Going on a cruise and Scared!!!

casmithis

I leave tommorrow for a Mediterranean cruise and it's my first time cruising.

I once read an article that this woman went on a cruise and gained 17 pounds!!! All I keep hearing about is the food!!!

I have tried finding out about the fitness facilities to continue to work out but I found out that the classes are a seperate fee. Have I not paid enough???!! There is a running track so I will at least be running regularly.

Oh, and I've been told internet is sketchy and once again extra!!! Not sure I can talk my husband into paying extra to log every day. Ugh!!!

Any suggestions appreciated.

Thanks
Cindy

SuziQ49

HI Cindy

Don't worry about not logging in while your away, enjoy your holiday. You don't need to eat the calorie laden food on a cruise there's usually lots of healthy salads and fruit to eat at the buffet. the main reason why people put on so much weight on a cruise is that they go to every opportunity to eat. Breakfast, mid morning snack, lunch, afternoon tea, dinner, midnight feast etc. If you stick to your usual 3 meals a day you should be fine.

Most of all have fun and enjoy your holiday

Susan x

HIITMe

there is 24/7 food available, slong with room service.... but you do not HAVE to gain any weight...there is a LOT Of exercise, intentional and not as you will likely do a lot of walking too...
you can make good food choices among what is presented... and even indulge in desserts...

I did a 8 day cruise and came home down a pound....

A_Fit_Mom

Which cruiseline are you going on? I have been on Carnival many times, and they have a lot of healthy options. They have their Spa Carnival selection on the menu. Also all cruise ships will have a gym and a track. So you can get a good workout while having a great view of the water!


But don't worry, enjoy your cruise and know that most of what you gain will be water weight. So make sure to drink plenty of water and take the stairs when you can.

jo_marnes

Is it just me thinking that the gastro will rectify any damage :laugh:

jmcreynolds91

Just stay active. Walk whenever you can, do whatever activities they have. When eating, go for veggies and the healthier looking stuff. And remember, its vacation. dont stress to much!

SlimJanette

I just went on a cruise in February and there is a ton of food. If I felt like snacking (because of the alcohol) I would have a salad or veggies. I did put on a couple pounds but that is like any vacation. There was lots of swimming, dancing, walking in the towns and there was a running track. they did offer other programs for a fee but I didn't bother. You will walk a lot on the ship because it is so big. Don't stress and have a good time.

ninerbuff

If it's on Carnival, I'd be more worried about completing the cruise!

Lol, sorry, but had to throw that in. I've been on 3 Disney Cruises in the last 15 years so my advice is that you probably will gain if it's your first. Why? Because you'll want to try foods you may have never eaten and most will be high calorie. BUT if you keep up an exercise regimen and try to be active (especially when at sea) then you can keep it down to a minimal gain. But enjoy yourself. Don't get wrapped up into thinking that EVERYTHING you eat has to be futile or you'll miss the enjoyment of the vacation. You can undo what gets done.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

257_Lag

My approach is usually to have a sensible breakfast which is easy with all the choices they offer. Restrict yourself a little less at lunch and just go crazy at dinner if you feel like it. Dinner in the dining room is special. It's your vacation, enjoy it! You might gain a few pounds but I assure you it won't be 17! And you might not gain a thing. The extra activity has always negated the extra food for me.

BobcatGirl110

I leave next week and have been a bit worried too My answer is walk, walk, walk Take the stairs instead of the elevator, use the running track (most have one), walk the ship to see what all is there, enjoy the views, walk to relax, walk to socialize....just walk You can enjoy the foods in small portions and balance it out by enjoying your walking time We'll see how we do when we get back but let's try not to be so worried about it that it's not enjoyable!

eliseofthejungle

I was always told to expect to gain a pound per day on a cruise. But, I've managed to take several and mostly maintain or only gain 1-2lbs. It's the drinks rather than the food that does me in. I'm a bit of a picky eater so I don't get as excited over the meals as some people do. Most cruises have healthy items on their menus (that are noted as such and are every bit as crafted as the "regular" food) so look for those. The buffet usually has a salad bar and fruit bar - so use those to fill up for breakfast/lunch if you can. Study a map of the ship and try to plan your navigation so you don't walk through the buffet room or past the 24hr pizza and ice cream room or whatever your weakness is. And always, ALWAYS, take the stairs. We don't have a lot of money, so our rooms always tend to be on one of the bottom floors. On the last cruise we took it was 14 flights of stairs to the pool deck from our room. I took those stairs probably 10 times a day - believe me, that burns off some serious cruise food!

