort to be prepared to get a decent workout in even if the hotel we’re staying at didn’t have a great fitness center (or even if it didn’t have one at all).

If you follow me on Instagram you’ve already seen this photo.. A chaotic pile right after the final point in the conference championship match. WINNING! 

 Even though traveling for an NCAA tournament is not on most people’s weekly to-do list, I know a lot of you travel for work, and many of us will also be traveling at the end of this week for Thanksgiving.  Whether traveling for business or pleasure, many of you may get anxious about missing your normal workout routine while on the road, and rightly so. Being thrown off of your routine can be stressful in itself! So I’ve put together a few tips for keeping your health on track when you’re on the road, whether it’s for a few days, a few weeks, or anything in between.

Travel Health and Fitness Made Easy:

1. Invest in some packable gear. As I’ve shown you all here, I have plenty of packable workout gear at home that can easily come with me on the road. When I travel, I generally take at least a resistance band loop, and will sometimes throw in the val slides or jump rope depending on how much room I have.  That way, even if the hotel doesn’t have a fitness center, at least you have a little something with you to spice up your workouts in your room (or to add to a lackluster hotel gym that doesn’t offer what you want).

Jump rope and my version of ValSlides

2. Pack your workout outfit(s) first. If you leave your workout clothes until the end of packing, chances are you’ll decide that they “just wont fit”. Placing them in your suitcase first will avoid that nonsense, and realistically, a tank, shorts, and sports bra won’t take up that much room to begin with. If you’re only traveling for a few days, one outfit should do it (although if you sweat like me, you may have to rinse and hang dry in your hotel bathroom). If your trip is longer, you still don’t need to bring too much more than a couple of outfits, because laundry can always be done (or clothes can just be worn sweaty).

3. Bring along healthy snacks. Anyone that knows me knows I’m a snack person. This is never more exaggerated than when I travel. I seem to have a “but what if I get hungry” complex, where I can’t pack for a trip without a pocket of my bag specifically designated for snacks. However, this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, since food on the road is often less healthy than what you get at home. Having your own healthy snacks on hand is a good way to avoid hitting the drive through when your energy levels crash.

One of my usual travel snacks: satisfying, portable, healthy and delicious! 

4. Stick to the plan. I can’t stress this one enough. It can be so easy to go all willy nilly when you’re on a trip. The more you try to stick with your normal food routine, the better off you’ll be. For some reason, when I’m on a trip I always want to eat way more often than I do at home. Reminding yourself of your normal food schedule and generally sticking to it can help prevent you from going too far off the deep end. That being said, I’m also a believer in enjoying your vacation. So if your trip is not a work trip, but a vacation, there’s no need to go hog wild at the buffett, but do please let yourself enjoy some foods that aren’t in your normal rotation.

5. Stay hydrated. Staying hydrated can be one of the most important things when it comes to staying alert, healthy, and just feeling like “yourself”, but it is often the first thing to be forgotten when people travel. Carry a reusable (preferably stainless steal or glass) water bottle and drink up often; it may even be worth it to schedule hydration times into your day. (This is especially applicable if you’re traveling by air). Staying hydrated can also stave off mystery food cravings, and can decrease the urge to munch in between meals.

6. Be Flexible. I know, I know. I said above to try to stick to your plan as much as possible. But what I’m referring to here is your fitness routine. On that specific trip, I missed my beloved deadlift day in the weight room. Did the Holiday Inn in New London Connecticut have a weight rack for me to deadlift? Of course not. But scrapping a whole workout because you can’t do what you planned is just nonsense. Be flexible when you need to, and get a little creative if the equipment available to you is sub-par. And this brings me to my last point, which is…

7. Scope out the joint. At the very least, find out what sort of fitness center (if any) your hotel offers before you go. When I’m traveling for work, I generally don’t have a lot of time for workouts, and when I’m traveling for pleasure, I don’t want to spend all of my time in the hotel gym. Knowing ahead of time what they have to offer will help you to plan your workouts, keeping them quick, efficient, and effective.

How do you keep your health and fitness on track when you travel? Do you tend to eat more or less when you’re on the road? Do you have any small exercise gear you bring along on trips? 

You Ate ALL The Food?

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Happy Independence Day to all my US readers! Does anyone have any cool plans for the holiday?

And in unrelated patriotic news…

When I was in St. Louis and Memphis over the past week, I think I ate all of the food in both cities. All of the food, and all of the coffee.

