Sticking to a healthy diet while traveling can be one of the most difficult things to do in your life. It may even be worse when on vacation at luxury resorts, or on a cruise where the food is top quality and very abundant. I have been on a cruise where members of the crew stated, “People walk on to the ship as passengers but have to be rolled off as cargo because they get so overweight in such a short time.”

However, if you learn how to make smart choices, a healthy diet is really not that difficult. If you are currently making healthy choices in your foods, modifying your diet slightly to accommodate travel is not as difficult as it may seem at first.

If you are traveling by airplane, a healthy diet may have to include airplane food, which can often be poor for your health, depending on the selection. When you book your flight, ask about your food options including if a vegetarian dish is available. Vegetarian dishes are sometimes more nutritional in this case, but it really depends on what they will be serving. If you can, eat a meal before your flight so that you don’t have to eat the meal that is served.

When driving or taking a bus, you may be tempted to stop at fast food restaurants and eat the foods found there. Avoid this whenever possible! If you’re on vacation, you may wish to splurge a tiny bit, but having fast food more than one time during a week can really be bad for your health. If you must, choose the healthiest options available, like chicken breasts and diet soda. Did you know that it takes you 3,904 steps to walk off a can of soft drink, 7,173 steps to walk off a chocolate bar, 13,750 steps to walk off a large hot chocolate, and 12,464 steps to walk off a fast food burger?

So make sure that you get some exercise in whenever you can during your travel or vacation.

Remember that you can take your own food when traveling. Packing a loaf of whole-wheat bread or pita wraps, some lean lunch meat, and low-fat cheese in a cooler is a great way to avoid high-fat and high-cholesterol junk food meals. These are much better choices and you’ll save a lot of money as well.

You can make smart choices when you eat out. If you choose salads or pasta get the dressing on the side, or ask for dressings to be omitted altogether. This is generally a more healthy option. In fact, many food places print options directly in the menu for the health-conscious people. Control your portions by ordering small servings or splitting the meal in half and getting a doggie bag. This will ensure that you eat healthy, even away from home.