road trip

dodo · #1 (**permalink**) 10-24-2007, 06:54 AM

My husband and I are moving soon!

We are moving from Quebec City to Cold Lake, Alberta (in Canada). It is a 4,500 kilometres drive and we have seven days to take this road trip.

Now the problem is that we will have to eat out most of the time and I still want to eat right. Does anyone have suggestions on where to find good meals (with low carbs) at fast food restaurants? I was thinking on bringing some fruits and veggies with me!

Penny · #2 (**permalink**) 10-24-2007, 07:06 AM

When we drove to California, we stopped for at least one meal a day at a grocery store. We would get fresh veggies, fruit or salad, or use their deli sections to make a meal. They sometimes sell things like chicken by the piece, and many hot side dishes. We bought good bread and made sandwiches. We either took this food to the hotel, or stopped at a park to eat. Fastt food seemed to cause me stomach problems, so we tried to avoid it. We did ask local people for suggestions for good, non fastfood places.

princesslinda · #3 (**permalink**) 10-24-2007, 07:21 AM

There's a web site "dietfacts.com" that lists popular restaurant menus and their nutritional values including carbs. I'd check out the places you usually eat, print out the menus and keep them in your car to refer to while you're on your road trip...you'll know what to order before you even go in the restaurant.

Also, i'd keep fresh veggies/fruit/cheese/sugar free jellow or pudding in a cooler along with some nuts for those times on the road when you need a snack.

RLK · #4 (**permalink**) 10-24-2007, 07:28 AM

My girlfriends and I just returned from a roadtrip to New England. To save money and eat healthier, we bought bread, peanut butter, and other snacks at the grocery store. Bread, PB, and apples and bananas can all go without being refridgerated for a few days, so we didn't even bother with a cooler. We managed to eat lunch for 3 days for only $15 for all 3 of us! It freed up more money for wonderful seafood dinners and we got to lunch at several beautiful state parks

volleyball · #5 (**permalink**) 10-24-2007, 07:59 AM

You may want to invest in one of those car fridges to keep your food in. If you bring whole grain wraps or lettuce leaves, you could substitute the bun that the fast food is usually on

Alice · #6 (**permalink**) 10-24-2007, 08:17 AM

Eli Lilly used to publish a nice "fast food" restaurant nutrition guide...including carbs. I have an old one somewhere, but just moved and haven't unpacked.

You might call their customer service (diabetes) number...they are very good about sending out in mail very quickly.

I just use my normal carb guess-ti-mation in restaurants most of the time and do well...I eat out almost every day anyway.

xMenace · #7 (**permalink**) 10-24-2007, 08:23 AM

We usually do Subway and Tim's.

soso · #8 (**permalink**) 10-24-2007, 08:26 AM

Wendys meal salads are pretty good.. also their chili, but ask them not to stir the pot, just take it off the top, one time I got a starchy bowl.. not so carb friendly....and you will have to ditch the bun.. one more tip at wendys, no matter what type of salad you get, only get the caeser dressing..it is only 1g carb as opposed to about 10 on the others!
another thing I do is get a double cheese or bacon burger and ask them not to put the lid on..that way the cheese is not all melted into the bun and the lower bun slice is usually thinner anyway..then I eat it open face..
Happy Trails...
ss

dodo · #9 (**permalink**) 11-02-2007, 05:32 PM

Thanks for your replies! The website "dietfacts" helped a lot! I also got a book from my dietician about how much carbs (approximatively) there are in foods we find in restaurants.

I talked a lot with my husband and we've decided to try for grocery foods only. We want to eat as much fruits and veggies as possible. After that long trip, we might go for a nice meal in a very nice restaurant!