As the sun sets, Jane tosses the last of her things into the trunk of her car. She slams it shut, and her thoughts wander to the open road. Tomorrow morning will be the start of her next adventure. She’ll be traveling by car to her newest locum tenens physician contract, from Pennsylvania to Tennessee. She faces a 13-hour drive alone, and she will most likely be living in a motel for most of her stay. Although she’s got everything else she needs for her next assignment, the last thing she has to prepare for is what to eat. Life on the road can be tiring, and so can coming up with travel meal ideas for locum tenens physicians. For travel doctors who have landed their next locum tenens contract, here are some travel meal ideas for while you’re on the road.
Five Travel Meal Ideas for Physicians While You’re on the Road
Fruits and vegetables are great travel meal ideas for locum tenens physicians.
Let’s face it – you can only eat granola bars, crackers, and cookies for so long. Whether you’re looking for travel meal ideas for your road trip or easy meals to eat while staying in a motel, we’ve got you covered! Before we get started, we suggest bringing a cooler with you on your road trip. Not only will this expand your potential travel meal ideas, but it will also allow you to save money, time and calories by not stopping for fast food. Also, don’t forget your picnic essentials – napkins, plastic ware, bowls, plates, and drinks! A few plastic bags to collect trash are also a good idea. With that said, here are five travel meal ideas for locum tenens physicians.
1. Pasta Salads
Pasta salads are great for traveling because you can make a lot of it, and it’s healthy and filling. Also, pasta salads tend to keep for a long time, depending on what you add to them. Consider antipasto pasta salad or Caesar pasta salad, which will not only give you carbs but also vegetables and protein!
2. Cold Soups
This one is less common, but cold soups could work on the road. For example, cold avocado soup is healthy, and you can dip some bread or crackers in it to add substance. You might have to pull over to eat this though, or things could get a little sloppy behind the wheel!
3. Sandwiches
A good old-fashioned sandwich is also a great road trip meal. It doesn’t have to be only boring lunch meat and cheese either – slice some avocado and tomato before your trip, or if that takes too much effort, prepare an easy chicken salad recipe.
4. Fruit and Vegetables
Fruit, such as apples or peaches, is easy to eat on the road. You could also chop fruit ahead of time and turn it into a fruit salad. Veggies, like carrots, also make a great road trip snack. Fruits and vegetables are healthy, refreshing, and easy to snack on while you’re cruising down the interstate.
5. Yogurt
Yogurt is another travel meal that will work if you have a cooler available. The best thing about yogurt is that it takes virtually zero prep, which is essential for busy physicians. It’s important that yogurt stays cold, but it’s a good breakfast choice while traveling. Granola also keeps well, so you could sprinkle some of that into your yogurt for more substance.
It doesn’t matter if you’re traveling by car, plane or simply looking for travel meal ideas for your hotel stay – there are plenty of food ideas out there for you so that you don’t have to eat processed food that doesn’t sound very appealing after a long day. Locum tenens physicians – do you have any additional travel meal ideas to add to the list? We’re all ears! Tell us what your favorite foods to eat while traveling are in the comments below!
