Staying Fit & Healthy on a Day Trip {Family Adventure to Lakeport State Park}

I use “adventure” lightly, since we drove a whopping 1 hour to get to our destination, but when you have a 1 year old, 3 year old and 4 year old and the 1 year old doesn’t want to sit still for more than 15 minutes in the car we call it an adventure.  Trust me, Dan and I know what real adventure is like such as backpacking in the wilderness of the the Upper Peninsula of Michigan (pre-children of course). 

This is my first post as a recreation passport blogger.  I was chosen as one of three Michigan bloggers to promote the amazing outdoors that Michigan has to offer using our recreation passport.  For those who don’t know, a recreation passport costs $11 per year and allows access into over 100 state parks and hundreds of pathways.  The money received from these passports helps protect Michigan’s amazing natural resources.

As a nutrition and health blog, I plan to document my adventures of various places we explore in Michigan, while including how we eat healthy on the road, how we stay active while traveling or a little bit of both.  I hope you enjoy learning a little more about what our great state of Michigan has to offer along with helpful healthy tips along the way. 

Our first trip this summer using our recreation passport was to Lakeport State Park.  It’s divided up into two distinct parts, one for camping and the other for day-use.  We attempted to explore the campground, however we were disappointed to be told we couldn’t browse the campground for a few minutes as a future campground option (campground was full for the weekend and they wanted to minimize traffic).  So we headed to the day-use area to access the beach on Lake Huron

To help Dan and I stay in our much needed exercise routine, and a chance for more exploring on the trip, we brought both BOB jogging strollers with us.  There were not any trails near by so we made the best of it by exploring the little neighborhoods along Lake Huron and got in a hot 3 miles in a new place!

Then the fun began for the kids!  We went to the beach along Lake Huron which turned out to be a perfect beach day.  The water in the Great Lakes is a bit chilly, but tolerable on a hot day, and the kids barely noticed it.  And although the beach is a bit rocky, Lakeport’s beach is enormous and a perfect place to enjoy the beach.  We hung out for a few hours, enjoyed our packed lunch and actually relaxed a bit.

My husband and I actually enjoying a few minutes of relaxation while kids played in the sand.

And on the way home we couldn’t resist one of the ice cream shops in the area named Pepperoni Cow.  Of course, everything in moderation, right!?

What I packed for snacks and lunches

• peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on whole wheat bread
• blueberries
• raw carrots and red peppers
• individual Sabra hummus containers
• 2% colby jack cheese sticks
• applesauce pouches
• pretzel rods (a great distraction for the car ride)

How to pack healthy for a day trip!

Tips to remember while traveling (even on a day trip)

• Pack food and drinks to make it easier to eat healthy
• Bring snacks for the car along with extra water
• Get some exercise in by finding a trail or beach to explore
• Focus on the surrounding and company you are with instead of the food

Do you have any tips you’d like to share about how you stay healthy while traveling? I’d love to hear about it!

If you’re looking for healthy eating tips on longer trips check out my Eating Healthy While Traveling and 10 Healthy Grab and Go Snacks for Summer.  Mom to Mom Nutrition also has a fantastic list of 30 Healthy Snacks for a Road Trip.

This  Staying Fit & Healthy on a Day Trip {Family Adventure to Lakeport State Park} post first appeared on Chocolate Slopes.

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