How to eat when travelling abroad?

[plumbis]

Due to my job, I find myself traveling very often throughout the year (conferences, workshops, visits, courses abroad etc). It so happens I'm away for at least 3 months, + 1 month of vacation/christmas per year. I can consistently go to the gym and follow a proper diet for like 2-3 months, then I have 1 week interval, then I'm back for another 3 weeks, then away for 4 days, then back for 6 weeks, then away for 2 weeks, then back 1 month, away for 1 month.

I'm 26, 260 lbs and I want to lose fat. I've read all the stickies and I already nailed down my diet and exercise plan, but I find it very difficult to be consistent with it. Companies usually serve you very small dishes based on 40g of pasta or 30g of salmon filet, and then you have many dessert servings or lots of wine and alcohol. What am I supposed to do during these periods of the year?

I try to avoid all those sugary things like the plague and I usually end up on a 800-1000 kcal diet (according to myfitnesspal and overestimating everything just to be sure) because I have no idea what's inside those greasy cookies and I stay away from them. I'm surely loosing weight, but it's not only fat and I'm way below my protein macros. What do you suggest? Should I bring some protein dense magic sticks with me when I travel? I really set my mind to lose fat and become fit, but this way I'll just end up skinny fat.

Thanks

[gbullock32]

Eating only 800-100 calories per a day is pretty stupid for starters; less than your BMR which is never good.

Learn the nutrition basics and that will allow you to simply eat whatever restaurants serve and fit them in to your daily needs.

NUTRITION

This is the largest factor in your success, learn the basics to get started and then move into more advanced if needed.

BASICS

Spoiler!

This website will help you find your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure):

http://www.sailrabbit.com/bmr/

Keep in mind this is only an estimate, and you adjust based on results. Stick with the estimate for 2 or so weeks and then add or subtract calories until gaining or losing weight at the desired pace.

Now that you have the TDEE, get your macro-nutrient needs (fat, protein, and carb needs). Fat has 9 calories per gram, and protein/carbs have 4 calories per gram, alcohol is 7 calories per gram count it as a carb when fitting it into your macros).

Protein- .8 grams per pound
Fat- .4 grams per pound

Meet those MINIMUMS and then fill out remaining calories as you want with carbs, or more protein and fat, or any combination. Remember to track properly too, use a food scale (measuring cups can be very inaccurate due to density); track everything, each little bit adds up (sauces can be quite calorie dense).

Next decide your goal and eat at a 10-20% caloric deficit or surplus, deficit to lose weight and surplus to gain. For gaining go for ~2 pound per month and when losing aim for 1-2 pounds per week. Reach your macro needs with mostly whole foods and a wide variety to ensure enough vitamins and mineral, but remember to practice common sense and moderation- enjoy life.

Sources and More Information

Spoiler!

Nutrition-
Calculating Calories
Pre, During, and Postworkout Nutrition
How To Ask For Diet Critique
Discretionary Calorie Allowance
Macro/Micro Nutrients Explained
Clean Eating Myth
Insulin and Fat Loss
Insulin and Fat Loss 2

Protein-
Protein Needs
Protein Needs 2
Protein Needs 3
Protein Timing
Muscle Protein Synthesis

Fat-
Fat Needs
Fat and Testosterone

Meal Timing-
Meal Timing 1
Meal Timing 2

Micro-Nutrient Guide-
Micro-Nutrient Guide

[plumbis]

Dude, I've already read the stickies and I know what I should be eating and what my macros are, but I stated it's impossible to hit my macros with what they serve.

70% of the food is carbs (mainly sugary), 25% is fat, 5% is protein. I don't know how many calories are in those greasy, glassy things, so I just stick to oats, eggs, ham or food I'm familiar with to estimate my daily intake, but it's not like there is an infinite amount of them. I can take 2-3 servings of meat/fish, but that's like 30g protein if I'm lucky.

