7 Easy Low Carb Traveler Tips

#1 - A Low Carb Mindset

If you go into traveling low carb thinking “I’ll never find food,” guess what? You’ll never find food. As trite as it may sound, the first advice we have to give you is to change how you view your snack stops  and begin to feel encouraged and excited about the food on offer.

From delicious jerky to nuts, cheeses, salads, even bunless burgers, there are a ton of ways for you to grab low carb food when traveling.

In 2016, Japanese Dr. Yoshinori Ohsumi won a Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for his study on “self-eating” cells. The term for this crucial process is called autophagy. It allows cells to digest and recycle their proteins and other components to be used for energy so that they can continue to thrive.

It also helps cells get rid of any damaged parts and ward off bacterial or viral invaders. Without autophagy, cells would not survive. With it, our bodies can remain active, healthy, and youthful.

Autophagy promotes a faster metabolism, less fatigue, smoother skin, and possibly even protection against cancer. This process works as a sort of essential survival technique. When cells are stressed or starved, it allows them to make their fuel.

One of the easiest ways you can activate this process is through intermittent fasting. By intentionally depriving your body of nutrients for a set period, you will be forcing your cells to turn on this autophagy feature.

While all this mind-blowing magic is going on at the cellular level, you’re going to start to notice how it affects your overall well-being—from the inside out.

#2 - Eat Before Takeoff  

In many cases, people want to know, what can I eat at the airport? Well, the truth is it will be very hard, in most places, to find clean keto foods.

You might strike gold, but why ask the universe to help you out when you can eat before you go and be much happier and less stressed?

It's easy to fall back on delicious keto foods for breakfast some bacon and eggs or a keto egg McMuffin is an excellent distraction from roadside foods that cause temptation and are loaded with carbs. 

If you're short on time a bulletproof coffee is an easy way to load up on fats and get some fuel, without meal prep. Just add some MCT oil and butter to your coffee, with a splash of heavy whipping cream, and you're all set. 

#3 -  Prepare Keto Snacks

Next up, rather than depend on someone else, our advice is to pack some low carb snacks that you love, even if these are just as a backup.

While many people love to enjoy new foods when they travel, there may be times when you get delayed, or can’t find a place to stop, and you will be thankful for a small snack.

Snacking can also help you prolong the time between your next meals and improve your mood, both of which are invaluable when traveling.

Here are some snacks we love to travel with:

• Nuts and nut butter
• Peeled hard-boiled eggs – don’t forget some salt!
• Cheese of any type – Babybel cheese or string cheese are popular options
• Jerky, dry salami and cooked bacon
• Low-carb sesame crispbread
• Parmesan cheese crisps
• Celery filled with cream cheese or nut butter
• Ham and cheese roll-ups
• Crudité with dip
• Salmon and cream cheese bites
• Butter (for great additional fat)
• Olive oil (for salads and veggies)
• Dark chocolate (≥ 70% cacao; no more than a couple of squares per day)

Yes, learning to travel with these items might be a new experience, but we promise it makes it so totally worth it when you still get results.

#4 -  Invest in Containers

You wouldn’t leave home without a suitcase, so do yourself a favor and pack for your keto trip in style. All low carb traveler tips point to containers as the easiest way to make snacking on the go practical.

Here are some ideas to get you going:

• Soap case (for butter)
• 4-oz leak-proof bottle (for olive oil)
• Squeezable 3oz GoToob (for nut butter, mayo)
• Medium GoTubb (for nuts, cream cheese, dip)
• Toothbrush case (for bacon)
• Salt & pepper shaker
• Chilled bento box (for veggies, cheese, dip)
• Chilled salad shaker
• Chilled yogurt and berries container

So put the fanny pack down and get on the low carb bandwagon in style!

#5 - Use Coffee  

A universal snack, coffee can be drunk hot, cold, iced, black or white (just be sure to ask for the whole cream). It’s an ideal meal replacement for people who are in a fasted state and will help reduce hunger cravings for the interim.

Our Konscious Keto Shake is an ideal option for people who love food and want a nutritious, delicious lunch option on the go.

Simply add one scoop of Keto Shake to 6-8oz of water for a creamy milkshake on the go. You don't have to chill or add ice, although that is delicious too.

Coffee has also been shown to increase ketone production so that you will get an extra special boost of energy from these ketone bodies.

We love to add a scoop of Konscious Keto Activate to our coffee in the morning for more energy and fewer sugar cravings. Keto Activate won’t break your fast as it has only five calories and no carbs.

#6 - Intermittent Fasting

If intermittent fasting is part of your low-carb routine, use it strategically to skip meals and make travel simpler. Perhaps you rush to your early morning flight and wait to eat until lunch.

Or, eat a hearty low-carb breakfast before leaving home and don’t eat again until dinner at your destination. One nice thing about fasting is that you can do it anywhere.

Here are some of the more popular forms of intermittent fasting:

• The 16/8 (or Leangains) Method: You will fast for 14-16 hours each day, leaving you with 8-10 hours for eating (aka your “eating window”). For example: Eat 2-3 meals plus snacks between 12pm-8pm, then fast throughout the entire night and morning. Some people choose to skip breakfast or dinner to simplify..
• The 5:2 Diet: For five days a week, you will eat as you typically would with no restrictions. The other two days, consume only about 500-600 calories.
• Eat Stop Eat: For five or six days a week, you will eat as you typically would, then fast for a full day or two.
• The Warrior Diet: You would fast for a full 20 hours every day, then eat one large meal at night.
• Alternate-Day Fasting: You will do a full fast (or restrict your calories to about 500 calories) every other day while eating as you typically would the alternate days.

You can read our in-depth guide to fasting, Health Benefits of Intermittent Fasting, on our keto blog here.

#7 - Book a Kitchen  

Now more than ever, hotels and resorts are offering patrons the opportunity to cook on the premise. While this might be limited, having a microwave or a fridge gives you more options. Hello, bacon and eggs!

Shop around to find an accommodation that suits your needs and prioritize those where you can store food, or make simple ice bassinets where you can store chilled foods.

Since many low carb foods do not require refrigeration, you can be less worried about food contamination. You can also cheat the system and ask your hotel concierge or go to breakfast (if available) to gather essential low carb treats like bacon, eggs, ice, cream, and even olive oil.

Before leaving for your day trip, scope out the food scene where you’re going. Most restaurants have their menus available online these days. If you’re traveling somewhere more remote, make sure to bring along snacks.

If you’re traveling to visit family or friends, make sure to be open about your goals ahead of time so they have an opportunity to support you as well.

Summary

Overall, if you are worried about traveling on a low carb diet, take a deep breathe and know that there are options.

You can make these tips as simple as you would like; opt for intermittent fasting, light snacks, and coffee as simple gotos. And with a bit more complexity and planning, you can give yourself the experience to dine out while traveling the globe.

Whatever you do, we hope you’ll consider the health benefits and enjoy making these small changes to your travel plans as a way to live life on your terms. Being low carb is a wonderful choice for your health and a great way to feel your best.

So, if you plan to take some vacation picks, the last tips we have are to remind yourself that if you choose to eat carbs after a period of low carb dieting, you may experience sudden bloating, which doesn’t look cute in photos.

If you wish to cheat while on vacation (and hey, who doesn’t what to do that!), we recommend packing a small jar of Keto Activate with you to help digest extra carbs and get back into a fat-burning state of ketosis.