Our elders were much wiser than we are, giving advice:

Breakfast like a king,
Lunch like a citizen,
Dine like a pauper.

While sailing-cruising one should live by this advice even more.
There are many opportunities to exercise on board, one only has to think about open mindedly about one's opportunities. The "going to the gym" caper is an over rated self denying excuse.

On a boat the opportunity to exercise might not be obvious but nevertheless is there.
The dinghy or kayak is one (not after dinner but instead of!), the anchor is a perfect weight to lift, gymnastics is another one with sit ups, stand ups, push and pull ups never mention yoga which only needs determination.
It is not to build huge muscles just keep one's body pliable so when we have to bend that heavy jib we don't end up with pulled muscles, torn ligaments, bad backs.

There is no valid reason to grow old and also grow fat. There is no medical reason either.

It is down to our screwed up values and lifestyle that the above advice is - literally - turned upside down. Strewth!

We leave home with next to nothing under the belt, run all day long on a sandwich dreaming of dinner when we fill ourselves way over necessity just because we were mentally torturing ourselves dreaming of food all day. Then we go to bed with 2000 calories in our stomachs, could not rest properly while digesting the crap we ate and waking in the morning tired, exhausted, pissed off and late and likely with a bad heartburn, so we don't eat breakfast again. Crazy!
Then, we go cruising and carry our screwed lifestyle aboard drinking excessively in the bargain.

The body works differently. If one has a good breakfast it is going to be burned up by the day's activities while the dinner is going to end up as fat reserve around one's waistline, no matter what, dry land or aboard.

Chris 249 said..
We did have one very large friend years ago who I stopped inviting on the boat when we found we could not get her back aboard after swimming. It was OK when she could swim to a beach and come back out in the dinghy, but the possibility of her going overboard in the middle of the bay and being unrecoverable was too high for me to be comfortable.

However, if it's your own boat there would be some ways around the issue. A good RIB could make life easier - their stability makes life much easier when getting out to the boat (even if it's on a marina, you want to be able to go ashore when anchored) and if fitted with a boarding ladder it could make MOB retrieval a lot easier, whether you tie it alongside or even go the extreme of leaving the yacht in the middle of the harbour and making the recovery from the RIB. A sugar-scoop or boarding platform with transom door would also seem to be almost mandatory.

Good luck, and good on you!

Thanks Chris,

I can't see it being an issue in the long term, as neither of us intend to sail if we have to resort to such measures (at least while we are young-ish).

Having said that, it is certainly something that could influence the purchase of our first boat.

Mate, I really can't cannot advise any more than has been said above in regard to the weight issue and sailing however I note from a previous post you are in SEQ and both yourself and misses have 50 years of possible sailing / boating ahead so no rush. If you live anywhere around Moreton Bay /Broardwater you have quite a few advantages to get your Sea legs and not worry to much about things like getting back on board if god forbid you fall overboard. Firstly you can sail to your hearts content in smooth waters behind nth and sth Straddie within reason .Secondly there is a VMR base every mile ( not quite but seems that way) and for the price of $70 pa they will come and assist ( go onto a VMR site and have a look).
If your in the Broardwater and get into trouble a boat will pass you every minute or so on the weekend or hols. anyway and will stop and help.
Ocean sailing can come later.
I now only sail solo and aside from wearing a PDF and PLB I let them know what I'm doing if it's a bit windy just in case .
Its one thing to sit on the shore and watch the sailboats glide by it's another to actually sail a boat . Leave the misses at home and go for a sail and see how you like it. You have some offers above on some pretty fantastic boats to spoil you . 'Just do it'
It may be that if you really want to get out on the great waters you have available a motor boat ( wash my mouth out with soap) may suit you initially and you and your wife can develop your seamanship skills with the plan to get a proper boat in say 2/5 years time when you feel more confident with your weight.
If you sit back and talk about it it won't happen .
So forget you weight and start planning to get on the water.
Dont forget its Queensland "beautiful one day........."so go and get your boat licences and don't miss out .

Bananabender said..
Mate, I really can't cannot advise any more than has been said above in regard to the weight issue and sailing however I note from a previous post you are in SEQ and both yourself and misses have 50 years of possible sailing / boating ahead so no rush. If you live anywhere around Moreton Bay /Broardwater you have quite a few advantages to get your Sea legs and not worry to much about things like getting back on board if god forbid you fall overboard. Firstly you can sail to your hearts content in smooth waters behind nth and sth Straddie within reason .Secondly there is a VMR base every mile ( not quite but seems that way) and for the price of $70 pa they will come and assist ( go onto a VMR site and have a look).
If your in the Broardwater and get into trouble a boat will pass you every minute or so on the weekend or hols. anyway and will stop and help.
Ocean sailing can come later.
I now only sail solo and aside from wearing a PDF and PLB I let them know what I'm doing if it's a bit windy just in case .
Its one thing to sit on the shore and watch the sailboats glide by it's another to actually sail a boat . Leave the misses at home and go for a sail and see how you like it. You have some offers above on some pretty fantastic boats to spoil you . 'Just do it'
It may be that if you really want to get out on the great waters you have available a motor boat ( wash my mouth out with soap) may suit you initially and you and your wife can develop your seamanship skills with the plan to get a proper boat in say 2/5 years time when you feel more confident with your weight.
If you sit back and talk about it it won't happen .
So forget you weight and start planning to get on the water.
Dont forget its Queensland "beautiful one day........."so go and get your boat licences and don't miss out .

