Before You Board

• Get some rest: It’s tempting to stay up late in hopes of sleeping through a flight but crowded cabins are hardly a peaceful oasis. Get a full night’s rest before your flight and you’ll still have plenty of energy for business or pleasure when you land.
• Carry-on snacks: Stay healthy by packing your own snacks, such as a string cheese and nuts, along with an apple or banana. The combination of protein and high-fiber will keep you fuller longer and help you avoid the 1000-calorie airport combo later.

At the Airport

• Get a healthy start: No time for breakfast at home? At the airport, look for healthy options such as a whole-wheat bagel, yogurt or fresh fruit. For a heartier option, try an egg sandwich on an english-muffin, but make sure to skip add-ons like bacon or cheese.
• Eat lightly: If lunchtime coincides with your flight, avoid indulging in a cheeseburger or buffalo wings. Although these familiar favorites may seem like a good way to alleviate stress, they could actually make you feel worse. Look for lighter, low-calorie options such as a salad with fat-free dressing or a simple sub.

During the Flight

• Move around: Long hours in cramped airplane seats can wreak havoc on the body. Avoid crossing your legs and be sure to move around the cabin. Simple calf stretches can help blood circulation and reduce your chance of a blood clot.
• Hydrate: Don’t let a pressurized cabin and low humidity levels get the best of you. Drink water and avoid caffeine and alcoholic beverages. Stay hydrated by purchasing a water bottle. For a greener option, pack a stainless steel water bottle and fill it up at an airport coffee shop once you pass through security.

This post is based on an article written for our customer newsletter. Join the mailing list here.
For more ways to stay healthy and improve your next flight, check out tugo’s Top 10 Travel Tips.

Sources:
EHow: Healthy Airplane Snacks
Associated Content: Keep Healthy While Flying
WebMD: Keep Healthy While Flying

Retail options now include the basic tugo, the tugo + h2otugo, and just the h2otugo if you already have a tugo but want the added convenience of the accessory. Available at: goodtugo.com/retail

See the tugo + h2otugo in action in our new video: goodtugo.com/whats-a-tugo

Now you’re REALLY good tugo.

…but leave it to them to come up with a new selling point we had not thought of: picking up chicks.

Find it on page 40 of the July 2010 issue; now available at newsstands.

A lot has happened in that year, and our blog has included some of the highlights, like in July when the tugo was featured on the Today Show, or in August when KLM Airlines’s iFly magazine included the tugo with such travel necessities as Dom Perignon and Chanel No. 5. Also prominent on our list of highlights were FOXNews.com listing the tugo as one of their “Five Travel Gadgets Worth Giving” and, most recently, a featured product on the Rachael Ray Show.

We look forward to the coming year as we get ready to launch our new accessory, h2Otugo, which will allow you to carry a water bottle, soda can, or potentially anything that fits that you want to have close at hand on your rolling bag while you travel. Stay tuned for more information!

Signing up for our newsletter (click here) is the best way to get the latest updates, including the h2Otugo scoop. We will also include travel tips, deals or specials, and information that we think you will find useful. We plan for a focus on the business traveler, but there will be a little something for everyone included.

Also look for a special deal in April to mark the one-year anniversary of our website!

Photo by Caribb via Flickr

Last year we asked for your “Worst Seatmate” stories, and we heard about fidgeting, fit-throwing, flatulence, and funky breath. In the leftover holiday spirit, now we want to know your best experience while sitting next to a stranger on a plane.

Did someone help you when you needed a hand, or show some generosity when you least expected it? We want to know your best airplane seatmate story! Leave a comment by 5pm PST on Wednesday 2/3/2010, and we will select someone at random to win their very own tugo luggage drink holder!

5:30 Challenge Cookbook

The 5:30 Challenge – 5 ingredients, 30 minutes, dinner on the table.  What mom would say no to that?

tugo

tugo is reusable, durable and dishwasher safe! And every mom can use an extra hand (and an extra shot of espresso…).

The Mommy Hook

Use The Mommy Hook on your stroller or shopping cart.  It easily holds diaper bags, shopping bags, groceries and purses.

Nikon Coolpix

Capture all those precious moments on the Nikon Coolpix.  It’s sleek and small design makes it just the right size to fit in your purse or pocket.

Brown Sugar Set

This Brown Sugar Set by fresh is all natural and great excuse to spend a little extra time relaxing in a bath or shower.

Quick & Easy Energy Boosters

Quick & Easy Energy Boosters is full of 5 minute routines to help boost energy and get you through the day.

Mom Agenda Planner

Mom Agenda has a unique day-on-a-page format with space for mom and up to four children.

