Living in a hotel for a week can sound like a death sentence to the health-conscious human.
Removed from the sanctuary of your well-equipped kitchen, you're on your own, left to navigate the questionable tourist trap restaurants, avoid the temptation of the free continental breakfast buffet, and somehow find enough high-quality sustenance to keep your body and mind running at its best.
It's a daunting task. And if you happen to be in some remote town in the middle of nowhere, forget about it - healthy game over!
This happened to me recently. I agreed to emerge from semi-retirement to art direct a week of "The Dan Patrick Show" on location at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament in Pebble Beach, CA, with the full knowledge that I'd be living at the Holiday Inn Express.
Instead of throwing in the towel on maintaining my healthy habits and resigning myself to a week of meals at the West Coast fast-food favorite, In-N-Out (conveniently next door to the hotel), I put on my travel hacking hat and confronted the challenge head-on.
With a couple grocery store trips to Trader Joe's, some creative cooking in my hotel kitchenette, and just 10-15 minutes of meal prep per day, I succeeded in eating nearly 100% paleo all week.
What I Ate Living in a Hotel
MONDAY
BREAKFAST: Super-Charged Morning Matcha (Foursigmatic Mushroom Matcha Mix, MCT oil, and collagen peptides)
MID-MORNING SNACK: Epic Bar (Bison), Handful of Trader Joe’s banana chips
LUNCH: The Super Power Paleo Salad
DINNER: Roasted Chicken Patty & Vegetable Noodles Bowl
DESSERT: 1/2 cup blueberries
MOVEMENT: Yoga (Day 1 of the Youtube series, Yoga with Adriene)
TUESDAY
BREAKFAST: Super-Charged Morning Matcha
MID-MORNING SNACK: Epic Bar (Bison)
Handful of Trader Joe’s banana chips
LUNCH: The Super Power Paleo Salad
MID-AFTERNOON SNACK: Apple
DINNER: Roasted Chicken Patty & Vegetable Noodles Bowl
MOVEMENT: Sprint Intervals
WEDNESDAY
BREAKFAST: Super-Charged Morning Matcha
MID-MORNING SNACK: Handful of Trader Joe’s banana chips
LUNCH: The Super Power Paleo Salad
MID-AFTERNOON SNACK: 1 cup blueberries, 4 slices prosciutto
DINNER: Roasted Chicken Patty & Vegetable Noodles Bowl
THURSDAY
BREAKFAST: Super-Charged Morning Matcha, Ultimate Travel Breakfast: Protein Chia Seed Pudding
MID-MORNING SNACK: Handful of Trader Joe’s banana chips, GT’s Kombucha Gingerade
LUNCH: The Super Power Paleo Salad
MID-AFTERNOON SNACK: 1/2 Cup Blueberries, Apple with cinnamon
DINNER: Roasted Chicken Patty & Vegetable Noodles Bowl
DESSERT: RX Bar (Blueberry)
MOVEMENT: Yoga (Day 2 of the Youtube series, Yoga with Adriene)
FRIDAY
BREAKFAST: Super-Charged Morning Matcha, Ultimate Travel Breakfast: Protein Chia Seed Pudding
MID-MORNING SNACK: Handful of Trader Joe’s banana chips, GT’s Kombucha Gingerade
LUNCH: The Super Power Paleo Salad
DINNER: In-N-Out Burger
- Double Double (Protein style, no cheese, no sauce, no grilled onions (contains gluten)
- French fries (no ketchup or sauce)
SATURDAY
BREAKFAST: Super-Charged Morning Matcha, Epic Bar (Beef)
LUNCH: Chipotle Salad Bowl
- lettuce
- Fajitas
- Double meat (half carnitas, half barbacoa)
- Pico de gallo
- Medium salsa
- Guacamole
- Dressing
MID-AFTERNOON SNACK: Handful of Trader Joe’s banana chips, GT’s Kombucha (Gingerade)
DINNER: Whole Foods hot bar
- Carne asada (topped with Trader Joe’s vegan pesto, which I had in my cooler)
- Roasted butternut squash
- Roasted brussels sprouts
- Glass of red wine
SUNDAY:
BREAKFAST: Super-Charged Morning Matcha, RX Bar (Blueberry)
LUNCH: Leftover Whole Foods carne asada (topped with Trader Joe’s vegan pesto from my cooler), leftover Whole Foods's roasted Brussels sprouts
MID-AFTERNOON SNACK: Epic Bar (Beef)
DINNER: True Food Kitchen Spicy Panang Curry (without the side of brown rice), glass of red wine
This is everything I ate - including my daily guilty pleasure a handful of Trader Joe's banana chips!
My hope is that next time you're traveling for work or pleasure, living out of a hotel, hostel, or camper, you're prepared with simple ideas and easy travel-friendly recipes to keep your energy steady and your brain sharp wherever your travels take you!
