Air travel is such an odd experience. Last Sunday I got on a plane in Boston (45 degrees) and got off in Kansas City (15 degrees). On Tuesday I flew to Tampa (79 degrees); on Friday I returned to Boston (20 degrees). Such huge transitions in a such a short period of time! It's like the laws of nature don't apply.
Certainly it's like the laws of MY nature don't apply. Air travel means that I need to stand in lines a lot and sit still for long periods of time. I believe that these are my two very least favorite activities. Let's just say that oral surgery is a distant third.
Something bizarre happens to my dietary habits on airplanes. Normally, I am a wheat-berries-and-kale kinda gal. But in the course of air travel I find myself eating all sorts of things I wouldn't touch on the ground. It is widely known, of course, that lifesavers have no calories on airplanes:
It stands to reason that the same principal applies to Skittles:
In fact, pretty much anything sold in an airport is in bounds. Starbucks, anyone?
Love that mocha latte!
Turns out that there is a legitimate explanation for why I totally go off the dietary reservation when I travel. We all know that excess calories, if not converted to energy by our bodies, will be stored as fat; this leads to an increase in body mass -- in other words, weight gain.
Aha! But in order to fly, airplanes need to counteract their own weight, and the weight of everything in them (i.e., you and me). Here's how the NASA website explains it:
To overcome the weight force, airplanes generate an opposing force called lift. Lift is generated by the motion of the airplane through the air and is an aerodynamic force.
There you have it! Airplanes counteract the weight force! The laws of aerodynamics mean that all that crap you eat to pass the time on the plane is, in effect, calorie-free.
So next time the snack tray comes around, help yourself.
These snacks will have no effect on your weight. It's SCIENCE.
What's more, watching "Cupcake Wars" on the seat-back TV won't even make you stupid.