Happy Saturday Reader,

Growing up, vacations were spent eating. My father, mother, brother, and I would drive from restaurant to restaurant. I grew up in Casablanca, Morocco, so a lot of that looked like trekking across the Atlas mountains into the Sahara desert, following some coordinates on a map down an unpaved road to find a little restaurant run by a French man who had come here years ago. This was our life - driving from one eating spot to another.

When I got older, and I made the move from Boston to LA, my father gave me a book called The Roadfood Guide. I drove my way across plotting a course of pierogis in Akron, OH, fried chicken from the Southside of Chicago, German food in Omaha, NE, rattlesnake in Denver, CO, all the way to Cajun soul food down the street from my new home in Marina Del Rey CA.

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Travel has always been synchronous with food. Even now, for my mom's most recent visit, her trip was focused around meals. But now, instead of eating everything on the plate, we share or split things and bring half home. I still prioritize protein when deciding what to order, and I don't need an appetizer or dessert with every meal. I'm conscious of my alcohol consumption. The excitement and joy I get out of eating while I travel is still there - I just have a few tactics I implement, so I don't overdo it or derail my progress.

No matter your goals, traveling can feel scary because it disrupts your routines, but research actually indicates that travel is a great time to start implementing new health behaviors. It has to do with the different parts of your brain that are activated during habitual behaviors versus when you are more deliberate. The prefrontal cortex is the part of the brain that illuminates when taking deliberate action - for example when practicing a new behavior. Interestingly when that part of the brain is activated, the basal ganglia, involved with habits, is suppressed and vice versa. So this means that when you are in a new place, where you don't have any habits - because habits are very deeply connected to your environment - everything is new. Your prefrontal cortex is activated, and you can be more intentional and deliberate with the actions you choose to do rather than following automatic behaviors that don't require much effort. All this to say, vacations are the perfect opportunity to start building some new health behaviors.

When I travel, I love to prioritize movement - daily walks or hikes around the new location. So while I still focus on the delicious food I'll be eating, I try and use this time to connect with my body and physical activity.

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Stay tuned because Thursday, June 15th, I launch a collaborative project with co-coach Rachel Eslick, a rad Kettlebell Coach. We've created a guide to help you on all your Summer Travel adventures and beyond. We know how hard travel can be because we're out of our routines, not in control of our food, and may not have access to a gym. You might worry about falling off the rails and gaining 10 lbs. We've been there; that's why we created this guide with mindset tools, a shopping guide and nutrition tactics, and several awesome workouts you can do anywhere. We want you to enjoy your Summer travel adventures feeling confident that you'll come back refreshed, relaxed, healthier, and maybe even a little stronger.

So keep a look out for that this coming Thursday; I promise you won't want to miss it!

Until next time,

Morgan