As I sit here and write this my brain barely feels like it works but I know this is important to share with you. This past weekend I was in central New York for a two-day course that consisted of about 20 hours of lecture in two days. Now this blog is not going to be about anything I learned while taking the course but it will be about some things I had to deal with during the weekend.

Unfortunately my eating was not as good as it could have been while away. It was a combination of not having access to the most nutritious meals, being so busy healthy eating was not in the top of my head, I was so hungry after 10 hours of lecturing I wanted to eat as soon as I could.

So what did I eat this weekend? Friday I had a burger and fries, Saturday steak potatoes and some veggies, and Sunday pasta and a side salad. Again this is by no means a “perfect” weekend of eating but it was good enough based on the situation I was in.

Now you will never be in the exact same as me this weekend but you will be in a similar situation at some point. Whether you are traveling for work, traveling for a kids sporting tournament, or just away on vacation there will be a time where eating “healthy” may be a challenge. I want to share with you the 4 biggest tips that will help you be “good enough” while traveling.

Traveling often means eating out which means you don’t have complete control over the items on the menu. However what you do have control over is where you go. Looking up restaurants before you travel will help you narrow down the ones with better options to eat. If the only thing you see on one menu is pizza burgers and wings maybe it is not the best option.

Besides not having the luxury of cooking in your home traveling often means you are very busy and don’t have much time to eat. You may find yourself starving and looking for the first thing you can put in your mouth. One way to help that is to plan ahead and pack some healthy snacks before you are on the move.

This may be the simplest tip but is still so effective. Anywhere you go you will be able to get drinkable water. Make sure you stock up on your water and drink plenty of it. Often times when we feel hungry we are actually just thirst, try drinking some water first to see if it fills you up.

Look there are certain things in life we can control and certain things we can’t. Sometimes what we eat when we travel falls under things we can’t. You are traveling enjoy yourself, accept it, and just get back into your normal habits when you are back home. Don’t beat yourself up for something that already happened.

Next time you travel think back to this blog and pick one of the tips to focus on and just do your best. Remember one of the most important things we say. Focus on good enough, not perfection because perfection does not exist.

-Coach Pat