Daily Count versus Weekly Count
ZhaoWei76
Posts: 37 Member
I apologize if others have posted this before, but are there many people out there who do a weekly total for calories, as opposed to a daily count?
Since I started in January, I've been doing about 1250 calories a day... But I've been wondering lately about the practice of having a weekly limit instead... For example, if I'm under calories today, can I apply those calories tomorrow...
Granted, I wouldn't be under very often, because I already set my number so low (and I try not to be too low each day), but for when I know I'll need it, I'd consider leaving some room for the next day.... For example, I'm going to the Fair tomorrow... Might get a nice snack, cuz - Fair Food... But I don't want to go over if I don't have to, and today, if I don't over snack, I'd maybe have a couple hundred calories left over (plus I have calories from earlier in the week from exercise)...
In general, anyone utilizing weekly totals instead of daily totals, and if so, is it working for you? Thanks in advance for any information ya'll can provide...
Since I started in January, I've been doing about 1250 calories a day... But I've been wondering lately about the practice of having a weekly limit instead... For example, if I'm under calories today, can I apply those calories tomorrow...
Granted, I wouldn't be under very often, because I already set my number so low (and I try not to be too low each day), but for when I know I'll need it, I'd consider leaving some room for the next day.... For example, I'm going to the Fair tomorrow... Might get a nice snack, cuz - Fair Food... But I don't want to go over if I don't have to, and today, if I don't over snack, I'd maybe have a couple hundred calories left over (plus I have calories from earlier in the week from exercise)...
In general, anyone utilizing weekly totals instead of daily totals, and if so, is it working for you? Thanks in advance for any information ya'll can provide...
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Replies
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Many people like to follow a weekly goal, such as myself. It makes it easier.
Sometimes you can eat less during the week, so that you do have a larger calorie allowance on the weekends for fun stuff.
As long as you stick to your weekly goal then you can calorie cycle throughout the week.
Also your cell phone app has a weekly goal page under the nutrition tab.0 -
the body works more in a weekly time frame as opposed to daily. so just make sure your weekly total is in line with your goal.
the daily aspect helps many people stay on course, but unless you are crazy OCD like me or need that daily check to stay consistent, just go with weekly.0 -
I think alot of people look at the bigger scale #s.
Personally I track/aim daily but always try to have my goal deficit (now 250/day) plus another 100-150 to 'spare'. For accidental errors and such. And occasionally I'll have a day where I just aim for maintenance. That way I can have the odd 'high' day but its easier for me to think of things day by day. Going from a weekly budget would be easy to get to the end and be out of calories for the day.
And when I know I'm going to have an unusual meal, I will log/plan in advance the entire day.0 -
Hi, I lean towards doing a weekly calorie count.
My other half is away mid week so I can do a lower count for two days and leave a few calories extra for wine and cheesecake at the weekend.
It is a modified 5:2, I suppose, and it works for me.0 -
This is the first time I am hearing about this concept. So for tracking weekly calorie goals, do you enter all your weekly calories into one day in the diary? sorry if this is a dumb question.0
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I understand what you're saying, and it makes sense hypothetically. But your body timer resets overnight [whenever you sleep] That's why calories reset daily. But our bodies need new sets of vitamins and nutrients everyday. My consideration for you is to raise your calorie intake, and make sure you work out several times a week. you burn 1200 cals a day by breathing and bodily functions. if you eat too little your body will go into starvation mode, and you will begin to gain weight. its a natural body reaction to not getting properly fed. please keep that in mind, though the choice in general is up to you. a net of 50 calories a day is not safe, it may work for a little while, but eventually you will stop losing and start gaining as your body begins to turn everything into lipid cells which group together and become fat cells.
but again just based on your question, your body isnt at&t and you dont typically get roll over calories0 -
Awesome, I didn't know phone app had that feature. Good to know, thanks
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I generally have been thinking of calories as a weekly thing! I'm also dabbling in 5:2 fasting though, so having higher and lower calorie days works for me. Also just lifestyle wise, I like to indulge especially on the weekends and feel better about it when I balance the scales with a super low cal day or two during the week.
