Healthy eating on a cruise. MUST be better advice!

[lindalo5032]

What app are you using? I am looking for easy.

 

 

A great website to track calories eaten and daily exercise is MyFitnessPal.com. I started using this the end of March, 2012, lost 20+ pounds and have kept it off! Here is a link to the website. As far as what I ate, I tried to keep it simple: more fruits & veggies, cut way back on anything with sugar and flour, and cut back on processed foods. Good luck!

 

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/

[karena1]

Has anyone read the cover story "7 Cruise ship diet busters"? I'm a little appalled. Suggestions like "perhaps not eating for two day to prepare" for the Chefs Table, and "simply avoid all the for-fee establishments" are just pathetic.

 

There are healthy and reasonable ways to eat, behave and even responsibly indulge on a cruise. This came across as a sophomoric and hastily prepared attempt at something more than it is. Totally lacking substance.

 

So, how about we do it better?

 

What are some of your tips for enjoying a cruise vacation without going overboard?

 

I can tell you what I do - but I don't eat seafood b/c I hate it and other than chicken and turkey, I don't eat meat, so this may not help you.

 

1. I tell our waiters the first night that unless I tell them different, I want a salad and steamed veggies every night. Sometimes throw in a piece of grilled chicken. I actually take the FF Ranch dressing with me from Subway so that I have ff dressings. I don't like vinegary type dressings.

2. I am not a big dessert eater, so I never eat dessert at night. If I want a treat, I get the sugar free peanut butter cookes from WJ. They are amazing, I love them

3. I try to stay away from the fresh rolls at dinner. I love fresh bread so that is hard for me, but I try to do it.

4. I eat lots of fruit for breakfast, it fills me up and satisfies the "sweet" cravings.

5. I hit the gym at 6 am every single day for my hour workout on the crosstrainer. I am a gym rat at home, usually 2 hours per day, so I make sure to work out on a cruise also. Then while on the beaches, I usually take at least some kind of a walk on the beach during the day

6. I take low fat snacks like pretzels and FF Pringles with me on cruises as I like to snake

 

I still gain a little weight each cruise b/c of all the beer, but at least I drink lite beer. I am not a food junky like a lot of people, but I try to eat on a cruise as I do at home. I do splurge if I want, but I try to do that only one day on the cruise and eat healthy the rest of the time.

[ellie1145]

Avoid burgers and pizza and fries. You can eat them at home if you really must.

 

Eat fruit and vegetables at each meal.

 

Drink water.

 

Walk instead of using the elevators.

 

But don't spoil your vacation worrying about every morsel which you eat.

 

Cut back when you get home.

[wwcruisers]

Great ideas -- tried and true! One other piece of advice (if nobody has beaten me to it) -- STEP AWAY FROM THE SALT SHAKER! ;)

I've found that, even watching what I eat and drink, the generally over-salted food on cruise ships eventually gets me. At some point in the cruise, I notice that I'm retaining water (which equals weight), and my fingers and ankles are starting to swell. :eek:

PS -- In addition to avoiding salty foods whenever possible, having a banana every day seems to help with this problem. :cool:

[xxHadleyxx]

I think I have lost weight on every one of my cruises :)

 

I am pretty active onboard. We take the stairs, walk a lot in port, climb the wall a couple of times every day and dance every night.

 

We try to eat in the sit down menus for as many meals as possible--all dinners and whenever it is open for lunch. We usually sleep in and miss breakfast and just grab some fruit at the cafe on our way to morning trivia :D

 

I limit myself to one roll at dinner and rarely have more than one starter, one main dish and a few bites of dessert (I have never yet gotten a dessert I really love on RCI--if I ever do, I will eat it all!).

 

And I drink lots and lots of water.

[Gina130284]

How many of you have 3 courses at dinner time every day? Well don't do it on your cruise- this is where you accumulate unnecessary calories! Have cereal/omellete minus cheese for breakfast. Have a small lunch and don't forget to fill up on all that fresh fruit and veg! Just have main for dinner and when celebrating, treat yourself to a dessert!

[TonyFred]

I eat what I want. I am on vacation.

[ehfl]

Fruit for breakfast, salad for lunch, then enjoy a sensible dinner. Order one dessert to share.

