Weight Watchers and Disney

[SweetSpellsSweetie]

I am so excited to hear about so many fellow WW members!!!

My Dsis and I are both about to leave for a trip for our first F&W fest.
We were there in May and we wore pedometers to track our walking....we averaged a minimum of 6-7 miles a day, and I was able to maintain my weight for the trip.
So, I am planning on enjoying myself for F&W. I will keep moderation in mind, but we will be doing so much walking - I figured that I won't deprive myself of those special treats that you only have while at Disney!!!
Good Luck

 

[barney4liz]

What great advice you are giving me. I eat pickles instead of potato chips. I utilized them on my last trip. I am definately hitting up the fruit this time round. One question though....last time I didn't snack throughout the day, just keeping to breakfast...lunch...and dinner. Should I stop and have my "scheduled" healthy snack even if I'm not really all that hungry?

I did a short Disney trip with my DD when I was 3 mos. into WW. (I'm now at goal -- 45 lbs gone ). I found it did help me to have my healthy snacks. I just threw a couple of apples into my bag, kept me from feeling ravenous when we got to Rainforest Cafe for lunch. Split an entree there with DD -- the portions are ridiculous! I did splurge on a root beer float in the afternoon. yummmm. I meant to take my pedometer but forgot -- take one if you have it, you will probably be amazed at how much you walk. DH chaperoned a school field trip to Sea World and logged 7 miles!

Have a great time, enjoy the treats you REALLY want, and go back OP when you are home.

 

[rosegirl]

Thanks for the encouragement. I really could use it. I am a lifetime member and was down to a terrific size (any number without a 1 in front of it is terrific to me) but recently gained back a lot of weight so I recommitted myself to WW and have been losing slowly but steadily. It seems harder this go around.

We are going to Disney for Thanksgiving. I don't want to be so point-driven that I ... ahem, lose the point of enjoying my vacation! Still, I also don't want to let all my hard-earned weight loss go down the drain either. It would be wonderful if WW could come up with some suggested items to eat at WDW and assign point values so we could plot our vacation dining out a little more prudently! Partnership, anyone???

I will bring my points calculator and just try to be moderate in my choices, and veer away from soda if at all possible. But it would be great if other DISers could continue to post some good ideas from their trips. I seriously think I gain sometimes when I look at food!

 

[Ron from Michigan]

Drink pleanty of water to go along with all the walking you will be doing. We take cereal and low fat snacks in our suitcase that we eat on during our trip. We only eat breakfast out once or twice on each trip. Have salads for lunch. Columbia Harbour House in the MK has a fantastic salad. Then have a great dinner, sometimes we even split meals. We still eat pleanty of our favorite sweets and snacks on the trip, after all thats part of the fun of being at Disney. My Wife has lost over 100lbs on WW. She also exercises at Curves every day. Have Fun.....

 

[DznyDreams]

Yet another WW member here. What a GREAT thread!! Thanks to the OP for starting it -- I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it.

I have been back on the WW program since early June and have lost (see last line of signature) a lot of weight. I still have A HUGE amount to lose. Most folks would just stare at me and make rude comments about “how fat that lady is,” having no clue that I have actually lost an incredible amount of weight. (I’m sure that remark may sound “bitter” to some of you, but it’s really okay. I’m so focused on my health for the first time in my life, and I’m not going to let the “insensitive ones” discourage me a bit.)

It is so nice to hear from other DISers who are not only WW members but who also plan to remain food-choice conscience while at WDW. Kudos to those who can go “off program” while on vacation and jump right back on the wagon once you’ve returned home. Personally, I’ve never been successful with this strategy. As a matter of fact, it is this line of thinking that has always been my personal downfall.

You see, I have made more than just a few attempts to join WW in the past. I would begin the program, and then plan a trip to WDW. THEN, I would plan in advance to “put the program on vacation while I was on vacation.” Not surprisingly, each of these attempts ended the same way – I’d never return to WW, and I’d regain all the weight I had just lost (plus another 10 or so lbs). I always had such good intentions to return to my meetings, but the fact remains that I simply never did.