I'm trying to lose fat, I don't want to risk going beyond 2000 kcal eating those hypercaloric foods in the coffee breaks and not knowing what awaits me later. I also would like to stick to my protein and fat macros but as I said, it is not possible. That's why I asked if I should bring food from home, some very protein dense stuff that is easy to put in the bag, because I don't know what to do.

That will be my diet for 1/4 of the year, so I have to sort it out somehow

[rsipock]

In a word: eggs! At the sponsored meal, do your best: eat the sliver of protein, all the vegetables, and restrict yourself to a pile of processed carbs sized approximately to the size of a computer mouse. Be your own best judge in terms of the alcohol and desserts. After the meal, try to find a truck stop/convenience store. A lot of them have hard boiled eggs. From there, you can pick up a few eggs and boost your kcals and protein content.

[gbullock32]

Dude, I've already read the stickies and I know what I should be eating and what my macros are, but I stated it's impossible to hit my macros with what they serve.

70% of the food is carbs (mainly sugary), 25% is fat, 5% is protein. I don't know how many calories are in those greasy, glassy things, so I just stick to oats, eggs, ham or food I'm familiar with to estimate my daily intake, but it's not like there is an infinite amount of them. I can take 2-3 servings of meat/fish, but that's like 30g protein if I'm lucky.

I'm trying to lose fat, I don't want to risk going beyond 2000 kcal eating those hypercaloric foods in the coffee breaks and not knowing what awaits me later. I also would like to stick to my protein and fat macros but as I said, it is not possible. That's why I asked if I should bring food from home, some very protein dense stuff that is easy to put in the bag, because I don't know what to do.

That will be my diet for 1/4 of the year, so I have to sort it out somehow

McDonald's hamburger has good macros, as does the burgers from most places. So either you suck at reading nutrition information or are basing all of your 'knowledge' off of assumptions.

[3maj]

Dude, I've already read the stickies and I know what I should be eating and what my macros are, but I stated it's impossible to hit my macros with what they serve.

70% of the food is carbs (mainly sugary), 25% is fat, 5% is protein. I don't know how many calories are in those greasy, glassy things, so I just stick to oats, eggs, ham or food I'm familiar with to estimate my daily intake, but it's not like there is an infinite amount of them. I can take 2-3 servings of meat/fish, but that's like 30g protein if I'm lucky.

I'm trying to lose fat, I don't want to risk going beyond 2000 kcal eating those hypercaloric foods in the coffee breaks and not knowing what awaits me later. I also would like to stick to my protein and fat macros but as I said, it is not possible. That's why I asked if I should bring food from home, some very protein dense stuff that is easy to put in the bag, because I don't know what to do.

That will be my diet for 1/4 of the year, so I have to sort it out somehow

2-3 servings of meat/fish will never be only 30g of protein. A "serving" is rarely less than 100g, and any meat source will have 20g+ of protein.

Your statements (800-1000cals, percentages you mention above) show very clearly that your understanding and knowledge of nutrition is very poor, so a good start would be educating yourself past the superficial. As a frequent traveler myself I can tell you that meeting your macros is quite easy and in fact provides me personally with a lot more variety than what I would normally prep.

Lastly, if it is solely protein you're worried about, it's hard to beat a whey shake for convenience.

[TheGymJim]

restrict yourself to a pile of processed carbs sized approximately to the size of a computer mouse.

Still a better measuring system than the USA uses.

[TheGymJim]

Also, I don't care where the hell you are in the world, everywhere has oats, eggs and milk. Just use your brain. Take whey with you if you want. Pretty convenient for protein.

[ankmiike]

I've read all the stickies...

Great!

I try to avoid all those sugary things like the plague

... go re-read the stickies.

It's impossible to hit my macros with what they serve.

Talk to the chef. Get past your social anxiety -- your fear of what people, your boss, your colleagues, company, etc. will think if you try to assert yourself.
Tell him you're on a diet and need XYZ.
Lie, if you have to. Say your nutritionist put you on this diet due to health issue.

[gbullock32]

Great!

... go re-read the stickies.

Talk to the chef. Get past your social anxiety -- your fear of what people, your boss, your colleagues, company, etc. will think if you try to assert yourself.
Tell him you're on a diet and need XYZ.
Lie, if you have to. Say your nutritionist put you on this diet due to health issue.