[rutgersgirl27]

Balance is the key. I am on vacation, I do want to relax a bit. I'm terrible when it comes to dieting. I'll fill my plate with 3/4 healthy, and then a small treat of something unhealthy. I always go for the unhealthy items last, so there isn't even much room for them. This way I get to relax, and feel like I'm splurging (which is what a vacation is anyway). But in reality, I'm eating mostly items that are good for me.

 

I usually order a fruit basket of some kind for the room. If I'm craving something sweet, I'll grab some fruit first as a general rule. If I still want a cookie, then I'll walk to get one, but I try the fruit first.

 

I also look at the menus posted on CC. If I know I'm really excited for a dish, then it's worth it to eat healthier to balance it out. I can also plan ahead around dinner.

 

Lastly, I make sure I do something active, whether it's going to the gym or playing basketball. I think the combination of those things keeps me at an even weight. Or at least, my clothes still fit by the end of the cruise.

[euphio]

What app are you using? I am looking for easy.

 

MyFitnessPal. I highly recommend it.

 

Edit: I see lindalo be me to it!

[karena1]

How many of you have 3 courses at dinner time every day? Well don't do it on your cruise- this is where you accumulate unnecessary calories! Have cereal/omellete minus cheese for breakfast. Have a small lunch and don't forget to fill up on all that fresh fruit and veg! Just have main for dinner and when celebrating, treat yourself to a dessert!

 

Exactly, I don't eat 3 crazy meals at home a day, so not going to do it on a cruise either. Everything in moderation

[wolfcathorse]

at dinner I tell the waiter to replace the garlicky mashed potatoes with an additional serving of vegetables. But you have to watch this too as many of their vegetable side dishes are soaking in butter. And I know one person who orders a bowl of applesauce for her appetizer. Fills her up, satisfies her sweet craving, and is low fat.

[Homosassa]

Eat the same way on the cruise as you do at home. Because I follow a carb contolled way of eating, I also bring my low carb english muffins and sugar free jelly to enjoy at breakfast and other low carb snacks that I can use during shore excursions or for a dessert when nothing else appeals.

 

If all else fails, book an NCL cruise and only eat in the buffet and MDR. The lack of edible food will have you coming home lighter than when you left.

[jewelover]

I walk almost every morning (love the Oasis dedicated track on deck 5). I actually bring my own (Ocean Spray) diet cranberry juice to mix with vodka and a twist at poolside (did you know there is 90 cal. in tonic?), I eat half of everything put in front of me and warn my waiter that he should just whisk the plate away. At first, the waiter always assumes that I didn't like the food unless I tell him my plan! I eat the Park Cafe yummy roast beef sandwich with only half the bun. Still yummy, but half the carbs.

Because I am not a confident swimmer, by husband and I generally look for excursions that require or focus on hiking. We love sitting and reading, but whether it's poolside or beach is not as important. So we hike on land and sit on the boat.

[asylum575]

I always try to eat a fruit and or vegtable with every meal, and I also try to eat the fruit and or vegtable before I touch anything else on my plate. This way, I know that I have at least eaten something with good nutritional content. :o

 

I normally avoid the buffet and choose the MDR for every meal.

It works like portion control.

 

If I can't make the MDR, the buffet offers plenty of fresh fruit for breakfast and a great salad bar.

 

The rest of the time, I enjoy without going too far overboard.

[SimplyAddicted]

I am VERY food concious in my everyday life. I do not eat one ounce of processed food, do not eat any sugar (at all!) only sugar from natural sources - fruit, honey, real maple syrup. I only stick with whole grain. Drink only water, coffee (black) and red wine.

 

I also work out at the gym for about 2 hours 6 days a week.

 

My vacation is my only time for indulgence! I still try to avoid processed food and sugar (mostly) but I will not feel guilty having an extra serving of something!

[charlotteyork]

I can tell you what I do - but I don't eat seafood b/c I hate it and other than chicken and turkey, I don't eat meat, so this may not help you.

 

1. I tell our waiters the first night that unless I tell them different, I want a salad and steamed veggies every night. Sometimes throw in a piece of grilled chicken. I actually take the FF Ranch dressing with me from Subway so that I have ff dressings. I don't like vinegary type dressings.

