We take pride in how much we travel out of Garage Strength. And we travel all around the world to compete. One way to be vegan while traveling is to prepare ahead of time.

Start by looking at where we will be traveling to. Even if it is on the complete opposite side of the world, factor in the hotel that will be home for the travel, and map out if there is a grocery store or farmer’s market nearby to make sure the discipline of eating vegan and abiding by the current diet’s standards. Again, prepare ahead of time.

One of the big things about preparing ahead of time is meal prepping for travel. Go ahead and make some chickpeas, black beans, cauliflower, and masala. Make a bunch of rice as well. Take it on the airplane. This helps people eat decent quality food. Bring snacks as well: vegan chocolate, gluten-free bites, edamame beans, Common Ground (EFM) plant-based protein, chickpea protein snacks, and preground coffee to make a pour-over.

Having all this stuff planned ahead of time, traveling on the airplane for 10+ hours makes for a decent amount of food to make things easier. It is really important to have the protein source established and planned. All of these preparations make it much easier to stay fed and stay vegan on the plane and in the terminals.

Vegan protein on the airplane, especially on a long flight, is a must. Mix the vegan protein and creatine into a plastic bag. Get the rice that was prepared last night and get it out. From there, go ahead and scoop as much plant-based protein as possible into the rice container. Mix it with water. It will then turn into a rice/plant-protein porridge. Eating it will assure hydration and get the needed protein for about the next six hours. This can give enough energy to feel better during the long travel.

Once having arrived at the destination, go exploring for food options that adhere to the vegan lifestyle. Explore the hotel’s offerings, search the internet for vegan restaurants, and just take a walk around the city/town.

People say it is hard to eat vegan while traveling, but it is easy to find fruits, like kiwi, roasted vegetables, and good rice. There are so many fruit options when traveling. There also tend to be a lot of nuts, dates, and stuff like that.

It is an opportunity while traveling to eat a whole bunch of different vegetables and fruits. That helps with adapting during travel. Engaging with good fruits and vegetables goes a long way while traveling.

Like most things, a person can find vegan substitutes for meals. For instance, in Uzbekistan, there is a dish known as Palov (Plov or Osh or Palov, “Pilaf”). It’s made with rice, pieces of meat, grated carrots, and onions. It can be purchased with no meat as a vegan version. This can be done with a lot of meals throughout the world. We can even find vegan ‘cheesesteaks’ in the United States. They’re delicious and the seitan holds the texture pretty well.

A quick lesson learned while traveling while vegan, especially getting cultural food, it tastes really, really good. Like so good that getting seconds is desirable. The point is that if one finds a good cultural meal, keep going back and enjoy the cuisine.

Sometimes the travel adds up and the energy dies. The meal prepping just isn’t enough so seeling out by buying some vegan food occurs. No big deal. Stop somewhere on the way home and grab a large vegan meal and fill up. The earth will like your choices, the animals will approve of valuing their lives. 

The big thing is to plan the protein ahead of time. This is a big one. Also, be willing to look for food. It is also to rely on the same foods over and over again. Once arriving home, splurge a little bit. Do all of this and be vegan while traveling will be effortless.