But like everything else in this new way of eating for me, I will continue to do it this way as long as it works for me for my lifestyle, and as long as I'm losing weight. If the scale starts not moving, or I feel like crap energy wise, I'll change things up.0 -
Let me start by saying: This is ANECDOTAL...this has been MY PERSONAL experience.
An occasional overdose of calories during the week so long as it is isn't superoutrageous (read:more than 3000 caloies OVER my daily budget) will not affect my weight loss. I went over the week after Thanksgiving last year and still saw a drop in weight. As long as I am at or under my budget for about 5 of the 7 days, I see a drop.
Would I PERSONALLY find it easy to think weekly instead of daily in terms of caloric/nutrition goals? Not really...but if it works for you, what the hay...
TLDR version: Occasional bad day no big deal but I need the daily accountability to keep from going crazy.0 -
I understand what you're saying, and it makes sense hypothetically. But your body timer resets overnight [whenever you sleep] That's why calories reset daily. But our bodies need new sets of vitamins and nutrients everyday. My consideration for you is to raise your calorie intake, and make sure you work out several times a week. you burn 1200 cals a day by breathing and bodily functions. if you eat too little your body will go into starvation mode, and you will begin to gain weight. its a natural body reaction to not getting properly fed. please keep that in mind, though the choice in general is up to you. a net of 50 calories a day is not safe, it may work for a little while, but eventually you will stop losing and start gaining as your body begins to turn everything into lipid cells which group together and become fat cells.
but again just based on your question, your body isnt at&t and you dont typically get roll over calories
Starvation mode alert!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Your whole response just became irrelevant.
I generally don't condone 1200 calories a day type diet, but I do know some people have to eat at that level for various reasons so I wouldn't question that without more information.
Also, for many people basing your calories on a weekly cycle works really well. There is nothing wrong with eating light for a couple days if you know you have an event coming up that you will need more calories. I know some people on here that eat at 1250 calories during the week days, because it is easier for them to restrict then. This way they have more calories to work with on the weekend. This process has not stopped them from losing weight. In fact I have done it in the past and would still lose weight that next week.
Your body does not have a 24 hour clock built into it that says, "it is midnight, time to reset your calorie counter". that is ridiculous.
Edited because of my mad typing skills :drinker:0 -
I understand what you're saying, and it makes sense hypothetically. But your body timer resets overnight [whenever you sleep] That's why calories reset daily. But our bodies need new sets of vitamins and nutrients everyday. My consideration for you is to raise your calorie intake, and make sure you work out several times a week. you burn 1200 cals a day by breathing and bodily functions. if you eat too little your body will go into starvation mode, and you will begin to gain weight. its a natural body reaction to not getting properly fed. please keep that in mind, though the choice in general is up to you. a net of 50 calories a day is not safe, it may work for a little while, but eventually you will stop losing and start gaining as your body begins to turn everything into lipid cells which group together and become fat cells.
but again just based on your question, your body isnt at&t and you dont typically get roll over calories
?? Where are you getting this info, because it seems very odd. For instance, I'm positive the body CAN store nutrients. Vitamin D can be stored for a few months for example (think winter months when sun is not high enough to produce UVA/B rays. Also the idea of a healthy, overweight person going into "starvation mode" is just plain silly.
Weekly amounts are what all reports from Fitbit are based on. You can compare your weekly deficit with your weight loss to see if you are logging accurately.
