That's Fit

When it comes to healthy ways to stay hydrated, tea is near the top of the list. Not only is it fat, calorie, and sugar-free, it's also often loaded with antioxidants. So why does Viggo Mortensen keep getting in trouble for his tea habit, especially at the airport?

Probably because Viggo drinks his tea with a pipe. He prefers a tea called Argentinean mate. According to Wikipedia, mate is an infusion of stimulants and tea that are traditionally drunk out of a gourd. Modern drinkers like Viggo, however, may use something called a bomba. This small metal pipe allows the tea to reach the mouth, while filtering out the chunkier parts of the mixture.

The problem for Viggo is that he often takes his tea and bomba to the airport in ziploc bags, causing airport security to raise their eyebrows in curiousity and concern. Once Viggo explains that what he's carrying is tea and not an illegal drug, he says, it's usually not an issue.

When my body isn't moving so much, my mind goes to a bit of a blue place. I'm not quite there, but I feel myself getting close. Ironically, this week my body has traveled thousands of miles and I've seen my favorite blue place in the world -- the Pacific Ocean.

As most of us know, traveling usually means our health suffers a bit due to lack of exercise, increased stress and the subsequent effect on our mental state of both. I travel from my home in the mid-Atlantic to my native California at least twice a year. I am writing from my mother's home in the Los Angeles area right now. Before heading home a week from tomorrow, we will have traveled by air and navigated airports for more than 12 hours and spent almost 20 hours in cars in order to visit family and friends on opposite ends of the state. So much movement, so little exercise.

Thankfully, visiting the loved ones we live so far away from keeps my mind a bit happier during these sedentary vacation days. And I do try to adhere to some of the common tips for maintaining good health and fitness while traveling, such as making good food choices and drinking lots of water. I also follow certain prevention guidelines.

When I get home, I'll run through the neighborhood, hop on my bike or swim laps at the rec center in an effort to kick those endorphins back into high gear and then some. I'll certainly have to in order to heal the little bit of homesickness and heartsickness that's sure to crop up after leaving so many loved ones behind.

Even with the best intentions to stick to a workout, traveling can throw you off track. Air travel can be especially tricky. First you spend hours at the airport waiting for your flight to take off. Then, after sitting for hours on the plane, you finally land ... only to then spend more hours at an airport waiting to catch your connecting flight ... that you spend another several hours sitting on. You finally land, but you have to catch a cab or rent a car ... in which you sit for another hour or so. By the time you get the hotel, you've sat around all day long -- not to mention that you caved twice and ate S'barro pizza because you were starving and it was all that was available.

Believe it or not, there are some ways to stay healthy while flying the friendly skies. First, plan ahead. If you know food courts and unhealthy, pre-packaged airline food will be your only meal options, bring some healthy snacks with you. Second, check www.airportgyms.com to see if the airport you have a four hour layover in happens to have a gym in it. You'll be surprised to find how many do. Third, let the massive size of the airport be an asset for a change. Use your layover time to burn calories as you walk up and down the terminal. Burn even more by bringing your bags, rather than leaving them with your lazier travel companion who decided to grab a slice of pepperoni at S'barro. And lastly, get up and stretch out once in a while when you're on the plane, as doing so will not only keep your muscles activated, but it will reduce your risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

Thanks for traveling That's Fit Airways.

Hungry at the ball game? Wave down that snack vendor and order peanuts in the shell. It's your healthiest option. The worst? Nachos with cheese. Tummy grumbling while you're stuck in the airport? Pizza, no pepperoni, is your best bet. There's protein in the cheese, and the tomato in the sauce counts as a veggie serving.

According to the Today Show and Real Simple magazine, a small bag of plain pretzels or whole wheat crackers with peanut butter from a vending machine are tops compared to any variety of chips or candy bars. Headed to the movies? Pick a child's size popcorn -- no butter -- and if you must have a sweet something, Junior Mints have less fat than most other sugary options. Two more tips: Avoid all "Jumbo" choices, and definitely don't opt for Milk Duds. A whole box will fill you with more than 500 calories.

Is a stop at a mall food court in your future? How about the mini-mart? Before you head to these locations, be sure to check out this article.

The next time you pull of those shoes and get those bags opened for inspection at the local airport, you might want to think about getting a flu shot right there as well.

A score of U.S. airports are now offering flu shots at check-in kiosks, which is nothing new this time of year. But, in the past, these have been performed in airport clinics -- not at the curbside (if you will). Why? Airport customers don't want to run the risk of missing those flights.

Airports in Atlanta, Chicago, Denver and Newark are offering "airside" flu shots since the time estimation for a flu shot by each passenger is now pretty easy to come by.