The Adventure begins - Jimmy Moore's 3rd annual low carb cruise

[Merpig]

Hi Everyone,
Here I am this morning at the Best Western Airport Hotel in Jacksonville, Florida, getting ready to take the 10 AM shuttle over to the seaport to board the Carnival Fascination for a 5-day cruise to the Bahamas (Nassau and Half Moon Cay). This is the 3rd Annual Low Carb Cruise organized by Jimmy Moore. Of course the whole *cruise* is not low carb - there are 2500 passengers on the ship and our group makes up only 100 of them. But we will all be seated together for meals, and it should be a fun experience, with lots of interesting speakers on the at-sea days.

Since I don't fly, :lol: I left my home in NJ at 5:30 AM Thursday morning and drove 540 miles to Cary, NC where I picked up my roommate for the cruise, a woman I hooked up with who was also interested in the cruise, and neither of us had been able to persuade any friends to come with us. She is a woman of about my own age and we have been very compatible and congenial, so it's working out great! She is a personal patient of Dr. Eric Westman of Duke University, one of the co-authors of the new Atkins book.

She took over driving once I got her, and we drove another couple hundred miles that day to Santee, SC where we stopped for the night, and went and had dinners from the Low Carb menu at the nearby Cracker Barrel. I had the bunless bacon cheeseburger with a side of collard greens. Yummy. :D

Then in the morning we breakfasted at the Cracker Barrel, and then headed on down to Jacksonville to the hotel where many of the Low Carb crowd are staying. They had organized a dinner last night at the Longhorn Steakhouse and my roommate and I both went to that. Probably close to 30 of the low carbers who will be cruising were at the dinner.

It was funny to see and speak to in person with so many of the luminaries of the low carb world. I had a wonderful chat with Tom Naughton and Dana Carpender at the dinner and Tom showed us photos of his two girls - little cuties. Then after dinner we gave Judy Barnes Baker a ride back to the hotel in our car.

This morning at breakfast we had a nice chat with Jimmy Moore. One of the other guests is Fred Hahn (of "Slow Burn"). Man is he trim and buff looking, just like a fitness guru ought to look. :lol: I didn't have the nerve yet to try to strike up a conversation with him. Hehehehehe.

Well the key will be to see where my scale lands me when I get home. I was exactly 270 the morning I left NJ. I *hate* to be without a scale, but I was not about to pack one in my luggage. ;) I know there are scales on the ship as the group is sponsoring their own "Biggest Loser" competition where the low carbers are meeting every day in the gym for a workout and a weigh-in. But I didn't sign up for it as I was not really interested in a daily public weigh-in.

So that's the scoop so far. As you can see I have my laptop with me, and supposedly there is wireless throughout the entire ship, so I ought to be able to stay in touch with the world. I'll keep you posted.

[Carne!]

how cool! keep us posted!!

[SheriS]

Wow - sounds like a really great time. Keep us posted on all the fun things you get to do.


Enjoy yourself to the max!!!!!

[Water Lily]

What about food choices on the cruise? Do they have a special low-carb menu for you guys?

[jem51]

that sounds like a great time.
there is a scale in the ships gym, i'm sure....not to worry.
have fun!!

[cnmLisa]

I'm so jealous.

If they have it again next year, I'm talking my sister into going with me.

I'll be really interested to know how you manuevered your eating--my sister and I are going on a Carnival cruise in April--we're looking at it as a challenge.

Lisa

[Nancy LC]

Neat! Can't wait to hear about it.

[*Sheila*]

Have a great time! I keep seeing Jimmy's updates on facebook! :)

[Almajo]

Oh My Gosh !! Wait for me ! I didn't realize there was such a cruise available -- I've been on two "regular" ones years ago and came back weighing a ton. Remember to do extra water, walk, and swim -- they have plenty of places you can get your exercise in. Have a great time comparing notes with other low carbers, it should be interesting. I am so jealous. Details -- we need details!!
Have a wonderful vacation,
Alma

[Mirrorball]

Have a good time! And don't forget to share the gossip with us, please. ;)

[Elizellen]

Wow!! What a great time you are in for I am sure :agree:

I will look out for your updates and all the gossip ;)

[at99]

What a neat idea! Have fun! :)

[Merpig]

Just got back from the cruise last night. It was *fabulous*. I had the most wonderful time. No posts from the ship as you had to pay big bucks for internet use, so I just didn't do it.

Photo albums of the cruise:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=41532&id=1589057320&l=f57f5d3758 (group session photos, showing the speakers)

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=41537&id=1589057320&l=80b2eca506 (some of the photos I took of the low carb group participating in extracurricular activities. :) )

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=41542&id=1589057320&l=316a5c00a4 (Meeting with Fred Hahn at the gym on board ship)

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=41549&id=1589057320&l=96614e9e1b ( photos taken aboard the ship and in Nassau. Mostly scenic sorts of shots, but there are a few of our tour party captured in some of the photos.)

