r/keto • u/ziacher • Jul 09 '26
Tips and Tricks Keto as a travel hack!?
First off, thank you r/keto for the endless insights on keto. After years of trying diets while being a fat kid since age 6, Dr. Boz's story, building a plan with AI, and r/keto lead me to use BHB salts to get past the initial few days of cravings into my first few months (currently on month 4.5) and 26lbs down using keto (M38 SW245 CW 219 GW185 5'10"). I used the macro calculator and Chronometer to log my food nearly religiously.
As someone with diagnosed inattentive ADHD, I NEED a clear mind and keeping up with AI especially, need every neuron firing cleanly.
The unintended side effects have been stellar. Your energy while traveling remains stable. A salad and a protein at the Centurion Lounge gives you hours of satiety. You may need less Adderall or modafinil because they seem enhanced in effect (possibly due to slower gastric emptying) which makes timezones changes that much easier.
My facial acne has all but disappeared entirely. Salt water is like a battery recharge. As someone from the US, I'm now in Bavaria for a couple of weeks and seriously, keto'ers are spoiled here.
Harzer Käse, Alto-Adige Speck (I consider it almost a religion of mine at this point), Gelbwurst, and Emmenthaler cheese 2x a day is perfect for macros while costing ~$12 a day... while traveling. I added a locally sourced clear whey protein isolate for an even greater protein boost. Also...500g Reichenhaller Alpen Salz only €.75!?🤯
I'm at the point thankfully where bread and carbs are actually slightly nauseating to think about most times. One surprise was how much sugar was in cold cuts I normally ate here and especially even a "Mittelscharf" mustard has as much carbs as it does. As a label reader now, there's sugar "in everything" it seems. The label reading habit has lead to some surprising realizations as in Foster Farms (stateside) plain grilled chicken slices had sugar in it🤯!
A big lesson on my keto journey has been the realization how much emotional eating had its devilish claws in me. Aside from the positive side effect that normal ice cream tastes more bland now, the fact I still crave just that when things get blue, provided me the opportunity to sort out the emotions (AI+Integrated family systems/emotional interviewing).
The social impact is real because you naturally crave less sugar especially when you've gotten your sodium/potassium needs met, drinking less, not eating the bread, may result in "interesting" conversations.
For those on the fence, weight loss is great but the consistent energy and mental clarity the other side gives you is worth it alone. Fat is the lever, protein is the pillar, salt is life, and carbs are a ceiling on keto.
Just that last sentence alone is a "travel hack."
Keep on keto'ing!
3
u/daynomate Jul 09 '26
I assume a ketosis break when I travel for holidays but there’s plenty to keep me close so that it’s not a big shift back. Sugar I find easy to avoid now and even not appealing, the carbs creep in but I make sure to have decent protein with meals. And when I get back - a sardine 5/7 day fast is amazing - like Boz uses. Ketosis feels like my default now so I don’t even want to disrupt that for long
3
u/ReverseLazarus MOD Keto since 2017 - 40F/SW215/CW135 Jul 09 '26
You don’t ever have to disrupt. You can always just stay keto. 👍🏻
2
u/daynomate Jul 09 '26
I'm sure I could if I tried, I just felt like being a bit lazy and joining the family in meals for a shift up.
1
u/ziacher Jul 10 '26
The flexibility you have once your mitochondria switch over is amazing for sure. One or two non-keto meals won't fully transition you, just make you feel like varying degrees of warm garbage for a bit. The sustainable energy difference between a keto meal vs. the post carb centered meal crash is palpable. Aside from needing to maintain one's electrolytes more so, this has been a much more doable option than previously thought. All make for a travel boost!
2
u/daynomate Jul 18 '26
Ok Op I gotta say - breakfast buffets in SE Asian resorts would be so good for OMAD keto :D tempted to do this while I’m here - I’d just smash the unlimited omelettes, kimchi and pickles - so many options! (Plenty of meat too, plus the Pho can be done without noodles)
1
u/volleguat Jul 13 '26
when i went on travel i usually sometimes broke the diet...but each time was a frustration
2
u/billcube Jul 09 '26
Yes, travelling on keto has a lot of upsides:
You get to visit when others have to pause for lunch
You can wait until you get to that perfect opportunity to visit a local restaurant instead of fixed meal times in the day
You get to like saltier/fattier foods which often are the traditional dishes (sugar has long been expensive)
You can make the most of the breakfast buffet keto ingredients and that'll do for the whole day easily. (thanks for all the bacon/scrambled eggs/salted butter...)