Using exercise calories after a day of excessive eating

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sorellew
sorellew Posts: 8
in Fitness and Exercise
Hi all. I really went overboard over the weekend, and I would say that I ate at least 700 calories more than I should have on Saturday. Even after a 7-mile run this morning, I still weighed in 3.3 pounds heavier this morning. The question is do I use my exercise calories - despite yesterday's pigging out - or do I not use them so I can get back to my pre-weekend weight? I know in general you ARE supposed to use your exercise calories, but I really don't want to derail my progress with my weekend slip. Help!

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  • jpicard1080
    jpicard1080 Posts: 1
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    Just stay consistent to what you were doing before. 700 calories won't set you back much if at all so long as its very occasional. The 3.3 lbs is probably mostly water - especially if you ate in a restaurant those foods have tons of sodium and will cause you to bloat and retain water.
  • lshipley1
    lshipley1 Posts: 33 Member
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    I don't think one day of over-eating has caused any permanent damage. It happens to me alot. Get back on track and those 3 pounds will disappear in no time
  • dta4ever
    dta4ever Posts: 27 Member
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    I agree. I think those 3 pounds were water weight because you probably had too much sodium. Don't stress over it! They will come back off.
  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
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    You cannot gain 3.3 lbs of fat by consuming 700 calories over your calorie goal. It takes approximately 3,500 calories to make 1 lb of fat. That would be 3,500 calories over your TDEE (total daily energy expenditure). If you are aiming to lose weight, then your daily calorie goal is a number lower than your TDEE. So, for example, if you are set to lose 1 lb a week, your calorie deficit will be 500 calories, and so you will have exceeded your TDEE for that day by 200 calories. If you hit your calorie goal the day before, that would have more than cancelled out the 200 excess calories. You will still be at a deficit for the week. There is no need to make up for this in any way.

    The 3.3 extra lbs will likely be water retention from extra carbs and/or sodium, as well as the weight of extra food/waste in your system. You can also retain water when you do a more strenuous workout than usual. You'll be back to normal in a few days.

    Even if you had gone much further over, one day, or one weekend is never going to completely derail your success. What matters is how you eat most of the time, not on one isolated day. Just carry on as you were.
  • 1123dre
    1123dre Posts: 5
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    Stop eating rocks! Sorry, I could not resist. Don't think about the 700 calories in one day. Think about the week overall, ratios of protein to carbs to fat overall, and how you can continue to make good decisions over time. Who knows maybe your body needed an Off Day. :)
  • sorellew
    sorellew Posts: 8
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    Thanks guys. If it was just the one day, then maybe I'd be more chilled. But it's pretty much every Saturday, once a week. The rest of the week, I'm strict, but sadly on Saturdays I tend to let go.

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