(Part 1 of a Series)
Over the last month I’ve been telling folks that I was going on my first cruise vacation. “You’re going to gain weight” was the usual response, followed by story-after-story of midnight buffets, rich foods, exotic drinks, and seemingly endless hours of lying around at the beach and by the pool. Sounds like fun, except for the part about the weight-gain. One woman even told me on her 7-day cruise, she gained 11 pounds! Geez! Later, I did the math: 1 pound of body fat = 3,500 calories. Multiply that 3,500 calories by 11 pounds, and we’re talking somewhere around 38,500 calories! Wow! Are you asking the same question I asked myself? How is that possible? Well, I believe a combination of things happen in order to gain that much weight in such a short time.
Weight gain on vacation is so prevalent and accepted, that one website, www.cruisediva.com, which gave this first-time cruiser some really valuable information on how to have a great cruise, addressed the vacation-weight-gain issue this way: They suggested wearing your form-fitting clothes first, and packing some bigger, roomier clothes for the last few days of the cruise, to accommodate the expected weight gain. Okay, sounds like a plan; but what if you could have a great time on vacation and NOT get bigger? For the next several weeks, I’ll be sharing ways you can still enjoy all that your vacation has to offer, without abandoning your fitness lifestyle.
I believe the first factor in vacation weight gain happens weeks, or even months, before you pack your first suitcase – a drop in metabolism. How many of you, sometime prior to your vacation, dramatically drop your calorie intake in order to fit into that swimsuit or fancy outfit? You’ve been following regular eating patterns, then several weeks before that vacation, you drop your intake to 1,000 or 1,200 calories (or less!) a day, right? If so, you may be eating so few calories that your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is dropping. Simply put, your Basal Metabolic Rate is the amount of calories your body burns at rest in one day. If you don’t take in enough calories to support the muscle you have, the body adjusts by lowering the amount of calories you burn in a given day (BMR), and by placing into storage (FAT) a large amount of those calories you do take in.
Confused? Well, think of your metabolism as a fire in a fireplace. If you’ve fed that fire a consistent amount of wood at consistent times for a prolonged period of time, you have a fire that burns at a certain constant level and heat. When you dramatically reduce the amount of wood you throw on the fire, what happens? The fire dies down, and burns less and less. It’s not putting out as much heat as before, because the fuel intake is less. Get it? Now, with this fire (BMR) burning at an all-time low, throw one giant log (vacation food intake) on top of it. What happens? The log just sits there and smolders, because there isn’t enough heat to ignite it and burn it efficiently.
Now, this is an oversimplification of what can happen with your BMR, if you’re starving yourself to lose weight quickly; but you get the idea, right? You dramatically decreased your calorie intake, your BMR drops as a result, so now you’re not burning as many calories in a day. Then, you go on vacation and eat and drink everything put before you. (Big log on a little fire.) Starving yourself to lose weight before your upcoming vacation creates muscle loss, lowered BMR, and increased body fat storage. Lowered BMR, coupled with increased vacation food intake, creates weight gain. Maybe even 11 pounds in 7 days!
So, what do you do to avoid this scenario? As you can see, crash-dieting is never the answer for weight loss or weight maintenance. I’ve heard countless stories of crash-dieters who’ve gone through life losing weight, then gaining back more than they lost. This is typical of people who drop their calorie intake more than necessary. It’s called “Yo-Yo” dieting. Keeping calorie intake within levels necessary to retain muscle, but lose body fat, will keep metabolism stable. In addition, weight training builds lean muscle, which actually increases your metabolism. Keeping your metabolism high is one way to help you have the fun and food associated with vacation, without significant weight-gain. Instead of stuffing your suitcase with bigger clothes, maybe you’ll have room left for souvenirs!
Don't Go Overboard!