…and it was! The smell of fresh pulls started shortly before the doors opened each day, and lasted until the final attendees filtered out. The energy was high (perhaps due to the availability of caffeinated samples around each corner?!?) and the days went by quickly.
We each made sure to get a chance to wander the aisles and see what was out there. Following is my list of favorites:

• 

  Vessel's Terra Porcelain Tumbler

  Favorite mocha: Dilettante Chocolates. Conveniently located in the booth next to us at the show, their samples were smooth and chocolately yet not overly sweet. Dreamy! They have a Mocha Cafe location inside security (Central Terminal) in Sea-Tac airport that is open 24/7, as well as several locations around Seattle for you to try if you are in the area.

• Favorite mug: Vessel’s Terra Porcelain Tumbers look like the disposable cups, but much cuter and much better for the environment! Dishwasher safe, and the lid is made of silicone. My personal favorite (I had to throw a few elbows to come home with it!) was the Birds & Leaves style at right. They also have great stainless steel waterbottles.
• Favorite treat: Poco Dolce’s toffee squares are out of this world. That would explain why they quickly sold out. We got several tins to bring back to the family members with a sweet tooth. And we did have to go back for samples several times during the show.
• Favorite mints: Mints were a common offering, as they are a natural (and necessary) follow-up to the coffee, but I liked the Mirror Mints from Little i because the mints are small and powerful. Plus, the tin they come in has a dispenser inside with a mirror to check your teeth after getting your buzz on. Cute!
• Favorite non-coffee beverage: A tie between Pixie’s Lemon Ginger Black Tea Mate and Bellagio Sipping Chocolate from Caffe D’Amore. Both delicious but different, and a nice switch from the widely available coffee.
  

  XPress Lid by SmartCup

• Favorite cup accessories: Stickers to cover your coffee lid’s opening from CruzinCap. So simple, and prevents that common problem of sloshing during transport. Click here for a free cap sampler.
• Favorite new product: French Press XPress Lid by SmartCup, a single-use, single-serve, recyclable lid with a built-in press that fits standard 16 oz. hot cups. Since French Press is the only way to prepare coffee for serious coffee aficionados (or so I hear), this lets them get their fix on the run. Also great for tea lovers; just add hot water to the loose tea, then push the plunger when brewed to your liking.

As it was our first coffee-themed show, we signed up to participate in the “Tinker’s Minute” New Product Showcase held in the lobby before the doors opened on the first day. See the video of Megan and Kelli’s old-timey submission here. We didn’t win, but it was fun. Hey, fake moustaches are always cool!

Peet's Holiday Blend & Coffee Mugs

Peet’s has a delicious holiday blend gift set that comes with two holiday mugs.

Poco Dolce chocolates

Poco Dolce makes the most amazing chocolates that pair perfectly with a hot cup of holiday blend coffee.

OXO Stainless Steel Travel Mug

This stainless steel travel mug is perfect for around the house, in the car, or at the office.

Play Design Smiling Stir Spoons

Play Design make these fun coffee stir spoons, one for every weekday.

Tout Simplement Wooden Pins/Bag Clips

Cute and stylish clip to help keep your coffee fresh!

Bodum Chambord Coffee Press

Bodum makes excellent coffee presses.  It’s easy to use, clean and store.

sengWare Cream and Sugar Set

This cream and sugar set is too cute to pass up.  Available in a variety of colors sure to match any kitchen.

tugo

The tugo is a must have.  Goes perfect with the OXO stainless steel travel mug!

Little i Mirror Mints

After coffee mints are essential and Little i has designed the perfect tin & mirror combo.

…Or get one to upgrade your own holiday travel experience! We always hope our travels are smooth sailing, but we all know the reality of traveling during the holiday season. With a tugo attached to your bag, any layover or delay will include the extra convenience of a “third hand.” Anything that can make a this stressful situation more jolly will be appreciated by all!

New, new, new! The tugo just came out this spring, so you can be the first to give this new and unique gift to the traveler that has everything. The packaging and weight make the tugo easy and cheap to ship, too.

Available on our website: goodtugo.com or at these retailers.

See  “Why do I love my tugo?” for more reasons the tugo makes a thoughtful gift. Or leave your own comments below.

On the classic Seinfeld episode titled "The Airport," Elaine's seatmate doesn't like to check his bags, so getting to the bathroom is quite comical.

Ah, air travel. Where else do you end up in a confined space, sitting elbow to elbow with someone (or two people, if you are the unlucky middle seat!) you have never met for an extended period of time? This situation can lead to some extreme but extremely entertaining stories.

We want to know your worst airplane seatmate story! Leave a comment by 5pm PST on Wednesday 9/9/09, and we will select someone at random to win a tugo luggage drink holder!

Here’s an example to get you started. I once was flying from DFW to DEN and ended up sitting next to a chatty woman. Once the flight got under way, as she begins to tell me a long story, she reaches into her bag to pull out a roll of floss and proceeds to floss her teeth while turned in her seat to face me and tell her story! I have to say I can’t remember the details whatsoever because I was so preoccupied by watching for spray and generally being grossed out.

So that’s pretty bad, but there must be worse out there… let’s have ‘em!