What do you do if you go over by 200 calories? 500? 1000? 3000?

sugarfreesquirrel

Is there a point where you stop counting?

Do you make it up the next day? do extra exercise? drink lots of water? fast? skip breakfast?

Today has been a total disaster. I've had a few this week, I'm still learning, plus I'm on holiday with my other family so I'm not used to eating how they eat.

I don't want to walk tomorrow because my feet are slightly sore, I could go for a swim but that probably wouldn't burn many calories the way I do it, and I don't know if theres gyms around where you can walk in for a once off visit.

Should I just forgive and forget and eat normally tomorrow?

sugarfreesquirrel

I know I've asked similiar questions and that might look concerning or something, but I tried the search function and it wasn't that helpful, also checked the featured posts and didn't find a similar thread. Also want some good solid answers on why you should restart the next day and how it affects you in the long run.

My current goal is to lose 5kg by October the 13th, so that's 7 weeks away and I am currently 5'10 and 110kg.

Lietchi

I never stop counting. But I like my data (even if the data can be flawed, especially on holiday).

Unless I'm cooking myself, being on holiday is about 'damage control' for me and my calorie goal is optional (often not just over my calorie goal, but over maintenance level as well)

I enjoy eating different foods, but try to manage portions to stay reasonable and try to choose less calorific dishes. I try to avoid eating dessert daily, at the very least I share it. I often limit the number of meals I have on holiday, since quantity per meal will be higher than usual. So, for example, only breakfast, no lunch (or a small snack) and dinner. Since the meals are bigger, it's quite a natural thing, it's not like I'm consciously starving myself. (Beware of the binge restrict cycle! Forcing yourself to eat less to the point of starving and then bingeing is not a good idea)

I try to stay as active as possible, whether it's walking/hiking (which is standard for my holidays), running or the hotel gym. It's partly about minimizing the calorie excesses, partly about 'keeping my head in the game' and keeping my fitness level up.

I don't know how long your holiday is: if it's a long holiday, I'd work on just avoiding/minimizing these high calorie days in the upcoming weeks, whether it's through meal choices, meal frequency,...
Food isn't sin, don't punish yourself for those high calorie days!

sugarfreesquirrel

@Lietchi I am here until Saturday. I might be going for a walk and a swim tomorrow. I think I've gone over by about 2000 calories.

Lietchi

PS: I just saw your added comment.

I'm not a fan of deadlines for weight loss. If you've 'only' lost 3kg by then, will you consider it a failure or a success?

Aiming for weight loss while on holiday, especially when you're not in control of the food, is very hard.
Aiming for maintenance would already be good - if you chose a weight loss rate of 1kg per week, that gives you a margin of 1100 calories per day over your calorie goal. Anything less and you'd still be in a calorie deficit.

sugarfreesquirrel

@Lietchi Maybe? It's hard when you only lose like 1kg a month and you see other people lose 100kg in a year. From my highest weight I want to lose about half. I feel like I should be losing a kg a week because I still have a long way to go.

sugarfreesquirrel

@Lietchi I'm 23% of the way to my weightloss goal unless I choose a higher weight (I am willing to go up to 75kg if I feel good there)

Rodney_Mckay

Depends on how far I dipped in the darkside. If its just 200 cals I wouldn't worry about it really, just get back to your regular routine if it works. There's also calorie cycling you might want to google, its not a terrible thing per se. Having some days off your deficit can be good. If you binged food and instead of your lets say 2,000 maintanence calories you ate 3,500 I still wouldn't try to make up for it, it just means your daily targets are probably not realistic or sustainable and you should increase your daily calories and / or eat more proteins, reduce processed carbs like bread and pasta to avoid insulin spikes. If you really want to you can just spread out a 300 calories mishap over a week and eat like 50 less each day and you probably wouldnt even tell the difference, but as I said its not necessary.

Rodney_Mckay

sugarfreesquirrel wrote: »

@Lietchi Maybe? It's hard when you only lose like 1kg a month and you see other people lose 100kg in a year. From my highest weight I want to lose about half. I feel like I should be losing a kg a week because I still have a long way to go.

