Heading Out for A Long(er) Walk? Don’t Forget A Healthy Snack.

Catching some fresh air by going for a long walk or hiking is always a good idea. Just don’t do it on an empty stomach or ruin your effort with unhealthy food and/or drinks.

When it comes to hiking most people probably do not plan on preparing a healthy meal and just settle for sandwiches and packaged snacks instead. Surely, a sandwich too can be a balanced meal on the go – if you just prepare it wisely.

While it is not advisable to exaggerate with the number of sandwiches on the way, some things should be considered first, especially if you are doing the hiking with kids. Adults often forget that children’s stomachs are small, therefore it is a good idea to prepare many smaller yet nutritious meals.

Wrap numerous small sandwiches in a paper towel (instead of in unhealthy foil!) and, if possible, put them in an insulating bag or in a cooled backpack. For longer hikes and trips, it is a good idea to freeze the water bottles the day before the trip. This way they will keep the contents of the backpack suitably cool during the day of the trip. Sandwiches and quickly perishable snacks are best eaten in the first half of the day. Other snacks, such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, homemade crackers, etc. are more suitable for consumption in the second half of the day.

How to prepare a healthy snack or hiking sandwich?

It all starts from the ground up. Wholesome bread is always a good choice, but also black bread will be a suitable choice to replace white bread – if you’re going for a healthy sandwich for the first time.

Stuffing wise there are truly a lot of great options. Instead of obvious choices of salamis and pâtés, which are controversial in terms of durability as well as nutritional value, try these:

• chickpea or cottage cheese spread with lettuce or rocket leaves,
• avocado spread with garlic powder and fresh tomatoes,
• peanut butter and (red) paprika or grated carrot,
• a slice of cheese or a boiled egg/omelette and tomatoes,
• homemade fish spread (mash baked or canned fish, cottage cheese, and spices into a smooth spread) with cucumber slices,
• prosciutto is suitable for meat filling (choose one without additives – ingredients should include only pork thigh and salt)
• or roasted meat, obligatory in combination with vegetables.

The idea is – if you opt for a sandwich – to really make sure and enrich the sandwich with as many vegetables as possible. You can always have extra vegetables in an extra container, just in case. Vegetables will also prevent children from being overly thirsty after a sandwich. If this is your first healthy hiking snack try small amounts of stuffing at first.

It is also important that you set an example for the children – therefore enjoy the vegetables yourself.

Healthy ingredients make healthy meals

Just about any food or meal can be prepared in a healthy way. It is no rocket science, just try substituting less healthy ingredients with healthy ones. For example, you can make muffins or rolls by replacing the usual flour, sugar, and oil in your proven recipes with wholesome flour or oatmeal, sweetening them with fruit or honey, reducing the amount of fat by half, and using butter. Using vegetables and a little cheese you can even create salty muffins. As you might learn after a couple of hikes or trips, a muffin and a piece of fruit is a great and convenient snack.

Don’t forget to drink!

Hydrating is very important on hikes. Experts suggest hydrating regularly – when you’re (really) thirsty it is already too late and your body is in shock. Taking small sips of water every 15 minutes or half an hour will do you a lot of good.

Not a fan of water? Try water with lemon juice and a little honey or chilled homemade ice tea sweetened with honey. If your child gets nauseous easily, add ginger to it.

What about juices? They are best avoided. If you think you or your kid cannot make the hike or trip without them, choose 100 % fruit juices and dilute them, preferably in a ratio of 2 units of water per 1 unit of juice.

We wish you happy, safe, and healthy hiking