Question for people who lost weight already

musicmint

Were there days during your journey that you went over your calories? Or was it rather the will power not to give up and keep trying that you lost weight?

kackdog

During the summer I usually go over once a week on boy's night. I just make it up the next couple of days Actually when I did this I lost more weight because I was eating (or drinking) my cals back. I think bending is fine just don't let yourself break.

PradaGx

I go over my calorie at least once a week lol. Don't let that pull you down! Just keep at it and the weight will drop. As long as you eat clean the majority of the week, its nearly impossible to gain weight from one cheat day.

taranadams

i don't like dieting so counting calories has been a challenge for me. i want to lose the weight, and before i had kids i was just thin. i could eat whatever..age and children changed that and this helps. HOWEVER i do indulge in what i call my CHEAT days. i take 1 day a week and eat what i want, within reason. no counting calories and no real exercise. but that i do so that i dont burn out. this is hard, but it works. Hope this helps.

Inshape13

In the beginning I went completely by the book and stuck with a strict 1200 calories a day until I knew that I could indulge and not keep eating too much after that or binge out.(there are still foods that I avoid which I call trigger foods-like Ritz Crackers or Brownies...that never ends well)

After a while I started adding in a "cheat meal" once a week where we go out to eat and I am ok with going over for that day because I exercise ALOT and will even out in the end. I go by a weekly total rather than daily to keep myself in check. A surplus at the end of the week or not going over is ideal in the world of maintaining and it lets me live a normal life and not be so calorie strict all the time.

hesn92

yes there were days I went over my calories.

IzzyBooNZ1

I go over my calorie at least once a week lol. Don't let that pull you down! Just keep at it and the weight will drop. As long as you eat clean the majority of the week, its nearly impossible to gain weight from one cheat day.

same here ! however by eating clean for me this means not going over on cals etc. I do have the odd can of coke, gingerbread man etc

sc10985

Pretty much every Saturday. Sometimes Sunday too lol. But I try to keep my weekly goal in check so it evens out.

DavPul

There will be many days that you exceed your calorie goal. Don't worry about it. Just start the next day and try again. When you relax it's pretty easy to lose the weight. But people that get very upset about going over on calories tend to get frustrated and quit.

glin23

Were there days during your journey that you went over your calories? Or was it rather the will power not to give up and keep trying that you lost weight?

There are definitely days I go over my calories. Weight less is ultimately about the long term lifestyle change that you make. Going over daily calories happens.

shadow2soul

I go over my net goal, several times a week sometimes. Some days I even go over maintenance.:bigsmile: I'm sure my diary is pretty scary looking. :laugh: I still have a ways to go, but so far it hasn't stopped my weight loss.:drinker:

jarednuzzi

I was at first and once or twice a week and found my weight loss to be inconsistent. The last month or so I've only gone over 1 day and have been losing weight steadily. I'm not sure it works the same for any two people but s far I think I've experienced more success by staying under every day then having an off day or two a week. Best of luck to you.

MB_Positif

Yes. I was pretty intense in the beginning and rarely went over. I went over today. Not going to end my life

thecakelocker

Don't be hard on yourself for bad days or weeks, but get back and it and don't give up. Patience works.

glassgallm

Once in a while, but usually if I knew it was going to be a high calorie day I would make sure to earn those calories by getting in some exercise and burning the calories I thought I would be needing to "bank"

jojo86xdd

I go over my net calories 1-2 times per week, but never hit maintenance. I just shrug it off. It's part of life. There will always be a night out with the girls or vacation or date night, so I just log it and move on. Hasn't slowed/stopped my loss yet. Point is, don't quit.

spectralmoon

It happens from time to time. Hasn't been the end of the world yet. :flowerforyou:

laserturkey

For special occasions like my birthday and Mothers' Day, heck yeah I go over, and sometimes by quite a bit. Most of the time I am right about at my calorie goal (which includes exercise calories). I don't think of this as a diet. Logging my calories is a lifestyle change that allows me to keep my eating and exercise in line with where I want them to be, in general.

marcimlarson

my experience is severely under calorie. i dont have cravings. all i want is to know im not gaining, and nothing else matters.

