I get asked fairly regularly about ideas for eating healthy while my fitness and athletic clients are at work or school.  Most of the same rules of healthy eating apply, but a few things have to be considered:

1.  Availability.  I usually recommend that my clients bring their food with them.  It allows them to know what they’re eating and helps them resist temptation.  Sometimes this isn’t possible, however.  In these cases it’s important to have sound strategies in place to make sure that you stay on point.

2.  Portability.  Of course, going hand in hand with bringing food with you it’s important that you can carry it easily.  If food needs to be assembled, cooked, or is bulky it doesn’t lend itself well to a work or school environment.

3.  Need of heat/refrigeration.  This is another factor to consider.  Is it possible to carry some sort of a cooler?  Is there a fridge or microwave at work?  Better yet, are you going to have access to it?

4.  Taste.  Who are we kidding?  Some clients are able to shut their taste buds down and just shovel in what they’re supposed to, but that doesn’t work for most people.  Bad tasting food can lead to skipped meals and cheating, neither of which is in the direction of our goals.

When I work with clients on this type of thing the first thing we look at is the overall performance diet.  We’ve already figured out the basic diet protocols that need to be followed as far as choices, nutrients, that sort of thing.

The next step is to look at the time away from normal eating and the times at which food can be consumed.  Let’s say that our fitness athlete is working a job from 9:00am to 5:00pm but is allowed to eat at 11:00am, 1:00pm, and 3:30pm.  Ok, so we know that we’ll probably need 2-3 portable meals or snacks.  What would we eat during that time if there were no limitations?  What amount of the day’s calories and macronutrients would be taken up there?

Using that information we can determine about what each meal should consist of as far as calories, protein, carbs, and fat.  When we know that information it’s fairly simple to find good travel food.  Some great examples include:

Protein
Hard-boiled Eggs (+fat if yolk is eaten)
Chicken Breast Strips
Lean Roast Beef
Lowfat Cheese
Part-skim Cheese Sticks
Protein Powder or Meal Replacement Shakes
Protein Bars or Meal Replacement Bars
Low Sugar Yogurt (with active cultures)

Carbohydrate
Whole-grain Products (bread, rolls, tortillas)
Trail Mix (includes some fat and protein)
Fresh or Dried Fruit
Natural Hiker’s Bars (think fiber, a la Clif Bars)
Leafy Green Vegetables
Raw Sliced Vegetables (celery, carrots, peppers, cucumber, tomatoes)

Fat
Nuts (almonds, cashews, walnuts)
Seeds (sunflower, pumpkin)
Olive Oil and Vinegar Salad Dressing
Fish Oil Capsules

Maintaining a good quality diet at work, at school, or on the playing field is far from impossible.  What it does take is some planning and consistency.  Take a few minutes the night before or get up a little early to plan your day and pack your food.  You’ll find that you’re livelier and feel better during the day and after your activity is concluded if you’re well supplied with nutrients as opposed to skipping meals or filling up with garbage.