Traveling food......

I am going to be traveling across country (from NY to CA) in 2 weeks.  While I am traveling my only available foods will be in grocery stores and fast food along the way.  I am vegetarian (which usually doesn't change much when dining out for me as I can find something at any place I go) and need help with some places / ideas of how to stay within my 1600 calorie count.    Any ideas or information is helpful........

 

Thanks!

I highly recommend fresh fruit.  Bananas and oranges are very portable and don't need to be washed (altho peeling the orange could be a bit messy, so make sure you have baby wipes in the car).  Dried fruit and nuts are very calorie dense, and you could get out of control munching on those, so I'd probably stay away.  Just do your best to stick with fresh, natural foods, and try to avoid processed snack/junk foods (chips, candy, etc.).  If you eat dairy, you might think about getting a small cooler and stocking it with yogurt and low fat string cheese. 

The last thing I would say is, have fun!  Driving across the country is a great experience, so don't spend the whole time thinking about counting calories.  If you get the chance to try some of the local restaurants as opposed to the chain fast food places, I would do it.  It might not be as easy to figure the calories, but it will add to your life experience.

my fav are sandwiches, you could do peanut butter.  Also I like the tiny individual cans of Bushs baked beans, available for vegans.  Grape tomatoes.  Hummus.

I avoid salty food,  as it makes me thirsty, I then drink too much water, then have to stop too many times.

Also on my recent trip I enjoyed the tiny cans of V8 juice.

when I go on car trips I like to bring a bag of baby carrots to munch on. celery or other raw veggies are good too.

fresh fruit is also a good idea...In addition to what was mentioned above I like to bring apples and grapes. baby wipes are again a good idea here. and I usually have a sack or something in the car for garbage to throw out when we stop for gas.

I also like to make my own trail mix, I just put in my favorite dried fruits and nuts and sometimes I'll toss in some chocolate chips for something sweet.

Most grocery stores now have hummus, even in teeny, random midwest towns. I like to buy a tub of hummus and lots of veggies for dipping. Endive and baby bok choy are two of my favorites. Cherry tomatoes, carrots, celery, snow peas, broccoli, cauliflower, and baby zucchini all make good dippers (well I hate raw broccoli, but seem to be in the minority).

grocery stories often have cut up fruit and veggies ready-made. just watch the dressings and dips! some grocery stores have salad bars too.

my suggestion is to bring a cooler with your own food; fruit, veggies, nuts, milk, water, yogurt, eggs (you could pre-coil them before you leave), crackers, etc.

when I go traveling, I make protein bars. These are good, high protein and low in kcals. Give them a try:

http://www.calorie-count.com/recipe/49370.htm l

when I go traveling, I make protein bars. These are good, high protein and low in kcals. Give them a try: http://www.calorie-count.com/recipe/49370.htm l

fatdoc...where do you get the soy protein from (and how do you measure the 60g without a scale) for those protein bars??

If you do go to local restaurants over fast food places, like kittybig said, you could use your cell (if you have one) and text the food that you eat to 432-584 for calorie information.

example:

Text food hamburger to
HEALTH (432-584) for full calorie information

I take my Fitnutz peanut butter adn some celery sticks, crackers, rice cakes- perfect!

I take my Fitnutz peanut butter adn some celery sticks, crackers, rice cakes- perfect!