If I go over my allowed calorie goal for the day.....

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  • rachael52
    rachael52 Posts: 86 Member
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    Going over once in a while will happen. But each day is a new day to get back into the swing of it. It's a slow process, but if you keep to your goal as much as possible, you'll certainly lose weight!
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    you don't want to go too far under your calories either. i see a lot of people that seem to think "oh, well, if 1200 a day will make me lose 2lbs a week, then 600 a day will make me lose twice that!!"

    what that does is that your body starts using energy differently, and it stores more and more energy from food, because it is trying to save itself.

    i'd look up your TDEE and your BMR. Try to never eat under your BMR. that is the minimum that you need to survive. calculate your TDEE based off of a lightly active daily routine. eat 20% less then what they give you.
  • hiker359
    hiker359 Posts: 577 Member
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    Nah, one day won't kill your diet...though if you weigh daily, you might see a slight uptick the next morning. But as long as you have a weekly deficit, you should lose weight.
  • amonkey794
    amonkey794 Posts: 651 Member
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    you don't want to go too far under your calories either. i see a lot of people that seem to think "oh, well, if 1200 a day will make me lose 2lbs a week, then 600 a day will make me lose twice that!!"

    what that does is that your body starts using energy differently, and it stores more and more energy from food, because it is trying to save itself.

    i'd look up your TDEE and your BMR. Try to never eat under your BMR. that is the minimum that you need to survive. calculate your TDEE based off of a lightly active daily routine. eat 20% less then what they give you.

    ^ best answer
  • 1917Ashley
    1917Ashley Posts: 100 Member
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    Thanks everyone so much! I can tell you all aren't new to this MFP thing! You all gave very clear answers!
  • Lleldiranne
    Lleldiranne Posts: 5,516 Member
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    If you go over, you reduce your deficit. Say you are set to lose 1/2 pound a week, which gives you a 250 a day deficit. Then, if you go over by 100 calories, your deficit is only 150; if you do that every day, your weekly deficit is 1050 instead of 1750, and you will lose that less than 1/2 pound. But you won't be gaining, either. And if you only go over every once in a while, it will be better.

    On the other hand, if you have a "cheat day" once a week and go over by 4000 calories, you've pretty much eaten your whole deficit and you won't lose.

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