Something I read in a post recently, which I thought was brilliant, was pre-logging a pint of ice cream by adding 1/4 the calories for each of the next 4 days. That way they can eat however much they want in the next 4 days without having to worry about weighing the ice cream or having exactly one serving.0 -
Tons of people do the weekly thing. The phone app itself shows you your weekly total and deficit.0
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I understand what you're saying, and it makes sense hypothetically. But your body timer resets overnight [whenever you sleep] That's why calories reset daily. But our bodies need new sets of vitamins and nutrients everyday. My consideration for you is to raise your calorie intake, and make sure you work out several times a week. you burn 1200 cals a day by breathing and bodily functions. if you eat too little your body will go into starvation mode, and you will begin to gain weight. its a natural body reaction to not getting properly fed. please keep that in mind, though the choice in general is up to you. a net of 50 calories a day is not safe, it may work for a little while, but eventually you will stop losing and start gaining as your body begins to turn everything into lipid cells which group together and become fat cells.
but again just based on your question, your body isnt at&t and you dont typically get roll over calories
Are you intentionally trying to fit all the terribly inaccurate weight loss myths into one post? Or was that an accident?
Starvation mode as you've explained it doesn't exist. Your body will not "create" fat cells if you don't eat enough. If you don't eat enough, you'll lose weight still. You'll be unhealthy, but you will still lose weight.
You don't burn 1,200 calories a day by breathing. 1,200 is a common caloric guideline for women (1,800 for men), but what you actually burn by breathing and being a human being depends on what you actually eat.
And finally, there is no difference in aiming for a daily caloric deficit or a weekly caloric deficit. Both are perfectly fine, acceptable and healthy ways to approach weight loss.0 -
Your body does not have a 24 hour clock built into it that says, "it is midnight, time to reset your calorie counter". that is ridiculous.
Thank you for saying this, I was just about to :drinker:0 -
This is the first time I am hearing about this concept. So for tracking weekly calorie goals, do you enter all your weekly calories into one day in the diary? sorry if this is a dumb question.
Some just keep track of the extra or debt calories, and just track normally on a daily basis. For example if your goal is 1500 and you ate 1300 today, 1400 tomorrow and 1600 after tomorrow that's 300+100-100=300 extra calories you can eat on day 4 (have 1800)... etc.
Personally I have prepared a spreadsheet for myself to make things more automated. Here is what it looks like:
I'm currently maintaining for a bit, and I was successfully able to with only 193 calories more than I should have had. It was spot on for me because I did not gain or lose.0 -
Weightwatchers lets you account for extra calories by allowing you extra points each week that you can apply throughout the week, or to any one day. I find it works well, and you don't get really upset when I am over, because I have that extra leeway!:drinker:0
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@amusedmonkey ah! I finally got an answer. THANKS!! It's kind of a similar to what they do in Weight Watchers where you can "bank" calories.0
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This is the first time I am hearing about this concept. So for tracking weekly calorie goals, do you enter all your weekly calories into one day in the diary? sorry if this is a dumb question.
Just pre-log for the week. Enter in what you plan on eating for each day so you can get an idea of what your weekly total will look like. This is what I do so I know what I've got to work with.0 -
I prefer to do the weekly count. It's a lot easier because some days (like yesterday) I go over... but other days, especially days when I'm really busy, I end up quite under! It's too exhausting to get upset every time I go over my daily goal, or worry every time I come in too low. Much better in my opinion to look at the week as a whole and make sure I'm generally on track.
Anyone who does the same, feel free to send me a FR! OP, I'm sending one your way.0 -
I understand what you're saying, and it makes sense hypothetically. But your body timer resets overnight [whenever you sleep] That's why calories reset daily. But our bodies need new sets of vitamins and nutrients everyday. My consideration for you is to raise your calorie intake, and make sure you work out several times a week. you burn 1200 cals a day by breathing and bodily functions. if you eat too little your body will go into starvation mode, and you will begin to gain weight. its a natural body reaction to not getting properly fed. please keep that in mind, though the choice in general is up to you. a net of 50 calories a day is not safe, it may work for a little while, but eventually you will stop losing and start gaining as your body begins to turn everything into lipid cells which group together and become fat cells.
but again just based on your question, your body isnt at&t and you dont typically get roll over calories
So much false information here....OP just ignore this0 -
This is the first time I am hearing about this concept. So for tracking weekly calorie goals, do you enter all your weekly calories into one day in the diary? sorry if this is a dumb question.