Or... just order a burger protein style, pretty much everywhere does that and he doesn't need to look like a douche.

[Mrpb]

Same way, insert in your mouth and then chew.

[CommitmentRulz]

One of the admins knows I watch my intake and try to get lots of protein. She has actually turned into an "ally" and will actually stop by and ask me if I've "had enough", etc.

[plumbis]

2-3 servings of meat/fish will never be only 30g of protein. A "serving" is rarely less than 100g, and any meat source will have 20g+ of protein.

Your statements (800-1000cals, percentages you mention above) show very clearly that your understanding and knowledge of nutrition is very poor, so a good start would be educating yourself past the superficial. As a frequent traveler myself I can tell you that meeting your macros is quite easy and in fact provides me personally with a lot more variety than what I would normally prep.

Lastly, if it is solely protein you're worried about, it's hard to beat a whey shake for convenience.

Sir, they literally serve me a cubic piece of salmon filet with measurements 1'' x 1'' x 1''. That or 3 round slices (approx 2 mm thick) of roasted beef (radius around 2'') with some radish or a spoon of rice. Unless they had the density of lead, I don't think that would ever amount to more than 50g. Tomorrow I'll take some photos, just so you get an understanding of how minuscle the servings are.

Also, the point of this topic is exactly to educate myself since I'm new at all this calorie counting, just in case you missed it. I know what to buy and how much to eat when I can read food labels, but I have a hard time counting them when away. I try to stay at around what I estimate to be 1000kcal knowing that I'm underestimating something (so I'm most likely still at 1500+ since I'm not completely starving). I saw there is an app that helps you estimate calories by taking a photo: do you know if that's reliable?

@gbullock32:
The problem of these conferences is that most of the time you are stuck in the same place for 10-12h straight, with served lunch and buffout coffee break. It would be wonderful if the lunch was buffout as well, so that I could stuff myself with meat, but that doesn't happen often. I try to get the most of my macros at breakfast where I can eat eggs and ham, but beyond that it's unrealistic (and they don't bring us to Mcdonalds).

In some past events we were given more freedom, so that's absolutely viable and I'll take note of relying on them or boiled eggs like rsipock suggested when given the chance to. But really, most of the time we are trapped in a single building for hours, sometimes in forgotten places which are at least 30-60min walk far away from the urban area.

It would also be helpful if you had some sort of guide at calorie counting based on volumetric amounts. Things like "pile of processed carbs sized approximately to the size of a computer mouse" are already a good starting point for me, since they give me a general idea of how much is okayish.

Thanks

[gbullock32]

Sir, they literally serve me a cubic piece of salmon filet with measurements 1'' x 1'' x 1''. That or 3 round slices (approx 2 mm thick) of roasted beef (radius around 2'') with some radish or a spoon of rice. Unless they had the density of lead, I don't think that would ever amount to more than 50g. Tomorrow I'll take some photos, just so you get an understanding of how minuscle the servings are.

Also, the point of this topic is exactly to educate myself since I'm new at all this calorie counting, just in case you missed it. I know what to buy and how much to eat when I can read food labels, but I have a hard time counting them when away. I try to stay at around what I estimate to be 1000kcal knowing that I'm underestimating something (so I'm most likely still at 1500+ since I'm not completely starving). I saw there is an app that helps you estimate calories by taking a photo: do you know if that's reliable?

@gbullock32:
The problem of these conferences is that most of the time you are stuck in the same place for 10-12h straight, with served lunch and buffout coffee break. It would be wonderful if the lunch was buffout as well, so that I could stuff myself with meat, but that doesn't happen often. I try to get the most of my macros at breakfast where I can eat eggs and ham, but beyond that it's unrealistic (and they don't bring us to Mcdonalds).

In some past events we were given more freedom, so that's absolutely viable and I'll take note of relying on them or boiled eggs like rsipock suggested when given the chance to. But really, most of the time we are trapped in a single building for hours, sometimes in forgotten places which are at least 30-60min walk far away from the urban area.

