why is so much harder to diet at the weekend?? :(

why is it sooooo hard to diet at weekends..... through the week no problem but come sat/sun its not easy
i could easly let all my hard work go out the window, and if i eat one bad thing then thats it , i cant stop for the rest of the day then feel guilty :(

Replies

  • jjrichard83
    jjrichard83 Posts: 483 Member
    get some activities to take up your spare time
  • spamantha57
    spamantha57 Posts: 674 Member
    Because you probably have more free time on the weekend. If you occupy your time, you occupy your thoughts, & if you have free time then free thoughts, and who doesn't like to think of food? It's a basic human instinct.
    Try & plan things at certain times of the day to fill up your time.
  • kylie65
    kylie65 Posts: 4 Member
    Isn't it i have the same problem gone way over my calories today :-(
  • im going to spring clean the house that might help take my mind off food... and burn a few calories to, then a snow ball fight with kids :oD XX
  • huddboro
    huddboro Posts: 12 Member
    I know what you mean as you're likely to get bored sitting around- natural to think about having food.

    I have a pint glass with water in but spend time preparing meals for the rest of the week/planning meals to take to work.
  • bread is my down fall, i love it but have cut it out of my diet completey, making the kids toast id murder for me , the smell makes me want it so bad !! xx
  • shandi_b
    shandi_b Posts: 153 Member
    I find the same thing (but try not the feel guilty anymore!). I put it down to - less time in the car - I have up to 2-3 hours a day without eating or drinking driving to and from work. Also there is the structure of work and meetings and lunch breaks and the absence of readily available food (like being able to walk to the fridge anytime I want to).

    On weekends I tend to relax and I don't have my lunchtime walk or my workouts after work of a night time, like I do on a workday.

    I try to make healthy snacks available to me on the weekend or spend time out and about to consume the time and then there is less "eating time".
  • elebel82
    elebel82 Posts: 69 Member
    Have the complete opposite problem. I'm a saint on weekends because I have time to prepare healthy food that I want, whereas on the days that I work, my diet suffers - I can stay under calories okay, but man does my chocolate and processed food consumption go up!

    Maybe it would help to use weekend time to prepare your good and healthy food?
  • hendinerik
    hendinerik Posts: 287 Member
    I hear ya on this... I know I always look forward to weekends, and then there's a feeling that I can finally relax on all fronts, and there's a tendency to either want to treat myself with a treat and relax.... like it's a reward or comfort for enduring the stress of the week or something...

    Also at the office I don't have as much access to food. At home the refrigerator is right there... At work either it will cost me money or I have brought in lunch which is a pre-defined portion.

    Often one of my "rest" days from working out is on the weekend, and it's also a time where I want to comfort myself somehow from being sore... it's ironic because it's pretty much a cycle - work out, cheat, work out etc...

    Good Luck and Happy weekend!
  • Yup ... you have more time on your hands.

    I'm on holidays so I've been logging in here to keep focused on diet/fitness etc instead of food.

    I think weekends take planning.

    Perhaps "save" 100c a day so that on the weekends you have 250cals a day for a splurge.

    That way you won't feel you've ruined it ... you've earnt it!

    And plan your foods in advance. Maybe on Friday night plan your meals for the weekend and get them cooked and ready.

    That way when you're hungry you're food & snacks are already waiting for you and you're less likely to go for a less nutritious option.
  • huddboro
    huddboro Posts: 12 Member
    I've cut butter out completely- has worked wonders. Still have toast with spaghetti/eggs for breakfast but instead have low sugar and salt Tomato sauce instead. Would highly recommend the Hairy Bikers book on eating real meals but with healthy twists!
  • sabrina484
    sabrina484 Posts: 3 Member
    It sounds like it's because you're depriving yourself of everything you want instead of eating a tiny bit of what you want or something close to it. Don't try to cut everything out at all at once. If you want a donut, split it with somebody or put 1/2 in a baggie for your indulgence tomorrow. If you make too many things off limits you will be miserable. When you're planning your calories for the day budget in a certain number for your indulgence (I love every kind of sweet, dessert, etc...but I'm usually pretty good at not indulging but to stay on track, I try to log in everything as I'm eating it or preparing it and then at the end of the day, I try to keep 100-200 calories left for my glass of wine, scoop of Greek Frozen Yogurt (which I don't really count as a cheat because I do 1/4 cup which is about 55 cals and 4g of Protein) or a chocolate. One thing I've found helpful to help fill me up so I'm not having cravings because I'm hungry, is add iceberg lettuce shreds into as many things as I can (i.e. if I make a burrito, instead of eating it like that, I will cut it up and mix it with the lettuce and eat it that way), The lettuce is mostly fiber, water, and potassium (which is really important to keep an eye on because you want your potassium and sodium intakes to be as close to equal as possible which is difficult because most processed foods are really high in sodium and typically you need raw foods to get a good quanitity of potassium. Also drink lots of water however you have to do it. I use Mio so much I should probably buy stock in it, but that's what keeps me drinking my water (and it's 0 cal, but it's sweet enough that I don't crave sweets throughout the day as much).

    The other option is just plan more time to workout (or fun social activities like hiking or playing sports on the weekends to allow you to have that cheat). I don't plan extra workouts for my weekends, but I do have one weekend a month that I have to work and I have to spend an hr at the gym that weekend for my job so I make that my one cheat weekend that I can have whatever I want as a reward for being good the rest of the month.

    (FYI, I just joined last week, that's why it says I've only lost 2lbs so far, but my work only allowed me 6 months to lose my 45lbs of baby weight (I was still up 45lbs when I came home from the hospital) and be back down to smaller than a 34.5" waist after I had my daughter and I was able to do it in 4 1/2 months just by doing most of what I listed above <for me that was 1200 cals a day, plus I aimed for 500 cals of cardio a day with abs and arms>
  • squirrelythegreat
    squirrelythegreat Posts: 158 Member
    I solved this problem for myself by fasting for 24 hours. I eat when I get up Friday night then fast until I get up Saturday night. It's not for everyone by any means, but it works for me. Plus its a nice mental exercise.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    I have a rough time on my days off as well. I think it's because my time is not regimented, so it's much harder for me to be disciplined. Plus, I'm not in control over what type of food is around me at home, whereas I can decide exactly what to take and not to take to work with me. I'm still learning to overcome, I've gone over my calories on all of my days off so far. I'll get there.
  • maegmez
    maegmez Posts: 341 Member
    You should enjoy the foods you love. I never deprive myself of foods I love, I just eat them in moderation or if they are a really bad food, they get made over to be more healthier. There are lots of foods I no longer eat but have found so many more that are similar.

    These are lifelong journeys and in order to stay on these journeys, you need to enjoy your foods! :)
  • Loulounr2
    Loulounr2 Posts: 3 Member
    I have the same problem. The children get to eat what they choose(with a limit) it's hard to not pig out with them.
  • neanderthin
    neanderthin Posts: 10,222 Member
    Weekends are for most people the time to kick back and not adhere to the weekly obligatory state of mind. Time for a glass a wine and that cheese that's been calling my name all week.:smile:
  • marycmeadows
    marycmeadows Posts: 1,691 Member
    The weekend usually allows more freedom - during the week your schedule is more regimented with work/school and whatever else you have. I tend to stay relatively structured on the weekend too, but that's just me. However, the moment my fiance isn't on his regular schedule, he forgets simple things like taking his medicine in the morning!