Dr. Daryl's 10 Travel Musts to Keep Your Health on Track

June 28, 2016 Dr Daryl Gioffre

If you’ve got vacation scheduled this summer, you might be wondering how you can keep up your alkaline lifestyle while you’re away.

After all, it’s harder to stay off your acid when you’re on the road or airport hopping, staying in hotels and away from your kitchen, or kicking back and relaxing.

It’s a recipe for wanting to indulge and opting for quick, unhealthy acidic foods when hunger strikes.

But there are lots of ways to get away from it all without increasing your acid. And that’s a good thing because too much acid is going to decrease your energy and make you more sluggish, so you’ll actually enjoy your vacation less.

Plus if you’ve ever returned from a trip a few pounds heavier than when you left, you know how good it will feel to come home feeling lean and clean.

Even when you travel for work or to visit family, these 10 travel tips will keep you feeling great while you’re away from home.

1. Drink Plenty of Water

Travel will make you even more dehydrated than normal, so make sure you’re drinking enough to stay fully hydrated.

The side benefit of drinking more water is that it will help neutralize any acid or toxic foods you consume, which is often more than usual while you’re traveling. Add a slice of lemon if you can.

Flying is very dehydrating, and as a rule of thumb, for every hour in the air you should be drinking a liter of water.

Now, that is a ton of water!

Even if you don’t drink that much, it’s a great goal and a reminder that you should be very well hydrated before you leave, and try to sip as much as possible when on the plane (one more tip – there is a lot of stagnant air on the plane, so putting a dot of oil of oregano above your lip/under your nose will instantly kill any bacterial or viral pathogens before they enter your body).

After you touch down, be sure to hydrate up to make sure you have your best trip possible.

During your trip, keep water handy, especially if you’re doing things outside while the hot sun beats down. This is also true on business travel if you’re spending your day in hotel conference rooms. The air is very dry and it’s more dehydrating than we realize.

I try to avoid all of the options in the airport – soda, juices, carbonated water, and even bottled water. Bottled water is almost always acidic, in part due to the BPA contained in the plastic.

Instead, I bring a glass water bottle that includes an internal filter, or I bring my Get Off Your Acid Shaker Water Bottle and will fill up as I go along. I always keep some mineral salts in my travel bag to make my water more powerful!

2. Get in Exercise

Whether you hit the hotel gym, take a walk or jog around the neighborhood you’re staying in to get a feel for it, or take the stairs in the airport and hotel instead of the elevator, find ways to fit exercise in while you travel.

Working out decreases both your stress level and your acid level, and you’ll be able to sleep better while you’re on the road, but it has to be the right exercise!

No matter what exercise you do, my rule of thumb is if I can hold a conversation while I’m exercising, I am alkalizing my body!

Now, that is not to say that you can’t go spinning, jump rope, or do interval training, all of which create high levels of lactic acid in your body. Have a great work out, sweat a lot, and then drink your Alkamind Daily Minerals within 10-15 minutes of your workout to neutralize all that lactic acid.

3. Limit Alcohol

It’s easy to drink more than usual when you travel, whether for work or pleasure. But alcohol – even the red wine you’ve been told is healthy – is highly acidic. Rule of thumb, the darker the color alcohol, usually the more yeast and sugar, which = MORE ACID!

A glass of wine is fine every now and then, but consider it a treat, rather than a mainstay, and again, ALWAYS have your Alkamind Daily Minerals before sleep when having a drink or two.

4. Take Alkaline Snacks

The best way to keep from making a choice you’ll regret later – especially when you’re in the airport or on the road and hunger strikes – is to travel with healthy, alkaline snacks with you that make it easy to eat whenever you need to.

My favorite on-the-go alkaline snacks are:

Washed and pre-cut veggies with hummus
Slices of green apple with raw almond butter (if you squeeze a little lemon on the apple, it will keep from turning brown and be extra alkalizing)
Chia bars, Bija Bhars, and other nutrient-dense, vegan protein bars.
Homemade trail mix with your favorite alkaline ingredients (raw almonds, cashews, unsweetened coconut flakes, cacao nibs, goji berries, sunflower seeds, flaxseeds, hemp seeds, etc)
Smokey, Crispy Chickpeas
Raw almonds or cashews
Avocado with hemp seeds and lime juice. Avo’s are great for travelling as you can throw one in your bag and the healthy fats will fill you up whether on a plane or in a car.

5. Breathe Deeply

Did you know that 70% of the acids and toxins inside of your body are removed through your lungs?

When we are not breathing deeply, we are trapping in the most significant acid in our body, carbon dioxide gas, or CO₂.

CO₂ is 120 times more powerful as an acid than every other acid COMBINED in your body (that includes hydrochloric acid in your stomach, uric acid in you urine, and lactic acid in your muscles).

When we are not consciously breathing, we are building up acid.

Vacation is a perfect time to concentrate on breathing deeply. Breathe in the sights and sounds as you walk and explore, take deep breaths as you relax on the beach or by the pool, and keep the TV off and fall asleep at night concentrating on your breath.

Breathing is so powerful it can lower blood pressure, slow the heartbeat, energize and remove your stress, and most importantly, change your pH within just one to three minutes.

6. Eat Out the Alkaline Way!

Healthy eating out Eating in restaurants, which you do a lot of when you’re traveling, is one of the hardest ways to eat alkaline.

But it is possible, especially if you follow these tips:

Avoid the bread before the meal and the dessert after
Slow down and chew your food slowly to eat less in general and better digest what you do eat – chew everything, even your smoothies!
Choose from the salads or other green dishes on the menu
Smaller portions are your friend, so opt for sides and appetizers instead of huge entrees
Get dressings and sauces on the side
Choose dishes that are steamed, broiled, baked, grilled, roasted, or sautéed instead of fried.
Bring your own salt – Redmond Real Salt, Himalayan, or Celtic Grey Sea Salt. My wife and I ALWAYS have a 2 oz. sea salt shaker in our bag and at the office.

7. Remember Swap OUT > Better > Best

If you’ve been following me for a while, you know my Swap > Better > Best philosophy. For almost any acidic ingredient, you can find a better alternative out there.

This is the best way to approach travel. You can’t eat 100% alkaline all the time, but you can try to cut back on the acid you consume.

8. Minimize Stress

I know it’s a tall order to keep your stress levels down while traveling these days. One traffic jam or a few minutes in the TSA line is enough to raise your blood pressure.

But stress is so highly acidic, it’s worth doing what you can to keep your stress level to a minimum.

Allow plenty of time to get where you’re going, make arrangements in advance so you can ease through your trip, and try to relax – after all, what is vacation for?

9. Don’t Forget to Pack the Alkaline Way

When you’re packing, remember to take your supplements along with you so you keep getting those essential vitamins and minerals.

Also try to avoid the little travel bottles of products that are full of toxic chemicals. Buy BPA-free travel-sized bottles and fill them with the natural products you enjoy at home.

10. Bring Your AlkaMind Single-Serve Packets

AlkaMind Daily Greens and AlkaMind Daily Minerals are an essential part of staying off your acid while you’re on the road.

By taking a Daily Minerals single-serve packet before bed, you’ll neutralize the acid while you sleep. And by taking a Daily Greens single-serve packet first thing in the morning, you’ll aid your body’s ability to clean out any toxic chemicals and acids you consume while you’re traveling.

Wishing you safe and alkaline summer travels!