Anyone else stress over going over?

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  • scottbrown78
    scottbrown78 Posts: 142 Member
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    Well, I went, I ate, I had a great time, but I think I made my brother a lil self conscience about what he was eating. He stopped when I stopped. He's the type that can eat anything and barely gain a pound. I have to say that, I'm not sure if it is all the greasy food, but my stomach isn't feeling the greatest right now. Thanks for all the supportive comments.
  • wrentrotter
    wrentrotter Posts: 36
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    I really don't like cheat days, the one day off a week would never work for me. The one day leads to two, then three etc. I just don't trust myself, and neither do I really want to "pig out" any more. Having a "day off" kind of puts the idea in my head that I am punishing myself for the rest of the week. I have only been out a few times since I started this and two of the times have been to restaurants where the menu has everything calorie counted. I really, really wish more places would do this. You make such different choices when you know the calorie content. I tried to exercise on the day of the outings and skipped lunch too to try to minimise the damage. One day every so often really doesn't hurt, it's repeated days over time that do the damage.
  • EmHelen
    EmHelen Posts: 4
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    Losing weight is not math, although it may sometimes seem like it on mfp when you're constantly counting how many calories you've eaten at lunch and how many you've burned during exercise. Sometimes, you overeat. And even if that red and bolded font under your food diary when you exceed your calorie goal is depressing, you gotta get over it and try to be better tomorrow.

    A few weeks ago I overate at a restaurant (I couldn't even log on the calories, I felt so guilty) and I felt like all my work had been ruined, so I let go of my diet for two weeks. I gained 2 lbs. But it wasn't from the dinner, it was from the following two weeks.

    I read this on tumblr and it's so true: saying "I ruined my diet with this meal, I might as well go all the way and eat anything from now on" is like saying "oh, I dropped my phone, I might as well smash it until it breaks."

    One meal is nothing. There are 28 meals in a week.

    Love this!!! ^^^
  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,488 Member
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    I subscribe to the 80/20 rule. As long as 80% of the time I'm on track - the other 20% doesn't bother me.
  • minizebu
    minizebu Posts: 2,716 Member
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    I haven't read through the rest of the replies, but here are some things that I do to stay on track when dining out:

    1) I try to use the plate method: 1/4 of the my plate should be protein, 1/4 of my plate should be starch and 1/2 should be non-starchy vegetables. I ask for a doggie-bag right away as the food is served and put any excess food above and beyond what would be a normal-sized portion into the doggie bag (take-away box). If it isn't sitting on my plate, I can't eat it.

    So, when we went to an Indian restaurant, I put the excess food away and left about 1/2 cup of rice, about 3 oz of chicken and about 2 cups or so of veggies (mixed cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, etc.) on my plate.

    When we went to the barbecue place, I put the excess food away and left about 1/2 cup of baked beans, about 3 oz of pork and about 1 1/2 cups of cole slaw on my plate.

    At the pizza place, I started with a salad (dressing on the side) and limited myself to only two slices of pizza.

    At the breakfast restaurant I limited my order to two eggs and one slice of toast, and I ate the two tomato slices that came as a garnish. (I guess the kitchen staff thought those two eggs looked lonely sitting on the plate all by themselves!)

    You get the idea. Granted, all of these meals had more fat than I would have in a meal that I cooked at home, but by controlling the portions, I prevented myself from going way, way off of my targets.

    If you feel embarrassed about putting food away in the take-out box at the start of the meal, get over it. Your friends and family will understand that you are trying to control your portions, and the wait-staff aren't going to give a hoot.

    2) To the extent that I know in advance that I'm going to have a "big" meal, I have actually resorted to entering my estimates of what that meal will be into myfitnesspal on the morning of the big night out. This gives me the ability to monitor my intake at breakfast and lunch so that my meal out is actually a part of my overall meal plan and I end up at the end of the day at or under my goal, as usual.

    3) I try to remember that I am not on a "Diet". I have changed my lifestyle and this changes the way I eat at all mealtimes. I try to choose lean meats, eat fresh fruits and vegetables, and limit my intake of added fats and sugars whether I am at home, at a restaurant or at a relative's house - wherever.

    I hope this helps!
  • JohnMessmer
    JohnMessmer Posts: 536
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    Unlike some others, I recommend recording everything... be honest with yourself, even if you allow yourself to go over sometimes.

    You allow yourself to be under some days too, don't you?

    It's about balance and habits you can keep up life-long. If you view this as short-term, it will be. Short-term "dieting" mentality and the feeling of deprivation lead to binges and yo-yo dieting.

