Balancing an "over" day with an "under" day

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lly123
lly123 Posts: 10
in Health and Weight Loss
I almost always go over my calorie goal on Fridays because my husband and I like to go out to dinner (with wine) and I generally can't fit a workout in after work on Fridays. I usually eat a little bit under my goal the following day or two in an attempt to balance out the Friday calories. I have been assuming that I'm not completely off track if my calories balance out to my daily goal over two or three days, but I'm wondering if I'm sabotaging my progress with that strategy. Any thoughts?

Replies

  • Rockstar_JILL
    Rockstar_JILL Posts: 514 Member
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    How has it been working for you so far? It is all about what works for YOU!
  • luvmydog2
    luvmydog2 Posts: 243 Member
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    :happy: We call that zig Sagging .... :bigsmile: .... works for me .
  • krawhitham
    krawhitham Posts: 831 Member
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    I do the same thing! I'll even average my calories from the past 7 days to tell me how I have to eat for the next 7. If I have been evening everything out, I keep at my same goals to hit 1400-1600 a day, if I am way over (as I have been in the past 7 days) I average the amount of cals that I'm over by the next 7 days, and make sure I hit those calorie goals. Then, after the week I'll go back to hitting about 1600-1700 a day.

    Does that make any sense? I feel like I just rambled...
  • BinaryPulsar
    BinaryPulsar Posts: 8,927 Member
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    It's ok. A lot of people set a weekly goal.
  • MB2MN
    MB2MN Posts: 334 Member
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    Perfectly fine, especially if you want more maintain this lifestyle. There will be days that you want to eat more or eat more caloric things and thats totally fine. You don't gain in a day, you don't lose in a day it's all about the aggregate.
  • EricMurano
    EricMurano Posts: 825 Member
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    +1 for thinking it's ok. As long as you feel good and you're not starving then I think it'd be fine.
  • ederms
    ederms Posts: 1
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    I am sorry I do not agree. The body is a wonderfully developed machine and just balancing calories is too simple. On the days you eat less your body burns less so the fact that you eat 2000 calories one day and zero the next is not the same as eating 1000 each day. The less you eat the harder to burn calories. That said if it is working great, but things are never so simple when the body is involved.
  • palmerdanielle
    palmerdanielle Posts: 341 Member
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    I think you'll be fine, look at all the people who do intermittent fasting, they seem to be losing fine. They tend to look at it as calories per week I think not entirely sure. I don't know if I could do IF but do what works for you. I do the same, if I have a bad day, I'll try the next to keep at of under calories and get back on track.
  • MelisaBegins
    MelisaBegins Posts: 161 Member
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    I give myself one "free" meal every week, and I don't cut calories to make up for it. In my late 20's I did a program called Body For Life that allowed one whole free DAY a week (hello, doughnuts!) but now that I'm - ahem - a bit older, I think that one free meal per week is reasonable. For me (can't speak for anyone else). I've been losing about 2 pounds a week using this plan.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
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    I am sorry I do not agree. The body is a wonderfully developed machine and just balancing calories is too simple. On the days you eat less your body burns less so the fact that you eat 2000 calories one day and zero the next is not the same as eating 1000 each day. The less you eat the harder to burn calories. That said if it is working great, but things are never so simple when the body is involved.

    This is incorrect.

    OP: It's all good.
  • Rayman79
    Rayman79 Posts: 2,009 Member
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    I am sorry I do not agree. The body is a wonderfully developed machine and just balancing calories is too simple. On the days you eat less your body burns less so the fact that you eat 2000 calories one day and zero the next is not the same as eating 1000 each day. The less you eat the harder to burn calories. That said if it is working great, but things are never so simple when the body is involved.

    Solid first post!




    not srs

    OP you will be fine! I have found during times of the year that have a lot of events on (eg the holiday season) I'll adjust my calories to trim off a couple of hundred each day (Monday to Friday) and give my self a buffer for the weekends.

    For example if my normal caloric intake is 2000 per day, I'll eat at 1800 Mon-Fri, and 2500 on the weekends. There is some evidence to suggest that cycling calorie intake can even be beneficial (in terms of both long term adherence and hormonally (due to the higher calorie days).
  • Thatsdatdiva601
    Thatsdatdiva601 Posts: 209 Member
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    That's exactly what I've been doing..working for me so far!
  • David_AUS
    David_AUS Posts: 298 Member
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    From my personal experience and others you can easily consider a 48 hour cycle for calories. Even though some will call it an over simplification generally speaking if you are at calorie target if you bias more calories in the the first 24 and cut in the next 24 to overall eating balanced calories - the overall effect is either relatively neutral or if anything slightly beneficial as your body. You can do this in reverse also less in the preceding 24 hours - you may find less "jitter" in the scales that way also.
  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
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    I balance my calories over the course of each week...some days over, some days under. It seems to be working fine.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
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    It's the weekly goal that counts not the daily. I sometimes eat less on some days and more on others.
  • Sharon_C
    Sharon_C Posts: 2,132 Member
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    I have an Excel spreadsheet and log my calories there. As long as I'm under on a weekly basis I don't worry about it. We all have good days and bad days. As long as the good days outnumber the bad ones we're doing good.
  • lly123
    lly123 Posts: 10
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    Thanks for all the feedback -- I'll feel much less stressed about Friday night dinners out after all those reassuring responses. I'm counting calories for the first time at age 49, and if I'm going to the trouble of tracking everything I eat, I want to do it right! But it sounds like there's some flexibility from day to day, which will make it much easier for me to stay on track in the long run.
  • sarafischbach9
    sarafischbach9 Posts: 466 Member
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    I think that can work.

    Just as long as you still feel like you are making progress ( the scale is going down, losing inches, clothes feeling looser or better, etc )

    Some days are just really hard. ( can't fit in a work out, having to go out to eat )

    I eat more on some days and less on other days. It all evens out at the end.
  • cardsfanlv
    cardsfanlv Posts: 110 Member
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    If it works for you..

    What I would do is try to get a better workout the next day.. burn those extra calories.

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