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Busy? Traveling? Food and Fitness Strategies to Win on the Road

Feb 1, 2017

By Mark Macdonald, ZEN Brand Ambassador & New York Times Best Selling Author

Most of us live a daily battle between keeping our health in balance and falling off plan.

Busy days at work, daily commuting, monthly or weekly travel, feeling like a shuttle service for your kids, plus all the hidden last-minute stressors that pop up throughout the day can derail your health progress and knock you off plan.

As a health professional, entrepreneur, husband and dad, I know firsthand how hard it is to make your health consistently work in a busy world. Let’s all face it: It’s definitely not easy!

But what I have also learned is that when I prioritize my health, everything in my life works better.

I feel better. I have more energy. I sleep deeper. My stress is lower. I’m happier. And most importantly, I become the best version of the dad, husband and person I want to be. We all must realize that regardless of the busyness of life, our health always needs to remain a priority.

When most of us are already maxed out on time capacity, it can seem daunting to add a complete health regime to a full life. I’m writing this blog to share 5 simple strategies that I use daily. These strategies will get you winning with your food and fitness at home, on the road, and throughout your busy life.

Strategy 1: Always Eat PFC Every 3


Skipping meals is the fastest way to overeat and store fat. Simply eat every 3 hours with a balance of protein, fat and carbs. This keeps your blood sugar balanced and your energy and metabolism humming.

When eating in restaurants, follow these simple rules:

  • Choose your protein first, such as chicken or fish. Next choose a fat, such as avocado or balsamic vinaigrette, and then a carb like salad, vegetables and/or some brown rice.
  • Ask for all food to be prepared without oil or butter and with dressings on the side.
  • Stick with water as your beverage choice — it’s clean and calorie free.


Strategy 2:
Stock Your MRFK (Mobile Readiness Food Kit)

Eating three structured meals a day is realistic with a busy schedule: breakfast, lunch and dinner. But since your body needs to eat every 3 hours, you definitely need a solution for the tough meal times: mid-morning, mid-afternoon and late night.

This is why your Mobile Readiness Food Kit, MRFK, is so important. Get a quality cooler and some nice containers, and stock up on your favorite travel-friendly proteins, fats and carbs.

Here are a few examples of my favorite grab-and-go proteins, fats and carbs. Make sure to choose your own favorites too!

  • Proteins — hard-boiled eggs, turkey slices, nitrate-free turkey jerky, ZEN Fuze™
  • Carbs — fresh fruits and vegetables (can use dried fruit for travel), Reserve™ (antioxidant gel pack)
  • Fats — nuts, seeds, avocado
  • Meal replacements — ZEN Fuze, protein bars (Power Crunch, Rise, Kirkland) or meat bars (Epic Bars)
  • Supplements — As I shared in this blog, supplements are used to fill your nutritional gaps and help accelerate your results. Make sure to load your MRFK with daily supplements based on your goals. A few supplements you may want in your MRFK are ZEN Shape® (to help burn fat), ZEN Prime™ (to help flush water) and ZEN Fit™ (to help protect and build muscle).

Strategy 3: Drink Your Water
Travel, stress and lack of sleep all cause water retention.

I know it sounds strange, but the best way to lose your bloat is to drink more water. When your body has an influx of water, it triggers the release of excess fluid and toxins.

Men should drink at least 3–4 liters a day, and women 2–3 liters. So get some quality water bottles and drink up!

Strategy 4: Steal Your Exercise
Sixty-minute workouts do not exist for me when I travel or when I have an extra busy week.

I live by my 1% motto (daily 1% improvements) and focus on squeezing in 20–30 minute workouts each day. Here are some quick strategies I use:

  • I bring my mobile TRX to get quick strength-training workouts in my hotel room.
  • I always have my walking shoes to get some high-intensity and fat-burning cardio in, after my TRX workout.
  • Throughout the day I walk everywhere and stand as much as possible while activating my core muscles (abdominals and lower back) to burn extra calories. I also wear my five-finger shoes to activate even more muscles.

Start thinking of ways you can steal exercise moments during your extra busy days or weeks.

Strategy 5: Roll It Out & Stretch
Hectic days, new beds, cramped airplanes and hours of standing definitely take a toll on my body. In a perfect world I would have a massage therapist and chiropractor with me all the time, but that’s not a reality. So every night, whether I’m home or on the road, I do three simple things to keep my spine aligned and muscles feeling loose so I can be my best:

  • I roll it out for 5 minutes on my travel foam roller, a great spine adjuster.
  • I rub out all my tight muscles with “the Stick,” a fantastic tool to loosen even the tightest knots.
  • I stretch for 5–10 minutes with a stretching band or towel to increase my circulation and relax my body.

There you have it: 5 simple, realistic and straightforward strategies to win in your busy life. Your next step is to take these strategies and evolve them to work for you, so that regardless of your schedule, you will rock your health and achieve your goals.

Are you ready to take your body to the next level and start your health transformation?

If so, check out our world-renowned ZEN Project 8® program and begin walking the path to living your best health!