Rollover Calories

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LeonaB17
LeonaB17 Posts: 304
in Health and Weight Loss
Does anyone roll over their calories to the next day or save them up for a day later in the week when you know you will be eating more? I haven't been doing this - but I've kinda thought about it and wondered if anyone else has done this. I have probably unintentionally done something similar - under cals some days, then end up over one day - but I didn't plan it or really think about it. So I wondered if anyone does this as a weight loss technique.

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  • cccathyyy
    cccathyyy Posts: 207 Member
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    curious.... bump
  • rebecky27
    rebecky27 Posts: 842 Member
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    I was just thinking about this the other day. I haven't done it, but wondered if it all balances out. I'm so under some days do to exercise and not being able to eat back all the calories, but somedays I'm over.

    I kind of compared it to when I was on WW and you had those "Flex Points." Curious to see other's responses.
  • nantzh
    nantzh Posts: 7 Member
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    I would think that this idea really wouldnt work as good as it sounds. Those extra calories will be stored as fat and its easier for the body to store them today than it will be for it to burn that fat three days from now.
  • lilmisslanna
    lilmisslanna Posts: 104 Member
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    I started doing this.. but I read up about it and it's called zig zagging or calorie cycling... I keep my larger calorie days for the weekend.. as long as at the end of the week it calculates out the same. It has helped me lose : )
  • DEE4560
    DEE4560 Posts: 139
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    I've often wondered this myself. I would think in a 24 hour period it could be considered but maybe not in a weeks time. Curious as well to know.
  • PeachyKeene
    PeachyKeene Posts: 1,645 Member
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    I don't roll over calories, but it seems to be working for you. Congrats on the weightloss! Keep up the great work!
  • scgma
    scgma Posts: 185 Member
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    I think it is better to be consistant...about the same daily. But I am sure there is a diet out there that does roll over, just like some have "cheat days". I guess it depends on your goal...for me I am trying to get healthy so I focus on portions..if I want some chocolate - I would pick a dark and eat a small amount.
  • beccala18
    beccala18 Posts: 293 Member
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    I know that's basically how the old Weight Watchers program worked - you could "save" up your points for a big meal you knew was coming or something like that. I also do it unintentionally some days.

    I guess if you did it every once in a while if you knew you had some big night out and went a little lighter the rest of the week on calories, it would work, but as a general practice, it doesn't seem like a good idea.
  • crazyeaCHANGED
    crazyeaCHANGED Posts: 84
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    It's perfectly fine if you average your calories out over a week at most. If you are eating the same calories every day, it makes it easier for your body to plateu. In all things, moderation is the key. Try not to eat less than your maintenance amount if you can help it, and use exercise calories as roll over.
  • kao708
    kao708 Posts: 813 Member
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    Doing this CAN work; however, it's hard to monitor on MFP because they don't actually roll over the calories for you. That being said, going high one day and low another (alternating throughout the week) could help you jump start your weight loss should you hit a plateau. Just make sure you don't go over the calories you are allowed for the entire week and it should all come out in the end. I'd also make sure you avoid a "high" day just before your weigh in.
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
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    The calorie zig zagging really keeps your body guessing so as long as you're not going crazy like completely skipping lunch and breakfast to save up for a big dinner ( I know people who do this and it drives me crazy lol) it would be fine. You shouldn't have a 1000 calorie difference from day to day more like 200-300. In the end as long as you're putting out more calories in one week then you're taking in then I say try it and see if it makes a difference for you!
  • sparrow747
    sparrow747 Posts: 87
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    this sort of happened to me last week by accident... the first half of the week i was on track or under my calorie goals and had several good work outs, and the last half i had family visiting so my calorie counts were a little high (but we did lots of walking while they were here). i assumed i hadnt dropped a pound, but was pleased to see at my weigh-in that i'd still lost 2 pounds in those 10 days! granted, i wasn't consuming a large amount over (200-500 extra calories those days with family - thanks to bonus booze!) but i think it helped me having some reserves for those days and still being active.
  • Louiselesley
    Louiselesley Posts: 166 Member
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    I do this un-intentionally at the weekend. I tend to have much larger dinners at the weekend cause I eat out on a Saturday and I have a big family dinner on a Sunday - thanks to daily activities and waking hours, my food intake is scattered and I normally end up with a low day and a high day ><!
  • NikkisNewStart
    NikkisNewStart Posts: 1,100 Member
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    I have done this several times throughout the last 8 months and it has worked for me... I prefer to use the MFP app which has the weekly tab... it helps me see how much of a deficit or overage I'm running for the week and that keeps me from micromanaging every single calorie... as long as I hit my net goal for the WEEK, then I am good. When in weight loss mode, doing things this way helped me average around 2 lbs a week loss. It also helped me on days where I knew I would be hitting the gym hard (getting a 600 or 700 cal burn when I knew I couldn't eat all of those cals for the day) to spread the love to the days where life happened and I had a small burn or didn't get in a formal workout at all... as long as the big picture for the week showed a net of my goal... then I was winning.

    It literally kept me from pulling my hair out on a day to day basis and obsessing.
  • dadsgirl87
    dadsgirl87 Posts: 33
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    I do this. I usually eat more on the weekends (or not as healthy as I do during the week). I make a conscious effort during the week to eat healthier and remain within or beneath my daily calorie level. I'm not sure if this is unhealthy..but I has worked so far!

    The calories don't rollover on MFP..but I do a manual calculation at the start of the week.

    Best wishes!
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,239 Member
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    Nothing wrong with doing this. As much as we sometimes think when we eat the food right away gets into our body and extra becomes fat, that simply is not the way things work. It takes time to digest food. Even then, how it is treated once in the blood stream is a lot more complicated than simply you have too many calories for the day so off it goes to fat. Basically your body does not think in terms of 24 hour days like you do. Depending on the makeup of the meal you eat it can take hours (sometimes 8 or more) for it to digest meaning it is not like you get a huge influx of calories especially if you focus on higher protein, lower fat and moderate carbs. I have not used it, but will quite happily cut back for the day before and the day after a big eating event to cut back on the fat gain. Also remember that when you eat a large meal like that, it will increase your weight, but a lot of that will be the digesting food itself and water retention.

    Will doing this result in some fat gain? Not if you don't over eat so much that you go way over your weekly calories, but that will depend on you not binging.

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