Healthy Traveling with the American Idol Performers

They will be performing 60 concerts in 81 days, traveling from coast to coast and back again, sleeping in different hotels several times a week and in a bus for the remainder of their nationwide tour.

The American Idol concert is the hottest ticket in town, but while touring and living on the road might sound glamorous, without proper preparation, it can take its toll on the performers, both physically and mentally, especially for those not used to the grind.

I had the opportunity to talk with four of the performers, including Taylor Hicks, the 29-year-old soulster and Season 5 winner, just one week into their tour, and asked them how they were staying healthy during the hectic travel and performance schedule. (Read the Lisa's Healthy Travel Recommendations sidebar where I give my healthy travel advice to each of them.)

Taylor Hicks is a 10-year veteran when it comes to traveling on the road, playing nightly gigs, driving to the next event, and bunking with friends instead of at five-star hotels. Since being voted America’s favorite, Hicks has a newer, more pressing schedule that includes appearances, photo shoots, and working on his debut CD, scheduled to come out later in the fall, as well as concert rehearsals and performances.

According to Hicks, a Birmingham, Alabama native, he’s been working his whole life for this, but how are his body and voice holding up to an even more grueling schedule?

“The best thing that I’ve done for my voice is use it for the last 10 years,” Hicks says on the first of six straight nights of performances when we chatted. “It’s ‘practice makes perfect’ as far as singing and the more you can sing and get out and play, the stronger your voice is going to be.”

When his throat needs that extra bit of protection, he admits to using an herbal remedy called Throat Coat. According to Throat Coat's Web site, the tea “supports throat health because it includes herbs traditionally used to enhance the structure and function of the throat including speaking (vocal cords), swallowing (esophagus) and air conveyance (trachea).”

Although his tour and travel schedule might seem taxing to the average trekker, Hicks says the days are toned down and not as stressful as they may seem.

“Everything is relaxed and chilled during the show day and I chill with it,” he says. “We have the days to ourselves pretty much and we know what time we need to be on stage.”

He admits it can get tiring from time to time, but “we’re in some nice hotels and we get to sleep in the next day (after the late concert night).” Healthy eating is also an important part of keeping the energetic performer at his peak and he explains that the American Idol staff makes amenities available to the performers if they want to use them.

Hicks’ pre-performance routine includes stretching and a massage, but his daily exercise is limited to his exuberant performances on stage.

“That 30 or 45 minutes is about all I can really do as far as squeeze in exercise, but it’s a great physical workout,” he says.

He assures his fans that he is physically prepared for this tour. “Mentally, it’s one of the best things that has happened to me, but creatively there is a big question mark.”

Hicks seems to love touring, yet anxious to perform his own material, but how will his exercise routine change when he is touring solo? “I’ll be exercising a whole lot more on that stage and that’s a good thing,” Hicks says.

Kellie Pickler, the blonde down-home southern girl, had a rough start to the tour when her wisdom teeth had to be surgically removed just days before opening night.

“They were impacted and growing underneath,” Pickler says. “Believe it or not, my mouth is too small for all of them! I had a few days to heal before the tour started, and I used ice packs and antibiotics.”

Pickler, originally from Albemarle, North Carolina, says that she still had stitches in her mouth for the first three shows, but “couldn’t imagine my fans paying all that money and have me not be there, so I sucked it up and did this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

Pickler doesn’t commit to any measures to prevent her from getting sick, but says that “it’s such a short amount of time on the road that I deal with it. My biggest fear in life was having to settle and not being able to pursue the dreams that I had and now I’m doing what I love so I feel good.”

She and fellow performer Bucky Covington agree that prayers are also their way of dealing with stress.

“The last few years I was working in the body shop was aggravating the crap out of me, but now doing what I love keeps my stress level down,” Covington, a Rockingham, North Carolina resident, says.

Covington is a married man and anyone traveling for an extended period of time can find it difficult on the marriage, but Bucky says his wife understands.

“It’s tough being gone, but we talk about four or five times a day and that helps,” he says.

Mandisa, the 29-year-old powerhouse performer from Antioch, Tennessee, knows the importance of staying healthy for her performances. She commits to getting eight hours of sleep each night and isn’t one for the nightlife.

“The younger ones may do that, but I want to get my sleep each night,” she says. “I also exercise and watch what I eat.” Mandisa says that after the concert, the crew needs to travel to their new destination. Depending on when they arrive, they may not sleep in the hotel until 2 or 3 in the morning. She usually wakes around 11 and all performers must be ready for the day at 1 p.m.

She also takes precautions to avoid the germs that might sideline her. “We have a lot of meet-and-greets with fans and I make sure I wash my hands often,” she says. “I also carry Airborne (an immune boosting tablet to help fight against germs) with me all the time.”

For stress relief, Mandisa is a movie buff and packed many flicks to watch during her downtime.

The American Idol performers are not without their health issues. In addition to Kellie Pickler’s dental dilemma, Katherine McPhee was sidelined for the first month of the tour with what her doctors call “severe laryngitis and bronchitis,” and contestant Elliott Yamin has his diabetes to monitor along the way. One thing is for sure, these performers are filled with adrenaline and loving every minute of what they are doing. Being happy on a road trip is definitely a good start to a healthy tour.

Lisa Iannucci is the author of Healthy Travel: Don’t Leave Without It by Basic Health publications and is sending each of the performers a copy of her book so they never get sick on any of their tours.

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