Last week, I was aboard the Celebrity Silhouette, cruising around the Western Caribbean. It was my first cruise. And I can tell you unequivocally: they had some of the best food I’d ever had while travelling. It’s not just the quality of the food, but the sheer quantity of different foods (from all over the globe) and availability throughout the ship that was truly amazing. And here’s the best part: I did not gain 1 pound! That’s right: I stayed the exact same weight as I did before I left: 216 pounds. That’s the good news. The bad news is that I wasn’t able to lose weight while on the cruise. That is to be blamed on the numerous meals I had throughout the day. And yes, I went to the gym for an hour virtually every day. Just to maintain my weight!
So what kind of food did they have? My personal favourites…
For breakfast: Scrambled eggs, grapefruit, pineapple, bananas, yogurt, nuts, and guacamole.
For lunch: on the last day, they had greek/middle eastern food, so I gorged on hummus, tabouleh, baba-ganoush, and meat. I also enjoyed their soups.
For dinner: salads, sushi, meat + meat + meat (I’m talking fish, pork, chicken, beef, etc.). I particularly enjoyed the Indian fare (e.g. dal, popar, butter chicken, chicken tikka masala, curried pork/goat, etc.) and their fresh fruits (berries, pineapple, etc.).
Now, these were my favourite dishes. They had TONS of other foods to enjoy, ranging from Italian (fresh pizza and pasta) Japanese (sushi), Mexican (fajitas and tacos), French (soups, salads, etc.), English (Bangers, desserts, etc.), etc.
Everything is fresh and hand-made.
So here’s my secret for not gaining weight on a cruise:
1. PORTION CONTROL: find the smallest plate you can and fill it up (hopefully once or twice). Sample food. Don’t gorge! This is so important.
2. SKIP MEALS: if you feel full, skip a meal. Reward yourself the next day by looking down to see your toes!
3. GO TO THE GYM: if you can muster up the energy at 6:00 a.m. while everyone else is sleeping, I find this the best time to hit the gym. Then you can reward yourself with a nice breakfast.
4. DRINK WATER/AVOID ALCOHOL: this can be tough, particularly if you purchased a drink package. But most alcohols are sugar-based and come loaded with calories. Drink water to stay hydrated. It’s hot and you’ve been eating food that contains lots of sugar and salt. You need to regulate!
5. DRINK ESPRESSO: coffees with milk and sugar have lots of calories. Try drinking coffee straight to keep you going. And you can really appreciate the taste and quality of a coffee by having a straight single/double shot of espresso.
Now, it doesn’t seem like a very enjoyable strategy if you’re a foodie and you simply want to try everything. But this is the strategy that I used. I felt great the whole time and now I’m back to my crazy juicing diet. Gotta get down to 200 by April 1! Only a few weeks left to go. My biggest challenge: I’m heading to Turks & Caicos with the family (through Kennedy Seminars) in a few weeks and there will be more temptations. I just have to avoid them 😉
By the way, discussion + pics of the U of T Western Caribbean Cruise to follow…
