Weight gain??

[coriedorie]

We are going on our very first cruise...7 days on the Nov. 13 Magic. I have heard how wonderful and abundant the food is on the cruise lines, and I have little or no willpower!! I would like to hear from seasoned travelers as to your secrets of keeping weight from gathering, but still have a wonderful time. Is it possible???? Being removed from the ship by forklift would be really embarassing!!!

 

[taekwondo mom]

We just returned Oct. 28th from the land / sea trip and I'm also on Ww today was my weigh in and I gained .2 oz.. thank goodness... I was kind of worried ... Good Luck you can do it..

 

[smchan]

Originally posted by taekwondo mom
I gained .2 oz..

My goodness! That's a mighty precise scale you have.

Sam

 

[JC Butterfly]

Never take the elevator, always use the stairs, especially if traveling from deck 2 to deck 9.

You may or may not want to start eating a bit more at home the week or so prior to your cruise. This may help or screw up your metabolism (don't know if you're currently on some sort of eating plan).

They do offer different fitness classes you can take but I don't do that at home so I certainly won't on the ship, but I'm sure it would help.

Make sure to keep active on the ship. If you expect to eat 3-5 "meals" a day, this isn't the time to simply sit on the beach ALL day.

Or remember to eat everything in moderation. Just because you want to try the steak, the duck, and the shrimp all in one night doesn't mean you have to completely finish each entree. Take several bites of each to savor the taste, but don't start feeling guilty about the "starving kids in Africa" and force yourself to eat way beyond what your body can handle.

And if worse comes to worse . . .stop eating the main entrees all together and just enjoy the decadent desserts!

 

[dharma517]

1/2 pound to be exact. I have worked hard to maintain a certain weight and I told myself that I would eat what ever I wanted but I would leave 1/2 of everything on my plate. I worked!! I also allowed myself to have 2 frozen drinks (virgin). I did take the stairs a bit but not overly much...lol. Laid around most of the time to be honest...but had a great time.
Jenn

 

[taeja71]

You could probably ask your server for smaller portions or a smaller plate (lunch plate instead of a dinner plate). Also, balance your meals w/ fruit, veggies, fish. Yes, I admit to having the lamb twice, but what the hey...we were cruising! I agree, take the stairs. Have a great time!

 

[Limmer]

When we went I decided to leave the diet at home, after all it was my honeymoon. We ALWAYS took the stairs because we found the elevator too slow and we were too anxious to get everything in. On St. Maarten we walked back to the ship because we couldn't find a taxi (only took 15-20 mins). We snorkeled for about 1.5-2 hours on Castaway Cay. None of these things felt like work or exercise (which I am not a big fan of). Take a dance class, or dance all night at a club. These burn a lot of calories without feeling like work. By the way I did not gain a pound on our honeymoon and (only here) I will admit to freely indulging in desserts (even at lunch), ice cream in the afternoon and several yummy, fruity beverages.

 

[disneygatorfan]

I know I should try to be good on the Cruise, but my philosphy is... it's my vacation, doesn't happen everyday.. and one bad week won't ruin my weight loss as long as I get right back to healthy eating when I get back. I'm not going to deprive myself on the cruise, If I want that creme brulee and souffle at Lumieres, then by gosh, I'm gonna eat both

I won't go hog wild, but I'm gonna enjoy myself in a very slight moderation.

But in all seriousness... some good tips are probably:
1) stay active.. you can take the stairs if at all possible, or if you are going from deck 2, to deck 9.. take the elevator to deck 6, then walk the rest of the way...

or if you want to go forward... walk all the way aft, then take the stairs, then walk all the way forward, each little bit of walking helps.

Wake up a little early and take a few laps around Deck 4 or deck 10.

2) limit desserts and sweets to just dinner

3) eat a healthy breakfast.. like just have fruit and toast, instead of loading up on the eggs and bacon and other yummy stuff (my one exception will be the Character breakfast!)

4) only one trip to the buffet line

5) Drink lots of water, and limit those fruity beverages

 

[coriedorie]

Thank you all so much for the wonderful tips!! I knew I would find some understanding and support on these boards. I have a problem with stairs because of back surgery, but will certainly check out decks 4 and 10 for walking. Hey, I can walk and eat an ice cream at the same time!! I am sooo looking forward to this new adventure in our lives and want to enjoy it to its fullest!!

 

[mickeyfanmom]

coriedorie-

Your little "disappearing Mickey bar" animation is really cute! I just wanted to let you know that I appreciated it!



PS- I just wanted to tell you that my plan is to lose about 5 extra pounds before I go, so that I can have fun and be guilt free on the cruise! I always am more motivated when I have something ahead to look forward to than when I have to take it off after!

