It’s not always easy staying healthy on the road. Lucrative travel nurse pay combined with free housing sometimes encourages us to go out and have fun late night or too often eat rich foods at great restaurants. After all, let’s face facts. Living high on the hog is one of the benefits of travel nursing.

It all sounds so simple and easy, but we all know it isn’t, as reports indicate that almost 50 percent of all nurses smoke and most Americans don’t get enough exercise or eat the right foods.

But there are ways to gradually approach better health without making it a New Year’s resolution or attaching ourselves to failing diets. Getting more cardio in our traveling nurse life by or using the fitness equipment found at many travel nurse apartment complexes is a great start.

We’re often advised to cut back on before-bedtime munching, consume fewer processed sugars and maintain some kind of balance with regards to portion size — all good recommendations which don’t sound too difficult or life-altering for travel nurses.

We all know that obesity has created so many healthcare problems in our country. From high cholesterol to high blood sugar, it seems that so much bad health could be prevented if we just watched our diets and managed our weight better. And as nurses, it isn’t funny that we don’t do more to keep ourselves fit and healthy as we watch the health of others diminish?

There’s so many upsides to keeping your health on track: when you get more rest, you’ll be more mentally alert during your shift.  When you’re fit, you’re better able to handle the taxing physical demands of nursing. Don’t forget to utilize your comprehensive medical insurance for checkups and consults. Let’s start setting a better example for all those patients who need positive role models in health care.