Dieting for Disney 2008

[sublimesting]

Ummm. No. This is the wrong way to encourage people who want to lose weight before they go. A 2 week binge is BAD. Eating whatever you want at WDW and gaining 5-10 lbs is BAD. You are right about not fretting about it. No one should feel like a failure if they slip. But there's a big difference between indulging in something decadent every once in a while, and allowing yourself to go backwards by gaining 10 pounds. Once you break the hard won cycle of eating healthier, it's harder to get it back. Losing weight is about eating less, eating healthier and getting some exercise. And for many, many people these simple things are very difficult. I tip my hat to everyone who is trying to get healthier. What a great motivation, to be able to enjoy your Disney trip more by losing weight. And with all the walking you'll do, you'll burn lots of calories. And to whoever came up with the idea of imagining themselves AT WDW while doing their walks, BRAVO. I'm going to start doing that immediately.

No, the point is that people put too much emphasis on the food and let it control them A 2 week binge is NOT bad. Most of us are going to end up on a 2 week binge eventually and we CAN recover from it. We don't have to let it ruin us. It's only your mind that makes it hard to restart the diet. We are all empowered to start and stop eating whenever we want. It's in every one of us. There is NO SUCH THING AS WILLPOWER!!! None of us should fool ourselves into thinking other people have it easy as they have more willpower than we do. Willpower is simply what you will to happen. None of us are weak in the mind and food will NOT control our actions. If we want to enjoy ourselves at Disney then so be it, it will not ruin us. We can enjoy our vacations and be happy with ourselves and KNOW that when you get back home you WILL get right back on the health train. You are all equipped to battle this, you are all empowered just the same, you all have support and back up, you all have the same will, and the same strenght of mind.

Most health experts recommend (if you watch the Biggest Loser you will have heard this) a bad day every single week. No working out and no watching what you eat. This does 2 things:
1. It gives you something to look forward to so the "diet" isn't a gruelling process
2. It revs up your metabolism as restricting calories slows it down. So you wiull actually burn MORE weight when you restrict the calories once again.

 

[sublimesting]

A great snack to try!

Here is a great snack to try:

94% fat free microwave popcorn. A full bag is 3 WW points, a mini bag is 1 point. Now here is the FUN part. Seasoning it! Try fat free butter spray with:
parmesan cheese and garlic and chives OR
cinnamon and splenda (sugar substitute) OR
paprika and chili powder and crushed red pepper OR
cocoa powder (the unsweetened kind) with splenda OR
whatever seasonings and spices you can think of!!!


Here is another snack I enjoy:

fat free pudding mix made with skim milk with fat free/sugar free cool whip. That is very delicious indeed.
:wave:

 

[figmentisgreat]

Here is a great snack to try:

94% fat free microwave popcorn. A full bag is 3 WW points, a mini bag is 1 point. Now here is the FUN part. Seasoning it! Try fat free butter spray with:
parmesan cheese and garlic and chives OR
cinnamon and splenda (sugar substitute) OR
paprika and chili powder and crushed red pepper OR
cocoa powder (the unsweetened kind) with splenda OR
whatever seasonings and spices you can think of!!!


Here is another snack I enjoy:

fat free pudding mix made with skim milk with fat free/sugar free cool whip. That is very delicious indeed.
:wave:

Also, vegetarian chili is great - just leave out the cheese
and Campbells has a summer butternut squash soup that is DELICIOUS and is only one or two points for a cup...

 

[daliseurat]

No, the point is that people put too much emphasis on the food and let it control them A 2 week binge is NOT bad. Most of us are going to end up on a 2 week binge eventually and we CAN recover from it. We don't have to let it ruin us. It's only your mind that makes it hard to restart the diet. We are all empowered to start and stop eating whenever we want. It's in every one of us. There is NO SUCH THING AS WILLPOWER!!! None of us should fool ourselves into thinking other people have it easy as they have more willpower than we do. Willpower is simply what you will to happen. None of us are weak in the mind and food will NOT control our actions. If we want to enjoy ourselves at Disney then so be it, it will not ruin us. We can enjoy our vacations and be happy with ourselves and KNOW that when you get back home you WILL get right back on the health train. You are all equipped to battle this, you are all empowered just the same, you all have support and back up, you all have the same will, and the same strenght of mind.

Most health experts recommend (if you watch the Biggest Loser you will have heard this) a bad day every single week. No working out and no watching what you eat. This does 2 things:
1. It gives you something to look forward to so the "diet" isn't a gruelling process
2. It revs up your metabolism as restricting calories slows it down. So you wiull actually burn MORE weight when you restrict the calories once again.