JTick

I haven't been under my calories for a month now. I have also not lost any weight in that month (gee, what a surprise!). I needed that month of looseness to deal with some turmoil in my life and to take a break from being so strict. I didn't freak out about it, and now I am back on track and ready to lose again. Going over is no issue at all unless you allow yourself to become so distraught over it you quit completely.

chrisdavey

plenty. Average intake over the week is what I rely on.

tavenne323

I was strict for the first month just to kick my cravings. I do go over occasionally... holidays, weddings, etc...but even on those days I'm conscious about what and how much I'm eating and log all of it as best as I can.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

It was very rare but yes. I set my calorie goal with a moderate deficit (1 lb per week) and then the vast majority of the time I had no trouble working whatever I wanted to eat into my goal. However if it was a holiday or special occasion I let myself eat up to maintenance. (I know my ticker doesn't show my losses but I have lost 45 lbs. I've been maintaining for 6 months and now I'm starting cutting/bulking cycles, hence the new ticker).

I think the important thing to remember is that no one day is going to determine your success or failure. It's long term trends that matter. One of the marks of people who are successful at weight loss the ability to take bad days and occasional indulgences in stride.

TomZot

I try to stay under each day...but I occasionally go over. So far it has been for something planned. For example, we went to a wedding this weekend. Knowing there would be a buffet, I "saved up" some calories during the week and went over by a bit.


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Zaniejane

I often went over calories but I was still under TDEE so I knew I was still losing, just less and definitely not scale worthy:). But then the scale was never a good indicator of how I was doing on a given week.

Sometimes I went over TDEE, then all I did was divide the difference by three and eat TDEE minus that amount less for three days. AKA maintenance!

I did plateau for months with only two more pounds to go, but I didn't worry. I called it "practicing maintenance".
Then, when I finally lost the last two, I also lost an additional five while figuring out how many more calories I needed to add to my day. It truly is all about knowing your TDEE and eating at a deficit.

Duck_Puddle

I'm over all the time. Well, not all the time, but frequently. If I'm within a hundred or so on either side, I'm calling it good. I'm over already today and may eat more if I'm hungry. Tomorrow will be a whole new story. I've been over by thousands-several times. It's about finding the balance you can live with forever. As long as you're eating under your TDEE (averaging out over the long haul), you'll lose. Even if you go over your mfp calories. Promise.

restoreleanne

I often went over calories but I was still under TDEE so I knew I was still losing, just less and definitely not scale worthy:). But then the scale was never a good indicator of how I was doing on a given week.

Sometimes I went over TDEE, then all I did was divide the difference by three and eat TDEE minus that amount less for three days. AKA maintenance!

I did plateau for months with only two more pounds to go, but I didn't worry. I called it "practicing maintenance".
Then, when I finally lost the last two, I also lost an additional five while figuring out how many more calories I needed to add to my day. It truly is all about knowing your TDEE and eating at a deficit.

^^^^

A_Fit_Mom

Definitely once or twice a week. It depends on if I have a "date night" with my husband. If not, then usually only on Sundays. I may go over a little, since we eat at the in laws.

vivelerock88

Don't panic if you go over- whether on purpose to let yourself have something special or by accident or whatever. I used to be of the mentality that if you ate one bad thing you threw the entire day off and I'd just call it quits for the day. I realized it's not the end of the world. If you want to you can do a bit more exercise to burn it off or eat lower calorie meals to balance it out. But it really isn't as big a deal as it seems and it's not worth trying to be completely perfect. No one is. If you're right most of the time and exercising you will lose weight in the long run. You'll have good days where you're exactly on point and a few here and there where you're not, but if you're doing the right things overall the weight will still come off. Some trainers/nutritionists even say it's good to have a higher calories day to sort of reset your metabolism and tell your body to burn more again. I've had days where I decided to go eat at an Italian restaurant and get the pasta because I hadn't in so long and had times away travelling where I only had so much control over what I ate. I still managed to lose weight those times by making healthy choices when I could and exercising. In the long run those couple indulgences here and there aren't going to break you, it's about the overall effort and making it something you can live with that will lead to real change. Personally I can't be ok with never going to an Italian restaurant again so I'm going to every once in a while and enjoy myself without feeling guilty and that's ok. But I'm not going to go all the time and I'm going to eat healthy the rest of the day and I'm still going to go to the gym. It's not about perfect but about creating balance and a healthy lifestyle you can keep up with without hating it or feeling like you're missing out.

TeachTheGirl

Yep. Overages happen.

Some weeks I compensate on following days, either by eating a little less or by exercising more. Recently, I haven't had a need to. My body still seems to be losing even though my diary might say I'm over.

Balance is fickle, but not every day can be perfect.

tatd_820

I went over too many times to count. Key for me was to always get back on track the following meal/day. Do not stress if you go over once or twice a week! A calorie is a calorie and if you look at it as a whole (week or month) if you are under you will lose!