Shape up before you sail!

[DisneyMomforLife]

Hello!!

I would love to join the group!! I have about 25lbs that I would like to lose. I had back surgery back in August 2008 and I am trying to lose the extra weight I put on while in pain for the last 10 years. I have lost 8 lbs in the last 3 weeks and I have two goals I am shooting for. My husband and I are going to Miami on March 26 before we take the kids to Disney and on the Wonder in May.

Due to still being in recovery from surgery, I am pretty much limited to a recumbent bike ... and I'm so thankful that I was able to find one on Craigslist for fairly inexpensive and now I do my cardio at home at night while watching my recorded shows. I also just joined Ladies Workout Express for a 12 week Waist Away challenge where I go 3 times a week for 30 minutes.

If anyone is interested, a great thing to have is a Polar fitness watch. It comes with a chest band and monitors your heart rate during excercise and it tracks how long you are exercising, how many calories you are burning, what your heart rate is and how long you are staying in your target heart rate zone (which it is built to determine once you enter your age, height and weight). Here is a link to the one I own. It's great if you want to track how many calories you are burning during exercise. I shoot for 600 calories per session on the bike and I can get to that within 45 minutes or so at a level 3 or 4 on the bike. I watched TV for two hours while I was on the bike and burned 1,550 calories. It is the F4.

http://www.polarusa.com/us-en/products/fitness_crosstraining/F4/#lightskyblue

I urge you to check out Ebay for the same item. I paid under $50 for mine, new in the package.

Here are a few websites that are really helpful for foods and recipes, etc.

http://www.whfoods.com

That site lists the top 100 World's Healthiest Foods ... and gives you tons of info on each food.

http://www.foodfit.com

This website is a great all around resource for recipes, articles and weight loss tips and strategies. Lots of great content!

http://www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com

This is the website for the Beef Council ... It has VERY useful information to show which cuts of beef can be incorporated into a low fat, high protein diet. Great and useful information on how beef measures up to chicken.

http://www.cookinglight.com

This is Cooking Light Magazine ... it has lots of recipes and ideas for healthy alternatives to favorite meals.

Hopefully I've provided some great info for everyone ... I really am looking forward to continuing on my journey with all of you!!

Kat

 

[shasess]

I am!!!
I'm really hoping to tone up before the cruise. DH and I are joining a gym this weekend and I'm hoping to get back some of my muscle tone that I lost after our wedding. DH and I went to my MIL's house the other day and she said that I must be happy and in love because I am getting fat. Yes, she used the word fat. Dont cha just love MIL's .

 

[vanessa3198]

oh wow!
i love all the receipes! thank you for posting this!

 

[jbm02]

Be careful what you wish for! I tried on my clothes for the cruise and nothing fits! I've lost 20 pounds (would like to lose another 20)-but now have nothing to wear on the cruise! I'm crossing my fingers that store will have shorts out before we leave in 3 weeks!

Add me on the "lose before you cruise" list too! And Mineau, I dream about having your problem!!
Exercise isn't an issue for me - but grazing is!! So I'm working on stopping all the little snacks throughout the day. Someone told me that losing weight is 20% exercising and 80% what you put in your mouth and sadly, it's true. If it was reversed I'd be a size 4 (I aim for 300 minutes of exercise a week - luckily the Y by my house opens really, really early so that I can get over there and home before the rest of the house needs breakfasts and lunches and everything else "Mom"....).
A recent People magazine had a story on folks who have lost alot of weight, with pictures. When leafing thru it, I saw a picture of a woman who weighed essentially what I do right now and the difference after she lost 36 lbs. OMG. I tore the picture out and it's posted on the wall in my office - reminding me not to stop by my secretary's desk and grab a fistful of those yummy M&Ms that sit evilly on her credenza. Is it working? Too early to tell but I'm giving it all I've got. I'll be happy with 20 lbs but my goal is 36!!! I have til August so I'm trying for 5 lbs a month....
I need all the support I can get. Thanks for starting this thread!!!!

 

[smye1stdisneycruise]

Count Me in!

We leave in November for our WDW and Magical cruise and this year I want to lose around 15 lbs. I too am A Weightwatcher who is no longer at my goal weight! I just went back last week and I have already lost 5 lbs which is great but I just want the weight off already! I really have no patience! I have been watching my intake and exercising daily with both cardio and muscle classes. I too am loving my wii fit but I think my favourite cardio burner on that is the boxing challenge, It's great! Good luck to everyone and here's to looking like a real HOTTIE when we are cruising!

 

[vanessa3198]

I am!!!
I'm really hoping to tone up before the cruise. DH and I are joining a gym this weekend and I'm hoping to get back some of my muscle tone that have lost after our wedding. DH and I went to my MIL's house the other day and she said that I must be happy and in love because I am getting fat. Yes, she used the word fat. Dont cha just love MIL's

I feel your pain on this one.
That happened to me, but not only did she say I was getting fat but she smacked my butt like she was proving a point.

