Eating Healthy While RVing

Back in 2020, my husband and I were living in a house in Northfield, Minnesota. We had just gone through a transformation to a healthier way of eating, and we had lost a combined 65 pounds.

When we sold our home and headed out in a 23-foot travel trailer, we were ready to take on the outdoors, where we saw ourselves hiking, biking, and eating meals prepared over a fire. We would continue to improve upon our newly sleek bodies, and we would age...backwards!

However, that didn't happen! Instead, we found ourselves partaking in an entirely new world of food, drinks and treats we wanted to try. Top that off with our many hours sitting inside the RV working, and long days of traveling to new destinations and we had a problem.

Once I realized that my clothes were getting tight and my healthy habits were sliding back to unhealthy habits, I began to make some important changes. Here are some of the key things that I did to get back on track.

Grocery Shopping for Your Refrigerator and Your Health

This means taking the time to really focus on what you're buying. When you dislike shopping as much as I do, this is a difficult task. But, I can promise you that it's well worth it!

Shop the store perimeter: Spend your time shopping the periphery of the grocery store. This is where all the "good stuff" is located. If you need to go down an aisle for something, go straight to it and return. You won't need to go down that chip aisle or hover in the candy section.

Consider your fridge size. You must take into consideration the size of your RV refrigerator. Our travel trailer had an extremely small fridge, so I had to adapt by shopping more often or buying fewer fresh and frozen vegetables and incorporating canned food.

Read Labels Carefully

Things to look for:

• Foods with fewer ingredients: Simpler ingredients usually mean less processing.
• Total calories per serving: It's important to know the size of a "serving size," so you know how much you are eating.
• Sodium content: Overconsumption of sodium is the driving force behind life-threatening health issues such as heart disease and stroke.
• Carbohydrate content: All carbohydrates act as sugar in the body, so be mindful of your choices. Choose vegetables of many colors and remember that vegetables have carbs in them, so if you decide to eat a low-carb diet, you are still able to get carbs into your diet here. Choose proteins that are lean, like eggs, chicken, salmon, and ground turkey.

Dining Out on the Road

Dining out is a big part of the travel lifestyle, but it takes more effort than eating back in your camper and it's more expensive.

Focus on lean proteins and vegetables: Eat meals with a lean protein(s) such as fish or chicken breast and a few servings of vegetables. Choose foods that are baked, broiled or steamed. Additionally, ask the server to prepare your dishes with fewer sauces and seasonings.

Plan ahead and order first: My advice to you is to first decide where you are going, look at the online menu, then when you get to the restaurant, do not take a menu and make sure that you order before anyone in your group. That way, you are not influenced by the glossy, mouthwatering pictures in the menu or by the foods that your friends are ordering.

Travel Days Strategy

Travel Days can be a huge challenge! One thing I have noticed over the years, is that my most successful clients are those who are prepared.

Plan the night before: For RVers, this means planning for travel days. The night before or morning of, pack a lunch, bring healthy snacks like raw almonds, low fat string cheese and cut fruit portioned out to 200-250 calories.

Drink your water early: Drink your water early in the morning, before you set out. This way, you will not be stopping often to use the restroom at the gas station/ convenience store where you will certainly buy something packed with sugar or highly processed.

Keep foods accessible: Pack a cooler with ice for items that need to be kept cool or buy a small cooler that can plug into your vehicle. For you lucky class-A drivers, keep the healthy snacks in a dedicated spot in your refrigerator so you can easily grab them when needed.

Eat More (Yes, really!)

Yes, you heard that right. The fact of the matter is that your body can store fat if you are not getting enough to eat. If you are trying to lose weight by not eating, it will backfire.

Focus on calories and food types: What matters is the total calories and the types of foods you are eating. Protein is essential for maintaining muscle and for keeping your blood sugar in check. It also helps you to feel full longer.

Track your portions: Know your serving sizes and track these in an app if possible. As my nutritionist son says, "if you're not counting, you're just guessing."

Water is Magic

I have run into many people who think that drinking tea or soda counts towards hydration. The only thing that really does the trick is plain water or, at the very least, water with carbonation only. There is nothing else that is as good.

Strategic timing on travel days: As I mentioned earlier, travel days are challenging. I recommend drinking water as soon as you wake up and when you arrive at your destination. Then you can limit the water that you drink while on the road.

Don't Make It About the Food

With so many places to see and things to do, stop focusing on the food! Plan around activities, not meals: Many times, we plan our days around which restaurants or ice cream shops we will visit. Why not plan them around sightseeing, hiking trails, and practicing a hobby? You can certainly bring some healthy snacks with you and be home in time for lunch or dinner.

Find like-minded companions: Surround yourself with others who are also conscious about their health. You are sure to be a good influence and inspiration to one another.

Add Activity Throughout the Day

It doesn't have to be boot camp or a 13-mile hike. Focus on daily movement: Did you know that the majority of calories are burned with your regular activities throughout the day and not during workouts? If you simply stand up and walk outside for 5-10 minutes several times a day, you will be burning even more calories.

The Result

These strategies transformed our RV experience from a health struggle back to the adventure for which we had dreamed. You can simply start with only one or two of these tips. Small changes on the road lead to big differences in how you feel and what you're able to experience.