maximum calorie intake on "treat day"

XLMACX

hi,

i intend on saving most my exercise calories for a Saturday treat bottle of wine and pizza or big bar choccy maybe...so wondering what number is a good limit i have seen my TDEE is 2400 so was thinking never to go over this number in that day....just wondering what everyone thinks on this??

thanks

mfp2014mfp

If you are 'saving' your exercise calories and have the app it will tell you under nutrition > weekly how many calories you are under for the week. You can use this number as a guide which will keep you within your weekly limit rather than guessing and blowing some hard work, this is what I do anyways as I prelog, hope it helps, and enjoy the treats

zoeysasha37

Yeah, your log should tell you how many you have left.

Springfield1970

Try looking at it a different way. Build those lovelies into your everyday life, but in smaller doses. You'll soon not see them as forbidden treats to binge on and you'll find you will be satisfied on less of them.

Also, get the best quality you can afford and savour every sip and nibble.

As a former food hoover I've managed to avoid these guilt traps. Oh and I still have big exercise days where I just eat everything I want, but it seems to be naturally more moderate because I have the foods I love in my every day life.

emmaxbon

Try looking at it a different way. Build those lovelies into your everyday life, but in smaller doses. You'll soon not see them as forbidden treats to binge on and you'll find you will be satisfied on less of them.

Also, get the best quality you can afford and savour every sip and nibble.

As a former food hoover I've managed to avoid these guilt traps. Oh and I still have big exercise days where I just eat everything I want, but it seems to be naturally more moderate because I have the foods I love in my every day life.

I agree. Treat day (for me anyway) is another term for binge. I try to build my treats into my day to day calories and I find I eat less of them this way.

tnoc2

I find that when I set a day in mind to have one bad meal, it really affects my weight loss for the week, and takes about 2 days for my body to get back to normal. I agree with emmamaxwellbo, try to give yourself smaller treats during the day a few times a week rather than one really bad meal. Your body will thank you!

alex6971

My advice is dont think about it and just do it. Once a week isnt going to harm anybody, I wouldnt really save your exercise calories as if you are not eating enough in the day your body may go into starvation mode which isnt good. I was alway well over my calories on a Sunday but that was my "treat" day and I ate what i wanted without feeling guilty. If you restrict yourself too much you are more likely to get bored and give up. We all need a little "treat" once in a while.

XLMACX

thanks for that x

XLMACX

thanks i may also try this method suppose i could do it that way makes sense.x

XLMACX

thanks everyone!! this really amkes sense i always make sure i eat all my 1420 calories a day and this tends to satisfy my fine as i do eat low carb i totally get were your coming from though with eating those calories back on teh same day i dont understand though like y.day i ate 1420...i burned 200 so would i then eat those 200 back = 1600??? throws me a little as my total for the day is only meant to be 1420 xx

tracie999

I follow Chris Powells card cycling which allows you one day a week to heat what you like. As i eat good the reat of the week i don't want to eat to bad on that one day but the other week i really fancied pizza so i had pizza did i regret it a few hours later oh yes i felt sick. Now my free day i have breakfast at dennys or ihop always with pancakes and a bar of chocolate later that day, i'm happy and the weight still comes off.

_lyndseybrooke_

I eat until my "Net calories under weekly goal" is pretty close to 0. I don't usually eat exercise calories back during the week, so I typically have about 3500-4000 calories that I can consume on Saturday and Sunday. I like to keep Saturday pretty low - maybe only 100-300 over goal, and then I can eat even more on Sunday. I prefer to do it this way instead of incorporating these treats into my diet throughout the week because weekends are usually just me and my husband (who is currently bulking and eating 3000+ calories per day) and we like to get dinner out (I don't cook on weekends, aside from meal prepping for the next week) and a frozen yogurt or something. I don't want to have to choose between going over my goal for the week or ordering some salad at a restaurant when I really want something tastier. Whatever works for you! I don't consider my weekends a binge at all - I log it and keep it under my weekly goal. How is that a binge? Binge = mindless eating, period. If you're under your weekly calories, you'll lose. Timing makes no difference. My TDEE is around 2000 and I usually eat about 2500 on Sundays, though I don't pay much attention to that.

Last weekend I had McDonald's breakfast on the way to take our animals to the vet, but I got the egg white delight and a fruit and yogurt parfait to save some calories for later (400 calories, and it was delicious). For lunch, I just ate a serving of pretzels and a light string cheese because I knew what was for dinner - Chinese food. 1100 calorie dinner and worth every single one. I had the same exact thing for lunch the next day, but ended up making an egg sandwich for breakfast instead of going out. Dinner was an Arby's beef and cheddar sandwich with a small fry, followed by a sizable cup of vanilla frozen yogurt with fruit and granola. And I still had nearly 300 calories left over for the week. I like to leave 100-300 because I log using nutritional information off of the restaurant websites, so I figure some of it may be an underestimation.

Weekends are my time to enjoy myself, not worry about staying under 1450 calories, and they don't seem to be sabotaging my overall weight loss. I also don't tend to bloat after weekends. It's weird, I usually feel "skinniest" on Sundays and Mondays, after all that food, compared to weekdays. Not sure why, but I'm not complaining. I just make sure I log everything, so it doesn't turn into an actual binge.