Whoops.

Would you like to see a few of these morsels? I know how some of you truly enjoy food voyeurism. And it just so happens that it’s Wednesday… so I’m going to go ahead and link up to the WIAW party over at Peas and Crayons (even though this is kind of cheating, it’s not a true WIAW. But I don’t care)

St Louis: 

There are 2 places I want to talk about in this lovely city, both of which we unfortunately did not find until the last night/last day. The last night we were there, we had gotten a recommendation to visit Broadway Oyster House, so we decided to give it a try. In my head, I was picturing some fancy schmancy oyster house, with tiny plates and even tinier food. BOY was I wrong.

I know, the flash completely blanked out the name. Sorry! 

The name was deceiving, as it was actually a little old Cajun restaurant/bar with the most delicious looking menu I’ve ever seen. Jumbalaya, Crawfish, Alligator, Gumbo Ya-Ya, Etouffee, the list went on and on. How does a girl choose?

I ended up going with the Crawfish Etouffee, which was like a party in my mouth. No, not just any party, like the BEST PARTY YOU’VE EVER BEEN TO. If you’ve never tried Etoufee (shrimp or crawfish), shame on you. Go down south and get on that.

Crawfish Etouffee. *drool*

I also had some crawfish, because who can resist sucking juices out of a crustaceons head?

Why hello, Sir! Don’t mind me while I break you in half, eat your tail meat, and suck out your brains. 

The next morning, I decided to skip the out-the-door line at Starbucks before heading over  to the convention center. I wandered about a block and a half away, and stumbled upon a little coffee shop/cafe that served all local fresh foods. Score!

Local Harvest had just opened up about 3 weeks ago, so there were still a few glitches in their system but overall it was wonderful. I loved it so much that after my breakfast and coffee, I ended up back there for lunch!

The berry/granola parfait I got for breakfast. I also had them add in a dollop of organic peanut butter so that it would keep me full for a long day of lectures!

I came back for lunch with one of my friends, and had this delicious turkey sandwich with all local and fresh ingredients. 

Memphis:

To put it simply, Memphis rocks.

Not only does it rock, literally, with live music up the Wazoo, but the food is freaking delicious too!

Our first morning there, we were wandering through the blistering heat trying to get to a coffee shop. That is, until, we walked by Automatic Slims, looked at the menu, and decided that crab cakes benedict sounded far better than walking 3 more blocks for coffee. In we went for a brunch that left us both drooling!

Probski one of the best bloody mary’s I’ve ever had. Don’t judge. 

This was called the Slim’s Scrambler, and was farm fresh eggs, fresh tomatoes, red onions, potatoes, and chorizo, with some miracle of a sauce on top. SO GOOD. 

That brunch left us full for the entire day… All the way through our trip to Graceland (which is probably one of the coolest places I’ve been to). Hanging out in Elvis’ house? Yes, please!

Me with my awesome head set straight from the 80s, getting ready for the Graceland Audio Tour. Dorkfest. 

Once we got back from The Kings’ mansion, we prettied ourselves up and headed towards Beale St for some real Memphis BBQ.

We ended up at Blues City BBQ for some ribs, and they didn’t disappoint! We shared a rack of ribs, and although it was far too dark in there to get a good shot, I’ll give you what I got even though it kind of just looks like an animal carcass.

I know, I know, that’s technically what it is, but still. I should be able to take a prettier picture than that! Let me tell you though, the meat was just Falling right off those bones and melting in my mouth. Yum-O.

And let’s not forget to mention all of the nutritional goodies that I snagged while walking around the NATA trade show back in St. Louis.

Most of the spread on my hotel bed. 

I think I spent one visit to the exhibit hall on a hunt strictly for protein, and it paid off! This stuff was my #1 free find …

The folks at EAS were kind enough to give me this full sized tub of protein, and although I think the name is stupid (Shocker… protein shakes will not make you “lean and toned”) I’m not going to turn down free protein, especially this much of it. Score!

That’s all for today folks, enjoy your holiday!

Trip Recap #2: Barcelona

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Hola Amigos! It’s now time for the second half of my trip recap: Barcelona.

Similar to my last post, I’ll give you some food photos, some fun pics, and then a few thoughts and observations from my 3 days in Barcelona. This time though, at the request of some of my awesome readers, I’m giving you a few more food pics.. And while I guess this isn’t a traditional What I Ate Wednesday post, it’ll do for now. With my own little spin, I present to you What I Ate Wednesday… on my trip! Ready?

