What is it about road trips that make me crave Cheetos? Is it the ‘to hell with rules’ spirit of the road? Is it regression to an earlier time when we used to pile a family of seven, two cats (one pregnant) and a dog in the Rambler (no seat belts) and head for the sunset? Come to think of it, we ate rather well on those trips. My Mom would fill a picnic basket with chicken, hard-boiled eggs, cherries and grapes. So I can’t blame nostalgia.
Whatever it is, I have two more road trips planned this month and intervention is critical or I’ll end up looking like Kristie Alley’s “before” picture by Labor Day. On the return trip last weekend I tried these steps and they helped. If you have any ideas to combat Road Trip Munchies I’d love to hear them!
- Bring your own pillow & earplugs. Falling asleep was so much better than stuffing my face.
- Distraction helps. Bring a fully loaded iPod, books & magazines.
- Be the driver. It’s harder to open a bag of anything
- Water is good but I need a flavor so unsweetened iced tea worked better for thirst. I read somewhere that soda stimulates the appetite. Maybe it’s the caffeine.
- Snacks that balance salt, sweet, with texture and actually provide some kind of nutrient. Nuts, granola bars, popcorn, dried or cut up fruit, vegetables.
- Have mints or chewing gum in the car. Also sugar free candies. My kids love gummy worms so we get the sugar free chewy stuff and it works for all of us.
I eat cherry or grape tomatoes while I am on a road trip. They are also easy to eat while driving.
What a great idea! Grape tomatoes are practically like candy but still qualify as a vegetable! Thanks for the suggestion.