Don't worry about it too much, though. Just try to enjoy your vacation!! (I'm jealous)

casmithis

Which cruiseline are you going on? I have been on Carnival many times, and they have a lot of healthy options. They have their Spa Carnival selection on the menu. Also all cruise ships will have a gym and a track. So you can get a good workout while having a great view of the water!


But don't worry, enjoy your cruise and know that most of what you gain will be water weight. So make sure to drink plenty of water and take the stairs when you can.

It's Royal Carribbean. I hear there's agym on the ship and a track. I sent an email to RC to see if there was a DVD player in the gym to play a GM tape but haven't heard back.

casmithis

If it's on Carnival, I'd be more worried about completing the cruise!

Lol, sorry, but had to throw that in. I've been on 3 Disney Cruises in the last 15 years so my advice is that you probably will gain if it's your first. Why? Because you'll want to try foods you may have never eaten and most will be high calorie. BUT if you keep up an exercise regimen and try to be active (especially when at sea) then you can keep it down to a minimal gain. But enjoy yourself. Don't get wrapped up into thinking that EVERYTHING you eat has to be futile or you'll miss the enjoyment of the vacation. You can undo what gets done.

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Ha, ha, No it's Royal Carribbean. Should be good, but just in case I'm going to sleep with a life jacket on!!!

craigmandu

My wife is a travel agent, and I've been on many many cruises. The good thing, is they usually have ample amounts of things like fresh fruit, veggies etc... in their buffets (except for the specific buffets for sliders/dogs/etc..)...

I've also noticed a trend over the past 6 or so years that a lot of the desserts are being made sugar-free now, or low-calorie (which does take away a bit from the taste, but isn't so detrimental as it use to be).

The alcohol however, yea, that can add weight. Depending on how much you drink.

Don't take it too seriously, make sure you add some extra fruit/veggies in your meals to help keep you full, and it really isn't that bad. The last cruise I went on was 7 days, and I only gained about 1lb.....so it isn't going to explode you as long as you have a semblance of control.

pepperpat64

If it's on Carnival, I'd be more worried about completing the cruise!

A.C.E. Certified Personal/Group FitnessTrainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

Beat me to it. LOL.

pepperpat64

I've been on many cruises and it's extremely tempting to eat everything in sight, because it's all (mostly) included and you want to get your money's worth. ;-) Here's a shocking truth most cruisers, both newbie and veteran, don't realize - ***you don't have to eat every morsel of food you're served.*** You won't hurt any of the dining room staff's feelings, trust me. There's certainly nothing wrong with indulging a bit, especially when you have a chance to eat foods you'd probably never prepare for yourself, but you don't need to stuff yourself until you're bloated. Don't be afraid to order those fancy desserts, but share them with someone at your table instead of eating the whole thing. Also, the ship most likely has a small gym with cardio and weight machines, so stick to your normal fitness routine as much as possible. Some classes are a fee, but every ship I've ever been on schedules walking groups early every morning when all the party animals are still sleeping off their food comas and hangovers. (No insult to party animals, of course.) Brisk walking around an entire cruise ship is a LOT of exercise, trust me. As others have mentioned, use the stairs over the elevators as much as possible. So many people would rather wait for elevators that you'll probably get where you want to go faster on the stairs anyway. Shipboard pools are usually very small, poorly designed for laps, and are loaded with people most of the time anyway, so if you're a swimmer, don't count on getting exercise that way. Finally, if you plan to go on any shore excursions, try to do things that involve walking, hiking, etc. rather than sitting on a bus for hours going someplace. I think as long as you're aware of what you're putting in your body and know how you feel when you start to gain a bit, you'll autocorrect that. Finally, don't be scared if you do gain a few pounds! At least it won't be a mystery why it happened, and once you're home you'll probably be able to get back to your desired fitness level pretty quickly. Unless, of course, you decide you just can't survive a single day without Baked Alaska ever again. ;-)

Have a great time! I love cruising and am going on an Eastern Caribbean one next year for my honeymoon.