Not a dumb question! This is actually the one bone to pick I have with MFP - they don't have this feature on the actual website. But on the app, you can go to nutrition and then click weekly and it will show your calorie totals for the week and say if you're over or under your weekly goal. It's really handy.0 -
Thank you also JoanJett and Lauren for your input I learned lots today. :drinker:0
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I apologize if others have posted this before, but are there many people out there who do a weekly total for calories, as opposed to a daily count?
Since I started in January, I've been doing about 1250 calories a day... But I've been wondering lately about the practice of having a weekly limit instead... For example, if I'm under calories today, can I apply those calories tomorrow...
Granted, I wouldn't be under very often, because I already set my number so low (and I try not to be too low each day), but for when I know I'll need it, I'd consider leaving some room for the next day.... For example, I'm going to the Fair tomorrow... Might get a nice snack, cuz - Fair Food... But I don't want to go over if I don't have to, and today, if I don't over snack, I'd maybe have a couple hundred calories left over (plus I have calories from earlier in the week from exercise)...
In general, anyone utilizing weekly totals instead of daily totals, and if so, is it working for you? Thanks in advance for any information ya'll can provide...
What really matters is your net position overall over the course of time...daily...weekly...monthly...yearly...whatever...it really doesn't matter...
When I gained my weight, it was about 40 Lbs over the course of 8 years...that averages out to a trend of roughly a 250 calorie surplus per month...but there were most certainly weeks and months when i was substantially over and weeks and months when I was undoubtedly in a deficit or at maintenance...but my net position over time was that of a surplus of energy thus causing my body to store fat and ultimately weight gain (albeit very slowly).
It works the exact same in reverse for weigh loss. It's your overall net position that counts. That said, you're already eating very low calories at 1250...I would hesitate to eat much less than that even if you're planning to eat more at a later date, particularly if you're exercising...your body needs energy now, not five days from now.0 -
I focus more on my weekly count because one day isn't going to make or break you. That doesn't mean eat more than your BMR for 2 days and fast all the others. I usually have a day or two a week that I go over my daily goal (esp with football season in full swing). Since I've still got a lot to lose and exercise quite a bit, I usually end up well under my weekly calorie goal even with a day or two over. As I get close to my goal that margin will shrink, but I think a weekly focus works fine.0
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Thank you to everyone for your answers, opinions, and information... It was very helpful, indeed...
Personally, I would still track daily... My goal is always to be under on calories for the day... But if I tried the weekly intake, it would be more about little amounts leftover each day, that could then be used later... So even if I stayed at 1,200 from Monday thru Friday, that would give me an extra 250 calories to use on Saturday... Or if I went over by 200 on Tuesday, I'd just try to save room the rest of the week...
As it is, I'm exercising more now than I was when I started, but not nearly as much as I'm sure others are... I've lost about 55 pounds since January, mainly staying at my calorie deficit (with some walking or eliptical thrown in, but not a consistent thing)... So at 1,250 calories, It's not like I'm not burning 1,000 calories and only netting 250... I'm maybe burning 150 calories a day from walking (if I'm tracking it correctly)...
That said, I generally won't eat back exercise calories, because I don't get them that often (although in the last month or two I've gotten to walking at least 3 or 4 days a week)... I might go over the 1,250 by like 100 or something on those days, but I try not to...
I didn't know about that feature on the phone app, so thanks for that, as well... I do use my phone often to track, so that will be helpful to know...
Also, thanks for the spreadsheet idea... I do like to track things in Excel, so that might be useful for experimenting with the weekly totals, instead of daily...
I'm thinking I might give it a try for a week or two, see how I like it... It sounds like most people who've tried it have still lost weight..0
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