It would also be helpful if you had some sort of guide at calorie counting based on volumetric amounts. Things like "pile of processed carbs sized approximately to the size of a computer mouse" are already a good starting point for me, since they give me a general idea of how much is okayish.

Thanks

It's like common sense and moderation are foreign concepts to you.

[plumbis]

It's like common sense and moderation are foreign concepts to you.

That's what I'm trying to fix. If you have any helpful input, that's welcome.

[gbullock32]

That's what I'm trying to fix. If you have any helpful input, that's welcome.

Just eat a moderate amount; fist size portion of protein, double fist of veggies, half fist of carbs as an example....

[plumbis]

Just eat a moderate amount; fist size portion of protein, double fist of veggies, half fist of carbs as an example....

Thank you.

I know that for you people this is normal, but I've always been used to ignore this stuff up to now. I was just happy with eating good things and the place where I come from doesn't really help with that. I was successful with weight loss during Dukan's diet, so I even more ignored all nutrition rules, as I was able to stuff myself with chicken or other lean protein and avoid calorie counting.

But none of those are sustainable in the long term and I'm nearing my 30s, so it's fkn good time I put a stop to years of unhealthy and uncontrolled eating and stick with a definite diet plan that I can sustain forever, and this implies re-learning how to eat.

[ankmiike]

It would also be helpful if you had some sort of guide at calorie counting based on volumetric amounts.

If you like counting calories, you can use this volumetric guide:
Deck of cards ~= 120 grams meat (~25 grams protein)
Small fist ~= 100 grams carbs (25 grams carbs)
Tennis ball ~=200 grams fruit (25 grams carbs)
Dietary fat: 1/2 ping pong ball ~= 14 grams (14 grams fat)

If you don't like counting calories, you can use the volumetric guide from Precision Nutrition:
Estimating portion size (scroll down for the infographic)
Workout nutrition (again, scroll down)

Obviously, calorie counting will give you better results, but will require more mental effort.
The Precision Nutrition's method will still get you to a pretty good ball-park, though.

[TheGymJim]

Sir, they literally serve me a cubic piece of salmon filet with measurements 1'' x 1'' x 1''. That or 3 round slices (approx 2 mm thick) of roasted beef (radius around 2'') with some radish or a spoon of rice. Unless they had the density of lead, I don't think that would ever amount to more than 50g. Tomorrow I'll take some photos, just so you get an understanding of how minuscle the servings are.

If the servings are this small, how the hell are you not losing weight? I call bs. There's no way in hell you would be at the weight you are now if this is how you were eating for half the year. Ethiopian prisons serve larger portions than this.

[plumbis]

If the servings are this small, how the hell are you not losing weight? I call bs. There's no way in hell you would be at the weight you are now if this is how you were eating for half the year. Ethiopian prisons serve larger portions than this.

Oh nono sir, don't get me wrong. I started my dieting plan some weeks ago. I've lost 6lbs during this month, but since I was away all the time, it's not only fat but most likely also muscle mass or water. This coming month I will start going to the gym but I'll have to interrupt it at intervals in the upcoming months.

I spent a lot of time coming up with my permanent living style but then remembered that my current life is quite busy with travels and I wouldn't have been able to properly eat for 1/4 of the year (and it won't change for at least 3 years). So that's why I asked how I should regulate myself when abroad from now on.

The calorie deficit worked perfectly so far. I think I am intolerant to gluten, since whenever I eat pasta/pizza or beer my stomach bloats A LOT, but the weight is definitely going down. I just don't want to ruin my progress when I'm away.

[RK42]

This coming month I will start going to the gym but I'll have to interrupt it at intervals in the upcoming months.

Not necessarily. I had almost never bothered to even go to hotel gyms, expecting that they probably had a couple of treadmills. Then I did on a recent trip, and could hardly believe my eyes when I spotted barbells, plates, power racks, and benches. In some ways, that gym was nicer than the one I go to at home. No idea how typical that is, but give it a chance.