weekends kill me

20carrots
20carrots Posts: 279 Member
edited September 22 in Motivation and Support
I absolutely undo all my hard work on the weekends. It's time to socialize, eat something new...how can I not let weekends ruin my progress? (without sticking to a "normal" day as that would be too depressing and not sustainable)

Replies

  • MzToyah
    MzToyah Posts: 27 Member
    Even if you go out to eat, try to eat something healthy. Stay away from fried foods, breads, and etc. Drink water. Try anything broiled, grilled, baked. Share a meal or eat off the kids menu. You can still enjoy your weekend without over doing it. Work out in the mornings too!! The weekends are very hard but I believe if you do well all week its ok to splurg a little on the weekends, but just try to have control over it!!

    I went to Red Lobster this weekend and i only ate 500 calories. No bread for me, and I only had water to drink. I did share a dessert but I ate less than half. I was very satisfied too!!
  • jrich1
    jrich1 Posts: 2,408 Member
    Honestly, to lose weight you have to make decisions and realize what is important to you. Starting out you might want to limit maybe to one meal or something and then eventually just do "cheats" every couple or every few weeks. But with 138lbs to lose, you might need to stick to some normal days for a while.
  • carl1738
    carl1738 Posts: 444 Member
    You could try to control portion size when you're "trying something new", exercise more earlier in the day to allow yourself more calories, or try to fit it into your diet by cutting back a little bit on your meals and snacks before you go out. Strength training would be an excellent choice because it elevates your body's metabolism for up to 48 hours after you workout.
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  • ChubbieTubbie
    ChubbieTubbie Posts: 481 Member
    Weekends used to kill me too. Sometimes they still do! Saturday I binged and ended the day with 2100 calories eaten, although I did exercise extra to compensate for the 600 over I was. A lot of what I ate was high sodium and just garbage, though, and my scale shows me 4 pounds heavier today. I know that's impossible, because I didn't eat 14000 calories, but it's discouraging. What I found works really well for me is to set aside one meal that you'll allow yourself as a treat if you must have a cheat day. Dinner alone blew my calories on Saturday because it was nearly 1200 calories with sodas and whatnot, but I told myself that it was date night and I deserved one meal per month where I don't worry about calories. Now if I did that for every meal over the weekend, I'd be really, really regretting it on Monday, you know? But I can work off one meal. I try to do a little more exercising on the weekends than I do during the week in anticipation that I will be off on my goals. I also try to make better choices--drinking water if we eat out, skipping an appetizer and dessert, etc. I've found after 6 weeks of living my life on a calorie budget that I'm not as hungry as I used to be, and I don't eat as much. Did I actually eat 1200 calories at dinner on Saturday? Who knows, because I didn't finish my meal so I can't accurately gauge how many I did eat. Sub out items...get a side salad or a baked potato (without all of the extras!) instead of fries. Choose chicken instead of a burger. Grilled instead of fried. If you want to go out drinking, allow yourself one drink and then drink water or be the designated driver. If you know you're going to blow it on Saturday, exercise a bit more during the week--3500 calories per pound, if you exercise 500 calories more per day, you have a bit more 'wiggle room'.
  • butterfly25
    butterfly25 Posts: 186 Member
    i go threw the samething all the time and i hate it...but cant beat myself up over it..monday starts a new week!!!



    quote]
    I absolutely undo all my hard work on the weekends. It's time to socialize, eat something new...how can I not let weekends ruin my progress? (without sticking to a "normal" day as that would be too depressing and not sustainable)
    [/quote]
  • cbirdso
    cbirdso Posts: 465 Member
    Even though it is the weekend, try to plan your menu ahead of time. If this includes foods and beverages you won't allow yourself during the week, so be it, but make it a conscience choice, one you are willing to feel good about. Bynsky, carl1738 and others had some good advice: make your excercise sessions slightly longer or more intense on the weekends and be aware of portion sizes.

    If all of that seems too daunting, try this plan: record everthing you eat and do on the weekends without reservation. Do it on paper separately from MFP if it seems too embarrassing to be completely honest with yourself. Then the next weekend, commit to yourself that you will change just ONE thing only. See how that goes and when you are ready, try to change just one more thing until you are happy with your choices.
  • 20carrots
    20carrots Posts: 279 Member
    Honestly, to lose weight you have to make decisions and realize what is important to you. Starting out you might want to limit maybe to one meal or something and then eventually just do "cheats" every couple or every few weeks. But with 138lbs to lose, you might need to stick to some normal days for a while.

