Vegan at Sea

I wasn’t the best blogger on my past cruise. I took advantage of not having to carry anything- which meant my camera slept back at the room most of the time and missed out on all the food! Luckily sweet Stephanie from CookinFanatic saved my day- she went on the same cruise (a few weeks earlier) and is letting me borrow some of her food photos!

I might not have many photos, but I do have words!

Is it possible to eat vegan on a cruise ship?

I tried calling Royal Caribbean in advance to notify them of my dietary restrictions, but as it turns out I was told to just notify my waiter at dinner. It was hysterical after I explained to him that I don’t eat meat or dairy or any animal products at all, he suggested three dishes for me: shrimp scampi, chicken and a mozzarella calzone. They couldn’t understand what it was that I didn’t eat. It was so funny every night when they’d discuss what I was having and try to throw chicken on there!

I must say, our waiter and head waiter tried harder to accommodate me and were more respectful about my choices than I could have ever asked for. The head waiter (who is over the entire dining room) knew my name and would talk to me each night about what they would make for me the next evening.

There were so many people handling the food that it is pretty difficult to know exactly what is in the food. I had to assume the wheat and sourdough breads didn’t contain milk or eggs. I had to assume the Indian dishes only had the vegan ingredients I’ve had in past.

Even though our waiters were phenomenal in how hard they tried, the dining room was the hardest place to get good vegan food. Like the second night: we discussed a yummy dish of lentils, grilled veggies and a potato.. they served me a small plate of seasonless steamed carrots, broccoli and asparagus. I loaded up on bread to fill my belly. The first night my salad consisted on romaine lettuce and olive oil + vinegar. I didn’t understand why I couldn’t have other ingredients on my plates since I saw them on other’s dishes.

Summary: You can certainly eat vegan on a cruise ship, but maybe not 100%. And if you’re vegan, plan on raw fruit being the only dessert you’ll have. Although the dining room did serve me vegan dishes, they were plain. I enjoy the process of eating and when looking at everyone’s gorgeous dishes, I was really unsatisfied by my plain steamed veggies. (I had seen many vegan options at the buffet downstairs so I knew they had more interesting vegan food in the kitchen). If I went on a cruise again I would bring some larabars and such to bulk up my diet.

 

What I Ate

Breakfast: I loaded my plate with fresh fruit. In addition I’d grab a little pancake and piece of waffle. I had some oatmeal, too!

Lunch: The salad bar had lots of veggie choices. The only non-creamy dressing was a raspberry vin. or oil + vinegar. I;d have a huge salad with beans, bread and whatever other veggies I found around the buffet.

 Dinner: Dinner was the hardest. We were dressed up in a dining room so there was no buffet where I could create my own balanced meal. There was one amazing dish I had the first night (after a plate of plain romaine lettuce). It was a biryani dish of yellow rice and curried veggies (just like the photos above but without the cream sauce). That was good- and the one dish they really struck out on. The rest of the time I ate plain veggies. By the last night David and I ditched the dining room and grabbed some delish Indian food and other veggies from the buffet downstairs.

Fourth Meal: Dessert! None vegan, none that tasty. I tried a little bit of everything (which would add up to a big plate every night!).

Because I really don’t like animal products anymore, it was really easy to walk right by those options. I didn’t want any animal products straight like I used to eat: yogurt, the cheese bar, milk or ice cream. I did, however, seize up the opportunity to try special items that had animal products somewhere in them. The funny thing is that my vegan options tasted (and left me feeling better) than all the food with animal products I ate. I think I would have felt better if I stuck with all vegan foods, but I did enjoy all the foods I ate. It’s not often that I have platters of yummy food out in front of me like that, so I seized the opportunity in my own kind of way.

 

If you’re interested in David’s food, here are a few more of Stephanie’s photos that are also exactly what David had in the dining room!  

A lobster bisque and a fancy beef dish…

…and an alfredo pasta with mushrooms.

Do you change your eating habits on a cruise? Have you ever cruised while following an alternative diet?

Goodbye to Yesterday's Habits

Dear Self:

Yes, tomorrow is a new day, a new chance. But tomorrow will not be a day you lose weight if you continue yesterday's habits.

Forget the stress-eating. Food will not take away the emotions or the stress- and your body would rather you didn't try anyway! Enjoy every bite.

Stop the 'poor me' excuses. You can stay between 1,400-1,600 calories and still live. Really.

