Summer weather is here and that means it’s time to pack up the car and plan some road trips! But, as anyone who has driven across multiple states knows, a trip can be more enjoyable with a little planning and prep work, even if you decide to take an impromptu road trip.
So, here are 3 tips for making your next summer road trip more fun and maybe even a bit healthier.
Download those Podcasts and Audiobooks
While we live in a time where what you listen to on a long road trip isn’t limited to skimming the local radio stations or bringing along a large CD collection, it still makes sense to bring some content with you. Satellite radio tends to cover just about anywhere you might want to drive to in the U.S. but even streaming apps can be impacted by poor cell reception. Thankfully, we have easy access to a ton of great content on our smartphones, that can be easily downloaded and available whether you can get online or not.
While music is always a great choice, I wanted to highlight Podcasts and Audiobooks as a couple of options to mix up your road trip playlist. According to various stats, there are over 2 million different podcasts available, with nearly 50 million episodes for your listening pleasure. If you throw in audiobooks, there are over 200,000 on Audible alone. This means you have an unbelievable library of content on just about any subject imaginable to listen to on your drive.
Pack those Snacks
One big challenge of any road trip is trying to stick to a healthy diet or nutrition plan. Typical highway exits offer a pretty standard selection of fast food and guilty pleasure restaurants. If you generally stick to any number of healthy diet routines at home, finding a way to stick to your plan may not be easy once you hit the road.
First off, it likely makes sense to give yourself a little more leeway than normal on your eating. Not every meal may be quite up to your normal standards and that can be fine. But, in moderation. Even the healthiest person’s meal plan can go off the rails if you start filling your car with snacks bought at the rest stop gas station. So, plan ahead a bit and hit your local grocery store for some healthy snacks before you leave.
Try to Enjoy the Ride
Road trips are not necessarily the most fun way to get from home to wherever you are headed in a neighboring state or across the country. A real road trip tends to take a lot of hours behind the wheel and sometimes multiple days. For some folks, this is an absolute blast. But, it isn’t a lot of people would prefer to get where they are going and spend as little time on travel as possible.
Whether you decide to power through a long 12-hour drive in one day or break up a longer trip into more manageable drive sessions, try to enjoy the journey. Easier said than done sometimes, I know. But, look for entertaining stops along the way. An occasional roadside attraction, no matter how ridiculous, can be a great way to break up the monotony of a seemingly endless drive.
