Whether you’re the salesman on the road all day long, or the occasional traveler forced to traverse the nation for a wedding or annual family outing, there will inevitably come a time when you will be forced to leave the safe confines of your home or office, get behind the wheel, and spend a nice chunk of your waking day driving. When this happens, many of us will throw our diet out the window and use it as excuse to eat junk. But you must not let that happen. Here are some tips for eating to build muscle while you’re on the road.

Breakfast
Fast food get a bad rap for more meals – and rightfully so. However, when it comes to breakfast, you can usually get away with a plate of eggs and hotcakes from a McDonald’s or Burger King drive thru, provided you go easy on the items like butter, bacon and jelly which add nothing useful in terms of carbohydrates or protein. A pile of eggs is essentially the same, whether it’s prepared in your kitchen or by the McChef, so enjoy it and eat as early as possible.

Lunch
Your best bet for that quick lunchtime rush will probably be Subway. They are located in nearly every town, gas station, and rest stop in America. You can choose from a wide variety of meats, cheese, and vegetables to keep your body enriched with the required macronutrients to keep moving and growing while on the road. You can skip the mayonnaise and opt for extra lettuce, too!

Dinner
If you have a Blackberry or Palm Pilot, you have the world at your fingertips. Select a restaurant such as Perkins, IHOP, or Bob Evans which is located 20 to 30 minutes ahead of you in your travels. From there, you can call in a “to go” order of pot roast, chicken salad, broiled chicken breasts with broccoli, or anything else that suits your muscle grill palette.

Snacks
While you are on the road, you may be tempted to grab a bag of chips from a gas station. You must avoid this option! Keep protein bars on hand for those times when you just need a little sugar and starch to keep moving. Aside from that, stick with your meals and protein shakes to keep yourself full. Not only will fatty snacks add inches to your waistline, but they will also prevent you from being hungry in 2.5 to 3 hours when it’s time for your next meal. Skip the junk!

Protein
Without a doubt, a cooler filled with bottled waters, a shaker cup and a tub of whey protein must make this trip with you! Nuff said!

Training cannot be overlooked. Scope our gyms in the area where you’ll be traveling. Call ahead and find out their hours, and what they charge for a one-day pass. If you’ll be traveling through that same area on the way back, a two-day pass might be a better option. Whichever the case, be sure you don’t miss a training day. Gyms are everywhere and they love visitors!

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