5 Simple Ways To Lose Weight On Business Trips

5 Simple Ways To Lose Weight On Business Trips

Work trips don’t have to mean letting go of your healthy habits – here’s how.

Travelling for work can throw a spanner in the works of any diet, fitness plan, or fat loss journey. At home, it’s relatively easy to get into a great routine. You can plan your meals, take control of the cooking, and find time for regular workouts.

But then work asks you to go away on business… and your best-laid plans go out the window.

If you travel regularly for work, spend several days a week away from home, or have to deal with last-minute changes to your schedule – read this. We’ll help you stay in control of your fitness and diet plans, so you could even lose more weight when you travel with work!

The Challenges Of Work Travel

You’ll know all about the difficulties of trying to maintain a good fitness routine or healthy diet plan when travelling on business. Here are 5 of the most common challenges.

1 Eating on the road

How simple is it to make healthy food choices in airports, train stations, and motorway services? It can be very easy to fall into bad food habits just because you’re not at home or in the office. But there’s no reason to give up. It’s possible to make great, diet-friendly choices on the go.

2 Client meals

Entertaining clients with meals and other social events can be difficult if you’re trying to eat better. But a few simple rules will help you make better choices, and you can buffer the extra calories either side of the meal too.

3 Alcohol

Business trips often mean alcohol, so you need to get some guidelines in place. Is it absolutely necessary that you drink on this occasion? If so, then make better choices of alcohol, and be mindful of food and exercise choices that can be affected by a drink!

4 Extra travel time

Travelling for work can eat into your personal time, leaving you less time for exercise. Combat this by planning your schedule, researching places to exercise, and by using dead time (like waiting in the airport) to walk.

5 No access to gym

If you don’t have access to a gym when you’re away, think outside the box. Do a bodyweight workout, go out for a run, explore the city on foot, or simply manage your calorie intake tightly so you can get away without formal exercise for a day or two.

Simple Strategies For Managing Calories On Business Trips

Try Fasting

If fasting sounds scary, give it a chance. Fasting doesn’t have to mean long periods of torturing yourself with unbearable hunger. It can be as simple as forgoing breakfast, starting your day’s food intake at lunch. A 16-hour fast/8 hour eating window can be easy to implement when you’re busy. Reducing your eating hours can actually help you say no to calorie-laden food opportunities like breakfast buffets, snack food on the train, food at service stations (etc). Save your calories for main meals during the most important part of the day.

Don’t Eat On The Plane (Or Train)

This simple rule has saved many a business person from unnecessary calories. Be honest, when have you ever eaten anything absolutely incredible on an airplane or from a train station? It’s easier just to say “no thanks”, get on with your work (or get some extra sleep), and ignore the food you don’t need. You’re only sitting down – there’s no reason to eat on a flight or in departures.

Smart Buffet Choices

Breakfast buffets can be killer if you’re trying to diet. You need a steely will and a healthy dose of know-how to negotiate a buffet. Stick to the one-plate rule (no seconds). Fill up on vegetables, fruits, or berries. Then add a serving of lean protein. Don’t add extras just because they’re there. 5 minutes after you leave the buffet area, you’ll forget that you ever saw them.

No Excess Calories

It’s the little extras that add up. Toppings, sauces, dressings, things on the side and poured over the top. Whenever you have the option to add extra calories to a food or drink, think “do I really need this?” and “will I even notice?” Chances are you won’t really miss the extras if you say no. Apply this rule to fancy coffees, alcohol, desserts, salads, main meals, starters and sides.

Boost Your Calorie Output

Don’t forget the other side of the coin – your calorie burn. Use every opportunity to expend more calories. Walk around the city, between meeting venues, or at the station whilst waiting. Research your location for a hotel gym. If you have time off, use it to get out and explore by bike or on foot. Think like an active person and adopt their habits.

If you would like to maintain your weight – or even continue losing weight – on your next business trip, get in touch. We can help you with some very simple strategies. You can email Stephen at stephen@stephen-clarke.com