Do you really eat Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner on HAL?

[zhuangcorp]

Do you really eat 3 meals a day? It seems painfully filling. 

 

First you got those eggs benedict, waffles, french toast on breakfast. Then you got either buffet or lunch in MDR. Then you got that multi-course meal in MDR dinner. 

 

Can you actually eat those meals pleasurably? Or do you find that you have to skip meals. 

[crystalspin]

You are correct; on sea-days we tend to eat a late breakfast (omelet) or an early lunch (made-to-order pasta) and an early dinner.

[RedneckBob]

Of course I do. My motto is the more you eat, the cheaper the cruise 😀!

[Gunther1]

That’s what walking laps around the ship is for :). 

[VMax1700]

You omitted Afternoon Tea and the Lido Late Night Snack. 😉

(and a bit of Room Service if feeling peckish! 🤣)

Why make do with 3 meals?  After a few laps of the Promenade Deck you can always spend 5 minutes in the gym 😉

[ski ww]

I eat three meals a day when I'm at home. It's not how many meals you eat, it's how much you eat at each meal.

[MAVIP]

@zhuangcorpDid you write all your 92 messages about food on HAL or did I miss something?

[NCTribeFan]

There's no rule that says you have to go through the buffet line and put a full serving of everything there on your plate, and then eat it!  And do that multiple times a day.

 

But, yes, the food is tasty and I imagine is much more calorie-laden than what I have at home.  So I do try to reign in the temptation to eat.  It is actually possible to just have a taste of a few things rather than a huge portion of everything.  A little self-control goes a long way.

 

I do find that after a few days, I need to cut back a bit.  And I'm not a big eater.  But I don't cruise to spend my time walking laps or in the gym.  I get more steps in when I'm cruising than I do at home.  So I don't stuff myself at every opportunity and then try to walk it off.   Portion control, folks.  It may be difficult but it can be done.

 

[Florida_gal_50]

Who eats 3 things for breakfast?  Actually without a doubt I eat way fewer carbs on a cruise than I do at home.  Also I usually eat fairly sensibly for breakfast and lunch.  I don’t eat snacks.  The meals are not large on hal, maybe 2-3 oz of protein except for the fish and prime rib.  Carbs on the plate are pretty small.  They are not American size portions.  Not everyone eats burgers and fries all day.  I’m speaking of the mdr not specialty restaurants.

Edited August 7, 2022 by Florida_gal_50

[SilvertoGold]

On the Pinnacle ships the Dutch Cafe is our undoing:  those beyond-excellent huge cream puff things!  And the hot, hot fries!

[lcand1923]

Some days, Yes.  Some day, No.  If I have a Specialty Restaurant dinner reservation, I’ll skip lunch.

 

[Sir PMP]

Yes, and high tea, and cooking demos and dessert extravaganza, and chocolate extravaganza, I am already hungry again..

[Sir PMP]

[albingirl]

I don't cruise so I can go on a diet.  If I skip lunch, I'm ravenous, like a wolf for dinner.  We're in the crowd that eats 3 times a day.  That's how we roll.  They aren't mammoth portions, but enough to maintain a fair level of energy for the important stuff.  Like day drinking, haha.

[DaveOKC]

On the cruise I normally eat a good size breakfast, light lunch, normal dinner.  My calorie savings comes in by my eating fewer late night snacks than I do at home.

[Lido deck main]

For me, if it is a sea day, I will just have fresh cut up fruit for breakfast, lunch maybe go to the Asian station and just get a protein and vegetable and for dinner usually have two appetizers and maybe a salmon, I eat better and healthier on a cruise ship then at home, we are active on the cruise ship, walking back and forth, doing the promenade deck, we get less sleep than we do at home as we see the night shows and we still get up early so don't want to get drag down by the carbs or overeating.  If we are on a port day and going off the ship I would have a made to order omelet for breakfast and also the fresh fruit.  We do eat three meals a day.  If we are hungry late night will get stuff like pizza or potato chips

[rubytue]

What is a meal?  3 huge, American-sized portions a day? 2-3 medium sized meals and a couple snacks?  Some people need to eat 5 times a day, several small meals and snacks.  
 

breakfast, lunch, dinner; breakfast, dinner, supper; breakfast, second breakfast, etc etc.