I'll post more details later, but too tired right now - but I had a *wonderful* time and want to go again next year. Spent all day today trying to organize my photos, so thought you might enjoy seeing some of those.

[cnmLisa]

I looked at all the pictures. You guys looked like you had fun and the educational sessions looked interesting.

Thanks for posting. I'll be looking forward to your musings.

Glad you're home safe and sound.

Lisa

[Hutchinson]

Dr Andreas Eenfeldt has a useful blog here (http://www.kostdoktorn.se/) You will probably need to use Google translate if you want to read about the cruise from the Dr's perspective. (http://translate.google.com/translate?js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=1&eotf=1&u=http://www.kostdoktorn.se/&sl=sv&tl=en)

[Merpig]

Dr Andreas Eenfeldt has a useful blog here (http://www.kostdoktorn.se/) You will probably need to use Google translate if you want to read about the cruise from the Dr's perspective. (http://translate.google.com/translate?js=y&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=1&eotf=1&u=http://www.kostdoktorn.se/&sl=sv&tl=en) It was interesting reading Dr. Eenfelt's take on the cruise. When he was introduced it was said he had the most popular low blog carb in the *world* - based on the number of visits he gets, despite the fact that it is written in Swedish.

When I left for the cruise one of my vows was that I would eat only "real food" and would not be seduced by the other sorts of goodies the ship offered. And I stuck to it! Truth to tell, the other stuff offered was not even tempting to me. I could walk by the dessert-laden buffet tables and not turn a hair. It all looked so artificial to me.

But there was truth in what he said about the low carbers seeming to want substitutes for their carby foods - many of them had the sugar-free ice cream every night for dessert, in fact so many did that the ship ran out of SF ice cream before the cruise ended. :lol:. There was lots of begging for "special" treats from the kitchen, so that one night they made SF cheesecake for the LC crowd, and the next night some SF berry recipe.

Yet I found it easy to resist. Most nights I had no dessert and was fine with that. The couple times that I did I had the cheese platter (small slices of different sorts of cheeses served with a few grapes (didn't eat) and strawberries (did eat).

So a lot of what he says in his blog is true: The big difference with Sweden is that many [in US] are fond of low-carb versions of traditional junk food, sugar, and so. Low carb cake, low carb icecream, low carb potato chips, diet sodas ... In my eyes seemed to just those participants who ate such did not have the same persuasive power of the diet. To put it nicely. Well I have long since kicked the diet soda habit which was nice financially too, since sodas were $2 each (or $6 a day for an "all you can drink" mug). But coffee, tea and water were free and I stuck to those.

The last might Andrew DiMino, owner of carbsmart.com, did host a party where they served sugar-free margaritas and various LC products like LC tortilla chips, and cheese chips. That last night I did cave, and had a margarita and tried some of the products. And I also ate an Atkins Bar that day that had been given out at the sessions during the day. But other than that I stuck to real food and was all the happier for it.

I was 270 pounds the day I left on the cruise. Yesterday I was 272.5. Today it's 271.5, so I didn't do much damage to myself. more like just my standard fluctuations. Certainly nothing like the reports of people who say they gain 10-20 pounds on a cruise!

But I did walk and walk and walk, all over the ship every day, plus a couple walks on the walking track up on the Sun Deck, early in the morning, and a couple weight-training sessions in the gym trying to learn Fred Hahn's 'Slow Burn' method, so I was not just an inactive lump. I did have half a glass of red wine one evening at the comedy show when Dr. Fox bought a bottle and offered to share it. That was my only other splurge.

More to tell but I have to run off to choir now, so will update with more about the cruise later.

[SheriS]

Thank you for sharing the pictures. It looks like it was a great time.

[cnmLisa]

The big difference with Sweden is that many [in US] are fond of low-carb versions of traditional junk food, sugar, and so. Low carb cake, low carb icecream, low carb potato chips, diet sodas ... In my eyes seemed to just those participants who ate such did not have the same persuasive power of the diet. To put it nicely.

So true.

Hmmm....I wonder what JM had to say about that?

[black57]

Hi Everyone,
Here I am this morning at the Best Western Airport Hotel in Jacksonville, Florida, getting ready to take the 10 AM shuttle over to the seaport to board the Carnival Fascination for a 5-day cruise to the Bahamas (Nassau and Half Moon Cay). This is the 3rd Annual Low Carb Cruise organized by Jimmy Moore. Of course the whole *cruise* is not low carb - there are 2500 passengers on the ship and our group makes up only 100 of them. But we will all be seated together for meals, and it should be a fun experience, with lots of interesting speakers on the at-sea days.

