Weekend set backs

nwachim

Hello everyone, how do y'all stay on track on the weekends? I do well on weekdays and then just undo everything on the weekends. Most of the time I keep my workout routine- atleast one of the days and use the other for rest day, I even have healthy meals cooked and packed in the fridge but I just keep craving unhealthy food. For some reason my brain thinks I am on a vacation on the weekends and I just feel fed up eating anything prepared by me. This is really frustrating for me as I just feel like I am running around circles by cancelling out my deficit during the week with overeating during the weekend.

jenwalkingfurther

Ahh weekends! I generally have more time to eat, drink and move 😁I exercise more on the weekends to give me more wiggle room on the calorie front. I also plan the treats into my week as it prevents me going overboard. I know other people change targets so that they eat at a maintenance level at weekends and more of a deficit during the week. Good luck!

thelastnightingale

It sounds like you have a stressful week, hence why you want to blow off stream at the weekend?

Or maybe there's an issue with the days you do your workouts? I find if I exercise, my body wants all the calories, then the next day, even if I don't exercise, it still wants all the calories because it worries I'm going to exhaust it again.

If you can't condition yourself to eat less at the weekend, can you eat less during the week so you're not cancelling the entire deficit? If you have MFP premium, you can set different goals on different days.

nwachim

thelastnightingale wrote: »

It sounds like you have a stressful week, hence why you want to blow off stream at the weekend?

Or maybe there's an issue with the days you do your workouts? I find if I exercise, my body wants all the calories, then the next day, even if I don't exercise, it still wants all the calories because it worries I'm going to exhaust it again.

If you can't condition yourself to eat less at the weekend, can you eat less during the week so you're not cancelling the entire deficit? If you have MFP premium, you can set different

I work from home as well as take care of my toddlers during the week, I don't work on the weekends so I guess that may be the difference.
I will try lowering my calories on weekdays to see if it helps- although I am afraid that more restriction during the week may set off more cravings on the weekend.
Thanks a lot for you recommendation.

thelastnightingale

nwachim wrote: »

I work from home as well as take care of my toddlers during the week, I don't work on the weekends so I guess that may be the difference.
I will try lowering my calories on weekdays to see if it helps- although I am afraid that more restriction during the week may set off more cravings on the weekend.
Thanks a lot for you recommendation.

A-ha, so the weekend is the first chance you get to breathe. That's why your behaviour is so different.

Are you able to do any activities that you find relaxing at the weekend? Can you go for socially distanced walks etc at the weekend, or is that just a bucket of stress given the kids?

I find when I'm busy, I don't think about food, but when I get proper downtime, I'll put anything in my mouth. I wonder if you can strike a balance between keeping yourself distracted and getting a proper rest.

It must be really hard trying to work and look after toddlers at the same time.

nwachim

jenwalkingfurther wrote: »

Ahh weekends! I generally have more time to eat, drink and move 😁I exercise more on the weekends to give me more wiggle room on the calorie front. I also plan the treats into my week as it prevents me going overboard. I know other people change targets so that they eat at a maintenance level at weekends and more of a deficit during the week. Good luck!

Thank you, this is insightful, I guess I will try changing up things- restricting more calories during the week to have enough for the weekend. If that doesn't work, I will try including little treats during the week to see if that helps the weekend cravings.