Just like in Paris, there was certainly an overabundance of cappuccino involved in Barcelona, and each place was even better than the last:

This was at a little cafe near our hotel (Hotel Guillermo Tell), that we returned to several times. Perfection! 

And then, of course, how can you go to Barcelona and not have Churros…

Health food they are not, but when served with a mug of warm, gourmet chocolate for dipping, how can you resist?

And then there was my adventurous Tapas meal…

Traditional Catalano sausage (and blood sausage). Not my cup of tea, but hey, at least I tried it! 

Grilled squid… Actually quite good, once you get past the texture. 

Potato Meat Balls… Delish! 

A delicious goat cheese and tomato salad. 

One of my favorite things that we had several times was the Tomato Bread:

Simple, but mouth-wateringly delicious. Served here alongside a spinach and goat cheese salad (can you tell I kind of have a thing for goat cheese?) 

A little “Meat Pie” I got from a sidewalk cafe:

This was beef covered with olives, onions, a layer of potato, and then a very thin layer of cheese on top. Kind of like a Shepherds Pie, but with a little twist! 
On our last night there, we waited a little bit too long to start looking for dinner, so in my beginning stages of extreme-hunger-rage (EHR…It’s real), I decided on a meal that I was more familiar with:

But it didn’t disappoint! Wonderfullly cooked salmon with a side of steamed veggies…I was craving veggies so much at that point I’m pretty sure I inhaled them :)  This was also served with a side of Tomato Bread…I couldn’t resist! 

And of course, let’s not forget to mention the main course of the trip: Sangria!

We sat in this courtyard drinking this little pitcher of sangria for about 2 hours on our first night there, while listening to music and people-watching. I couldn’t have asked for anything better!  We actually loved it so much we went back for more on our last night. Perfect end to the trip. 

Now that I’ve made some of you drool a little bit (come on, even if those grilled squid didn’t  strike your fancy, I know you can’t resist All of this goodness), let’s chat a little bit about what I learned in Barcelona.  First of all, I’m not even positive that I can actually put what I learned there into words, but I’ll give it a good shot for you fine folks :)

  • Smile: Honestly, people in Barcelona seemed so happy as a whole. We saw mini parades, music troupes, street musicians, and everyone seemed like they were celebrating something. From tourists, to locals, to foreign shop keepers, it was tough to find someone having a bad day! That’s a little bit more than I can say for the stereotypical New Englander who is too busy rushing everywhere to stop and give out a few smiles. So slow down there, and show someone your pearly whites why don’t ya!
  • We Don’t Need To Eat So Much: Ok, I didn’t actually learn this there, but the observation deserves a little attention here. Every time we went out to eat, no matter the type of restaurant, we were both given the perfect amount of food to satisfy us. No heaping portions, no giant plates, no meals big enough to feed a whole family. It also bears mentioning that it was extremely difficult to find overweight and obese locals… Maybe it’s because people over there haven’t grown accustomed to the giant serving sizes we see in America, therefore they actually stop eating when they are satisfied?
  • Churros look really funny but they taste like a dream. ’nuff said.
  • Brighten Up! If there is one thing Barcelona isn’t, that is drab. The city is full of color everywhere – on clothing, art, buildings — Everywhere! Sure, Gaudi had a lot to do with that, as his colorful (and beautiful) buildings and mosaics are sprinkled throughout the city, but there’s also more to it. Beyond the bright colors everywhere, the people of Barcelona exude a certain sense of happiness, brightness, pride and celebration that I haven’t seen before. It’s not difficult to walk around that city and find something of exquisite beauty, but beyond that it’s also very common to find people singing, dancing, and enjoying life. How awesome is that?
  • To be so awesome, you must never sleep: Seriously. I don’t know when people in Barcelona sleep. They don’t go to dinner until 11 pm, even on weeknights, and then they stay out until the wee hours of the morning on a regular basis. Even the night we walked back home at 3:30 am the streets were still packed with people. When do they sleep? And is not sleeping really the key to all that happiness?
  • Enjoy the moment: As I mentioned in my last post, I noticed that people over there seem to take a little bit more time to enjoy the smaller moments throughout the day. I tried to do this as much as possible while I was there — just sitting and letting everything soak in instead of worrying about what I was going to do next. This is something that we can all try to do more of in our daily lives I think. If you’re always looking towards the next thing, you may miss what’s right in front of you. Just soak it up!