Since I don't fly, :lol: I left my home in NJ at 5:30 AM Thursday morning and drove 540 miles to Cary, NC where I picked up my roommate for the cruise, a woman I hooked up with who was also interested in the cruise, and neither of us had been able to persuade any friends to come with us. She is a woman of about my own age and we have been very compatible and congenial, so it's working out great! She is a personal patient of Dr. Eric Westman of Duke University, one of the co-authors of the new Atkins book.

She took over driving once I got her, and we drove another couple hundred miles that day to Santee, SC where we stopped for the night, and went and had dinners from the Low Carb menu at the nearby Cracker Barrel. I had the bunless bacon cheeseburger with a side of collard greens. Yummy. :D

Then in the morning we breakfasted at the Cracker Barrel, and then headed on down to Jacksonville to the hotel where many of the Low Carb crowd are staying. They had organized a dinner last night at the Longhorn Steakhouse and my roommate and I both went to that. Probably close to 30 of the low carbers who will be cruising were at the dinner.

It was funny to see and speak to in person with so many of the luminaries of the low carb world. I had a wonderful chat with Tom Naughton and Dana Carpender at the dinner and Tom showed us photos of his two girls - little cuties. Then after dinner we gave Judy Barnes Baker a ride back to the hotel in our car.

This morning at breakfast we had a nice chat with Jimmy Moore. One of the other guests is Fred Hahn (of "Slow Burn"). Man is he trim and buff looking, just like a fitness guru ought to look. :lol: I didn't have the nerve yet to try to strike up a conversation with him. Hehehehehe.

Well the key will be to see where my scale lands me when I get home. I was exactly 270 the morning I left NJ. I *hate* to be without a scale, but I was not about to pack one in my luggage. ;) I know there are scales on the ship as the group is sponsoring their own "Biggest Loser" competition where the low carbers are meeting every day in the gym for a workout and a weigh-in. But I didn't sign up for it as I was not really interested in a daily public weigh-in.

So that's the scoop so far. As you can see I have my laptop with me, and supposedly there is wireless throughout the entire ship, so I ought to be able to stay in touch with the world. I'll keep you posted.

Merpig!!! I'm so envious of you right now. :agree:

[Elizellen]

a couple weight-training sessions in the gym trying to learn Fred Hahn's 'Slow Burn' method,
How did you get on with that?
I bought the book a while back and did try it out and got such weird looks at my gym from the other members, seeing a pensioner liiiiftiiiing sloooowly ;)
Unfortunately before I could get into it properly I have had a back problem, so have not been able to do any heavy lifting for 6 months now :(

[Merpig]

So true...Hmmm....I wonder what JM had to say about that? I was curious too, as I know Jimmy also likes his LC treats. I never happened to eat a meal with him, so don't know what choices he made. There were people who clearly chose to go off-plan. My cruise roommate had breakfast one day with some of the cruise organizers, and was quite shocked to see them eating grits, muffins, sweet rolls, etc. So maybe those who had the sugar-free ice cream and other treats didn't do *too* badly in comparison. Even Jimmy's wife Christine had cake for dessert several days - but she may not be a dedicated low carber herself. Maybe folks had non-LC spouses and/or friends or family members along, so there were plenty of folks eating bread, cake, etc. It was just a shame to see the LC cruise organizers doing it too.

Jimmy *has* put on some weight lately - 50 pounds I think he says in his blog. You can clearly see it in my photos. It seems to have landed all around his middle. So I think he would benefit from being stricter about his food choices. But a cruise is still a cruise, so you can't really judge people's eating habits by what they do on a cruise. Well maybe some folks you can. My roommate and I were both determined to stick to our LC plan. But plenty of folks wanted to celebrate on the cruise in various ways.

As for the "gossip"? :lol: I didn't pick up that much. Jimmy is quite an extrovert - I don't think that would surprise anyone. His wife Christine is very quiet, they seem like real opposites. Jimmy has a quite a nice voice too, and was always up there performing in the Karaoke lounge. Tom Naughton was a great guy too, also a great singer who did some Karaoke numbers. I enjoyed talking with him. Dana Carpender was a real hoot. I hung around a lot with Andrew DiMino from carbsmart - whom Dr. Eenfelt rather cruelly characterized as Perhaps it was the roundest of them all, the man who handed out the various "low carb" products that are advertising for his company. As "low carb" chips (with type 40 E% carbohydrate), sweet gum sweetened with sugar alcohols and Margarita mix.

Yeah, Andrew is still chubby as you can see in my photos of him - hey, so am I! But he has lost 50 pounds on LC and feels it had helped his health. And he was very upfront saying more than once, "To be a successful low carber there is not NOT THING that I sell that you need. But if you do want something for some sort of special occasion then I probably sell it."

