My 7 Healthy Travel Tips To Keep You Thriving and Happy

I’m a creature of habit and I like to maintain my routine as much as I can. From nutrition, to toxin free skin and hair care regimens, and cleanliness, I do my best to sustain my daily life as much as possible when I travel. And with the holidays coming up, I wanted to share travel tips that I thought would be helpful in keeping you healthy, so that you can spend more time with your loved ones, and less time quarantined in bed. It may seem like it’s hard to do, but if you do even just a little bit of planning ahead, I think you’ll find that minimal amount of effort will help keep your immune system strong, and won’t feel like you need to detox as much from an unhealthy diet. Here are my proven travel tips to keep you thriving and happy:

1. Pack hand wipes or hand sanitizer: Planes and trains are full of germs, and they never go through a deep cleaning. To prevent myself from getting sick, I always bring along with me the EO Hand Sanitizing Wipes or Dr. Bronner’s Organic Lavender Hand Sanitizing Spray and wipe down anything on the train or plane that I would touch. When you use the sanitizing spray, just grab some napkins and spray whatever needs to be cleaned. Thankfully, on my most recent flight to Virginia, my table, arm rests, window cover, air control and seat didn’t have a ton of dirt on it, since it was a regional jet rather than a commercial airline. But normally, when I fly on an Airbus or Boeing, my wipes would be black with dirt and I’d have to do a double wipe down! Think about it, a lot of the times children and babies are on these planes, where they’re still learning proper hygiene. And it’s pretty common for parents to change diapers on the tray tables we put our food and personal belongings on! Don’t do yourself a disservice and subject yourself to getting exposed to the nastiest germs from bodily fluids!                                                           
2. Bring along antioxidant rich foods that are easy to eat: Airport food is rarely ever healthy, and who knows how fresh the ingredients are that restaurants use. We all know that refined sugar and processed foods offer no nutritional value and are terrible for our bodies, but that’s really all airports have to offer, unless you end up at the Virgin America terminal in San Francisco where they have The Plant Organic Cafe. What I do instead the day before my flight is pack snacks that’s real food, like raw organic almonds, avocados or blueberries. Depending on if you feel like you need protein, good fats, fiber, vitamin C or antioxidants, bring along any to-go snacks into your carry-on bag that are easy to eat, peel or pack. If you choose to pack a snack that you have to cut open and want to eat it at the gate or on your flight, just go to a nearby café and pick up a knife, spoon, napkins, and ask for a disposable plate. My go-to’s are always blueberries because they’re a superfood and help with circulation, which we tend to have less of thousands of feet in the air, as well as almonds to get my protein in that will keep me feeling fuller longer.
3. Vitamins and supplements: To support my immune system, I take a multivitamin and other supplements daily, so I don’t want my not being home to derail this part of my maintenance and routine. The night before my flight, while I’m taking my vitamins and supplements, I’ll pack the amount I need each day into a Ziploc bag then put it in my purse or backpack. It doesn’t take up a lot of space and keeps my immune system strong!
4. Teas for a reason: Since we’re more susceptible to getting sick when we travel, I pack teas that will strengthen my immune system because certain teas offer specific benefits. The one I always carry with me is elderberry tea! In my post, My 7 favorite teas that are good for your skin and body, I mention that they’re full of vitamin C and I consume it every time I’m sick or feel like I’m about to get sick. Without fail, it always makes me feel better shortly after drinking a few cups or it, or it shortens the amount of time I’m sick with a cold. Other teas I like to pack are peppermint tea for digestion, since it tends to get thrown off from eating out more than usual; Dandelion tea for detoxing, especially if you’ve had a bit too much to drink, and pau d’arco tea because it’s anti-fungal, antiviral, anti-parasitic, and helps treat a wide variety of illnesses like the cold and flu. I’ll usually ask my hotel to bring up hot water to my room before bed, or I’ll go to a nearby café and ask them for hot water to go. Both options are usually free and all the teas I recommend have a mild taste that’s not intolerable.
5. Don’t forget your workout shoes and clothes: Every single time I travel, I always make it a point to hit the hotel gym or exercise outside! If you’re concerned with these additional items taking up more room in your suitcase, I’d suggest rolling your socks into a ball and placing them inside each workout shoe. And the good thing about workout clothes is they’re usually made of thin material, so even if you fold or roll them, they won’t take up a lot of space like a coat or jacket.
6. Buy small containers from the drugstore for toxin free hair care and skin care: I mentioned in my post, My Top Product Picks For The Colder Months Ahead, that Americans are exposed to more toxic chemicals from our personal care products. Only 11 harmful ingredients are banned in the U.S., whereas 1,300 are banned in Europe! Once you adopt a toxin free lifestyle with your personal care items, you’ll find that organic and natural products are you’re using are of higher quality than commercial brands that hotels offer, and you’ll want to maintain the condition or your skin or hair. What I do for upkeep is head to my nearby drugstore and buy travel sized containers that are allowed in a carry-on bag, then fill my shampoo, conditioner, lotion, toothpaste or hairspray into each container that’s 4 ounces or smaller. 

7. Yelp app is your new best friend and healthy restaurant guide: I would describe myself as a “healthy foodie,” so if I want to eat tasty food that’s good quality, organic or farm to table, I’ll use the Yelp.com app on my phone or desktop. You can search for certain keywords or specific restaurants that were recommended to you and view their ratings and reviews, which are pretty accurate. Everything you need for when you find a restaurant is there, like making a reservation or viewing their menu. For instance, I was in Boston earlier this week and I forgot to buy a new container of matcha powder before my trip. I brought the main ingredients needed for the Natural Nadine matcha, which was ghee and travel packs of coconut oil, except the key ingredient that makes the drink. Since it’s likely that I wouldn’t find a grocery store in the area that would sell matcha powder, I search for matcha latte on Yelp, and thankfully Ogawa Coffee makes them. If you have dietary restrictions, you can also enter in keywords like “gluten free”, and a list of restaurants that cater to that diet will appear. Or if you’re like me and want to make sure your protein and vegetables are of the highest quality, you can type in “grass-fed” or “organic restaurants” and save a number of establishments in the app via the bookmarks feature.

What are some other healthy travel tips that aren’t on the list? I hope you stay healthy and thriving this holiday season, and I’d love to hear how any of these tips have help with prevention or healing!

Naturally,
Nadine
#naturalnadine #NNcertified #holisticinfluencer