So how do you balance that time when you’re ready to make a few changes for the healthier you – YET – your summer travels and/or your social calendar aren’t exactly conducive to regular meal planning, eating all your veggies and getting that daily workout in…

My little secret: YOU PLAN AHEAD!!!!

As my summer slimdown accountability group kicks off week 1 – I am getting similar inquiries – HOW TO STAY ON TRACK WHEN TRAVELING & AWAY FROM HOME

So I wanted to take a few minutes to share my top tips:

FOR YOUR WORKOUTS:

1. Find a way to get your workout in!
   • Many of the Beachbody workout programs don’t even require any weights! If you’re doing something like PIYO or Insanity Max: 30 or T25 – you won’t even need to worry about packing anything special! You and a positive mindset and you’re GOLDEN!
   • No DVD player? No Internet? No problem!!!
     • Beachbody On Demand (BOD) allows you to stream all your purchased workout programs as well as hundreds of other workouts. While the Internet is required to stream straight from BOD using wifi – if you find yourself with no internet connection simply download the BOD app and then download the selected workouts for while you’re away! 
2. Invest in a resistance band (for all my Fixers!)
   • You can grab a resistance band from TeamBeachbody.com or at Wal-Mart or Dicks Sporting Goods for next to nothing, it travels well, packs lightly and will allow you to continue with your strength training workouts without the need for weights
3. Use this time on “vacation” to give back to yourself!!! Sure you can allow yourself some extra rest but without the distractions of every day home life – carve out those 22-30 minutes, sweat it out, and reap the benefits all day long! This is a great time to set a new habit! Better yet – include your family or friends that are vacationing with you and make it a group effort! Its always more fun to SWEAT TOGETHER! 

NUTRITION

1. Whether you’re off to a graduation party, birthday party or neighborhood picnic – my biggest tip: DO NOT ARRIVE STARVING!
   • Yes you’ll eat while you’re there, but when there is food surrounding you, you tend to OVEREAT – and usually not on the healthy stuff. 9 times out of 10 – I drink my Shakeology ON THE WAY to any get together! This helps reduce the cravings, fills me up and allows me to make better food choices once I get there – and it avoids the HANGRY mess. We all need to avoid the HANGRY stage!
2. If you’re attending a potluck – take something you know fits your goals. Maybe its a veggie tray or fruit salad, or my favorite: Southwest Quinoa salad – take something YOU know YOU will eat…but also tastes good too! Its not about eating rabbit food…its about eating food to fuel you – and yes – it can and does taste good too! 
3. Schedule in your splurge meal Maegan Blinka, Megan Blinka, Beachbody coaches in PA, Pittsburgh Beachbody Coach, How to stay balanced over the summer, How to stay on track while traveling, Healthy Summer Travel Tips, Beachbody on Demand, Netflix for workout programs, BOD, Shakeology, Superfood meal replacement shake,  – its natural to enjoy and indulge every now and then! In fact – its part of a healthy weightloss journey. Too much restriction isn’t good for you!!! If you know you’ll be at the family reunion and you can’t imagine passing up those homemade rolls then my goodness – eat and enjoy the rolls! Or cake or cookies or whatever it is that you LOVE. But enjoy one and move on!
4. Follow the two-bite rule
   • When you’re staring at that decadent cake…and cannot stand it anymore. Take two bites. The first one will be amazing. The second one even better, but after that the satiation diminishes. So just stop there!
5. Stay hydrated! Too often we are hot, outside and maybe even getting bored. Before we have a chance to realize it we’re stuck munching on who knows what…before you hit the pantry – drink a big glass of water. That hunger you thought you felt may really just be thirst calling! If you need a little thirst buster – try a sparkling water! The Dasani Pineapple is my FAVORITE! 
6. Boost your Shakeology!!!
   • Beachbody has these amazing Shakeology boosts – Power Greens, Focused Energy & Digestive Health – that I use on a situational basis. When I am short on greens I toss in the POWER GREENS – when I need a day of extra energy I boost it up with FOCUSED ENERGY and when my digestion could use a little kickstart – I add in some DIGESTIVE HEALTH!
7. Pack a cooler! 
   • Whether you’re heading out for a day of meetings, a day at the amusement park, a road trip down the coast or just a day at the pool…if you’re away from home for more than a few hours you’re going to need to eat.
   • Control the controllable, pack your veggies & fruits, clean/prep as much as possibl and include plenty of DRINKS!!! 
8. Pick a “good bar” – there are a lot of “bars” on the market but trust me when I say they are not all created equal!!! Kind Bars, That’s It bars, and Quest Bars are a few of my go-tos – and more recently Lara Bars as they are Gluten Free, Vegan and NON-GMO!!! Read on for more detail as to how these fit into the 21-day fix plan. 
9. If you’re at a house for a week long vacation – pick up your staples! When we vacation I always keep stock in peppers (great, easy snack!), apples, berries, yogurt, oatmeal, spinach, eggs, etc… so I can still continue to enjoy my favorites throughout the day. Then when it comes time for dinner I make the best CHOICES I can…afterall isn’t that all you can really do?!

At the end of the day – its about living and sustaining a healthy BALANCED lifestyle. There will never be a “good time” to start something new. So don’t wait any longer. When you’re ready – just go for it – do your best and never look back!!! Plan as much as possible and make HEALTHY choices at each opportunity!

If you’d like some help getting started or even jumping back into a HEALTHY balanced lifestyle fill out the form below for details on my next online Fitness challenge!