Hola!
Summer is flying by and it has been way too long since I got a chance to sit down and post fresh content. This entry is coming to you from probably my very first PowerUp Nutrition client, none other than my husband and Masters Games athlete, Scott Tasaka.
Scott has had a lot of success competing in Crossfit, recently finishing 8th at the Crossfit Games in Madison in the 45-49 division and winning 2 events. This year was his third year qualifying for the Games and it came with a lot of additional challenges.
Back in September, Scott took on a new position at work involving a lot of travelling. In fact, this year he trained and qualified for the Games while being away from home about 50% of the time since January.
We have had a lot of time to find out what works and what doesn’t, and truly recognizing that perfection isn’t the goal, but consistency.
Read up and find out his top tips below. Questions are welcome! We will do our best to help you out. Being on the road does not mean you can’t succeed.
Annie 🙂
1)Â Â Â Â Â Advance planning: Â See what is nearby. Research some of your favorite macro-friendly restaurants (Chipotle, Blaze Pizza; many chains have nutritional info online) for both lunches and dinners. As well as where the nearest grocery store is where you can pick up some quality snacks or even meals (WholeFoods).
2)     What does the hotel you are staying at have? Ideally you will have a refrigerator. Some hotels offer free breakfast, but expect to have some less favorable macro options such as higher fat meats and full fat cheeses and spreads.  I typically supplement/replace the hotel breakfasts with store bought items. (see 3)
3)     Grocery shop early.  I make sure to go buy my snacks for the week, along with anything else to help me with my daily macros. I buy lean cuts of ham to supplement my free hotel breakfast. Greek yogurt, fruit, and some snack (protein or cereal) bars to get through the days.  The key is that if you know that staying under your fat total or hitting your protein number will be hard, then use these snacks that you have full control over to help get you there. On the road I find both staying under on fat and meeting my protein are the two toughest hurdles when dining out. (Priority here is protein first, then controlling total calories when going over on fat can’t be avoided.)
4)     Lunch and dinner are tough especially if you are expected to be social. Many places have their nutritional information on line or in the My Fitness Pal app. So the key here is to, once again, plan ahead.   As a non-drinker I typically don’t have to concern myself with those calories/carbs, but as a dessert lover this tests my will. (Great option is a nice grilled steak + menu items with the least amount of ingredients. Loaded salads are often a macros disaster.)
5)     Know what restaurants can work best with macros. Related to the above, you will find places such as Subway can be good options as you can control a lot of what goes into the meal. Again, check menus and nutritionals. I have a favorite pizza place I frequent as their meals work pretty well.
6)     Never throw in the towel. Just because you were stuck in a meeting and they ordered in Chinese food and cupcakes, you don’t need to fill your plate twice and try both the chocolate and red velvet. Just do your best to limit the impact and be ready to get right back on a normal, macro-balanced meal for the next one. I say this because I find it can be easy to give in to those situations.
7)     On the same token, don’t worry about that one meal that puts you off for the day. Really, it’s inevitable when on the road, so don’t let it get in the way of enjoying your trip or being social with colleagues.
8)     Maintain a regular fitness routine on the road. This just helps the mindset in that your nutrition will not be as good as when you are in full control at home. If you maintain your activity level then you won’t feel as though you are both eating less well and exercising less often, which would feel like a double whammy.
Scott 🙂
@scotttheninja