How to Choose the Right Food When You're Fast on the Go

Summer is here and most people are heading out on the road for some welcome fun but this isn't your license to taking a vacation form sensible eating, if you do you will be bringing home extra pounds along with your souvenirs. Road trips often include fast foods, bags of chips and lots of sodas. These are full of bad fats, no nutrition, and lots of calories.

With a little thought and effort you navigate around the junk food and maintain your sensible diet while on the road trip. You will definitely feel better for it in the long run.

Bring along a cooler with ice packs with you; fill it with cut vegetables, fruit, and low-fat yogurt and don't forget water. Water is a must to keep you hydrated during those long hot summer drives. String cheese is also a calcium and protein provider.

For fiber bring baked whole grain crackers along with you. Greasy chips are a no-no. There are the bakes chips that are not to bad for you as long as you watch the amount that you eat since they don't offer much nutritional value. Almonds, cashews and walnuts contain polyunsaturated fats and are easy to carry with you.

When you stop for the night at the hotel that offers a continental breakfast; avoid the sweat rolls and pre-sweetened cereal. Go for the fresh fruits, whole grain cereal with low fat milk, and yogurt. If this doesn't offer the right choices head down to the nearest restaurant. There you should be able to get items like an omelet filled with vegetables and whole-wheat toast. No five-tiered stack of pancakes with maple syrup. Oatmeal with fresh fruit is always available in restraints. If you do crave something sweet choose a bran muffin or put just a little jelly or jam on your whole-wheat toast.

Don't have time to sit and enjoy your breakfast, have to get on the road; fast food places don't offer as much. There choices are filled with calories and saturated fats but a breakfast burrito has been found to have less than many other selections. Make sure you choose low fat milk or 100 percent orange juice over flavored soft drinks.

If you decide to grab something at the gas station while you fill your cars tank, fill your tank with protein bars but read the labels, some contain lots of extra sugar. A hot breakfast sandwich or small breakfast burrito is a good choice. Stay away from the donut and sweet-roll boxes.

Lunchtime rolls around which do you choose a restaurant or fast food. If you don't have that much time choosing a fast food probably is faster but choose a sandwich shop like Subway or Quiznos. There you can choose your own ingredients for your sandwich. Choose whole grain for your bread, lean meats and lots of vegetables. The other fast food places do offer salads but be careful some are very high in fat and fried meats like fried chicken strips. If you want a chicken sandwich choose a grilled chicken sandwich rather than fried.

You might be tempted to super-size your meal. These super-size menus are the worst things to turn-up on today's menus. They all sound like a great deal but do you want all that extra fat and sodium in your body? You will also eat too much and feel miserable.

If you do have the time to sit in a restaurant then skip the main course and look over the soups and salads section. Everyone think they have to have a main meal in order to fill up but this isn't true. A soup and salad can be as filling and are healthier for you.

If you have a companion along for the ride, splitting a meal might be the alternate way to go. Most main courses are huge and what are you going to do with the leftovers you can't finish? Take it with you; this probably is impossible. This also saves you both money and calories.