 

On my most recent, I did breakfast at about 7am. Lunch 12-1, and a supper about 5-6. Portion size is the big thing. One slice of pizza or half a sandwich could be a “meal.”  Some might call that a snack. 

[Tapi]

At home, I normally eat one full meal a day. I'm not super hungry the rest of the day and may only have a snack here and there. But I don't know what happens as soon as I enter a cruise ship,. My appetite goes through the roof and I will eat 3 full meals every single day. I'm not trying to force myself to eat simply because the food is there. I'm genuinely hungry! 

[zhuangcorp]

7 hours ago, MAVIP said:

@zhuangcorpDid you write all your 92 messages about food on HAL or did I miss something?

factually, you missed something

[zhuangcorp]

8 hours ago, VMax1700 said:

You omitted Afternoon Tea and the Lido Late Night Snack. 😉

(and a bit of Room Service if feeling peckish! 🤣)

Why make do with 3 meals?  After a few laps of the Promenade Deck you can always spend 5 minutes in the gym 😉

is Lido Late night snack every night?

[Skoogs]

Like alot of people who cruise. I eat when I want to eat. Two meals, three meals, five meals. Who cares, I’m cruising, baby! 🤪

I only get to cruise once or twice a year, two to three week cruises. If I cruised for months at a time I would definitely have a routine of meal times and portions. 
Due to all the activities that we do, my DW and I usually lose a couple of pounds on each cruise. 
Somebody once said to take the stairs everywhere you go on a cruise ship and eat what you want. Words to live by…hahaha…

[0106]

@zhuangcorpLido Late Night was 10:30-11:30 every night on my cruise in February.  It was a large and varied offering but we did not usually partake.  We occasionally shared a dessert if we had skipped it in the MDR at dinner.

 

 

[XBGuy]

We generally, do not eat lunch, at all.  Breakfast for me six days out of the week is usually a toasted bagel with cream cheese.  I do treat myself to fried eggs on Sunday mornings.

 

On a cruise, we have a similar routine although I do pig out for breakfast, and, as has been suggested, I do spend two hours, or so, walking around the promenade deck.  There are a couple ports where we like to have lunch.  On those days we will usually have a modest dinner--maybe a burger or a slice of pizza.  Mrs. XBGuy likes an order of Sushi or a Tuna Sandwich.

 

The great thing about cruising is that you get to customize the experience to fit your wants.  Nobody is obliged to eat three meals a day, and nobody is limited to three meals a day.  Do what you want.

[DCThunder]

Everyone is forgetting the "hidden calories" of a cruise, namely alcohol!  If you're having a Bloody or mimosa with breakfast, pounding a few brewskis before/during lunch, a few specialty cocktails before dinner, then wine with dinner, and a nightcap in the jazz lounge before bedtime, the calories add-up. 

 

And if you've paid $50-75/person/day for a beverage package, you don't want to let a drop of the booze you paid for go to waste.🍷🍹🍻

 

I'm not knocking drinking or how much you drink.  That's up to you.  But don't blame weight gain on a cruise solely on eating 3 squares a day.

[d9704011]

3 minutes ago, DCThunder said:

Everyone is forgetting the "hidden calories" of a cruise, namely alcohol!  If you're having a Bloody or mimosa with breakfast, pounding a few brewskis before/during lunch, a few specialty cocktails before dinner, then wine with dinner, and a nightcap in the jazz lounge before bedtime, the calories add-up. 

 

And if you've paid $50-75/person/day for a beverage package, you don't want to let a drop of the booze you paid for go to waste.🍷🍹🍻

 

I'm not knocking drinking or how much you drink.  That's up to you.  But don't blame weight gain on a cruise solely on eating 3 squares a day.

Hidden calories?  At that pace I'd say they're forgotten calories.