Keto - Traveling and Eating Out

Minas Tirith

Minas Tirith

Jedi Council Member
I went from Paleo to Keto beginning of April - with immediate and amazing health results (as reported in the Ketogenic thread). Unfortunately, only a couple of months later, due to traveling and moving homes and continents - not all at once, but in installments, having to live and externally considerate other people, being in hotels, not in charge of my own kitchen, constantly on the move, was thrown out again.

In this thread I would like to collect suggestions how to deal with these situations. What do you actually eat when "on the road"? I can imagine that the fat bomb works for shorter trips, even though the raw eggs have to be somehow kept cool. Breakfast is easiest, finding a place serving bacon and eggs not too difficult at least in the States. Would be good to have something that you don\t have to cook to prepare, avocados, perhaps? But what if you have to stay for several days?

Another topic: Eating out. Sometimes it's not optional: work-related, invitations where you would like to participate ... What do you order?

Thanks,

M.T.
 
This sounds like a good use for pemmican. Also you could use the canner to prepare a number of single-meal jars - this would allow a lot of variations of recipes. Maybe we can have a thread about canned keto meals for reference for these situations?

As far as business dinners, I don't see how it's possible to be reasonably sure that something at a restaurant won't have something bad in it. Even if you research the restaurant ahead of time, checking to see if they have a gluten-free menu and allergen information, something usually still goes wrong, and even if not, they are still probably cooking your food on aluminum, teflon or nanoparticles, or using canola oil. Sometimes I feel sick just walking in and smelling the air.

Some places might be open to preparing a meal ahead of time to your specifications so that it will be ready when you arrive. If you have a say in the location of the dinner, then you could use this to your advantage.
 
When having to stay at a hotel: make sure you get a room with a fridge and a microwave and pack a cooler with enough keto food to last you for the duration. I did this recently and it worked out well...except I ending up staying a day longer than I expected. That last day was good for intermittent fasting.

I don't care much for restaurants anymore, but just ordering plain meat and a side of veggies is the safest bet. Previously, I've taken a ziploc baggie of ghee or some other fat to slather on to my meat.

At some gatherings I'll bring my own food. If it's a family event, they know my situation so I don't get any weird looks. At other places, I'll say that I've just eaten (If they ask. Most people don't pay close enough attention to notice when you've eaten.) You can say you're not hungry, or on a diet or you're allergic or something that people will easily accept.
 
Minas Tirith said:
Another topic: Eating out. Sometimes it's not optional: work-related, invitations where you would like to participate ... What do you order?
Click to expand...

You can never be sure about what lands on your plate sometimes. Aside from what the others have said I would suggest keeping a bottle of activated charcoal and probiotics close by (to be used afterwards, charcoal immediately after and probiotics 12 to 24 hrs after the charcoal) as kind of a reset button. However, this shouldn't be done often.

In my experience that combination has been a godsend on several occasions. It gives me almost immediate relief from the discomforts that follow after having to eat out.

And just because you order something paleo doesn't mean it's going to go well. My last lunch outing I had a porkchop, bacon, and eggs. 30 minutes later my stomach was burning and that has never happened before. So I would definitely take the advice already given above to heart. Research the restaurants along with possibly calling ahead of time.

Edit: clarity
 
Best to bring something with you if possible, though in a pinch, one could just have a little bit of protein, then add more fat to the next meal to make up for the relative lack of fat. Or perhaps add some tea of coffee with butter in it.
 
I like the idea of a fatty drink that you bring along. Say you bring it in a thermos and explain you brought it with you for work that day and just decided to finish it off.

So what fatty drinks would qualify, not seeming strange and not smelling weird?
 
In this thread I would like to collect suggestions how to deal with these situations. What do you actually eat when "on the road"? I can imagine that the fat bomb works for shorter trips, even though the raw eggs have to be somehow kept cool. Breakfast is easiest, finding a place serving bacon and eggs not too difficult at least in the States. Would be good to have something that you don\t have to cook to prepare, avocados, perhaps? But what if you have to stay for several days?
Click to expand...

Charcuterie, fat ham, rillettes, canned liver paté, duck cracklings, canned beef, sardines, fish eggs, avocado...

Otherwise, there is always sashimis (not salmon but sometimes octopus etc, without wasabi and soy sauce), but they might contain parasites : https://cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=30893.0

So now if I need a restaurant I search for seafood, or meat cooked without oil. And maybe tagines without wheat, and without vegetable oil.
 
Carrying along a good sized package of cooked bacon serves really well on both fat and protein fronts. Careful opening the package in tight spaces (like an airplane) - it will get moths watering all around you. :)
 
I generaly travel only for 4 days in a row. I take some ghee, salami, tins of sardines and some salt. A camping stove, a plate, a spoon and a frying pan in case I can find some good meat.

No bone broth for a week don't seems to be a problem.
 
jsf said:
Charcuterie, fat ham, rillettes, canned liver paté, duck cracklings, canned beef, sardines, fish eggs, avocado...