Not everyone has the same metabolism and circumstance so comparing yourself to others imho is a very bad idea. Its way better to get there slower and keep it off without breaking your body further rather than torturing yourself because of peer pressure. Do what is sustainable and healthy FOR YOU

neanderthin

One of my basic rules for this situation is, don't do it 2 days in a row.

Lietchi

Rodney_Mckay wrote: »

Depends on how far I dipped in the darkside. If its just 200 cals I wouldn't worry about it really, just get back to your regular routine if it works. There's also calorie cycling you might want to google, its not a terrible thing per se. Having some days off your deficit can be good. If you binged food and instead of your lets say 2,000 maintanence calories you ate 3,500 I still wouldn't try to make up for it, it just means your daily targets are probably not realistic or sustainable and you should increase your daily calories and / or eat more proteins, reduce processed carbs like bread and pasta to avoid insulin spikes. If you really want to you can just spread out a 300 calories mishap over a week and eat like 50 less each day and you probably wouldnt even tell the difference, but as I said its not necessary.

I'm on the same page.

For me it's basically a math problem: to lose weight, I need to be in a deficit over the whole week. So anything under maintenance, over the whole week, is progress. In that context, the odd day of higher intake isn't a big deal.

If I'm aiming for a specific rate of loss, there is a specific number to aim for (1kg = deficit of 7700 kcal, 0.5kg = deficit of 3850, etc.)
Whether you have (for example, using the 1kg target) a deficit of 1650 calories on 5 days of the week and then a day at maintenance and a day 550kcal in surplus, or simply a daily deficit of 1100kcal... that's up to you, whatever you find easiest to stick with.
A higher deficit is quicker, but only if the higher deficit doesn't cause you to binge or give up.

And on top of the above, the odd week with a higher calorie intake isn't a big deal. Eating 7700 calories above goal when you're set at 2lbs per week is still a week at maintenance, just one week of delay to get to your goal.

cmriverside

Some days are like that, even when not on Holiday.

Here's the thing: life is always gonna be like that. I'm with neanderthin above, don't do it two days in a row. I bet you won't want to, anyway. Usually when I go way over (say, 1000 calories or more over maintenance) then the next day I'm not very hungry. Funny how that works.

If you have set an aggressive rate of loss, 1000 calories over is just about Maintenance calories.

Move on, don't try to make up for it. Just eat normally the next day. Otherwise you can get into an unhealthy pattern of binging and then restricting and it's hard to break that pattern. That's how eating disorders get started.

I don't even attempt to keep track when I'm on holiday. I try to keep it simple: one dessert every other day. No alcohol. Have vegetables with every meal. No snacking, just the three meals a day. Simple.

ninerbuff

One day isn't the issue. It's a collection of several days and NOT getting back on track when you can. Can't have the mindset of all or nothing. Because there will days of "nothing" that will throw you off track.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 35+ years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

PeachHibiscus

At one time in my life I would have restricted food and exercised until I felt I "burned" all of the calories off, even if this took several hours or all day. At another time I would have purged. Those were bad times. Don't get obsessed with weight loss to the point that you start punishing yourself. I never thought I'd have an eating disorder - until I did. I wouldn't recommend it.

Now, if I go over, I just get back on track the next day. I didn't bother counting calories on my vacation but I know I went over every day. We were extremely active but I didn't log that, either. When we returned, I got back on track. I know that if I let myself overeat too often, I risk it becoming a habit. And if it becomes a habit, I risk it becoming my lifestyle. So I have to be mindful. But the days of punishing myself for anything weight or calorie related are over.

COGypsy

Generally speaking, I don't get particularly good results when I try to punish myself for something I did rather than recognize what led up to the choice I made and what could help me do something different the next time. Misery burns no extra calories and forcing myself to starve or slog through hours of exercise to "make up" only makes it more likely that I'll be so hungry I overeat again and then have to spend hours exercising or starve and get super hungry again and then have to starve myself again....