Well NOT this time!! I leave TX on Nov. 23rd and will not return home until December 7th. That’s 2 full weeks of “vacation mode,” and for me, this is going to take some strategy. While I do realize that I will not be able to be “perfect” at WDW, I am still planning to make better choices. I am using the Mental Rehearsing tool as a major part of my pre-trip game plan. I am visualizing myself making the “healthier” choice vs. the mega-fattening choice. I am mulling over the snack food choices I will keep on hand for the car ride from TX to FL. I’m stocking up on bottled water and picturing myself actually drinking it vs. soda. I visualize only eating ONE Mickey ice-cream bar per week. I can see myself partaking in no more than 1 beef meal each week. I plan to eat my normal fruit/cereal breakfast each morning since DH & DD are not big breakfast eaters. I can see myself being extremely exhausted once back home, yet I still put forth the effort to walk through the doors of my WW meeting on December 8th (the day after I return home). And the list goes on, and on.

I know….I know…. This sounds like WAY TOO MUCH thinking, but the truth is that NOT thinking is what got me in this shape in the first place. Things MUST change because…

“If you always do what you always did, you’ll always get what you always got.”

 

[estherhead]

I don't know if you will have a car or not, but I have gone to WDW and stayed 100% on plan. I visited a meeting while I was in Kissimmee and it was quite convenient and nice to be a visitor. I lost 4 lbs that week! Just go to WW main site and type in Kissimmee and it will tell you where and when the meetings are!

 

[barney4liz]

Yet another WW member here. What a GREAT thread!! Thanks to the OP for starting it -- I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it.

I have been back on the WW program since early June and have lost (see last line of signature) a lot of weight.

Congrats on your loss, that is awesome!!

It sounds like you have a really good handle on how you need to approach your vacation!

To the OP as well -- I don't think it's that hard finding healthy choices in the parks. I remember specifically at the CS at Blizzard Beach (chaperoned a school trip there in May '07) one of the choices was a turkey sandwich on whole wheat with a side of apple slices. I think it's probably similar to many of the CS places in the parks. AK has a nice fruit vendor, too. I would just try to plan ahead for the treat and splurge meal you know you must have every day, look forward to it, enjoy it, and try to make good choices the rest of the day.

 

[SweetSpellsSweetie]

This may have already been mentioned, but when I was there in May I found it helpful to order the kids meal of whatever I was craving when would would stop at counter service restaurants. It was almost always the perfect size for a meal once I was done - my eyes are usually larger than my stomach!!

 

[papeezmoma]

Thanks to all my fellow WW peeps. With all your help, I know I will be able to do this. You all have proven it can be done. Thanks for the Dolw Whips info....one serving will come to 2 points. I think Disney should team up with WW and have a special points booklet for all that is visiting.

 

[SnwflkCts]

papeezmoma - just remember that you might get more than 1/2 cup of Dole Whip -- share! Believe it or not, I missed the Dole Whip stand ... maybe I should try that strategy again this time. I already decided that no Schoolbread. Really ... I manage to talk myself out of sweets - they are not my bad habit. Salty & Crunchy -- now THAT's what I could BINGE on ... (but don't anymore!). I laughed when you mentioned the pickles. I'm sure DH is appreciating those Garlicky Kosher Pickles I eat at night for a snack!! (Lots of Garlic!) ... one of those really hits the spot!

I noticed even the burger places have carrots. I am not really big on fries. Just remember that the counter service food is not worth splurging too much on.

DznyDreams - what an inspiration you are!!! Wonderful! I am like you ... I realize I cannot "go on vacation" -- I also have diabetes and there is no vacation from that!! I must use some will power and faith to get me thru the battleground of temptations (FOOD!)! (so ... that is why no DDP - I am too CHEAP to buy dessert!)

Also ... we are doing breakfast in the room. I do not crave the pastries but ok ... if you put it in my hand, it somehow just leaps into my mouth!

Thank you all for the wonderful tips. I know this is the Restaurant Board ... but I would never have found this if it was buried elsewhere. I can't wait to hear how people make out eating healthy!

 

[DznyDreams]

Thanks to all my fellow WW peeps. With all your help, I know I will be able to do this. You all have proven it can be done. Thanks for the Dolw Whips info....one serving will come to 2 points. I think Disney should team up with WW and have a special points booklet for all that is visiting.

Oh what an AWESOME idea!! Wouldn't that be great!? I wonder who we could email this idea to.... Even though it is too late to see it happen before my next trip, it would still be great to see your awesome idea brought into full fruition.