Thanks BB,

I guess we're just trying to find the sweet spot between "just do it" and "fools rush in where wise men fear to tread".

We want to get wet as soon as practical, so we don't spend too long dreaming. However neither of us are quite sure when "as soon as practical" is .

Also, the broad water is definitely starting to sound like a great playground for first timers.

sirgallivant said..
While we are talking about obesity and over eating one should mention the weight loss regime as well.

While losing weight is recommended, losing weigh FAST is not!
If you are seriously trying to lose large number of kilos perhaps it would be wise to talk to your GP first.
Expedited weight loss if uncontrolled can cause all sorts of health problems even emergencies.

Extended fasting is the fools way of losing weight!
One who lost a lot of kilos should learn how to keep it off and that needs big time lifestyle change.

Agreed.

boty said..

Jode5 said..
This is a subject I am very close to. 9 months ago I was 136kg and 60 years old and I race single handed and could do everything with no problems. Yes I had to be careful getting into a small hard dingy but a hard floor inflatable was no problem. It would not matter what weight I was, my wife would not be able to get me back on board so we have a recovery module which she can hoist me back on board. The big thing I have over a novice is i have a wealth of experience having sailed since I was 5 years old.
What I did find I would come home from a tough race and I would feel like i'd been hit by a truck and what's more I would like to sail for a lot more years yet which my doctor said if I didn't do something I would not be sailing competitively for much longer.
After much pondering I decided to have Gastric Surgery (Gastric Sleeve) . I was operated at the end of May, 4 weeks before I headed north on the boat for 4 months. I have now dropped 47kg And my current weight is now 89kg which I have not been since I was 20 years old. The first 4 months was tough and I certainly questioned if I had done the right thing, but now everything is normal. I just eat a lot less.
i now get round the boat with a lot more ease and certainly have a lot less aches and pains, my balance is also better. The best thing of all is the dingy goes a lot better.
Weight loss surgery is not for everyone but it is what I did so I could keep doing this wonderful sport for many years to come.
If balance and mobility is a problem you should maybe consider a catamaran as you are sailing on the level most of the time.
If you want to talk to someone about the surgery feel free to pm me your phone number.

good on you john tough call i took up yoga last year to improve flexibility on the boat and sailing dingys though it would be nice to shed 10 kg i would have to give up the rum a big call

Peter, I do struggle drinking beer now, but Rum and Coke goes down better than ever .

OFFS !!! am I. 110 or 130 percent ! what next ?

I lost 15kg sailing around the world, its the best way to lose weight!!!

cisco said..

Jode5 said..
Peter, I do struggle drinking beer now, but Rum and Coke goes down better than ever .

Rum OK but forget the Coke!!

Try this:- Crushed lime in the bottom of the glass, a few cubes of ice, rum (2 nips??) over the ice, soda, tonic or just water to your taste. It is the favourite drink in the Carribean but they put a teaspoon of sugar in first. Me, diabetic type 2, so I don't. If you are going to use sugar get demerara sugar, particularly if you are drinking El Dorado rum which is made on demerara sugar.

It is made in Guyana and I think the best rum I have ever had.

And you live where!

andy59 said..
I lost 15kg sailing around the world, its the best way to lose weight!!!

I lose 5kg on each Lord Howe trip. And I am only starting at 70kgs.

A mate I used to sail with told me a story of when he used to sail in Melbourne with a skipper who could get a bit agro at times

He was a bit on the heavy side but didn't mind because he thought he would be the last one to get picked if someone had to go up the mast

They were racing one night and something went wrong at the top of the mast and the skipper who was a bit upset at the time over what had happened told one of the other crew members to winch that fat bastard up the mast to fix it

Regards Don

I weigh about 110 kg and I am constantly being used as moveable ballast on the race boat

I would probably be happy loosing around 20 kg but unfortunately I like my food a bit to much

Regards Don

Wander66 said..
You csn still be fat and fit, here's a photo of Cisco and I on our last sailing trip . That's me vaulting over the railing.

Backwards after a nudge from me!!