I refuse to prolong this argument, as I believe it's counterproductive to everyone who is doing whatever they can to lose their weight. You and I will never agree. I wish everyone luck.

 

[farmgirl]

Also, vegetarian chili is great - just leave out the cheese
and Campbells has a summer butternut squash soup that is DELICIOUS and is only one or two points for a cup...

Okay I have a really silly question I am sure but what would be left in vegetarian chilli??? I have only ever had it with ground beef. There would be notihng in mine left but some onions cause i leave out the beans or my hubby won't eat it.

 

[figmentisgreat]

We normally load it up with chili beans, peppers, onions, and stuff like that...it's really good with a dollop of fat free sour cream

 

[JerseySkiddie]

I actually have a recipe for 1 point chilli (1 point for a cup of it)thats really, really tasty. its mostly veggies and a little bit of ground turkey. I just moved so im not sure where it is at the moment, but once I find it I'd be happy to share it. Also the no points WW soup is really good I highly recommend making a ton of it and freezing it.

 

[wdwmomof3]

I just got home from the gym and I had a much better work out today.

This past August, when we were getting ready to go to Disney, I was walking 4 miles a day. I would take the Ipod, with all of my Disney music on it, and picture myself walking from one attraction to another, like I was in a rush to get there. This would speed my walk up to a faster pace. It made it a little more fun.

 

[sublimesting]

Chili is an exceptional choice!!! It has everything you need and almost nothing you don't. I make mine with 1 lb. of ultra lean cuts of steak or ground beef or chicken. I use 5 cans of beans (pinto, red kidney, light red kidney, chili, and black). I chop up a whole onion several entire garlics and a TON of peppers:fork:. Add some corn and my special blend of 35 spices and additional items(I kid you not - and one of my secrets is searing the meat with crushed red pepper, dark cocoa powder and whiskey) and voila 6 points per bowl. :sohappy:

 

[farmgirl]

Great....all this Chili talk is making me hungry....:ROFLOL:lol

 

[David]

Judging by most the the posters on these boards, I'm an old timer, just turned 53. My normal routine is to go to the gym on my lunch hour since it is located just across the street. I can run about 2 miles on the treadmill in about 20 minutes, shower and change, then be back at my desk in 1 hour. I weigh 168, but would like to get down to 163 before our trip in 9 weeks.

I do reward myself a little at Disney--some of those snacks are just too hard to resist--but I try to not go crazy. It's getting more difficult to take off!!

 

[Burgstressera]

Motivation

I'm eating my SmartOnes Meal that tastes like spicy paper and decided to read through this thread again for a little motivation.

Thanks guys for reminding me I'm not alone in the pursuit of a shapely figure for disney!!:sohappy:

 

[alilance]

Count me in! I already started my "Disney Diet" about a month ago! I only have 47 days left until my trip! ( I should have started sooner!!) I've lost 6 pounds and would like to lose maybe another 6-8 pounds. I've been hitting the gym at least 5 days a week and doing a lot of walking on the treadmill and weight lifting. People always are worried about gaining weight at Disney because of all the yummy places to eat, but with all the walking you do, I've never gained weight on a trip, nor has anyone else I've traveled with! My trick is that you can eat anything you want, but in moderation! Eat half a sandwich or only one slice of pizza. I think that's the trick! Well, good luck!!!:wave:

 

[Missymoe4]

I just got home from the gym and I had a much better work out today.

This past August, when we were getting ready to go to Disney, I was walking 4 miles a day. I would take the Ipod, with all of my Disney music on it, and picture myself walking from one attraction to another, like I was in a rush to get there. This would speed my walk up to a faster pace. It made it a little more fun.

I do the same with my ipod! Great minds think alike! Keep up the great work. I need to get myself to the gym--sometime today!

 

[Cole'sMom]

Sublimesting--I am not an argumentative person at all, but I have to agree with you on letting yourself eat whatever you want one day a week. I am on WW, a lifetime member and am maintaining. In fact, I am finding it hard to gain weight to stay with WW! I eat whatever I want Saturday nights. I have no problem getting back on track the second I wake up Sunday morning. I don't feel guilty, in fact I work harder during the week to allow myself to eat what I want! I strength train and do cardio, my metabolism is sky high. I eat every two hours. If I don't, it's not a good situation. Like WW commercials say, Diets don't work--you need to live life, not deprive yourself (that's why diets fail). Healthy eating and exercise is the key to it all. I am eating more points now than when I first started, 65 pounds ago. I can eat MORE and lose weight. I love the idea of this thread so we can support each other, through hard times and positive ones, so keep posting everyone!

