Hungry days off

nutech
nutech Posts: 11
edited September 22 in Health and Weight Loss
How is it that I eat more on my days off (the days I'm not active) then the days I do work (the days I am active). I just don't understand. I try really hard to stay under my calorie goal on my days off but I'm just too hungry! I eat stuff like carrots and it helps but not a ton. Any ideas?

Replies

  • sallyLunn
    sallyLunn Posts: 381
    Its all of the extra time you have from not working out? May its that exercise keeps you mindful of your goals. No suggestions on what to do on your off days except maybe eat fluffier foods that include lots of lettuce and fresh veggies.
  • kristinlough
    kristinlough Posts: 828 Member
    I say boredom :smile:
  • dragonfly__
    dragonfly__ Posts: 172 Member
    I am the same way . I eat a lot more on the weekends. I will be lying to myself though if I say it is because I am hungry. I think it is because I have more time on my hands and I need something to occupy myself and I turn to food.
  • randilea
    randilea Posts: 140
    How is it that I eat more on my days off (the days I'm not active) then the days I do work (the days I am active). I just don't understand. I try really hard to stay under my calorie goal on my days off but I'm just too hungry! I eat stuff like carrots and it helps but not a ton. Any ideas?

    I have the same problem. What boggles my mind is when I work out I don't work out until almost 4 in the afternoon and prior to my run is when I am the hungriest. Usually after my workout I can eat a normal dinner but from the time I wake up to the time I work out I feel like a bottomless pit (no matter how much protein I eat)
  • kechiemc
    kechiemc Posts: 1,355 Member
    Welcome to MFP :flowerforyou:

    I too find that I am hungrier on the days that I am less active. However, I am usually not very hungry on my active days. So I monitor my intake and output on a weekly basis. On days that I am more active and less hungry, my calories are at a deficit. I make up that deficit on the days that I am not as active and more hungry. I try to make sure I break even over a 4-5 day period. All of this assumes that you are not just a little dehydrated. On those low activity days, try drinking water first when you think you are hungry.

    Hope this helps,
    -Kechie.
  • I think about food much more when I am home too. At work it is not so available so I don't think it is on my mind as much. When I am at work I also avoid the cafeteria so I am not tempted. I wonder if you also are a little dehydrated from being active the day before try drinking more water. When you are dehydrated you tend to feel like you are hungry..just a thought.
    Charlotte
  • jaded_rose
    jaded_rose Posts: 298 Member
    I have the same problem. Drink a full cup of water before eating and snacking. Eat filling foods such as popcorn and stay busy. I would recommend a hobby to occupy your mind, sudoku, painting...
  • NatalieWinning
    NatalieWinning Posts: 999 Member
    Aside from having more time to eat, exercise checks my appetite. I don't eat as much because the exercise helps lower my appetite.
  • Cina04
    Cina04 Posts: 609
    On my rest days, I make it my "cheat days" & official weigh in day (mine is Sunday)

    Work hard all week Mon - Sat...Weigh In Sunday morning - take a rest from my workouts - and have a day of the weekend where i go out to eat w/ my family or indulge a little. For the most part the next day I either see a lost or maintain the same weight as the previous morning.

    Before i had this schedule my rest days where tuesdays because of when i started my workout program and I was so hungry on tuesdays. I decided to work out on my rest days from Insanity but just not as intense like going for an hour walk.
  • Cina04
    Cina04 Posts: 609
    sorry for double post - internet is being stupid
  • kymberlin
    kymberlin Posts: 113 Member
    I find that I barely drink any water on my days off or much of anything else. I work every third weekend and have a day off after and sometimes before so I have a really flexible schedule. I have a really hard time getting motivated on days off. I find that I don't get much accomplished unless I have zumba in the evening. I love my classes wish I took them everynight and then I mite be more productive. Sometimes I think I'm more bored or irritated that I'm not getting things done and I look to food to keep from feeling bad. Anyway I don't have an answer except to try getting out of the house on days off.
  • sanura
    sanura Posts: 459 Member
    It could be physical because when you work out your body uses glycogen stored in your muscles and glucose already in your blood. it takes time for your body to replenish those supplies, so the day after a long workout you may be hungrier than usual. I also find that, like other people mentioned, the less busy I am the more I want to eat.
  • nisijam5
    nisijam5 Posts: 9,964 Member
    Exercise suppresses the hunger urge...after a big workout, your just not hungry
  • sallyLunn
    sallyLunn Posts: 381
    Exercise suppresses the hunger urge...after a big workout, your just not hungry

    Very true.
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