It's also a lifestyle choice. If I'm obsessing over every crumb and calorie, then I'm not paying attention to other things. You said you're on holiday with your family. Wouldn't it be nicer to spend some mindful time with them instead of googling gym passes the whole time? (Ok, that last part might depend on your family ). There will always, always, always be things that come up - vacations, holidays, birthday dinners, work parties, too tired/busy/forgot to shop and cook, baby showers, backyard parties--all kinds of bumps in the road. Make a plan and focus on what you CAN control and what's reasonable for the situation and stick to that. There are lots of good ideas above and I'm sure you could find some that work for you.

In the end, it all comes down to the math. It takes 3500 calories over maintenance to gain a pound. Even if you do gain a pound or two, you've only delayed your goal by a week or so. Is that really worth agonizing over every bite and step you take?

claireychn074

sugarfreesquirrel wrote: »

I know I've asked similiar questions and that might look concerning or something, but I tried the search function and it wasn't that helpful, also checked the featured posts and didn't find a similar thread. Also want some good solid answers on why you should restart the next day and how it affects you in the long run.

My current goal is to lose 5kg by October the 13th, so that's 7 weeks away and I am currently 5'10 and 110kg.

Can I just say that yes, some of your posts can sound a bit concerning? I hope you’re okay and not obsessing over timescales and perfection - none of my business but I hope you’re okay.

I’ll answer your questions: I never set a date target for weight loss as I personally felt that would make me feel like I’d failed if I didn’t hit it. Feeling like a failure is not good and I didn’t want that pressure. So I tried to lose a total amount slowly. Some days I massively went over, and I’d analyse why (ie was it hunger, poor food choices etc) just to help me address the root cause. I eat on a weekly basis (ie total calories over one week) so a couple hundred will likely even out. If I had a big overeat I’d carry on as normal, recognising that I might not lose weight that one week but hopefully would the next. I have an obsessive personality so I developed strategies to try to prevent myself developing an eating disorder (never had one, but come close).

Stressing about going over would not be good for me personally, so I also set a slow rate of loss which minimised the likelihood of a rebound binge.

Take a deep breath, stick to your limit tomorrow and the next day, and if you are over frequently then have a look at what you’re eating. Your calorie limit might be too low, eating unsatisfying foods, or picking because bored. Different reasons for all of us!

SafariGalNYC

I do weekly calories .. similar to a 5:2 eating plan.

if I go over today then I deduct from the rest of the week. If i go wayyy over or i am consistently over.. then it’s time to examine why I am going over my calories.

~~> @sugarfreesquirrel -
•what is your calorie goal/limit?
•Are you accurately logging all your calories?

In prior posts (before holiday indulging) you have said you eat between 2700-3700 + calories per day and frequently go over. Are you overestimating or is this accurate logging?

If you did count every calorie, it would let you know how much to control. Is it an accurate 2000 + calories on top of this? Just wondering if you are guesstimating or counting each calorie. Sometimes it isn’t as bad as we think.

Yes, even if I go over on a smorgasbord- I will count it because I want to know what the calories are.

It always helped me to remember I am in control of my eating, dieting and progress.

If you frequently go over your calories - then either think about why you are going over calories or reconsider your weight loss goals.

AnnPT77

When I was losing, and in the first quite a few months of maintenance, I'd log everything . . . good, bad, indifferent, on plan or off. That helped with learning my personal patterns/inclinations, and making plans to work with those instead of constantly trying to swim upstream against my preferences.

Generically speaking, after an unusual day(s), I just go back to the routine positive habits I've established. (That does depend on having identified, established, and practiced those habits so they're almost autopilot. To me, "find/practice new pretty-easy habits" is a success factor.)

I don't have "routine habits" for holidays, by definition: Holidays aren't routine. I try not to be super-counterproductive in long stretches of non-routine life (like a month). If it's a week or less, I'm less worried. In that case, I try to be intentional. That may mean eating conservatively, or it may mean indulging freely, or anything in between.

That may sound crazy, but if my holiday offers many very special food delights, I'm more likely to indulge. Some of my holidays are rowing camps, and I've found that if I eat ad libitum when that active, I usually end up around maintenance calories, so it's fine. If the food is just available and not all that special, I'm more likely to spend fewer calories. Intentional.

