Staying happy, healthy and thriving whilst travelling is everyone’s priority but it’s not always easy. Our body, minds and routines are disrupted making it easy to justify that third bowl of pasta in Italy. Trust me we have all been there!! From highly processed food to not getting enough sleep, long term travel is a constant balancing act. The key is developing habits and values before you hit the road. These are five things we do to stay healthy whilst travelling.

Healthy Food

Fuel yourself

Eating healthy can take some discipline whilst you’re out travelling. From the enticing smells as you walk down the street to the restaurants that always seem to serve everything with a side of French fries. We always try and prioritize nutrient dense food whilst on the road however finding healthy food on the road is not always easy and sometimes near impossible.

Sean and I eat a whole food plant based diet, that helps keep us focused on what we consume whilst travelling. We always carry healthy snacks with us and often cook for ourselves, we visit the local supermarkets and outdoor markets. Trying the local produces and specialties whenever possible.

We also enjoy going to restaurants and use the app Happy Cow to find juice bars, restaurants and cafes that fit our dietary requirements. We also avoid beverages that contain alcohol and highly processed food, sticking to fresh produce whenever possible.

Communication

Listen to your body and speak up!

Travelling in a group or with your partner requires constant communication. There’s no benefit in keeping quiet and unnecessarily suffering if you aren’t feeling well, are tired or feeling unsafe in the situation. People you are with can’t read your thoughts and not everybody reaches their limits at the same time, so it’s important to keep the lines of communication open throughout the day . Often just verbalizing how you feel will ensure everybody is working together to ensure safety, comfort and make traveling fun. Especially towards the end of the day we will check in with each other regularly to ensure we stay alert whilst on the bike, hunger, tiredness and being cold are important factors to keep in mind. With open communication we make sure we can address any concern before it develops into an issue.

Water

This is your reminder to drink water!

Drink water .. sounds simple right? But its scary how fast you can get dehydrated on the road. Hydration can cause weakness, headaches and dizziness and quickly ruin your trip. So make sure you always have water on you and bring a reusable water bottle to refill at fountains along the way.

Obviously in hotter climates its amazing how much water you lose with all that riding gear on so drink regularly even if you don’t feel thirsty!

Our Tip - Tea! Yes i know the clique because Sean and I are British but we drink copious amounts of tea when we travel.

Plan Ahead

Planning is everything

I am a self diagnosed over planner with a specialty in research. I will spend hours looking into our tour planning each minute but Sean is more go with the flow and spontaneous. Somewhere in the middle is the sweet spot. Even Sean who’s approach to travel is to turn up somewhere and see what’s there often thanks me for the research I’ve done beforehand as we can utilize our time in the most efficient way, this is especially useful when we are only at a place for one night. Having said that he’s taught me not to worry when things don’t go to plan and to be prepared to adapt along the way as half of the fun is the unknown. There are some matters when planning ahead is essential and winging it just isn’t practical. Sure it doesn’t matter if you get lost on the way or don’t find the perfect place to sleep but with things like Visas, knowing what paperwork you will need and being prepared with the correct equipment makes for a smoother trip and removes any unnecessary stress so you can focus on enjoying the trip. Why waste time on the road with things that could have been done at home in the comfort of your favorite chair.

Sleep and Rest

I cannot stress enough how important it is to get enough sleep while travelling!

I’ve lost count of the amount of times I have fallen asleep at dinner tables, in airports and even on a few busses. I’ve almost fallen asleep on the back of the motorbike once or twice! Sean’s phone is full of photographs of me asleep after a long day of travelling. We have learnt that sleep is crucial to our enjoyment of a tour, we keep a tight sleep routine wherever possible. This ensures we get the optimum amount of sleep for us to be fully ready for whatever the next day throws at us. We also make time for rest and relaxation, whether that is one hour to read a book or sometime in the wellness facilities of a hotel. Enjoying a sauna and swim or just having a drink and enjoying the view. Making the time to sleep and rest is of the upmost importance if you want to stay healthy on the road.

Tip - Be sure to test your equipment out before setting off, camping in the living room is perfectly acceptable to make sure your sleeping mat is up to the job.

These are the guidelines we try to follow and take with us wherever we go. As our environment is ever changing we don’t expect perfection but endeavor to remain focused in all we do. Just as we maintain and service our vehicles we also continue to check in and invest in ourselves.

Emily