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Shipshape in a sea of food
Even with indulgent onboard temptations, cruising can be good for you!
 | Passengers take part in a yoga class aboard a Celebrity Cruise Lines ship. In the latest of trends in the industry, ships are offering specialized activities and classes for every possible interest. |
Celebrity Cruise Lines / AP File |
As we were standing in the morning breakfast buffet line, a fellow passenger aboard Holland America’s Zuiderdam remarked to me, “You could easily start the day with three breakfasts on this ship: one delivered by room service, another at the sit-down restaurant and another at the buffet.”
From his girth, I figured the gentleman knew this from personal experience. Certainly, cruising and food seem to go hand in hand. Most cruises are one long buffet meal, and if you’re not careful, you’ll disembark with excess baggage on your behind.
According to Holland America, the average weekly grocery list for the 1,848 passengers aboard the Zuiderdam includes:
- Meat: 11,830 lbs
- Poultry: 3,814 lbs
- Fish: 1,875 lbs
- Seafood: 2,575 lbs
- Butter and margarine: 1,674 lbs
- Fresh vegetables: 137,500 lbs
- Potatoes: 7,750 lbs
- Watermelon: 2,300 lbs
- Dairy: 5,500 qts
- Ice cream: 300 gals
- Eggs: 23,040
- Sugar: 950 lbs
- Flour: 3,150 lbs
- Soda: 362 cases
- Beer: 332 cases
- Champagnes: 450 bottles
- Wine: 1,636 bottles
- Water: 280 cases
Or, roughly, 20 gazillion calories per person. And it’s not just the Zuiderdam. No matter what ship you are on, and no matter where you are going, your kitchen crew will offer you an overwhelming array of food, food, food and more food.
Almost everyone I spoke with on the Zuiderdam worried about gaining weight on the cruise, and the majority expected to put on a few pounds over the seven days at sea. I was worried, too; I’ve been on the “Curse the Cruise” diet many times myself. The key to healthful cruising this time, I decided, would be balance. Of course I would enjoy the wonderful multicourse dinners — and all the crème brûlée that Holland America could whip up for me, but the price would be a serious exploration of the onboard fitness programs.
There were plenty to choose from: everything from morning mile walks and yoga to “New Body” aerobics, “New Body” Pilates and “New Body” hydro-Pilates. The “New Body” theme had taken over the Greenhouse Spa, and small wonder: With all that food on board, I suspect most passengers would end the cruise with some sort of “new body.” But that’s not what the exercise gurus had in mind. According to the spa literature, the New Body program would “energize and burn calories while focusing on balance, concentration and inner strength.”
Ah, yes. Inner strength. If I was going to get this “New Body” right, I’d need all the inner strength I could muster, especially around the glazed doughnuts in the Lido Restaurant. But I was committed. Rather than risk being mistaken for Shamu in my black swimsuit, I decided to take action. It would be “New Body and Me” for the next six days.
The walk-a-mile at 7 a.m. on the Promenade Deck was my first foray in the fight against flab. It was great for toning my legs and working up a little pre-breakfast sweat. Walking is normally a simple action: You put one foot in front of the other and off you go. But at sea, you may find it far from simple. With the ship pitching and rolling, and the wind gusting, you might find yourself missing a few steps. Me, I looked like I was doing an Irish jig.
The next morning, I tried the “New Body” hydro-Pilates class. The British instructor emphasized the importance of a clear mind-body focus. Amazing! We hadn’t even started the class, yet my body was clearly telling my mind that it wanted a glazed doughnut. (Focus, focus! Think “New Body.”)
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