    138 is my goal weight! I have approx 15 lbs to lose. Does that change your advice?
  • OhyesIam
    OhyesIam Posts: 16
    I also had a hard time on the weekends. So I made my "weigh in" and "measuring" on Mondays. It just gave me more incentive to watch myself on Sat and Sundays.
  • 20carrots
    20carrots Posts: 279 Member
    I also had a hard time on the weekends. So I made my "weigh in" and "measuring" on Mondays. It just gave me more incentive to watch myself on Sat and Sundays.

    I "weigh in" every day and just watch the scale go up and down most weeks by approx 2lbs. This must be hurting me more than I realized.
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  • elainegsd
    elainegsd Posts: 459 Member
    Baby steps. Face each decision and do a little better each time. Instead of having french fries with your burger, have a salad and notice how you feel after. Have one beer and nurse it for a LONG time instead of having two or three. Park at the other end of the parking lot so you walk more. Little changes add up and doing things slowly takes away the jarring part of eating healthy and makes it SO much more sustainable!

    Changing your lifestyle can't be a black and white thing. You've got to slide through all kinds of shades of grey to get from one place to the other!
  • Lunarokra
    Lunarokra Posts: 855 Member
    Same here, I tried to do good yesterday & eat grilled fish & salad fro lunch. I received an invite for dinner and couldn't refuse, so I blew it.

    I am getting back on the horse today as Butterfly25 suggests.

    I do not beat up myself for it, I will intensify my workout.
  • ChubbieTubbie
    ChubbieTubbie Posts: 481 Member
    I also had a hard time on the weekends. So I made my "weigh in" and "measuring" on Mondays. It just gave me more incentive to watch myself on Sat and Sundays.

    I "weigh in" every day and just watch the scale go up and down most weeks by approx 2lbs. This must be hurting me more than I realized.

    In order to have gained 2 lb over the weekend, you would have had to eat an extra 7000 calories on top of your maintenance calories. If you didn't do that, it's probably just water retention.
  • meka0703
    meka0703 Posts: 4
    I feel your pain! Weekends are a big problem for me too. Now that its football season - Lord help me! There is usually someone over at the house - my husband and I are entertaining - and there is always plenty of alcoholic beverages to drink! I must get better.
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
    Plan everything out as much as possible - look up restaurant menus ahead of time or mentally think about what type of food they serve and what you can order that shouldn't be too bad. Stick to the plan, and say NO to appetizers/free bread/etc.

    If you're going to a social gathering where you don't know what will be available (tailgating, parties, etc.) then just remember: only YOU control what goes in your mouth. I know it can feel awkward to say no to delicious food at gathering like that, but it's entirely mental. If other people have a problem with your food choices, then that's THEIR problem, not yours. Learn to say no. Try to snack on the heathier choices in situations like that - veggie trays, salads, etc. Try to stay away from dips/sauces. Stick to water, or make a single beer/non-water drink last for a long time. It helps me when I keep a cup/bottle of water in my hand - I don't feel as weird when I have something in my hand.

    Other people suggested upping your exercise - this is a great idea when you know you'll be going out that night, or if you overdid it in the morning then you can workout in the evening. Earn some of those extra calories!!

    Learning to say no is like exercising a muscle - the more you use it, the stronger your saying no muscle will get. The more you ignore it, the weaker it will be. Exercise that muscle!!!
  • pratrat150
    pratrat150 Posts: 20
    Weekends kill me too! The going out to eat and the drinks are what really mess me up. I like the planning and extra exercise advice. If you are heading to the bars- nurse, nurse, nurse. Also, avoid sugary mixers and use soda water instead.

    The planning trick works REALLY well. I look up menus and decide on what I want and commit to only eating half. For dessert, unless you can eat it and say "Damn, that was TOTALLY worth it" don't bother. If its not something amazing, its not worth the extra calories.

    Any advice on cheat meals? What are yall's restrictions on cheat meals? How often do you do it?
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