Hurricane Milton caused me to step up my Nutrition on the Go game when i was trapped in the south for a week …
I evacuated from Tampa in my rental Camry which i had to return to Orlando so i couldn’t go back to NJ for an entire week …
there were 3 changes i made on that trip:
change 1: i switched from Orgain Whey shakes bought in 12 packs from Vitamin Shoppe
when i started using Orgain shakes i was using them with whey protein bars, such as Quest Hero bars for example:
yes i know the bar says 1 gram sugar but according to Galen Quest simply renamed sugar into “Fiber” but it’s just marketing BS … it FEELS like any other candy …
( Orgain also FEELS LIKE you’re drinking sugar water … whereas Core Power Elite feels like you’re drinking ultra-premium Protein with velvety-smooth Chocolate taste that has a decidedly artificial sweetness to it which is what you want - you want the artificial sweetness and not actual fucking sugar )
so i then dumped the Hero bars in favor of Fiber One Chewy bars to get some REAL fiber in ( that actually FEELS like you’re eating fiber ):
so i had no choice but upgrade my protein shake to something with less sugar and more protein even if it was much more expensive …
i do not like paying $4+ per bottle for Core Power Ultra but there is honestly no alternative. it is a superior product and there is nothing else that comes close.
the second change was that instead of buying Fiber One Chewy Bars on Amazon i just got them from a local supermarket, in this case from Publix at Charleston, South Carolina where i evacuated to from Florida.
i am more used to shopping online than in person but when you’re traveling you need to get out of your comfort zone and actually go to the physical stores to buy stuff.
just ask the staff “what isle for granola bars” and in the granola bars section they will have the fiber one chewy bars.
actually last time i was at the supermarket they also had the core power elite there as well … of course 7-Eleven is open 24/7 while supermarket is not. i haven’t compared the prices.
the final adjustment was switching from Jack Link’s Beef Sticks
so my mistake was looking for sausage at the deli section but actually you need to go to the part of supermarket that sells hot dogs basically and look for these beef franks that are 100% fully cooked and ready to eat …
it will say IN VERY SMALL LETERS that they are “fully cooked and ready to eat” but make 100% sure that it says that …
they also have to be REFRIGERATED AT ALL TIMES
you then just put them in the hotel fridge and when you’re hungry take them out of the plastic, warm them up in the microwave and eat them just like that - no buns or anything gay like that - just eat the beef by itself - it is expensive but delicious and nutritious.
so how do these beef franks / hot dogs compare to Jack Link’s beef sticks ?
well they are A LOT LESS SOUR AND SPICY
Jack Link’s beef sticks DO NOT NEED TO BE REFRIGERATED but the trade off is they are very sour and spicy - the acidity is necessary to prevent bacteria growth.
the problem is that while nutrition is great and you can keep them with you while traveling without having a fridge at hand you can’t really get fully by eating something so sour and spicy …
the supermarket bought franks are much more bland tasting and thus much more filling. you can actually get to a point with them where you say “ok i am full” whereas with Jack Link’s beef sticks you always have this sour spicy taste in your mouth that just makes you want to keep eating …
the obvious downside is - you must keep these franks in a fridge
so if a trip is less than about 3 days just take the Jack Link’s beef sticks … ( i bought mine on Amazon, but my guess is they are probably sold elsewhere as well )
if a trip is longer go to a supermarket and buy the franks …
by the way i finally figured out how to open Jack Link’s beef sticks without scissors - it is actually super simple once you know how to do it.
there is a tab you have to pull and it opens right up. no force is needed at all. if you’re using force to open them you’re not doing it right.
the fact you can open them without scissors makes them vastly more useful for when you’re away from your hotel room.
so Jack Link’s beef sticks are NOT a loser here. they are just being shifted from in-hotel-room duty to away-from-hotel-room duty.
the real loser is the Beef Jerky
yes it is much higher in protein and lower in fat than Beef Sticks or Franks / Hot Dogs but it is very hard to chew. i would much rather have the Sticks / Franks / Dogs and then get extra protein from Core Power Elite.
if you enjoy chewing hard things then by all means the Jerky is awesome, of course. it is by far the least processed option here - just the most dry and hard.
well, it isn’t literally hard - it is more like leather or rubber - it is manageable but i decided i am done with it. it’s just a matter of preference and how strong your teeth are.
for the next trip my intention is to take very little food with me and rely much more on supermarket for food.
it’s just that normally i only buy things like milk, eggs and ground beef in supermarket so when i need to buy some snacks on the go i typically go to 7-Eleven but in reality supermarkets have everything that you need ( they just aren’t open 24/7 and what you need may be hard to find since everything is much more spread out in a larger store )
during my evacuation i also had to do laundry on the trip so that is another adjustment i can make is not try to have enough clean clothes with me for the whole trip and instead just do laundry as needed.
i’m starting to see why people experienced with traveling carry less stuff with them. i guess i exposed myself as a NOOB by hauling 100 pounds of luggage on me but i was inexperienced and thus inefficient.
i still don’t see myself traveling with just a carry-on like travel pros do it ( some items like knives or large liquid bottles can’t be taken in the carry on ) i can see myself downgrading from two checked bags to one in the future if my ticket requires paying extra for a 2nd checked bag.
i’m still going to take two checked bags if it’s free though, because i can still fit all of my luggage in the trunk of the rental camry so why not.
