The bulk of the nation is in the midst of travel or inundated with lots of dietary challenges with all the holiday parties, events with big dinners, and year-end celebrations as we ramp up for 2019. Historically this is the season that is busiest for me, and I don't have as much time to cook.

Although this week's article is about how to eat when on the move, it's also useful for people who are just too busy to meal prep. Nutrition is one of the largest factors in your overall health and wellness, so to toss that out the window because you have a lot going on or are traveling makes settling into your usual routine a nightmare once things calm down. So let's get to it: ways to mitigate the damage to your hard work.

The actual transportation portion of your trip is the first place you have an opportunity to take responsibility for your own success. Here are some things you can do while in transit:

• Take your own food and healthy snacks whenever possible so that you don't rely on convenience eating on the road. I usually keep some snacks in my car so if I get hungry I can tide myself over until I get to my destination. If your food needs to be kept cool, be sure to take a cooler or cooler bag. Check out this article which lists healthy snack ideas for plane rides and this article for forming balanced diets out of gas station foods.
• Pack -- and DRINK -- water. When on the go we commonly do not drink as much, and this is crucial to keeping your system running optimally. If on a long flight, pack an empty drink bottle and once you are on board, ask the flight attendant to fill it for you. Planes in particular are very dry (10-15% humidity) and moisture is drained from you. For more about hydration check out my prior blog post about the ins and outs of hydration. 
• Avoid alcohol, soda, tea and coffee while in transit as these all dehydrate you.
• For long trips where a meal is served on your transport-of-choice, you can usually request a special meal for the ride -- just give the airline a call about a week before your trip to arrange.
• Long hours of travel upset your digestive system. Be sure to drink plenty of water and eat fiber-rich foods to minimize the tummy trouble.
• Here are some tips for overcoming jet lag:
  • Before departing, consume a high-carb meal to build extra glycogen and fluid stores.
  • Drink one cup (8 oz) of water for every hour of air travel.
  • Upon arrival, go out into the sunlight to help adjust to the new time zone.
  • Some of the previously-mentioned tips apply here too: limit coffee, tea, soda and alcohol and pack healthy snacks for the trip.

The next thing to consider is what happens when you get where you're going. While many will be eating home-cooked meals at least on the holidays themselves and it's hard to tell Grandma that you don't want three helpings, those who love us care about our well-being and we need to think in terms of the long con rather than short-term satisfaction.

• Be mindful of your portions as when we are traveling we are usually not as active, especially around the holidays when we're primarily visiting with friends and family (i.e., sitting around talking). You may need to eat less depending on your level of activity on your trip versus when you are at home. Forced inactivity or boredom on your journey often leads to overeating -- before digging in, ask yourself whether you are actually hungry or wanting to eat because you're not doing anything else. Try drinking a glass of water and waiting 10-15 minutes. Traveling from warmer climates to colder ones may make you feel like you need to eat more as well -- just be aware of the environment change and how that may impact your sensations of hunger.
• Limit caffeine consumption as this will affect your already disrupted sleeping patterns.
• Limit alcohol consumption as it is empty calories which dehydrate you.
• Know your destination. Will you be required to eat out often, and if so what restaurants are you likely to go to? Do some research -- check out articles like this one which lists the healthiest options available at 40 popular restaurants, and this one which lists tips about how to order healthy while eating out.
• If eating at a buffet:
  • Avoid overeating by looking at all of the options first before putting anything on your plate.
  • Eat like you would at home: one meal, following the same serving sizes you would normally have.
  • Once you finish, leave if you can so you don't eat out of boredom.
  • Limit high fat items (such as anything fried, crispy, creamy, or buttery). Opt for baked, broiled, steamed, poached or in tomato sauce.
• Prepare your own foods and snacks as much as possible. Many hotels have mini-fridges, coffee makers and microwaves; some even have cooking facilities and dishes in your room.
  • Try to shop for food along the outer perimeter of the supermarket (the center is where all the processed stuff is) and prepare as much fresh, whole food as you can for yourself. Personally I am a fan of frozen steamer bags of veggies as a good starting point -- just be aware that any sauces that are included in some of the "meal in a bag" steamers are high in sodium. Read your nutrition facts and ingredient lists.
  • Pack utensils, containers to store leftovers, spices, TSA-approved BYO condiment packets, can opener, napkins and Zip-lock bags in your check-in bag or purchase some disposable stuff from the grocer. 
  • Once at your destination, think like a squirrel and stash snacks in your purse or pockets or bring a lunchbox with you. 
• Here are some snack ideas and cooking-in-a-hotel-room resources:
  • This article lists healthy snack ideas for travel.
  • This article has a lot of ideas for ways to cook in a hotel room.
  • This article has some great breakfast ideas for hotel room cooking.
  • This article lists several recipes for meals you can make with limited resources, again in your hotel.

In the information age we have all kinds of research at our fingertips, but not a lot of time to sift through to find the accurate advice from the chaff. There are also plenty of commonly-held beliefs that hold sway simply because we hear them all the time. Today we'll deconstruct some common misconceptions and myths and (hopefully) perform a little course correction.

The Truth: Abs are made through a favorable change in body composition achieved through a combination of cardio, resistance and core training supported by healthy eating habits.

Core work including crunches increases muscular endurance, strength, spinal stabilization and posture. However, if you eat a poorly-balanced and/or highly processed diet, refrain from cardio and resistance training you will not get that 6-pack. In my personal experience, that nutrition piece has been the key that makes all the training fall into place when it comes to midriff muscle definition.

