Weekly calorie average

vanmep

Just curious how people track their weekly averages. Last Saturday I sailed way past my goal and was over by about 700 calories, so all week I have been doing an extra 100 deficit so it would average out to be on track. I just realized that next Saturday when the extra 700 falls off the record, I will actually appear to be 700 under my average. Obviously I am just making a mental not that I am not REALLY 700 in the good. But I was just wondering if anyone else has any thoughts or strategies for addressing this?

serindipte

I have the app on my phone. Under Nutrition in the app, it shows the average. I have mine set to a rolling 7 days average, but you can set it to start over at a chosen day of the week.

ETA: As far as the over day and trying to balance it out over the next many days? I don't really worry about it. I just look at the rolling average and once something falls off, I figure my body's already dealt with what I ate that day.

darrenbeckworth

This is all just a game and the only person keeping score is you. What rules you plan on following and how strict are up to you. You don't have to make a case to defend deficits or surplus to anyone but yourself. Focus on the long term.

kimny72

Honestly, I never looked at the rolling avgs for precisely that reason. If I was over one day and felt the need to try to make it up I would add a note to the next day or two that my goal was to be lets say 100 cals under goal to make up for Saturday. I never let the "make it up" idea go past one or two days or one or two hundred calories per day, because then you get caught in this constant cycle of trying to make up for one thing or the other, being bad and then being hungry. Sometimes it really is better to just kiss a bad day up to god, learn from it, and just get back to hitting your goal.

Short version - you don't have to use all the tools if some of them just end up tripping you up.

PAV8888

Someone I know about keeps a rolling average spreadsheet with debits and credits.

I personally would NOT worry about catching up an overage day.

Your long term consistent behavior over time is what is going to have an effect on your weight. Not a single 700 Calorie day over or under.

(I would be lying if I didn't admit to small compensatory adjustments or balancing over a couple of days especially when eating lots after midnight. But i would not adjust by more than say 10% of your eating goal over a day or two max because then you have the potential of entering never ending cycles)

macgurlnet

I didn't use the rolling average. I did a calendar week (starting with Sunday, ending on Saturday).

But I find I really prefer logging the info in a spreadsheet. I have an Apple Watch, so I record the resting energy and active energy (which combined are about how many calories I burned that day) from that, along with what I ate. Then I can see what kind of deficit I was/wasn't in.

~Lyssa

emmamcgarity

I don’t usually use many of the exercise calories I earn unless I am really hungry. Since I am short, my daily calorie goal is 1200. Sometimes at special events I don’t have as much choice over my meals. But I do the best I can and track it all. On Cinco de Mayo this meant I went over by 500ish calories for the day. The “old me” would use that as an excuse to binge on more junk food since I already ruined the day. However when I look at the weekly average it encourages me to see that on balance I am still on track.

paperpudding

I don't understand what is meant by ' rolling average'

I view my weeks calories form mon to sun and my aim is to be slightly less than the total allowed by end of each week.
Now and then it is slightly over though and that is ok too.

serindipte

paperpudding wrote: »

I don't understand what is meant by ' rolling average'

I view my weeks calories form mon to sun and my aim is to be slightly less than the total allowed by end of each week.
Now and then it is slightly over though and that is ok too.

There is a option to see the previous 7 days instead of a set beginning day.

paperpudding

oh, ok.

but will stick to my Mon to Sun weeks.