 

[texfinn]

Ok -- count me in. I am hoping to lose 30-40 pounds before our cruise in May. I started South Beach in Jan 2 and have lost 14 lbs so far. I am like you guys -- no problems with the workout but major problems with the eating. It is all cleaned up now and more natural so hopefully I will keep losing weight (even if it is slow) on this diet.

My goal -- not to hide from pictures on this cruise! Believe it or not, we don't have a family picture because I refuse to be photographed!

Thanks for the encouragement. It will be fun to encourage each other as we all have a similar end goal!

 

[dismom73]

We leave on our 7 day cruise in October. I thought I wanted to loose 20 pounds, until I joined a gym and wieghed myself and realized I needed to loose 30 instead to get to the weight I want. I've been going to the gym 3 days a week and lost 6 pounds in the last 3 weeks! I'm even more motivated now because there will be two famalies from my hometown going on the same cruise. Before I thought it didn't really matter what I looked like in a bathing suit because I didn't know anyone on the cruise, now I do!

 

[ksoehrlein]

I hadn't given it too much thought until I watched the Travel Channel DCL special. Do all the 30-something moms (like me) really strut around looking TV-perfect in bikinis on the Wonder like they did on that show? Now I'm paranoid!

Before watching the show, I'd been planning on bringing my "grandma bathing suit" (basically a tank top and shorts made out of bathing suit material), but I don't want to be the only woman on board in a matronly suit. I own a few bikinis but never had the nerve -- or the bod! -- to feel comfortable wearing them in public. What do you think? Should I spend the next few weeks doing nothing but ab, butt, and thigh exercises? Or simply resign myself to being the only mom wearing a grandma bathing suit? Or (gasp!) was the show not truly indicative of what real women wear on board?

 

[jcuzzort1026]

I hadn't given it too much thought until I watched the Travel Channel DCL special. Do all the 30-something moms (like me) really strut around looking TV-perfect in bikinis on the Wonder like they did on that show? Now I'm paranoid!

Before watching the show, I'd been planning on bringing my "grandma bathing suit" (basically a tank top and shorts made out of bathing suit material), but I don't want to be the only woman on board in a matronly suit. I own a few bikinis but never had the nerve -- or the bod! -- to feel comfortable wearing them in public. What do you think? Should I spend the next few weeks doing nothing but ab, butt, and thigh exercises? Or simply resign myself to being the only mom wearing a grandma bathing suit? Or (gasp!) was the show not truly indicative of what real women wear on board?

No! The people you see on those specials are ... special. On our trips we've seen all types of people. I am actually more comfortable in my bathing suit on the ship (and CC) than at the beach/pool here. My bathing suit is a tankini with a skirt on the bottom. After two babies I hide my backside .

 

[jcuzzort1026]

Ok -- count me in. I am hoping to lose 30-40 pounds before our cruise in May. I started South Beach in Jan 2 and have lost 14 lbs so far. I am like you guys -- no problems with the workout but major problems with the eating. It is all cleaned up now and more natural so hopefully I will keep losing weight (even if it is slow) on this diet.

My goal -- not to hide from pictures on this cruise! Believe it or not, we don't have a family picture because I refuse to be photographed!

Thanks for the encouragement. It will be fun to encourage each other as we all have a similar end goal!

My dh was giving me a hard time because I don't have very many pics of me and the kids. And if I am in a pic the kids are positioned as in front of me as possible! One of my big motivators is the pic they take when you get on the boat. I want a good one of all of us since it's ds's first cruise.

 

[jcuzzort1026]

I started doing Wii Fit about 2 weeks ago.

How about that Hoola-Hoop. If that can't trim my waist nothing can

I love the Free Step. I've been doing it while I watch the Biggest Loser. It definitely keeps me from whimping out and not going the whole time!

 

[disneyfinatics]

Add me to the list. I'm hoping to lose 30 lbs. I can't believe I just typed that!! I hate that number! For those of you w/ MIL issues, mine pulled out a scale one Christmas to see who weighed more, me or her!! She even called my mom and told to watch what I was eating. I was very, very tiny when we married, I know I'll never see that again. I'm just hoping to want to be in pictures again. We actually get along now and no more comments about my weight. It definitely gives me hope to know I'm not the only one struggling w/ these issues. Good luck to everyone!!
I have been using Light & Tasty cookbooks. They're great because they have some affordable recipes and some easy ones!!
Shelly

 

[jhoshowski]

My favorite on the Wii Fit is the Rhythm Boxing. I also do the step aerobics, and the free run. I do the hula hoop sometimes, but MAN - that can hurt. Let's just say it's not in my regular rotation! At first I was trying to do a bit of aerobics, yoga, and strength training. But it just wasn't helping. Now I have switched to just aerobics, and every time I get on the board, my BMI is down (even if it is just a bit). I think I will save the yoga and strength training until I am a few months out from the cruise, and have hopefully lost the weight I want to. The cruise sails 10 months from today, so I think I have time to accomplish something. For anyone who doesn't have a Wii balance board with the Wii Fit disc - it is so much fun! It doesn't even feel like I am exercising, and you can see your results as they happen. Not only on the charts, but as your "Mii" gets thinner!