-Ashley

ps- Have you seen this?

Choose

I have some fun topics and reviews to post, blogs to visit and so much more... but I can't right now! But I do have one thing to say:

Let's choose our moments of weakness.

I'm all about making the choices that make us happy, so let's remember everything we do is our choice. So choose the nights you want to skip a workout and relax on the couch. And choose the moments when another slice of pizza is just sooo good!

I'll be back! ;)

Here are great tips on how to store your produce! Did you know pears should ripen on the counter and then be refrigerated?

Birthday... Moderation Style

Last Friday was my birthday. Since I worked 7am-7:30pm in another town on the actual day and my family is separated, my birthday was spread out into a 3-day celebration.

In that time period, I managed to have four chocolate birthday cakes (chocolate peanut-butter explosion, brownie cake with cream cheese icing, sinful chocolate cake and a chocolate ganache fudge cake I've been wanting since March) and a "cupcake". Most of my meals were eaten out at yummy restaurants or massive spreads of my favorite foods cooked at home. My grandmother even put a homemade banana bread in my gift bag!

Needless to say, my birthday centered mostly around food!

I wanted to spoil myself on my birthday and that meant doing whatever made me happy. When I realized stuffing myself with food didn't make me happy, I resolved to indulge in all my treats while still feeling good in my skin. It was a success! Not an ounce was gained and I didn't feel bloated all weekend.

Here are my tips for dealing with heavy situations and still feeling light and fresh:

1. Don't look at anything as "bad." If a food is "bad," don't eat it! Having a rich dessert was my choice- and I enjoyed it!

2. Stop counting. The calories in all my food might have overwhelmed me and made me lose focus. Some days, you've got to listen to your body.

3. Enjoy the moment and enjoy the food. When you've eaten too much, you stop enjoying the moment.

4. "Budget" yourself according to your day. I knew I was going to have a big pizza dinner and had a giant breakfast, so I kept my lunch light and fresh.

5. There is more to the moment than food. Appreciate the people around you and how good you feel. Think of how you'll feel after the meal.

David immediately surprised me with this tiny muffin stuffed with 20 melting candles! It was the cutest thing!

David and me at HUE in downtown Orlando.
Pizza, pizza! (Please excuse the red eye!!!)

My grandparents are the best.

Sabrina is always fashionable at parties (family barbeque).

What We Are

Today I read a brief story on That's Fit about E! Correspondent Giuliana Rancic. She said: “I hate it when celebrities say they never exercise but are really in the gym five days a week. So I’ll be honest: I run an hour a day, weight-train four times a week, and watch what I eat.”

This hit me straight in the forehead!

For years I have maintained the same weight. Same height, same size. It's comfortable. I am healthy, maybe average. But, I have always wanted to be a bit smaller. When I was coming out of the eating disorder period, I hit the mid 130's and loved it there. I've gone back once for a brief stop, but I bounced right back to my normal. Not that I am unhappy where I am now, but I really felt and looked my best at that weight.

For years I've wanted to be this weight/size. Eight months ago I started this blog to get to that size. But I still am not.

Is it because I can't do it? Have those family dinners really been too much to handle? Was the brownie shoved down my throat? And was it impossible to exercise once that weekend? No. But here is a sample of some of my thoughts.

"I'm just not built that way."

"She was just born skinny like that."

"I can't help that I'm bigger."

"I could run like that if ______"

'I have too much going on to make good choices."

"___________________."

I share these because I'm sure they float around your head, too- but this needs to stop today. It's not about a numbers or family history or what's happened in the past. We have to take responsibility and pride in who we are. I am 10 pounds above my goal weight because I put myself there, because of my choices. I am healthy because I make an effort to nourish my body on a day-to-day basis. At the end of the day, we all have 24-hours and a crap load of stresses... The actresses, the marathoners, the mothers of 5.

I've been the 130's, healthy, energetic Ashley who doesn't have cankles and feels great wearing dresses. I have been there before- so I know it is possible for me to be there again. Binging on all the bad foods in the house last night because that's what I always do when they are there? That was my choice.

How about today we don't look at fit, healthy people and brush it off that they were made that way, or they are just naturally skinny. I'm sure most of them are not. They hit the gym hard and they make health a priority. So let us do it, too. With each choice we create who we are. Let's make responsible, honest choices today. It's for us!