5 Things I Always Leave Home With

Do you travel for work or work outside the home? Are traveling for vacation soon? Or have a weekend trip planned? I know planning lunches each day and going on a trip can be a real challenge so I thought I'd share some tips on how I plan, prepare and survive each day and when I go away for a day or a week!

So here is what I pack for short trips and/or vacation…

1.     Blender:
Ok, I don't take my blender to work each morning, but I use my blender daily for my breakfast Shakeology.  I don't travel with it internationally as I know most of the hotels will have blenders so I leave mine at home.  However if traveling by car, I will always pack the blender.  
This past weekend I didn’t take the blender and I HIGHLY regretted it.  I knew we’d be home late so I was just planning to have my shake as a dessert, but we didn’t get home until 11:30pm.  As I was driving through the mountains of Tennessee, I had a headache and was very tired….and was REALLY wishing I had my blender or had asked the bartender at Tuesday Morning to make my shake. 

Lesson learned that I will NOT wait that late for my shake again…my body needs the vitamins and nutrients in Shakeology earlier in the day.  For me, I need to drink my shake either for my breakfast or early morning snack!!

2.     Shakeology packets and banana for each day:
I prefer my shakes to be blended with water, ice and ½ a banana.  I also usually add a dash of cinnamon to Café Latte or a dash of PB2 to chocolate.  There is something about the banana that gives it just the right sweetness and flavor!!  Traveling with Shakeology packets work best but if it's too late for your trip to order, you can just pour a scoop into a baggie!!

3.     Magazine and books for personal development.
I always travel with a few SHAPE magazines and books that I’m reading for PD.  Plus I have my iPad with Audible if I want to block out the noise in the car.  This weekend I had "The Happiness Project" and "Simply your Life." in my bag to read.

   4.     iPad and iPhone for entertainment, email and Beachbody On Demand.
The girls seem to use my iPad the majority of the time in the car to play games, but I have it to stream my workouts and Audible.  I love being able to pull up my workouts via On Demand and depending on if the hotel has a gym determines what program I’ll do while I travel.  Now with the BOD app, I can even download a workout and not have to rely on hotel wifi which can sometimes be spotty and cause the videos to skip or worse stop.

   5.     Portioned out carrots, celery, grapes, almonds, peanuts, and raisins.
Sandwich baggies are my best friend.  I have daily in my lunchbox and also use them when traveling over the weekend or for a full week.

I wasn’t perfect with my eating over the weekend and that is ok! It's wasn’t a normal weekend but it won't derail my progress. I'm was more concerned about keeping my energy level up and not getting weighed down by crappy food the entire time I traveled! I worked out each morning and was aware of what I ate!!  I choose to have some of my favorites like pizza, steak and a few waffle fries, but I limited myself and balanced them out with salad, grilled chicken, fruit and veggies.  It’s the 80/20 rule…not about being perfect, but just better everyday!!

Enjoy your summer, travels and vacations, 

but consider balance and making good choices while you are away!! 

 Make it a great day!!