Honestly! How much weight do you put on?

[canadiansnowbird]

 

Well, I have been looking at all these threads about the IC and the chicken salad and warm cookies and hot chocolate and am wondering how much weight (truthfully now!) goes on and how to avoid some of it.

 

Honestly, for me a 7 day vacation in the Caribbean put on about 10 lbs. and a 12 day in the Mediterranean, port intensive with a lot of excursions and up early in the morning, I didn't put on any weight.

 

Do you have a regular exercise time that you have every day? Will a mile walk every day, do it?

We are on the Sapphire for 30 days with a lot of sea days, which sound heavenly to me, but very lazy too. Three meals a day plus tea and sandwiches in the afternoon or cookies and hot chocolate or wine and tapas.

Yikes, please tell me what the secrets of not gaining 50 lbs !!:D

 

I know that there are cruisers out there that have 30+ days on the sea at one time. Doing excursions help, but if you have 4/5 sea days, what helps?

 

Snowbird

[paul929207]

I spent 36 nights on the Tahitian Princess this summer and only gained 4 pounds. :)

[Toto2Kansas]

On a longer cruise, I normally loose about 3-5 pounds. HONESTLY!

 

I have never seen the inside of the gym, or ever used the equipment there. I just walk a lot, rarely take the elevators, and we take quite a few swimming/snorkeling excursions on warmer climate cruises.

 

Plus, I don't eat like it is my last meal every day, as I have seen others do. I enjoy anything and everything I want to eat, I just don't stuff myself or eat when I am not hungry.

[jfv379]

If your first stop is in Mexico, it could work to your advantage. We did a Carnival cruise years ago and the first stop was Cozumel.

 

I lost 10 lbs., and ate like a horse. It wasn't that bad of a sickness, I just couldn't pass up a bathroom. DW was always wondering where I was always disappearing to until she figured it out.:D

[canadiansnowbird]

If your first stop is in Mexico, it could work to your advantage. We did a Carnival cruise years ago and the first stop was Cozumel.

 

I lost 10 lbs., and ate like a horse. It wasn't that bad of a sickness, I just couldn't pass up a bathroom. DW was always wondering where I was always disappearing to until she figured it out.:D

 

Not that kind of weight loss Thank You!!!

 

Snowbird

[gooch47]

I am overweight. :o

 

I can easily put on 5 pounds when we visit a casino for two nights.

 

But on a cruise, I seldom gain more than 1 or 2 pounds for even a 14 day or more cruise. Why? Because I'm more active and there isn't much snacking going on.

[ColoRockiesFan]

I always lose 2-4 lbs. I walk for 1/2 hour every morning and don't use the elevators. Plus I walk a lot on shore. I eat all that I want, but I think it's the exercise that keeps the weight off.

[canadiansnowbird]

I am overweight. :o

 

I can easily put on 5 pounds when we visit a casino for two nights.

 

But on a cruise, I seldom gain more than 1 or 2 pounds for even a 14 day or more cruise. Why? Because I'm more active and there isn't much snacking going on.

 

I kind of agree with the snacking... the food isn't as close as home, you have to walk a ways for it. :rolleyes:

 

Snowbird

[Amy G]

I refuse to weigh myself after a cruise until a few weeks after I have returned to the gym and I am back on my normal routine! This way, I never know if i gained weight or not! :)

 

ColoRockiesFan- I love Flame Point Siamese cats!

[kooljamming]

Usually I am pretty good, gaining as little as a pound, even less

I usually choose early traditional and save my appetite for dinner

This last cruise we spent a lot more time at the buffet along with Anytime Dining.

For the first time about 8+ pounds, maybe three resulted from more salty meals in the buffet.

Then again maybe all 8 pounds were a result of salt not the cookies

Poor cookies could be getting a bad wrap :-)

[Pam in CA]

I always lose weight; sometimes as much as 8-lb on a longer cruise. I eat what I want, including every dinner course, but I finish only what's really good. I don't really like cakes or pies (thank god!) so I usually have ice cream or a sorbet for dessert at dinner.

 

I've never seen the inside of a gym on a cruise ship and don't do laps on the Promenade deck. I do a lot of walking on tours, around the ship, etc., and while I don't walk up the stairs other than a couple of flights, I always take the stairs down. I'm overweight and not in the best condition but this seems to work for me.

 

As Toto says, don't make every meal your "last supper." I've seen people with THREE huge plates piled with food and two-handedly stuffing their faces in the buffet. And this is not isolated. My sister's daughter-in-law had two entrees and two desserts every night (and polished them off) and after a week, couldn't fit into any of her clothes.

 

Enjoy your cruise, try new foods, and eat the way you would at home. Allow yourself to be picky and finish only what's delicious to you.

[CateW]

Generally, don't gain a pound, but in order to make that happen, I have to hit the gym every day.

[Brblfsh]

I think I broke even on my last cruise. I didn't use the gym or do a lot of walking on deck, but I did a lot of snorkeling and we did a lot of walking in port.

