You’ve worked for months slimming down, working out, and getting ready for your big day. And you look fabulous. Your gown fits perfectly and your new husband is sure to be grateful for all your hard work. But after all the effort, sweat, and healthy eating, the honeymoon shouldn’t be a free-for-all eating contest.
Yes, your after-wedding vacation is a time to relax, enjoy, and forget about the stresses of life. But you don’t want to undo all your excellent habits in one week. Thankfully, Cruise Critic has offered us 7 Cruise Ship Diet Busters…and What to Eat Instead. Check out their list – and their alternatives, and you’ll be set to cruise into your honeymoon sunset in style and in shape. Here are four of the seven worst picks, along with their solutions.
Burgers and Fries
A sunny Caribbean day just screams for a poolside lunch of burgers and fries, Cruise Critic says, yet Johnny Rockets outlet aboard Royal Caribbean ships serves up a not-so-lean-mean burger! Weighing in at over 1,000 calories, plus nearly 500 for fries and another 920 for a milkshake, this combo may sound tempting until you consider what it will do to your waistline.
Consider instead a grilled chicken breast or veggie burger. Skip the mayo and cheese, and consider ditching half or all the bun.
To work off the full fat version, you would have to ice skate for two hours! Thankfully, Royal Caribbean has built-in ice rinks aboard their ships.
Fine French Dining
French restaurants aboard cruise ships are not known for light fare. Creamy lobster bisques, goat cheese soufflés, an entire cheese course, and Chateaubriand in béarnaise and cabernet sauce may be super yummy but is not without its consequences!
Cruise Critic suggests that you consider instead a spinach salad, spice-crusted venison loin, and caviar.
To work off the full-fat version of a typical lobster bisque, you will need around an hour of kayaking during your next port stop. That may not seem so bad, but remember, lobster bisque is just the appetizer!
Meat on a Stick
Yes, we’re talking a Brazilian-style meat fest with decadent salad bars. These are found aboard select Norwegian ships and Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas. But the salad bar is filled with calorie- and sugar-laden salad dressings, heavy breads, creamy pasta dishes, oil-soaked cheeses and olives, and butter-drenched seafood. After you’ve gorged yourself on all the salad bar offerings you can eat, the meat-wielding waiters tempt with bacon-wrapped chicken, steak in garlic butter sauce, and full-fat sausages.
Admittedly less fun, consider instead mostly (or only) salad bar veggies and just a few pieces of meat. Completely avoid anything with sauce or bacon.
To work off the full fat version of this meaty excursion, walk for an hour at 3 mph. This will burn off nearly 300 calories. Though you will eat more than that, this will definitely help.
Fruity Cocktails
Oh, this one hits home, doesn’t it? Beach vacation just MUST include fruity cocktails! But a pina colada contains over 600 calories, a Long Island Iced Tea nearly 800 calories, and margaritas over 700 calories.
Consider instead sticking with wine at only 90 calories per 4 ounces, or beer at 150 calories per 12 ounces (for non-light beer).
To work off the full fat version, you’ll need an hour on the stair treadmill for that 645-cal pina colada.
For the full list of seven diet busters aboard cruise ships, visit Cruise Critic here.
