Monday, June 5, 2017

Fueling Snacks to Bring in the Car for Summer Trips


Athletes travel a lot in the summer. Whether it is for a slew of training sessions, races and competitions or just tooling around with family, it is not uncommon to put major miles on your tires. While traveling can be a lot of fun, it can also be quite stressful for athletes trying to keep to a fueling plan that nourishes them, assists with recovery and perhaps aids in body composition changes. Here are some great snacks to keep "on board" during your travels:

**About 2-3 days ahead of your trip, sit down with these options and make a shopping list to take with you to the store so you will be ready to go!

Equipment you need:
Cooler - small and large options, depending on the length of the trip
Ice packs - for shorter trips
Bags of ice - for longer trips
Large tote for storage of shelf-stable food
Sandwich bags - for portioning out bulk snacks into smaller bags

Snack options for the cooler:
Greek yogurt
Cheese sticks
1/2 gallon or individual containers of milk
Lunch meat (uncured is best)
Slices of cheese for sandwiches
Block cheese
Hard boiled eggs
Already "cut" veggies: baby carrots, cherry tomatoes, sugars snap peas, mini sweet peppers

Snack options that are shelf-stable:
Granola bars: both high protein (10-20gm protein per bar) and low protein (less than 10 gm), depending on if you will combine with a protein source
Fresh fruit
Lean jerky
Whole grain crackers
Whole wheat bread
Whole wheat English muffins and/or bagels
Peanut butter, natural
Jelly, jam and/or honey
Dried fruit
Nuts, lightly salted
Seeds, lightly salted
Shelf-stable chocolate, white milk or soy milk (if cooler not an option)


At snacks, combine a source of carbohydrate (fruit, dairy or grains) with a source of protein (nuts, seeds, dairy, meat). Note that some foods, such as dairy, contain a bit of both, while other foods need to be combined with another food to get both nutrients. By using the list above, you will be ready for your travels, fueling in style!

Your Nutrition Coach,

RDKate