Hayleymason2

My advice would be to go in to waiter service breakfast, that way you cant "pig out" at the buffet and keep going back for more fattening foods. Go to the buffet at lunch time, there are loads of different vegetables so you can make up a salad, avoid the dressings as they are very high in calories. For dinner try to avoid sauces on meat or fish and go for grilled chicken or fish, we've always found them to be quiet accommodating if there is nothing on the menu. Ask for extra vegetables and new potatoes instead of fries or mashed potato. You could ask them to take the bread basket off the table so your not tempted to pick at these in between courses. Most cruises seem to have running machines in the gym that are free, if your not up to running, walk for half an hour that will burn some calories or like everyone else has advised walking round in general will burn off some calories. If your planning on sight seeing this again will burn off the calories walking around Europe, if not just get off and walk around the port, that way you cant be tempted to ice-cream, pizza and burgers. Drink water, it's free in the buffet restaurant and is so much better for you than soda. Walking to the restaurant a few times during the day from your sun lounger will burn some calories, instead of using the waiters around the pool. Don't get the soda package not only will you save calories you'll save money. In my opinion the desserts are pretty awful on cruises (unlike all the other food) so I don't think you'll be missing much buy not having them and they do have low fat options or ask for fruit. They are happy to oblige. Avoid cocktails to, as they are so high in calories. I'm not planning on logging on while I'm on my cruise, but I've already checked out the calories of things I'm likely to eat during the day and made a note of them as I'm determined to eat sensibly for two weeks so I wont put on the 7lbs like I've done the last 2 years. Enjoy your cruise and remember your on holiday not boot camp

harvo

I have been on 2 and ate like there was no tomorrow...Came home and did not lose or gain a pound but we were active at our stops and on the boat.

My suggestion is eat how and what you are happy with. Me personally, I am enjoying the food without logging.

meredith1123

Don't worry about logging, dont worry about the internet, dont worry about having your phone on you, dont worry about having one too many drinks and dont worry too much about gaining weight.

do worry about having a great time, do worry about seeing shows, do worry about enjoying your time w/hubby, do worry about having the drink of the day (meaning HAVE ONE or SEVERAL)......... and do worry about making sure you attend the muster drill when called. You should ALWAYS do the muster drill (just to be on the safe side).

If you eat like you are supposed to, instead of how you want to - you wont gain ..... eh... or you wont gain too much. I usually gain about 3 pounds on a week cruise but hey, ITS VACATION.
ENJOY IT!!!!

mylast5lbs

If it's on Carnival, I'd be more worried about completing the cruise!

I don't care who ya are, that there's FUNNY.

Seriously. Have a great time and don't stress. If I ever get a chance to go on a cruise, I will intentionally gain some weight.

Frank_Just_Frank

I've gained no weight on my last 3 cruises. Just remember what breakfast looks like when you eat it at home and have that when you get to the buffet. Most people gain weight because they just go bananas with the all-you-can-eat concept.

SueGeer

Been on 2...both with Fred Olsen. I didn't log food, although I logged on so as not to lose my count.....was on holiday so relaxed the eating rules a lot :happy: . Sure, there's lots of food available, but plenty of options for you to make healthy choices....and you certainly don't need to eat 24/7 just because it's there. We walked round the deck several times most days and I made the use of the gym on days we didn't go ashore.

Enjoy it....don't deprive yourself but go for damage limitation :flowerforyou: :drinker:

bwogilvie

You can log calories without the Internet. If you have a decent bookstore nearby, you can pick up a calorie counting book, and use paper and pencil to record what you eat. If you're taking a PC, you can download the USDA food database for use offline at this link (Windows only): http://www.ars.usda.gov/Services/docs.htm?docid=5720

Studies have shown that people eat less if they keep a food diary, even if it's just a list of what they ate, without calories.

And I second the advice others have given: use the stairs as much as possible, keep active, eat dinner in the dining room, and if you go to a buffet meal, fill your plate with what you think is a reasonable amount of food, then don't go back for seconds.

Lisabel

I usually lost weight when I have been on cruises because I'm doing a lot of walking and taking the stairs on the ship because the elevators are usually packed and slow, plus there is usually fresh fruit and veggies already cut up and ready to eat if you need something to hold you over until dinner. And I also noticed that sometimes the desserts look better than they actually taste.

Athena53

And I also noticed that sometimes the desserts look better than they actually taste.

I think that's true of a lot of mass-marketed desserts, which makes it very easy for me to avoid them. I'd also be wary of sugar-free and fat-free desserts; heaven knows what they put in them to make up for what they left out.

I've been on only once cruise and it was a small ship in Alaska, heavily focused on activities such as hiking and kayaking. Food was well-prepared and delicious, but not the major reason for being there. I think the people who gain 17 lbs. on cruises go in with the mindset that they're on vacation and they'll eat everything they see that looks good. If you stay active instead and decide what your splurges will be (e.g., light breakfast and lunch but dessert at dinner), you shouldn't gain that much and you'll still have a good time.