Otherwise, there is always sashimis (not salmon but sometimes octopus etc, without wasabi and soy sauce), but they might contain parasites : https://cassiopaea.org/forum/index.php?topic=30893.0

So now if I need a restaurant I search for seafood, or meat cooked without oil. And maybe tagines without wheat, and without vegetable oil.
Click to expand...

I'm all for the sashimis! And the avocado, I actually carry a Tupperware of lard or butter around with me so if I had to I could order plain meat and add extra fat. I'm used to eating lard and butter by itself now. I've trained myself to swallow bitesize pieces so I'm never without fuel supply wherever I am. I am planning to travel round southeast Asia in a couple of months so this will certainly be a test! I believe when travelling you really have to get as simple as possible with food and get it plain. Once I find something that works, I stick with it so I am never left hungry. It means eating a lot of the same things over and over but I'm just fuelling the machine instead of maintaining the illusion as quoted by the C's/Laura.
 
I was away for 3 days 2 nights recently but it was in a place with a cooker top, so i just bought (disgusting) eggs and took the butter/lard/xylitol with me - though i could have bought the lard/butter there - and just made my fat bombs in the mornings as i usually do. Iin a hotel, this wouldn't work of course, so scrambled eggs with smoked salmon? You could also grab a coffee/tea and chuck butter in it and just glug the thing down - ask the barrista for the drink extra hot to get things going.

Salami, wrapping it around butter (it keeps if it's not hot); prosciutto from the packet; in the evening i ate a lamb curry takeaway without rice - ask for it without sugar - and bought some salad. The dry tandoori's should have no added anything, so just add butter. You can buy smoked mackerel which is already oily and chuck it in a lettuce leaf, like a sandwich. Or smoked salmon i eat straight. Sashimi - oh my god, i know about the parasites, but this is heaven (haven't had it for 2 years).

The other thing i did was buy rotisserie chickens, or hot deli meats - like chicken thighs and pork belly. Obviously quality will be questionable depending on where you are, but in emergencies..

I think restaurants, the idea being the food is usually complicated due to the skill of the chef, are probably going to be tougher - so just cuts of meat and salads; this shouldn't be too hard. Or if you order fish, it's is generally only lightly dressed.

Vietnamese tend to use broths, so minus the noodles, replace it with extra veg?, this can be a tasty option. And certain nationalities are ok with the 'no gherkin' type of ordering.

But yeah, i wasn't away long and it probably won't happen again, but just those two days had me thinking of all you who have to travel. Eesh. :umm:
 
This situation has been a cantankerous dilemma, when i've been on the road. But one thing for sure is that there is always a place in the states that has 24/7 coffee shop's where i could at least find eggs, and bacon. I will also sometimes order a side of bacon to go, which I'll keep in the car so when i feel that a crave start to creep on i will have something to quite down the hunger pangs. There is always just enough fat to hold me over till the next meal time.

The one thing that will collapse this diet is that once one starts to consume carobs the addiction starts again. So i have to make sure that before i make my mark (where i can get to a kitchen) i will find a premiere (a la nature) slab of bacon i will cook for perseverance. Cook it all down, pack all together, (lard, and bacon bit's) in a glass tub, or jar and pack it with me while on the road again.

There is also Mexican delicatessen's in many of the city's (that i migrate through), that sell carnitas, which is roasted pork piece's (shoulder, ribs loins, etc.) with beaucoup fat always roasted with each piece. Not sure about transportation if it could or would produce toxins if not properly stored while traveling. So that is a consideration to have to deal with. Maybe a small cooler might be advised packed with some ice for a little protection.

Also goat yogurt can be packed in (chilled) as well, which is very filling, and satisfying. It also is a good source of fat, protein, and BCAC.

Pork rinds can be found there also (pretty stable), which always have a good amount of fat integrated with skin. This could also be a good buffer till to you find a kitchen for more control to maintain your low carb, or Ketosis efforts.

But be advised that these delicatessens tend to be in neighborhoods that might be a security challenge. So be aware of your surroundings, and the time of day you visit. Also a little Spanish goes a long way.

The eating out with friends will always be difficult, that requires a big scoop of temptation resistance. During these times i will kick up the exercise regime with hiking, walking, and cycling like there is no tomorrow. This extra activity at least keeps the weight in check, and curbs the appetite. Eating something fat laden before the get together might fuel your efforts of resistance.

Cigarettes :cool2: help too.

Good luck it's not easy, and does require all the discipline, and patience on can muster. ;)
 
I think pemmican is a good bet - keeps forever (if not too hot) and is a complete meal in itself. And easy to transport due to its nutritional density. You can live off this stuff as long as you like.

An alternative that I currently use is dried meat (I am using kangaroo at the moment - and I superdried it, so it's like chips) and yak butter (that I put in tea), also a meal in itself. I add a bit of veggies now and then, plus eggs (at the moment I eat it in omelettes, which is not optimal).

In restaurants I usually order meat and veggies, and that's the best I can do. My main goal is to stay in ketosis.
 
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