 

[CamColt]

Im one of those people who exercises every day (usually twice) and diets too. But when Im on vacation, thats what Im on vacation from. I recently got back from a 7 day cruise(not Disney) where I gained about 7 lbs.
Sure I was bummed about the gain, but I didnt deprive myself once on the trip and there is plenty of time to lose that weight now that Im home. The key I find is to save all your bigger/looser clothes until the end of the trip. Wear the tight stuff first.

 

[wide awake]

I didn't gain any weight on either of our 7 day cruises. I took the stairs as much as possible, did lots of walking on either deck 4 or at the ports, and swam when possible. I also ate only what I really liked...i.e. I ate lots of the peel and eat shrimp and left the chocolate chip cookies and soft serve ice cream alone. The hardest thing was to stop eating when I felt full...which was invariably after the appetizer and soup or salad. I also skipped the bread basket, not to save calories but to save room so that I could at least try the main course. There are lots of healthy food options onboard...seafood, fruit, grilled vegetables...I filled my plate twice at the Italian buffet and never got to the entrees or pasta.

 

[OurDogCisco]

On our 3 day cruise I didn't gain a pound. Actually, I loss 3 lbs but we did WDW for 6 days prior to the cruise. We had to push two strollers around so, I really think, I loss weight prior to starting the cruise and then, gained a little.

On my 7 day cruise, I gained 7 lbs. I exercised twice. I wanted to exercise more but never had time. I usually had two alcoholic drinks a day. I think, the thing that really did me in was Palos. They gave us way too much food at dinner and brunch. We did brunch on Thursday of the 7 day cruise and I was waddling out of the place. I was so full.

 

[KYCruiseCrazy]

Originally posted by coriedorie
We are going on our very first cruise...7 days on the Nov. 13 Magic. I have heard how wonderful and abundant the food is on the cruise lines, and I have little or no willpower!! I would like to hear from seasoned travelers as to your secrets of keeping weight from gathering, but still have a wonderful time. Is it possible???? Being removed from the ship by forklift would be really embarassing!!!

just remember this, corie you are on vacation. its a floating all you can eat buffet. just eat and play. thats what i intend to do on the 11/13/04 cruise just like you. ive lost 40 lbs for the cruise and ill try to regain it back LOL i think they will need a larger crane to get both of us off the magic. dont worry just have fun

 

[BobandLee]

The last two 7 day cruises that we went on, I gained 7 pounds each time. Most of it was gone after being home for a week.

Although I walked the prominade for 1/2 hour each morning, I also ate about 2-3 times that I normally do and I always indulged in the Krispy Kremes with my coffee first thing in the morning. Hey, I was on vacation and I enjoyed every minute of it!

The key to maintaining your weight, whatever it is, is eating in moderation and keeping somewhat active.

 

[SuzPasq]

I'll meet you at the gym, CorieDorie!

My plan this year is to do 45 minutes of cardio each day, plus things like swimming laps and taking the stairs. I am going to eat whatever I want, but limit the amount. Generally I prefer appetizers to entrees, so I will probably order 2 appetizers at dinner each night and skip the main course. I will probably have dessert each night, but only eat half.

 

[goofyforus]

Just a comment. I went on the 7 night eastern cruise aboard the Magic and ended up losing weight. I could already stand to lose about 50 lbs but was not going to make it more. My husband and i agreed to try everything by sharing.

Breakfast was only as much as we could finish, Lunch and dinner was shared. He always got something different than mine. At dinner we would switch plates halfway thru the meal.

We both had desserts, but remember, you don't have to finish it all. We even went to the midnight deessert buffet and tasted everything. Try not to worry about the waste, worry about your waist.

Everyday, we walked the ship to get to as much activity as we could, not very much time was spent laying around the pool. We walked a lot. Even on port days. No laying around like beached whales! ONce back home, i was 3 lbs lighter, what a vacation!

 

[crisi]

I gained about a pound a day...and was fairly active. But I don't eat much at home and overindulged.

Next time I'll loose a few before I leave, if I can. And I'll add a morning/evening walk to the routine.

 

[KEH]

I have no tips to add but I have just had dinner at Palo and wondered if I could please borrow Coriedorie's forklift as I can't think how else I'm going to be able to move!

 

[videogal1]

Originally posted by disneygatorfan

1) stay active.. you can take the stairs if at all possible, or if you are going from deck 2, to deck 9.. take the elevator to deck 6, then walk the rest of the way...

or if you want to go forward... walk all the way aft, then take the stairs, then walk all the way forward, each little bit of walking helps.

hmmm