 

[elizs77]

Rachael Ray has a great recipe for vegetarian chili. It's one of her older ones, and I think it's in her second cookbook.

I'm on LA Weight Loss for the third time (first time just to shed some extra pounds, second and third times are post-baby). I've always had very good success on this diet. I tried Points, and I lost 15 pounds. But once I stopped nursing, my points dropped, but my weight didn't. I've only been back at LA for 2 weeks, and I am recovering from yesterday's stomach flu, so I'm a bit off on what I'm eating today for obvious reasons.

I'm trying to drop at least 10 pounds between now and our upcoming Disney trip. I'll still have quite a ways to go to be totally done, but that's my short term goal.

 

[sublimesting]

Sublimesting--I am not an argumentative person at all, but I have to agree with you on letting yourself eat whatever you want one day a week. I am on WW, a lifetime member and am maintaining. In fact, I am finding it hard to gain weight to stay with WW! I eat whatever I want Saturday nights. I have no problem getting back on track the second I wake up Sunday morning. I don't feel guilty, in fact I work harder during the week to allow myself to eat what I want! I strength train and do cardio, my metabolism is sky high. I eat every two hours. If I don't, it's not a good situation. Like WW commercials say, Diets don't work--you need to live life, not deprive yourself (that's why diets fail). Healthy eating and exercise is the key to it all. I am eating more points now than when I first started, 65 pounds ago. I can eat MORE and lose weight. I love the idea of this thread so we can support each other, through hard times and positive ones, so keep posting everyone!

Glad it's working for you! It's true that diets don't work because one can't constantly maintain anything abnormal. No one can. And dieting is abnormal. Eating healthy, though, isn't a "diet" but a lifestyle; however, we shouldn't deny ourselves treats. Treats are a part of life and if I know I have that one day to look forward to and my vacation "binge" I can get through the year. And yes I do binge eat and drink on vacation! I work very very hard all year at my job, at my family, at working out and eating healthy and I am not about to feel guilty for once a year for 2 weeks kissing the world goodbye and enjoying myself to the max. If that means I come home 6 pounds heavier then so be it, I'll restart my hard working life then and wait for my next vacation. We shouldn't feel so bad about gaining a little bit of weight as long as we don't lose overall control of ourselves. And anyways, I always LOSE weight at Disney, at least 5 pounds, which is remarkeable considering what I eat. But the wife and I haul a** in those parks and average 13 miles per day of FAST walking - we do it commando style.

Strength training AND cardio is very key.

One crucial thing everyone needs to remember is this:

***If you restrict calories for too long your body goes into starvation prevention mode. In other words it slows your metabolism way down and begins to store fat.***

This is another HUGE reason diets fail....they simply fail...they don't work. You'll hit a weight loss wall and you'll plateau and then you'll actually stop losing weight and then begin gaining weight by eating the same exact amount, think you're a failure and then give up.

I love WW because it teaches you just the right portions to eat and eventually becomes second nature. I no longer "count" points I just know what things are and if not I can rough estimate it in my head and am always within 1 point.

 

[mindy0509]

Count me in!!! We leave for WDW in 53 days! Immediatly after our week in Disney we are going on a week long cruise so I really want to look good!! i started doing WW on my own in Oct and have lost 16 pounds so far (Christmas was a rough time or I probably would have lost more) I would like to lose another 10#. Right now I go to the gym about 5 times a week. I started taking spin classes in Oct twice a week and believe it is the hardest cardio work you can do. I also like to run on my treadmill and try to get 2 sessions of weight training in a week. It is always nice to have people around you that are in the same boat. Tomorrow i weigh in hopefully all the chocolate i ate on sunday will not have totally throw me through a loop.

Good luck everyone!!

 

[daliseurat]

Chili is an exceptional choice!!! It has everything you need and almost nothing you don't. I make mine with 1 lb. of ultra lean cuts of steak or ground beef or chicken. I use 5 cans of beans (pinto, red kidney, light red kidney, chili, and black). I chop up a whole onion several entire garlics and a TON of peppers:fork:. Add some corn and my special blend of 35 spices and additional items(I kid you not - and one of my secrets is searing the meat with crushed red pepper, dark cocoa powder and whiskey) and voila 6 points per bowl. :sohappy:

Okay...now I'm angry with you. I am one of those KINGS OF CHILI. Nobody's is better than mine. And now you have to go and post a little tidbit of your recipe that I never thought of doing. I am now going to have to try yours. Cocoa powder sounds really good, maybe with some ground ancho chile...:slurp:

 

[wdwmomof3]

Today was a great day. I worked out this morning. Later today I walked again and did the walk away the pounds take with my daughter after school. My legs are killing me, but it feels good.