Weekend binger

MarlenePettitt01

Anyone having the same problem as me? I work hard all week and watch what I eat..then the weekend comes along and all my hard work is undone!

TavistockToad

try banking some calories for the weekend?

Crafty_camper123

What is your calorie goal set to?

Generalizing here: A mistake many people make initally is to set thier goal to lose 2lbs, and MFP gives 1200 calories as a result. If these weekend binges are hunger related, it may be helpful to bring up your calorie allowance (assuming it's low). Setting it to 1 or 1/2lbs loss a week could give you enough to eat without feeling ravenous and binging at the end of the week. Slower, but more steady, sustainable, and consistant weight loss would result.

Is it cravings/ weekend temptations related?

As TavistockToad mentioned, banking your calories is a helpful strategy for this. Or, having a weekly calorie goal instead of a daily calorie goal. This way, if something comes up like an invitation for dinner and drinks, you can enjoy them and cut back slightly more the next day. Or if you know you will be eating a high calorie meal later in the week you could cut back a tiny bit each day to earn more at the end of the week. Something as small as 50 calories a day could earn you an extra 300 to eat at the end of 6 days for example.

Another thing that helps me to mitigate cravings related binges is to give into them a little bit. As soon as I tell myself I can't have something I am craving, I just want it more. By the time I get my hands on it, I overeat it as soon as I can, totally blowing my day. For me personally, it's better to have a smaller portion and maybe throw my calories over by 1-200 to get that craving knocked out of the way, then to wait and overeat by 500 calories later. 200 calories is easier to work off over the week then 500 or more.

A final point: If you have a bad day, just chalk it up to a lesson learned and get back on your plan the next day. One bad day (or weekend) will not ruin your progress, so long as you continue to move forward each time. May it slow you down a bit? Probably. But it's wont all be for naught.

MarlenePettitt01

Thanks crafty-camper123 there’s some great advice there, my problem is on a weekend I always end up giving in to cravings plus I have a night out too with wine and food....then wake up Monday morning feeling like I need to detox! ..I’m going to do what you say and try and store some calories for my night out and allow myself a few cravings but in moderation xx

TavistockToad

MarlenePettitt01 wrote: »

Thanks crafty-camper123 there’s some great advice there, my problem is on a weekend I always end up giving in to cravings plus I have a night out too with wine and food....then wake up Monday morning feeling like I need to detox! ..I’m going to do what you say and try and store some calories for my night out and allow myself a few cravings but in moderation xx

Stop cutting everything out during the week and maybe you won't then need to binge

eisterunicorn

Same boat here, but like others have said it’s very helpful to not be so restrictive during the week and/or to count weekly average cals instead.:)
Also, mindfulness. I subscribe to the Calm app and she has tonnnns of great mindfulness meditations that help me in life and with food.

concordancia

If this is a regarding thing, you need a new weekend habit. Do you get lots of exercise with friends and family on the weekends? If not, start organizing it, or go out on your own if you need the me time. Plan delicious meals that fit your goals, maybe even use your time to prepare more interesting meals to use during the week, so that weekends aren't a time to make up for boring.

NashvilleNative

I have some of the same issues. I do very well during the week because I take my lunch to work everyday and try to plan ahead for dinner. My temptation is snacking when watching Netflix or a movie. My snack is normally popcorn or chips so I've changed to fruits or veggies instead. I'll still have popcorn on occasion, but I make sure my dinner is lighter.