A Secret to Healthy Eating for Business Travelers Feeling sluggish? Avoid the next overindulgent business meal and get back on a healthy track in two quick steps.

By Cory Annis

entrepreneur daily

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

A Secret to Healthy Eating on the Road

As an entrepreneur, you have to make every moment of your hectic day count. That often leaves little time left to focus on a healthy lifestyle, especially when you're travelling to drum up business.

The typical calorie-laden business meal can lay you flat and turn colleagues or potential customers into the unwitting saboteurs of your best health intentions. Even if breaking bread results in sealing that big deal, overindulging leaves you feeling sluggish and makes your subsequent 24 hours less productive.

To be sure, connecting over meals is a way to meet people, woo clients, and fight loneliness on the road. But if you don't prepare for "temptation" ahead of time, you're far more likely to succumb.

No matter how rational you think you are, most people are wired to overthrow those reasonable decisions in the heat of the moment, according to behavioral economist Dan Ariely.

Here are two quick steps to avoid that next dietary disaster and keep you on a healthy track:

1. Set a fun active goal. Long before you sit down at the table, performance psychologist Peter Shallard recommends planning an activity with enough fun to diminish the "work" aspect of exercise. It should also be modestly more challenging than your current level, whether it's participating in an adult softball league or a salsa competition.

2. Rehearse your response. Imagine someone saying, "Try the four cheese pasta!" and you respond, "No thanks. I'm in training for…" How you finish the statement is up to you -- and depends on the activity you have chosen in advance. Then, go on to order whatever supports your best intentions.

Related: Is Your Small Business Making You Fat?

Why it works:

"I'm in training," sounds more powerful to others than "I'm on a diet." But more importantly, note how you feel when you say them to yourself.

Who would try to sway you after such an announcement? Nothing firms personal resolve like committing to something noble in public. You can also strengthen business connections by starting new conversations around potentially mutual interests.

Committing to an invigorating activity is more than a Jedi mind trick. It's a smart maneuver that attracts everyone's cooperation, even yours.

Related: How Google's Marissa Mayer Prevents Burnout

Dr. Cory Annis is the founder of Unorthodoc, a health coaching service for global entrepreneurs based in Carrboro, N.C.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Side Hustle

This Gen Zer's Stylish Side Hustle Earns About $20,000 a Month and Paid Off His Parents' $200,000 Debt: 'I Enjoy the Hands-Off Nature'

Ray Cao went from working as a barista for $8 an hour to being a successful seller on online marketplace StockX.

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Leadership

8 CEO Mindset Quotes That Keep Me Honest and Inspired

In this article, I'll share a collection of my favorite inspiring quotes for CEOs and why I think they're useful to remember.