Enjoying the view and the beauty of Guell Parc from this beautiful Mosaic Bench that Gaudi built 

Another Gaudi structure, this one right downtown. The colors and shapes are breathtaking in person! 

Enjoying some of that delicious Sangria! 

To wrap this up, traveling can be life changing if you let it. Even if it’s just a quick trip like the one I just took, immersing yourself in new cultures, eating new foods, speaking or listening to new languages, and trusting yourself to find your way around a new and unfamiliar place can all change you, even if just a little bit. I know I’ll savor this trip forever, and I’ll think of these memories and images often. And I know, without a doubt, I’ll be back.

Where is your favorite place you’ve travelled?

Food, Photos, and What I Learned In Paris

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Bon jour!

I have finally had time to reorganize and resettle after returning from my trip a week ago! I finally got 100% unpacked, put everything away, uploaded photos, and have had a few minutes to sit and reflect on the trip. So what I’m going to give you over the next couple of posts are food pictures, some fun pictures, and also a little bit about what I learned in each city I visited.

I truly believe that every time you travel someplace where the customs are so different from what you’re used to, you learn things without even trying. (And if you don’t learn anything, maybe you just need to pay a little bit closer attention to your surroundings).

With that being said, let me begin by taking you on a mini-food tour of my three days in Paris…

First, there were the crepes:

The first morning there, I had a lovely crepe with ham, cheese, and a runny egg. Unfortunately I didn’t get a photo of that one, but this one with Nutella and Banana is a pretty good substitute! 

There was also quite a bit of cappuccino and espresso involved…

Sitting and enjoying these at little sidewalk cafes was most certainly one of my favorite parts of the trip! 

And then of course, the pastries:

A delicious, delectable, chocolate croissant

A lemon tart pastry… also known as a little piece of heaven. 

And yes, in between all of these sweets, carbs, and caffeine, I did enjoy some real meals as well:

Our picnic dinner beneath the Eiffel Tower on the last night. I was craving veggies at that point, so I picked up a little carrot-slaw to accompany my fresh baguette, goat cheese, and champagne :)  

Goat cheese, fresh mint, and a drizzle of honey in a pastry shell, accompanied by a small arugula salad. So simple, yet this was probably my favorite thing that I ate during the entire trip. 

There were other meals too, but I’m sure you guys don’t want to see every single thing I ate for a week (that would get a little boring, no?)

Beautiful sculptures inside the Louvre. 

Now on to the other part of this post: What did I learn from the French?

This one is easy, and is something that you can probably gather from all of the food pictures.  And it’s actually rather simple:

Indulge, enjoy, and savor (life). 

On the surface, this applies to food (bread, wine, cheese and pastries in particular), but it also goes a lot deeper than that (more on that in a second). In essence, it’s ok to indulge in decadent foods and savor every bit of it. The french eat bread like it’s their job. They walk through the streets carrying baguettes home to share with their friends and families for dinner. They savor a meal with friends, enjoying not only the food, but the company and the experience of it all. They have picnics beneath the twinkling Eiffel Tower at 10 pm on a weeknight, and they sit at sidewalk cafes taking an hour to enjoy a tiny cup of espresso.  There are lines out the door of pastry shops during lunch time; young professionals in suits lining up for an eclair (yes, really).

 But beyond the food, they seem to savor the experiences that go with it. There aren’t a whole lot of paper coffee cups being carried around the streets, nor are there fast food joints at every corner. It’s less about on-the-go, how-fast-can-you-get-where-you’re-going-while-eating-that-bagel, and more about enjoying the moment that you’re in. Doesn’t that seem like a great way to live (and eat)?

I’m not suggesting that we all sit around and eat pastries every day, but I AM saying that when we do eat a pastry, or some fine cheese, or indulge in a little bit too much wine, that we don’t have to beat ourselves up over it. Enjoy the experience you had, linger in the moment, and then move on. It’s really very simple.

And chocolate croissants are delicious. 

Another thing I learned from the Parisians? Always wear your leather jacket and scarf. I swear, even when it was 70 degrees outside, almost everyone was still in their leather jacket and scarf. Tres chic :)

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go back and drool over that goat cheese/mint/pastry picture. I’ll be back in a couple days with some thoughts and pictures from Barcelona. Enjoy!