I don't like "make up for it after" as a strategy. For me, it feels like a path to a bad relationship with food. I don't want to punish myself for eating. Some cases where I'll want to eat more than usual are predictable. I do try to plan for those, maybe bank a moderate number of calories per day for a few days in advance, eat lighter in other parts of the day if the indulgence is just one meal, maybe look for some fun extra activities to do that day or the day before (bike or walk or row or whatever - enjoyable things, but extra - not crazy overdoing, either). When it's unplannable, I'd usually just let it go, and get back on track. (If less hungry the next day, I would eat less, but not otherwise.)

Maybe it's a misimpression on my part - if so I apologize - but it seems from the totality of your posts that you eat quite variably, almost impulsively, reactively or randomly; then are likely to feel anxiety about it.

Overall, it's helpful to have some routine eating and activity patterns. I don't mean exactly the same thing every day, but maybe a regular rotation of meals you enjoy, from which you can select. Similar with exercise: Some things that work well in your routine schedule, and are enjoyable. That creates two things: A baseline "normal pattern" you can go back to without much deep thought after some off day(s), and a pattern that you can gradually adjust in more positive or useful ways as you learn more about yourself. It takes a while to establish patterns of that sort, but it's fine to take some time. Weight management is a long game, a forever endeavor.

sugarfreesquirrel wrote: »

@Lietchi Maybe? It's hard when you only lose like 1kg a month and you see other people lose 100kg in a year. From my highest weight I want to lose about half. I feel like I should be losing a kg a week because I still have a long way to go.

sugarfreesquirrel wrote: »

I know I've asked similiar questions and that might look concerning or something, but I tried the search function and it wasn't that helpful, also checked the featured posts and didn't find a similar thread. Also want some good solid answers on why you should restart the next day and how it affects you in the long run.

My current goal is to lose 5kg by October the 13th, so that's 7 weeks away and I am currently 5'10 and 110kg.

I don't think the calendar is a good weight loss tool. I'm pretty darned certain that comparing ourselves to others' self-reports is not a good strategy.

For the record, I have reservations about who is losing 100kg (220 pounds) in a year. That would be about 0.27 kg (0.6 pounds) per day. I question whether that's true.

100kg in a year would also be about a 2100 calorie per day deficit (i.e., eating that many calories daily under maintenance). Many of us don't burn that much in a day, and few burn lots more than that. So, losing that much in a year would require eating in the realm of zero to a few hundred calories daily for an entire year. That's improbable. I question whether it's even healthy. It wouldn't be for most people, for sure. The person would need to be starting at something like 275kg (600 pounds) for it to be reasonable, and ending at 175kg (385kg). It's certainly extremely uncommon.

For sure, at 110kg currently, you wouldn't want to be aiming at losing 100kg in a year, right? So why compare yourself to an absurd example?

You can afford to lose 1kg a week for a while, if you want to . . . but obviously it's necessary to find and stick to the required calorie level (on average, not religiously exactly every day).

TL;DR: After a high day, just go back to your normal healthy routine. One day is a drop in the ocean. What matters most is what we do most of the time. The only thing that matters, ever, is what we do on average over periods of time. Anxiety, guilt, and things like that don't burn any extra calories, and feel icky: Why go there? Learn, adjust, repeat, continue.

kshama2001

AnnPT77 wrote: »

[snip]

Maybe it's a misimpression on my part - if so I apologize - but it seems from the totality of your posts that you eat quite variably, almost impulsively, reactively or randomly; then are likely to feel anxiety about it.

Overall, it's helpful to have some routine eating and activity patterns. I don't mean exactly the same thing every day, but maybe a regular rotation of meals you enjoy, from which you can select. Similar with exercise: Some things that work well in your routine schedule, and are enjoyable. That creates two things: A baseline "normal pattern" you can go back to without much deep thought after some off day(s), and a pattern that you can gradually adjust in more positive or useful ways as you learn more about yourself. It takes a while to establish patterns of that sort, but it's fine to take some time. Weight management is a long game, a forever endeavor.
[snip]

@sugarfreesquirrel I too get this impression.

I took a look at your diary for this week, after your holiday ended, and noticed a trend of not balanced meals, and lack of vegetables.