[Ethel5]

On a 14 night cruise I gain about 4 pounds which I lose in about 3 days after returning home. This is water retention from the desalinated water. We usually have aft cabins and do a lot of walking. I eat what I want but, like Toto, it's not my last meal! :)

[50cruiser]

First few cruises I gained up to 5lbs , now I gain maybe 2 lbs but most of that is the distilled salt water. I retain water bad on 12plus cruises. Now I bring water pills on 8 day or more so I dont feel bloated. I also take a lot of stairs and walk a lot ashore. CARL

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

We did a 30 day Sapphire LA to Sydney in 2004 and I gained about 4 lbs which came off within a week. I think the flight home took some of it off but I tried to deck walk every day , did some exercise classes, and basically ate like I do at home. One doesn't need to eat a lot on a cruise ship - keep to the fruit, vegetables, and protein, do some exercise and you should be OK. I find that after awhile I tire of cruise food and have a normal lunch in a restaurant in a port.

 

Barbara

[helenb]

I do gain weight on cruises, but I have a few tricks to make it less than it could be, and I plan for it.

 

Before I leave, I go on a diet to make sure that my weight is reasonable. If I start out heavier it will be much harder to lose later on.

 

On the cruise, I do not eat breakfast (unless I am going to be in port for the day and skip lunch). I don't eat breakfast at home, and so eating it on vacation is just asking for disaster. I either skip going to breakfast altogether, or if I have to go with my family, I'll have a cup of tea with lemon and Equal just to have something in my hands.

 

From lunch through dinner I enjoy myself, but we have early seating dinner and I never eat after dinner. This gives me 3+ hours to digest before going to sleep.

 

I never take the elevator unless I am embarking/disembarking and have luggage. It's amazing how many calories you burn going up and down the stairs. And running up to the buffet for 'one more cookie' isn't as appealing when you think about the stairs involved.

 

I never use the exercise room or the classes, but I swim a LOT. On sea days I go to the lap pool and swim back and forth for an hour, then soak in the hot tub. I enjoy this, and it doesn't feel like exercise, and I'm not all gross and sweaty afterwards.

 

When eating on the ship, if there's something I don't like too much I DON'T FINISH IT. I know that seems criminal, but I'd rather leave the weight on the plate, IYKWIM. There is plenty of fabulous food, so why ingest calories of mediocre food?

 

In port, we WALK. Walking everywhere burns a lot of calories. And we NEVER buy food onshore, but always wait to go back to the ship. This means that on most port days we eat breakfast, then walk all day, and return in time for early dinner, having skipped lunch. Another thing to do (if your body chemistry absolutely can't skip lunch) is bring a few rolls and pieces of fruit off of the ship for lunch. Not super high-calorie, but enough to tide you over.

 

As soon as I disembark I go right back on my diet. I'm already dieting by the time I'm home, and usually I can lose the cruise weight within a couple of weeks. It took me 3 weeks after our most recent cruise, but we spent a week after disembarkation in Rome living on pizza and gelato... yum!

[davidnsteph]

We gain little if any weight on a cruise. We like quality in what we eat, not quantity, so our portions are sensible. Also, we walk quite a bit in the ports and about a mile a day around the Promenade deck on sea days.:)

 

DavidnSteph

[Kinkacruiser]

I'm a permanent health food junkie and like keeping fit, so I maintain the status quo.

Princess offer so many excellent healthy food choices, it's often difficult to select.

 

OK, I'm outta here..... :o

[imsulin]

I've never had weight issues (lucky genes!), so I rarely watch what I eat. Don't use a gym or walk (except the dog). My two brothers are the same way, and so are my kids (except one, who is built like his Dad). I just don't think about it when I cruise or stay at an all-inclusive. (When I have to PAY for food, I'm much more discretionary!) I'm sure I gain a few pounds, and the only exercise I do on a cruise is snorkel or walk from beach chair-buffet-beach-bar-back to chair-and to the tender or pier. I lose those pounds quickly when I get home because, as I live by myself, it's far easier and quicker for me to grab an apple for dinner rather than wait six minutes for the microwave to cook a Stauffer's lasagna.

[caber]

On a two week cruise I usually put on about 5 lbs. I eat what I like when I am onboard but not every course. I try to take the stairs except in the evenings when I am wearing high heals.

[Debathome]

I have only gained weight once on a cruise and only a few pounds.

We order our cereal to our room every morning. This works as our wake up call and helps to keep us out of the buffet which is just so tempting.

We usually just have something light for lunch but at dinner we eat pretty much anything that we like and enjoy a bottle of wine as well.

I don't use the gym nor do I swim but I do take the stairs (as long as I am not dressed formally) and we are big walkers so that is usually how we get around in port.

My husband however who is a health and gym fanatic, gained 8 pounds on his first five day cruise. He didn't work out 1/2 as much as he usually would and decided that since he was on holiday, he would eat those things that he usually tries to avoid. This meant getting on first name basis with the pizza maker, adding ice cream to every desert and "just checking out what he missed on the buffet while we were at dinner" :D

[JimnKaren]

Nowadays, I gain little. Years ago, when the every night buffet was available, I was bad.

 

I have discovered that a lot of the weight I put on is due to eating different foods. I love the bouillons that they serve on board, but they are loaded with sodium. If I have some, I gotta take a diuretic the next day. My activity level does not change, it is the types of foods than change.

 

When we get back home, all is normal and I can get back to my regular weight.

 

Jim

[tahoe782]

I don,t gain and usually lose. I keep the same workout schedule and have cereal and fruit for breckfast, skip lunch and eat what I want for dinner. Love those deserts. We always take the stairs.

Tahoe782

[awhcruiser]

I lost four pounds on my last cruise...I was in the gym every morning for 30 mins on the treadmill and tried to take the stairs whenever possible..My diabetic diet restricts me from certain foods which isnt a bad thing...I did not stray from it, even on the cruise..