 

[SnwflkCts]

I can't really see WDW teaming up with WW to do a points value on their meals. It would be nice if they had one or two restaurants do a lower cal/fat meal though. Like Applebees and WW. But I wonder how many people put diets on hold during vacation and if it would be economically feasible. Hmmm ... interesting idea.

Good news today at WW. I missed a week and when I weighed this week, I have lost well over my [first] 10%goal! YEA!! (Now gotta set another 10% goal!)

 

[papeezmoma]

Congrats Snwflkcts for hitting goal. Keep the good work going. I've been back on program for 2 weeks and I'm at 8.4 lbs.

I'm going to ask a lot of questions at the restaurants. I'mm make my own little "black" book. I'll use my slider to figure the points...at least as close as I can get. Yipppeeee for everyone

 

[papeezmoma]

This coming Friday is the 180 day til my vacation. Going to make my dinner reservations. I'm one more step closer to the big day.

 

[mattsmom2000]

Thanks so much for the great information. I am looking forward to all of the walking to ward off any extra pounds.

 

[RangerPooh]

I've gone to WDW/DL on WW in the past and have returned home having lost weight, gained weight, and stayed the same. For me it was all about exerceise, portion control, and generaly being conciencious of what I ate.

 

[jwfla422]

All are great words of advice.

Let me just add these:

Plan which parks you would like to go to each day along with your ADR's. Go to allearsnet and print out the menus of the restaurants you plan to dine at including the counter service ones. Then each day you can actually plan what you're going to eat at those restaurants. Many times at dinner I will just have a salad and an appetizer rather than a whole entree or just eat part of the entree. Don't do too many big breakfasts or buffets, it's so easy to overeat for the day then. But, make sure to treat yourself once a day, whether it's a small goodie or an ice cream sundae (just don't do a big sundae everyday )

Depending on what resort you're staying out, check to see if they have a fitness center. We stayed at SSR a few weeks back and it's a wonderful resort to jog or walk around. I would do this almost each morning and then go to the gym and work out on the eliptical and even do some weight training. Even though you can walk several miles a day through the parks at WDW a lot of that walking is not going to burn too much because you don't get your heart rate up long.

Try to keep a food log so you can see how much (and what) you're eating. And, wear a pedometer if you can to see how much you're walking.

To those that can lose those 5 lbs you gained in a week after you get back, lucky you!! I was able to do that in my 20's, not so anymore. Takes me 2 months to lose 5 lbs now and I'm sure many other people are in that same boat as well, so the thought of gaining even 2 or 3 lbs on vacation to me is out of the question.

 

[papeezmoma]

Great advice. I've been studying the menus already. I usually skip dessert now so I wont be craving them then. Last trip I had a small strawberry sundae on the last night I was there. It was like my send off.

Eating a kids meal is also great advice. I'm not doing the dining plan, so I have a little flexability with what I order. I can also split an adult size meal with my 10 year old daughter.

 

[stitchlover]

Any WW lifetimer here! When we went in March '06 I had been on WW 8 weeks and was down 20 pounds. When I got back from that trip I had gained 3 pounds (weighed in the day after we got home). But I knew in my heart that a lot of it was water weight...didn't push the fluids while we were there. Well the very next Saturday I had lost 8 pounds. So I guess that just goes to show how important pushing the fluids is!
When we went this March '07 I was at goal and maintaining 115 pounds loss. One of the things we did this trip was ship 3 cases of water to the resort ahead of us. I did gain weight again this trip but I took it right back off. I think you just have to remember that you might not be perfect when you are there but you know how to lose anything once you get back home.
I also took my own breakfast stuff, weight watcher muffins and purchased a piece of fruit to go with it in the morning. That way I knew I was starting each day off right!
Hey DznyDreams...your profile says you are in NE Texas...where abouts? I'm in Arlington!

 

[wezee]

Got back 10-14-07 and weighed on 10-15-07.....oooops gained 2 lbs. But, I ate anything I wanted during our trip on the DDP. After one week home, I lost the 2 lbs. plus 2 more lbs. Remember lots of water, massive walking and get back on track the first day home.

PS. they say the closer you are to goal... the harder to maintain. Not true, I am 5lbs. under the goal I have maintained for over a year(after a 50 lb loss) and still enjoyed my vacation, knowing that I would get back to counting pts. as soon as I got back home. Enjoy your vacation and keep the faith that your are on WW and will handle any minor obstacles your Disney vacation may throw your way!!!
WW is for life and I know you will all succeed before, during and after you trip.