The Truth: The total number of calories you consume throughout the day is what matters.

When you eat your daily allotment of calories matters less than your energy intake vs. output. That said, eating smaller meals throughout the day or engaging in intermittent fasting helps keep hunger at bay and may prevent you from overeating, which is the common late night culprit.

The Truth: Your body can only synthesize a certain amount of protein; excess is passed through the urine.

The maximum amount of protein one can assimilate for the use of building muscle per meal is 30g depending on body type, kind of training you do and metabolism. When you exceed that amount, you place a strain on your kidney and colon as you pass that protein out through your urine. You may even see weight gain (that is not muscle). Nutritionists say that one should focus on eating a balanced diet. 

Note: it is also commonly believed that eating protein every few hours is important to maintain muscle. Research, however, indicates that as long as you consume the required amount through meals there is no need for more.

The Truth: If you want to turn into the Hulk, you'll need to overhaul your nutrition plan in addition to pumping iron.

Women in particular are often terrified that if they train with weights they will bulk up, and that just isn't going to happen because women lack the chemical makeup required. Unless a woman adjusts to extreme training volumes, strict dietary habits and potentially supplementation she will not turn into a bodybuilder -- and nor will men for that matter! Take a look at this article for an in-depth look at this concern.

The Truth: The harder your body is working, the more calories you will burn. 

If you're running outside in Houston in the summer you'll sweat more than you would indoors on a treadmill with the A/C set to 60. Your sweat isn't an accurate metric.

The Truth: Pain is not an indication of muscle growth; it is an indication that you are working beyond your body's current capacity, are fatigued or possibly suffering nutrient deficiencies. Increases to your number of reps, the weight you can lift, cardiovascular endurance, and physical appearance are more reliable indicators.

You need to listen to your body in order to avoid injury. If you are always sore after a workout, you are likely pushing too hard and have a greater potential for injury. If your pain lasts for several days, you need to get it checked out as it may be an injury.

Athletes in particular (and by 'athlete' I am referring to anyone who trains consistently) are more likely to ignore pain during their workouts, which actually sets them up for injury as they don't go to the doctor or take steps to treat the issue when symptoms arise. See this article about workout pains you should never ignore.

The Truth: Plants have protein. 

I have been vegan for 2 years, and was vegetarian for a decade before that. I certainly don't have any problem building muscle. As with anyone else with any form of diet, it's about balancing your nutrition and putting in the work. Have a look at bodybuilders Nimai Delgado, Jon Venus, or Torre Washington -- they are all vegan.

The Truth: Quality over quantity.

Short, focused, intense workouts are as effective -- and sometimes more effective -- than long workouts where you are distracted or not giving your full effort.

With the exception of endurance athletes who are specifically training to be able to continue heavy labor over long stretches of time, it is safe to say that if you only have 20 minutes to work out, if you give it all you have for those 20 minutes you will come away with great fitness benefits.

The Truth: Hard work delivers amazing results, but if the transformation you envision is in contrast to your natural body shape you are setting yourself up for disappointment.

Be realistic with your body goals and try to draw inspiration from people who have a similar body type. You may also opt to perform exercises that help balance your proportions, but keep in mind that beauty comes in all shapes and sizes.

The Truth: Not eating enough calories can lead to weight gain as the body will go into 'survival mode' and store everything it can.

Consult your trainer, nutritionist or doctor regarding how many calories you need in a day in order to maintain proper energy and functionality and make sure your intake is aligned with this number. 

The Truth: Imbalance in energy intake vs output (how many calories you take in versus how many calories you burn during your daily activities) is what causes fat gain.

With ketogenic diets being a hot item in the nutrition world right now, it's easy to believe the fallacy that carbs are the enemy. Carbs are actually the body's preferred fuel source, but it's important to eat healthy carbs like fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, whole grains, beans and legumes rather than refined carbs such as white rice, white pasta, processed snacks and sweets.

I personally have tried high-protein and high-carb macro ratios, and once my body adjusted to one or the other it functioned equally well. The key is to find an eating style that works for your lifestyle, as everyone's body performs differently.

The Truth: You need to perform exercises to tone the muscles while also working overall to burn away excess fat so that you will be able to see the muscles.

You can't tell fat cells to accumulate in a specific area, and you can't therefore burn them off in one specific area. Your focus should be on overall toning and weight loss, with strengthening work performed to tone the muscles you want to build up.

The Truth: Consistency is the key, not the time of day.

My early bird clients always tell me that they love to work out in the morning because they get it done and have the rest of the day to do everything else. While it's true that morning workouts leave less room for other obligations to crowd out training time, everyone has a different circadian rhythm and preference. Train at whatever time works best for you, so that you can remain consistent.

The Truth: Slimming down almost always starts with significant changes to your diet.

Exercise burns calories, and the way to lose weight is to adjust that aforementioned energy intake vs output ratio. However, you can't just 'work off' whatever you eat -- truth be told, physically you feel worse eating unhealthy, processed foods and your performance suffers. Adjusting your nutritional hygiene is a major step toward seeing the results you want.

The Truth: Muscle tissue can begin to break down within a week without regular exercise, and degrades from there.

When you stop training, you will begin to see signs of de-conditioning in as few as 7 days of complete rest. Your body is programmed for "use it or lose it, so yet again consistency is key.