What's the dates/banana/oat/milk thing? Seems like a very high amount of calories and not a lot of protein for the calories, which likely means it takes way more calories than it should in order to fill you up.

I'm curious about your lunch yesterday. It seems like you were going in one direction, and then switched gears. Or just didn't give your brain enough time to realize you were full before continuing.

Try adding vegetables. The bulk should make you feel fuller, and since they take a longer time to eat, will give your brain time to catch up.

sugarfreesquirrel

kshama2001 wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

[snip]

Maybe it's a misimpression on my part - if so I apologize - but it seems from the totality of your posts that you eat quite variably, almost impulsively, reactively or randomly; then are likely to feel anxiety about it.

Overall, it's helpful to have some routine eating and activity patterns. I don't mean exactly the same thing every day, but maybe a regular rotation of meals you enjoy, from which you can select. Similar with exercise: Some things that work well in your routine schedule, and are enjoyable. That creates two things: A baseline "normal pattern" you can go back to without much deep thought after some off day(s), and a pattern that you can gradually adjust in more positive or useful ways as you learn more about yourself. It takes a while to establish patterns of that sort, but it's fine to take some time. Weight management is a long game, a forever endeavor.
[snip]

@sugarfreesquirrel I too get this impression.

I took a look at your diary for this week, after your holiday ended, and noticed a trend of not balanced meals, and lack of vegetables.

What's the dates/banana/oat/milk thing? Seems like a very high amount of calories and not a lot of protein for the calories, which likely means it takes way more calories than it should in order to fill you up.

I'm curious about your lunch yesterday. It seems like you were going in one direction, and then switched gears. Or just didn't give your brain enough time to realize you were full before continuing.

Try adding vegetables. The bulk should make you feel fuller, and since they take a longer time to eat, will give your brain time to catch up.

Hey! I agree with the comment about protein, however, I don't always track vegetables. Other people in my family tend to cook dinner, so I will weigh and track the most calorific thing/things and ignore everything else. I also tend to be lazier at the end of the day.

One of the problems is, I have no idea what to eat. Still trying to out exercise a bad diet but that's not working out for me.

SafariGalNYC

sugarfreesquirrel wrote: »

kshama2001 wrote: »

AnnPT77 wrote: »

[snip]

Maybe it's a misimpression on my part - if so I apologize - but it seems from the totality of your posts that you eat quite variably, almost impulsively, reactively or randomly; then are likely to feel anxiety about it.

Overall, it's helpful to have some routine eating and activity patterns. I don't mean exactly the same thing every day, but maybe a regular rotation of meals you enjoy, from which you can select. Similar with exercise: Some things that work well in your routine schedule, and are enjoyable. That creates two things: A baseline "normal pattern" you can go back to without much deep thought after some off day(s), and a pattern that you can gradually adjust in more positive or useful ways as you learn more about yourself. It takes a while to establish patterns of that sort, but it's fine to take some time. Weight management is a long game, a forever endeavor.
[snip]

@sugarfreesquirrel I too get this impression.

I took a look at your diary for this week, after your holiday ended, and noticed a trend of not balanced meals, and lack of vegetables.

What's the dates/banana/oat/milk thing? Seems like a very high amount of calories and not a lot of protein for the calories, which likely means it takes way more calories than it should in order to fill you up.

I'm curious about your lunch yesterday. It seems like you were going in one direction, and then switched gears. Or just didn't give your brain enough time to realize you were full before continuing.

Try adding vegetables. The bulk should make you feel fuller, and since they take a longer time to eat, will give your brain time to catch up.

Hey! I agree with the comment about protein, however, I don't always track vegetables. Other people in my family tend to cook dinner, so I will weigh and track the most calorific thing/things and ignore everything else. I also tend to be lazier at the end of the day.

One of the problems is, I have no idea what to eat. Still trying to out exercise a bad diet but that's not working out for me.

@sugarfreesquirrel - you could create your own meal plan and figure out the calories and macros and then prep your food for the week. Takes the guessing out of every day .

Many of my calories are from vegetables, you would be surprised how it adds up esp if they are cooked in any oil, etc. 🌿