    So, as you've already done, figure out ways to make it "fit". The salad first is a good idea, but be careful about the dressing and high-calorie ingredients. Some of them can be worse than the pizza. Check out which toppings are better for your plan. In general you can load pizza up with vegetables -- peppers, broccoli, even olives (which have fat, but it's a healthier fat). Along with your salad, drink... water is probably best, but diet soda or unsweetened (or lightly sweetened by you, not the restaurant) tea.

    Focus on the company. Isn't that why you're going out with them? Talk and listen, eat slowly.

    If you can, eat lower calorie choices in the earlier part of the day, or maybe lower fat (?) depending on your goals, try to leave room. planning for the special meal. One way to do that, especially when you know what you'll be likely to eat, is to pre-log it. That helps you know where to leave the room as you eat your other meals. You may not estimate it quite right, and you can adjust or fix it afterwards... that's part of what you're learning here, right?

    Too much stress raises hormones that are bad for you and for weight loss. So keep in mind that one meal will not undo your whole week (unless you're talking about a multi-hour binge).

    Enjoy your meal and the variation in what you're eating and the company. Have a good day!

    This is a great plan.

    I do not subscribed to the "cheat" day theory myself, I understand the reasoning others use to support it, I just disagree with it. I believe that those of us who have chosen to change our lifestyle to arrive at a healthier place, sometime in the future, are doing so because we have chosen to misuse food in our past. Much like Alcoholism, I would not recommend to someone who was sober that had issues with Alcohol in the past, that it was ok to go out and have a cheat night, nor shall I do it with those that have issues with food. Do I think that you can enjoy fatty food in moderation? Absolutely, millions of people do it everyday, but we, the obese, the overweight, the out of shape, the struggling to do justice to our bodies, do not need to continuously back slide. I do think that you can go to a restaurant and eat healthy enough so that you don't blow your whole day by so much that it is unrecoverable , just plan your day accordingly.
  • Melampus
    Melampus Posts: 95 Member
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    I often choose the last meal of a day to balance the day based on what I have already eaten and you could certainly do the same but the other way round, i.e. estimate what you would eat in the evening and then adjust your other meals accordingly.

    In the end I would not get stressed about the occasional meal.

    Logging meals on MFP and the calorie allowance are only the tools to reach the real goal of losing weight and then keeping it off. Yes, you have to be disciplined but you also have to be able to live your life. This is something you need to be able to keep up for the longer term.

    As long as meals like this are an occasional treat the thing is to just get right back into logging and healthy eating the following day.
  • cncrafton
    cncrafton Posts: 82 Member
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    Ugh, yes - and I RARELY go over! Right now, my goal is 2,200/day. If I am over 1,500, I get anxious. If I hit 2,000, I feel like I've just blown it. :(
  • randysbombshellgirl
    randysbombshellgirl Posts: 338 Member
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    Hell ya I do!!''' I personally think it's normal and healthy. When I do go over I hit the treadmill and burn off what I went over. I also believe you have to have those OCCASIONAL days as long as you get beck to it the next day.
  • TheVimFuego
    TheVimFuego Posts: 2,412 Member
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    I subscribe to the 80/20 rule. As long as 80% of the time I'm on track - the other 20% doesn't bother me.

    Yup, it keeps you sane. Whether it's a 'cheat day' or serial cheating daily.

    I'm fairly strict about what I do and do not eat much of the time but the other 20% is there to stop me turning into 'the weird guy' ... OK, weirder guy.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
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    I subscribe to the 80/20 rule. As long as 80% of the time I'm on track - the other 20% doesn't bother me.

    Yup, it keeps you sane. Whether it's a 'cheat day' or serial cheating daily.

    I'm fairly strict about what I do and do not eat much of the time but the other 20% is there to stop me turning into 'the weird guy' ... OK, weirder guy.

    LOL! Great self depricating humor pal!!
  • Robin_Bin
    Robin_Bin Posts: 1,046 Member
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    Well, I went, I ate, I had a great time, but I think I made my brother a lil self conscience about what he was eating. He stopped when I stopped. He's the type that can eat anything and barely gain a pound. I have to say that, I'm not sure if it is all the greasy food, but my stomach isn't feeling the greatest right now. Thanks for all the supportive comments.
    Congratulations! I'm glad it worked out for you, although I'm sorry your stomach wasn't feeling great afterwards. And yes, after you get used to less greasy or sugary food, some of the old stuff may not taste or feel as great. Given that, it might be even easier to eat lighter next time.
    And you know your brother better, so you're probably right. However, as I've become more conscious about what I'm eating, I've noticed that some of my "lighter" friends were already doing some of the things I'm learning to do now. He may have been stopping all along or eating huge salads... and anyone looking at his plate would think he's eating a lot, but calorie-wise maybe he wasn't eating that much.
    Anyway, it's great that you were able to manage it!

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