Camping is one of my favorite ways to vacation/travel, even though it involves more meal planning than other vacations. That extra required planning also means it can be friendlier to your nutrition goals, especially if you take the time to pre-track some meals to ensure you’re hitting your protein and other targets.

When I’m planning my food for a camping trip, I find it helpful to start with what I have access to in terms of cooking equipment and cooler space, and while also taking into consideration what activities I have planned. A day where we stay close to camp and spend most of the daylight hours on a paddle board is going to look different than a day where we get up early to hit a long trail before the crowds catch up and the weather gets too hot.

If you have a cast iron pan or propane stove and a way to boil water, you can probably make most meals you would have at home. If you really want to make your life as easy as possible, you can also pre-cook your protein sources so they only have to be reheated, and you have the added benefit of not having to worry about possible contamination from raw proteins in your cooler. I’ve also found that my vacuum sealer is very helpful to have for camping trips (although sealable food containers and plastic bags can also do a great job).

Here are some specific meals that are in our regular camping rotation:

Breakfast: 

• Breakfast burritos (I use carb balance tortillas for extra fiber) wrapped in foil so they can be reheated above the fire or directly on the propane burner

• Oatmeal with PB2 or collagen for extra protein (an oatmeal packet with the flavor of your choice can be used for ease, and it could even be a protein oatmeal like Quaker packets or Kodiak protein cups) 

• Turkey kielbasa with breakfast potatoes (I like to grab a bag of frozen cubed potatoes with onions & peppers)

Lunch:

• Chicken salad for sandwiches/wraps (canned chicken and mayo packets or avocado are a great, easy combo)

• Tuna packets with crackers

• Deli meat sandwiches 

• Sides of cut veggies, individual bags of chips, fruit cups, applesauce, etc.

Dinner:

• Canned soup with extra pre-cooked protein

• Dehydrated meals that focus on a protein

• Protein pasta if you have boiling water + a jar of sauce

• Rice bowls using pre-cooked/reheatable rice (burrito bowls with taco meat, lettuce, beans, and salsa, or teriyaki bowls with chicken, broccoli, and teriyaki sauce)

• Stir fry or other one-pan dishes

• Tin foil dinners focused on a protein (ground beef, turkey hot dogs or chicken sausages, frozen pre-cooked chicken tenders), a carb source (corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes), and veggies (frozen veggie mix or fresh zucchini, peppers, onions)

A camping trip can be a fun getaway that doesn’t also have to be a complete deviation from fueling your body in a way that feels good. Given that we’re often extra active when camping (hiking, swimming, etc.), it can actually make considering our nutrition even more important. Some advance planning and prep for your camping trip can make it easier to keep your nutrition-related goals in mind, while also making your at-camp cooking a little bit simpler.  

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