Weekly Calorie Counters

StrawberryHippyGreens

Hey everyone, I'm looking for advice from weekly calorie counters on how weekly verses daily calorie counting shifts your mindset on diet and weight loss efforts. How did you come to weekly calorie counting after daily calorie counting? What are the biggest pros and cons? Which is easier for you and why? Let me know in the comments below, and thanks!

livingleanlivingclean

I kind of do this.
My non training days are lower cal/carb. Training days are higher cal/carb. One day on a weekend is high high carb - I simply add the carbs I took from the low days and add them on to the high high day. It gives me the opportunity to indulge in a few more decadent things, and relax a bit.

StrawberryHippyGreens

@livingleanlivingclean That's awesome that you do weekly calorie counting in a way that works for you. I can also definitely see it being a good incentive to exercise if it's a higher calorie day.

ryenday

When I started 5:2 intermittent fasting I shifted to a weekly calorie counting. For a shorter woman with a small daily calorie allotment, (me) it made all the difference. Instead of being unsatisfied and hangry 24/7, now I just have to diet two days a week and be more mindful the other five. I can fit occasional treats in my regular days now, and although the weekly calories are pretty much identical to what I was eating before, I’m losing more weight and I almost never feel hungry in my Five normal days a week.

I’ll never go back to a daily allowance/count. That just was too limiting and constantly miserable. I feel ever so much better and happier on a weekly calorie timetable.

StrawberryHippyGreens

@ryenday Cool, thanks for sharing how it's helped you! I can see myself easily adopting weekly calorie counting for the reasons you mentioned, and for the greater freedom it allows in a diet, including the ability to eat treats without "breaking the bank".

Mazintrov13

I do this. I am currently maintaining at about 2050 per day, during the week days I eat between 1600-1800 a day with a focus on protein and on the weekends I eat between 2500 to 3000. This works well for me and I don’t really get too hungry or anything on my lower cal days, I have a pretty busy/active job and usually only get about 15-20 minutes for lunch no time for snacking or anything so I find I don’t have much of an appetite during the work day. I also workout 5x per week with 2x longer more intense sessions on my higher cal days.
I also used this method when I was losing and found it really helped keep me sane to get those extra treats on the weekends although sometimes I did struggle with the larger deficit/hunger during the week