2. I am not a big dessert eater, so I never eat dessert at night. If I want a treat, I get the sugar free peanut butter cookes from WJ. They are amazing, I love them

3. I try to stay away from the fresh rolls at dinner. I love fresh bread so that is hard for me, but I try to do it.

4. I eat lots of fruit for breakfast, it fills me up and satisfies the "sweet" cravings.

5. I hit the gym at 6 am every single day for my hour workout on the crosstrainer. I am a gym rat at home, usually 2 hours per day, so I make sure to work out on a cruise also. Then while on the beaches, I usually take at least some kind of a walk on the beach during the day

6. I take low fat snacks like pretzels and FF Pringles with me on cruises as I like to snake

 

I still gain a little weight each cruise b/c of all the beer, but at least I drink lite beer. I am not a food junky like a lot of people, but I try to eat on a cruise as I do at home. I do splurge if I want, but I try to do that only one day on the cruise and eat healthy the rest of the time.

 

 

Hi,

 

I'm also looking for tips for my upcoming cruise. From your post it sounds like we can ask the waiter for our preferences? So I can ask for grilled chicken for example, and they would prepare it for me? We have My Time Dining. I can't eat red meat due to gastrointestinal issues. That is good to know! Sounds like they will be accommodating.

[Jax129]

I've got a cruise on the Freedom coming up & for me, over eating & eating bad stuff like tons of sugar & carbs just makes me soooo tired. So I've decided I will eat a good breakfast, a big healthy salad for lunch (which I do every day anyway) & eat what I want for dinner, but maybe stay away from the bread. I also plan on using the walking track at least 4 days.

[asylum575]

Hi,

 

I'm also looking for tips for my upcoming cruise. From your post it sounds like we can ask the waiter for our preferences? So I can ask for grilled chicken for example, and they would prepare it for me? We have My Time Dining. I can't eat red meat due to gastrointestinal issues. That is good to know! Sounds like they will be accommodating.

 

Not sure how that would work with My Time Dining.

 

With traditional service where you have the same server every day, they can have items waiting for you when you arrive. I remember one cruise when our DS was only 15 months, he would only eat broccoli and blueberries. By the third night, there was a bowl of each waiting for him when we arrived for dinner.

[Peeker28]

A great website to track calories eaten and daily exercise is MyFitnessPal.com. I started using this the end of March, 2012, lost 20+ pounds and have kept it off! Here is a link to the website. As far as what I ate, I tried to keep it simple: more fruits & veggies, cut way back on anything with sugar and flour, and cut back on processed foods. Good luck!

 

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/

I've been using My fittness pal too and I e lost 24 pounds in 90 days. It's an awesome app

[windjamming]

At the Windjammer, I try to forget it's a buffet and restrict my plate to only 3 items - usually a lean meat, a vegetable, and a starch. All reasonably sized portions. I do end up walking around a little in order to find exactly what I want for my 3 items, but I end up eating a lot less.

[OCruisers]

It's easy to eat healthy meals on ships. I'm a Type II diabetic which I control totally by diet, order off the regular menu, and never have a problem. :)

 

LuLu

~~~~

[sjb317]

I go to the gym each day just like I do at home, plus we try to do active excursions & take the stairs as much as possible.

 

I do not deprive myself of anything I want to eat but I never eat the entire serving. I try to eat slowly and savor each bite. I always get dessert but never eat more than three bites, my husband will usually finish it for me!:D

 

I rarely gain weight on a cruise.

 

Sherri:)

[shutterbug63]

MyFitnessPal. I highly recommend it.

 

Edit: I see lindalo be me to it!

 

I'd recommend Fitness Pal too. It works great...and has made me MUCH more aware of what I'm putting in my mouth.

 

A couple of things I do. One, I only use oil and vinegar (they usually have those in cruets on the buffet and you can ask for them in the MDR) as salad dressing rather than a fat free dressing - those can sometimes be high in sugar.

 

If I'm ordering an entree in the main dining room and it has potatoes, I skip the potatoes and ask for extra vegetables (with no sauce/butter) instead. I do my best to avoid dinner rolls, although I'm not always successful.

 

I limit myself to one dessert a day if I have to have one.

 

I take the stairs as much as possible and try to get some time on the jogging track every day.

 

ONE trip to the buffet at breakfast...and I'm careful about portions.

 

I drink lots of water...try to avoid even diet sodas since they can be pretty high in sodium.

[davekathy]

I discipline myself but don’t deprive myself of any food/treats I want. I take the stairs and do a lot of walking. I drink water, beer and wine. What really works for me is no late night snacking.