Dr. Davis was pleasant and self-effacing. He didn't hang around with the LC crowd much when we were not having sessions, so I didn't get to talk to him much. Dr. Vernon didn't hang around with us either, though her presentation was totally awesome. It was fun hearing Jackie Eberstein talk about Dr. Atkins, or "Bob" as she knew him, and with whom she worked for almost 40 years.

Dr. Michael Fox is a fertility specialist in Florida, and said that a low carb diet is the first thing they put both women and their husbands/male partners on when they are looking to get pregnant - and that in many cases that is all they need!

Jason Maggard was there filming a TV pilot, and it sounded like he hoped to have to about healthy living based on a LC lifestyle, so wish him luck.

The biggest news is the one I *can't* talk about! And that is Judy Barnes Baker's new project, :lol: . But we were all sworn to secrecy. Hehehehehe. But if her contract for this project goes to successful completion then it will be big news, very big. :D

[Merpig]

How did you get on with that?
I bought the book a while back and did try it out and got such weird looks at my gym from the other members, seeing a pensioner liiiiftiiiing sloooowly ;)( Well it was great getting some tips and hints on doing it the right way. I have a copy of Fred's book too. Now I just have to find it again. :)

But showing a bit about how the media manipulates us - Fred told the story about a contest run by Shape magazine. They had four young women who were not really fat - but just a bit out-of-shape, with a little more flub on their thighs than they wanted. Each girl was assigned to work with a certain fitness guru for a month, and at the end of the month they would see which girl lost the most body fat and trimmed up her thighs the most. The trainer whose girl accomplished that would get a 2-page spread in the magazine.

Fred was one of the four trainers chosen. I forget who the other three were. But at the end of the month the girl Fred was working with was the clear winner - biggest drop in body fat, trimmest thighs. But when they asked what he had done it was to put her on a LC diet, and to have her do his Slow Burn workout for only 20 minutes twice a week - and that was it!

All the other trainers were working their girls for HOURS every single day, yet their girls didn't accomplish as much. Well Fred's method was so contrary to what the magazine felt was the way to reach optimal fitness that they refused to give him his spread in the magazine!

As for the folks giving you weird looks? :lol: Well Fred was looking at other people in the gym and saying they were doing it all wrong! And he does seem to get results. He has two daughters and says they are also being raised to live a LC sugar-free lifestyle.

[TimesTwo]

But showing a bit about how the media manipulates us - Fred told the story about a contest run by Shape magazine. They had four young women who were not really fat - but just a bit out-of-shape, with a little more flub on their thighs than they wanted. Each girl was assigned to work with a certain fitness guru for a month, and at the end of the month they would see which girl lost the most body fat and trimmed up her thighs the most. The trainer whose girl accomplished that would get a 2-page spread in the magazine.

Fred was one of the four trainers chosen. I forget who the other three were. But at the end of the month the girl Fred was working with was the clear winner - biggest drop in body fat, trimmest thighs. But when they asked what he had done it was to put her on a LC diet, and to have her do his Slow Burn workout for only 20 minutes twice a week - and that was it!Sounds like Sugar-Free Sheila's experience (http://www.sugarfreesheila.com/default/SHAPESuccessStory.html) with Shape magazine, too. Reading about it made me sick. :thdown:

Anyway, the cruise sounds amazing! I hope to go someday... It usually falls right smack in the middle of my spring semester though. :(

[AnniMin]

Hey Debbie, I was just wondering if you went on that cruise and then I found this thread. Sounds like you had a terrific time! Now you're all pumped up and ready to stick with your low carb lifestyle. :agree:

Did you see either of the doctors who wrote the New Atkins for a New You book? Wasn't one of them supposed to be on the cruise? Did you learn anything new? :idea:

I'm glad you had such a good time. Aside from those tempting desserts, the food was probaby fabulous! :yum:

[Merpig]

Did you see either of the doctors who wrote the New Atkins for a New You book? Wasn't one of them supposed to be on the cruise? Did you learn anything new? :idea: Alas no. Yes Dr. Eric Westman, one of the co-authors of the new Atkins book, was supposed to be on the cruise. But because of the timing of the release of the new book he had to bow out, as he is doing book tour duties instead I think. I hope to go again next year, so maybe one of them will be available then.

[black57]

Debbie, I heard Jimmy's singing voice back before I became a member of his forums. He has a very nice voice.

[katmeyster]

Thanks for the pictures -- it looked like a lot of fun.

[Merpig]

Debbie, I heard Jimmy's singing voice back before I became a member of his forums. He has a very nice voice. You can see his performance at the talent show here: http://youtu.be/JUZ33coH3cg along with his wife Christine, and Becky Gandy singing soprano. She was one of the cruise organizers.