Eating Well on the Road: Part 1

Salad prep on the tailgate of my Tacoma in Truckee, CA

For those of you that don’t know, I travel a lot for my day job. When I’m not coaching, I work for Patagonia as a Regional Visual Merchandiser and drive all over Northern California zhuzhing up retail stores. When I first got the job, I was so excited to eat out all the time (especially on the company dime). After awhile, I started craving simple, healthy options when I was on the road. Over the years, I’ve honed my semi-nomadic meal-prep skills, and I thought I’d share some tips with y’all! Whether you’re traveling for work, going on a long road trip, living in your van, or even just tailgating at the office, I hope this guide inspires you to support your body by nourishing it well.

A few principles to keep in mind:

Keep It Simple!

People commonly refer to this rule as “KISS” or “Keep It Simple, Stupid!” I’m not a big fan of putting myself down (anymore), so unless you’re replacing that second S with “starchild” or “superstar” or some other kind word, let’s just lose it altogether, yes? Ok, great.

The idea behind this principle is that you don’t have to make some elaborate meal with a bunch of complicated ingredients. When you’re eating on the road, you probably aren’t going to have access to all the spices and gadgets that you have at home. (Unless you’ve found the holy grail of Airbnbs, in which case, send me a link!) Lucky for you, you can throw some loose baby greens in a bowl with lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper and you’ve got yourself a salad.

Brunch plate perfection at Gjusta in Los Angeles, CA

If you follow My New Roots on Instagram (@mynewroots), you’ll see that Sarah often just puts a bunch of stuff on a plate and calls it lunch. She makes these gorgeous arrangements of seemingly random things that somehow go perfectly together. I imagine it’s a combination of what she has on hand, what sounds tasty, and what she intuitively knows will feel good in her body. Listen to your cravings and let yourself play!

Eat Seasonally

I’m lucky enough to live in Northern California, where the produce is off the hook all year long. But eating locally and seasonally can be done anywhere, and is just as rewarding (if not more so) in colder climates. For me, eating in tune with the season just feels right. Local and seasonal fruits and vegetables tend to have more flavor (and more nutrition), so you can do less to them. If you drizzle some quality olive oil over a perfectly ripe heirloom tomato in the middle of August, with a pinch of salt and some good crusty sourdough, you will have a drool-worthy lunch with minimal effort. The same could be said for a plate of strawberries and snap peas with some local herbed goat cheese in the spring. Allow yourself to get in touch with what grows when in your area, and soon enough you’ll notice that your cravings start to align with the natural rhythm of things.

Season Fruits & Vegetables poster by Young America Creative

Great Basin Community Food Co-op in Reno, NV

Shop Small

In addition to finding produce from local farmers, I do my best to support small, locally-owned, grocery stores and restaurants. Not only does is bolster the local economy, but you often find interesting products and flavors that you would miss at national chains and fast food franchises. Don’t get me wrong, I love a Whole Foods or a Chipotle in my time of need, but as often as possible I’ll seek out the local food co-op or taco shop. And while I’m there, I’ll try to strike up a conversation with the server or cashier about what else is good in town. Word of mouth is one of the best ways to find the good stuff!

Soup & Salad

One of the common complaints from folks that travel for work is it can be hard to find healthy options. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been on the pizza/burrito/burger rotation and come home feeling like shit! For the record, I love a good pizza/burrito/burger, but personally I feel best when those things are balanced out with lots of fresh fruit and veg. I don’t at all want to demonize certain foods here. If your body, mind, and soul desire a cheeseburger and fries, by all means eat that! But in a lot of small towns that is all you can find, so this guide is meant for when you’re not feeling it and you want some other options.

When that is your vibe, I want to remind you that a la carte is an option! I frequently cobble together delicious and satisfying meal exclusively from the side menu. Soup and salad is a go-to for me. Italian restaurants often have incredible antipasti options that get overlooked for heavy pasta dishes. In my potentially unpopular opinion, BBQ spots have sides that are better than the meat itself. Even steak houses will give you a big salad and baked potato. On of my favorites is Mediterranean mezze, which is also a favorite when I’m going the grocery store route as well.

Soup and salad at Bantam in Santa Cruz, CA

Bring a Kitchen Kit

You’ll learn more about my kitchen kit in Part 2, but for now I’ll just say that bringing a few tools with you can really open up your options. Here are a few suggestions for a beginner bag:

• pocket knife (Opinel is a classic.)

• reusable utensils (I use this set from Primus.)

• enamelware set (You can buy individual pieces if you travel solo.)

• bandana (use as a napkin and/or a towel, I like to buy vintage)

• olive oil (You can order travel size bottles or even packets, but I usually just refill and old salad dressing bottle or a canning jar.)

• can opener (Don’t get stuck with an un-openable can of beans!)

• travel-sized electric kettle (Many hotels have these available upon request! Great for instant soups, herbal tea, or even hard-boiled eggs.)

• Something to put it in! (I love Patagonia’s Black Hole Cubes, especially the medium size.)

I hope you’re able to put some of these ideas to use next time you travel, whether it be for work or for fun. If you put together a kit, I would love for you to tag @stokedcoaching on Instagram so I can see it!