XLMACX

so basically jsut amek sure i dont go over my weekly total?? that should be easy x

_lyndseybrooke_

thanks everyone!! this really amkes sense i always make sure i eat all my 1420 calories a day and this tends to satisfy my fine as i do eat low carb i totally get were your coming from though with eating those calories back on teh same day i dont understand though like y.day i ate 1420...i burned 200 so would i then eat those 200 back = 1600??? throws me a little as my total for the day is only meant to be 1420 xx

Did you get the 1420 number from MFP recommendations or your TDEE minus some percentage?

If you got it from MFP, you should eat back your exercise calories (either that day or within the week). Your net calories is what matters, not your gross. If you eat 1420 calories and burn 200, your body only thinks it got 1220 calories. If you need to net 1420 in order to lose, then 1220 is too low.

If you used the TDEE method and put in your true activity level, you shouldn't be eating back exercise calories. TDEE gives you a goal for gross calories, not net.

I use a combination of the two. My TDEE - 15% is 1668. MFP tells me to eat 1450. I keep my goal at 1450, but I typically burn 200-225 a day, which would add up to 1668. So, in the end, after I eat my saved calories on the weekend, it all evens out.

so basically jsut amek sure i dont go over my weekly total?? that should be easy x

Yep!

Happymelz

I eat until my "Net calories under weekly goal" is pretty close to 0. I don't usually eat exercise calories back during the week, so I typically have about 3500-4000 calories that I can consume on Saturday and Sunday. I like to keep Saturday pretty low - maybe only 100-300 over goal, and then I can eat even more on Sunday. I prefer to do it this way instead of incorporating these treats into my diet throughout the week because weekends are usually just me and my husband (who is currently bulking and eating 3000+ calories per day) and we like to get dinner out (I don't cook on weekends, aside from meal prepping for the next week) and a frozen yogurt or something. I don't want to have to choose between going over my goal for the week or ordering some salad at a restaurant when I really want something tastier. Whatever works for you! I don't consider my weekends a binge at all - I log it and keep it under my weekly goal. How is that a binge? Binge = mindless eating, period. If you're under your weekly calories, you'll lose. Timing makes no difference. My TDEE is around 2000 and I usually eat about 2500 on Sundays, though I don't pay much attention to that.

Last weekend I had McDonald's breakfast on the way to take our animals to the vet, but I got the egg white delight and a fruit and yogurt parfait to save some calories for later (400 calories, and it was delicious). For lunch, I just ate a serving of pretzels and a light string cheese because I knew what was for dinner - Chinese food. 1100 calorie dinner and worth every single one. I had the same exact thing for lunch the next day, but ended up making an egg sandwich for breakfast instead of going out. Dinner was an Arby's beef and cheddar sandwich with a small fry, followed by a sizable cup of vanilla frozen yogurt with fruit and granola. And I still had nearly 300 calories left over for the week. I like to leave 100-300 because I log using nutritional information off of the restaurant websites, so I figure some of it may be an underestimation.

Weekends are my time to enjoy myself, not worry about staying under 1450 calories, and they don't seem to be sabotaging my overall weight loss. I also don't tend to bloat after weekends. It's weird, I usually feel "skinniest" on Sundays and Mondays, after all that food, compared to weekdays. Not sure why, but I'm not complaining. I just make sure I log everything, so it doesn't turn into an actual binge.

THIS!!!
Not counting last week (at at maintenance) but I usually try to have 50-100 calories left over each day that I can save for Friday/Saturday (I never go below 1200 net) and then Sunday is my "off" day but I still try to be less than 1000 calories over for the week.

And you know what? I've consistently lost 1 lb a week for 3 weeks (up until last week when I went on maintenance for a week.)

XLMACX

i use MFP try to keep it as simple as poss, my TDEE if i type my stats and say im moderate activity it says 2425-20% = 1940cals a day!! thats too high in my opinion if i say im light activity 2151-20% = 1720cals??? i think i prefer the method of MFP 1420cals then all excersice save for saturday, it shows i have eaten all my 1420 so as long as im not dropping below 1200 i should be ok x

_lyndseybrooke_

i use MFP try to keep it as simple as poss, my TDEE if i type my stats and say im moderate activity it says 2425-20% = 1940cals a day!! thats too high in my opinion if i say im light activity 2151-20% = 1720cals??? i think i prefer the method of MFP 1420cals then all excersice save for saturday, it shows i have eaten all my 1420 so as long as im not dropping below 1200 i should be ok x

Yeah, it's up to you which method you use, but I'm glad you're not going below 1200 and your net goal isn't set to 1200. You're ahead of a lot of people here if you make that a priority.

XLMACX

thanks hun i want to do this sensible and a lifestyle change NOT A DIET.X

lujako

food hoover

:laugh: In two words you have defined me when not using MPF!

morf13

I am afraid that one 'treat day' will lead to another...I want to try and not have any treat days, at least until I start shedding some serious weight. Maybe give myself a 'treat day' everytime I lost 20 lbs or something.

XLMACX

everyone is different for me i have always ahd saturday as my more relaxed day as i said i will do an extra work out that day healthy big breaky and low cal salad for lunch then i can enjoy somethin tasty at night with my wine and choccy you have to do what suits you sir