NET CALORIE BY THE DAY OR WEEK?

C21x

Do we have to look at calorie loss by the day or can we look at it by the week?
So if I go over 400 calories today and I exercise and gain 400 calories then I am good.
But what if I exercise the next day? Does that work?
Or if I cut back an extra 200 calories a day and then pig out on thanksgiving does that work?

sniffles

I think it's personal preference. I know people who tally by the week and those who do so by the day.

Basically you need to have a weekly deficit of 3500 calories to lose a pound so I'd think if you overeat one day and exercise the next it would even out. However, the body is funny and doesn't run well without proper fuel so I'd hesitate to work off 400 calories and not refuel the body that same day?

In the end it's trial and error that will probably see you through. Try out what you're doing and if it doesn't work, try something different.

linzismith

i think for special occasions like thanksgiving you could have a big defecit the day before so you could eat more the next day. but doing that a lot would just mess with your metabolism (if your body starts to think that every third day it will be starving, then those other two days it will store EVERYTHING).

If you think about it, technically there's no real timeframe, you just need to eat 3500 cals less than you burn. But obviously, if you pigged out for 6 months and then ate only lettuce for six months it wouldn't work. Same idea.

evolvingbutterfly

from what i understand eating different calories on different days and calculating weekly instead should be a good thing. it keeps your body guessing and helps you not to set into a rut that may lead to a plateau. i would say its okay to do that.