As I mentioned earlier, I am doing Slim Fast, and it is really working for me. I use the Optima products - a shake for breakfast, a meal bar for lunch, and a snack bar in the afternoon. I have a regular dinner with my family, and then a 100 calorie bag of popcorn before bed. I know that snacking before bed isn't good, but if I don't have something, I wake up starving in the middle of the night. I don't feel deprived because I eat several times a day, and I have pretty much what I want for dinner. If I slip up a little (lunch out, or an extra snack) it is easy to get back on track. I'm really not that hungry.

 

[MommyMouse]

We just booked our cruise today, and we leave in just over 2 months! Because, we weren't really expecting to take a cruise this year, I have been less than diligent on exercising I'm in the position where I'm not overweight, but in a terrible need of toning my ENTIRE body. I can't quite see myself in a bathing suit right now.....I gotta get moving fast. We can do it!!

 

[Bareacuda]

I'll join the club!

I only have 5lbs to go, but have been on Weight Watcher and made Lifetime a year ago. Anyone can do WW online... no babysitter needed!
And because I also have fibromyalgia is not helping with some of those nasty days... meds can put weight right back on you in days!!!

I do exersize daily and 3 days a week I paddle Hawaiian Outriggers.We are starting up training within the next 2 or 3 weeks, races start in late April on (Phoenix,AZ) and end in San Diego,CA in August.
Good Luck to everyone!

Ann

 

[Tink113]

We sail in 8 weeks and I'm hoping to lose a few pounds of holiday weight before we go. I thought maybe some other people were in the same boat rotfl: ) as I am. If so, maybe we could get a thread going to offer some support to each other.

Anyone interested? It doesn't matter that when you sail - just that you are trying to shape up a little before bathing suits and all that

I am trying to lose about 20lbs before our May cruise. I am starting weight watchers next week. I'm super bad about working out when it's cold out. I always just want to go home and watch a movie with my hubby. lol

PS. jcuzzort - I am a SUPER big Twilight fan too. ;-)

 

[carmie3377]

Not only on the charts, but as your "Mii" gets thinner!

I know, I think it's so neat. The first night we used the WiiFit, we didn't put the special legs on for carpet use. I knew it had me way under because I had just weighed at Curves and the WiiFit had me at underweight, which has NEVER been been my problem. Then, after we put the legs on, my weight jumped up 20 pounds to my actual weight and my Mii got chubby!

I'm feeling much better today and can't wait to get back on the WiiFit tonight. Would do it now, but waiting on someone to drop by then errands. I'll fit it in tonight. It's really fun.

 

[BibbidyBobbidyBoo]

Yes!
Definitely count me in!
I lost 80lbs in 2003 for our upcoming 2004 cruise.... oh it was a joyous time... finally lost all that "baby weight" (haha- yes due to 3 pregnancies! well really the last 2..) and I rejoiced by getting rid of my entire big wardrobe and buying new stuff- some I never got to wear (cruise casual stuff) because our cruise got postponed to 2006 (due to schedule change at schools) and by then I'd had some things happen (quit smoking/went off lowcarbing, had surgery/went off lowcarbing for good) and by the time we cruised... I'd gained enough I couldn't fit those clothes.
They STILL hang in my closet- the majority with tags still on them. wahhhhh
I slowly gained it all back over the next almost 6yrs and so I've gone on 2 cruises now with barely anything to wear (I refuse to spend a fortune on a completely new "big" wardrobe and never can find anything that looks good on me when I'm overweight and always short ofcourse LOL) and I'm DETERMINED I shall not do that again!

We cruise again at the end of May..I started back Jan 5th. I've lost 17lbs so far. I know exactly how I can lose the weight- so there are no excuses for why I haven't done it before now. But I guess I've got my head on straight again and definitely motivated! If I lose the same as I did last time (and I'm on the right track- last time I lost 20lbs the first month and then the weightloss slowed down after that- I'd only need to lose 3lbs more by Feb 4th to have lost the same as last time- for the first month) I should be around 135lbs by the time of the cruise. Definitely not my ideal weight for my height- but a whole lot better! I still may not fit into those tiny clothes in my closet, but atleast I won't be in the "severely obese" classification for my height! I'd just be on the very low end of "overweight" at that point- and I can handle that. I should have started sooner but... that would mean starting over the holidays like Nov and that just wasn't happening. LOL

 

[karendvc07]

OK! All these posts have really got me motivated....my plan is to do Wii Fit for at least 30 minutes tonight!!! Then maybe I'll get on the treadmill and watch the DCL special I have recorded off the Travel Channel for more motivation! LOL!

I was thinking of joining Weight Watcher's for my New Year's resolution, but instead I've decided to add more fresh fruits, vegetables, and whole grains to my diet. And drink more water! This approach seems to be working better for me than counting points...