Banking Calories
immortalities
Posts: 117 Member
I know this has probably been asked about a thousand times but I just wanted to share my own personal situation and hear some opinions.
Firstly, over the past few years I've lost about 85lbs and I'm now trying to maintain my weight. My TDEE is apparently 1600. I've been adding 50-100 calories per week to achieve this but have found that my weight stays stable when I eat about 1500 each day.
I work out twice a week, mostly cardio, about 45 minutes running on the treadmill and about 10-15 minutes on the bike. I try to do some strength excercise but I just don't enjoy it and manage about 15 minutes each time, if I even bother. According to my Polar HRM I burn about 500 odd calories in this hour of cardio. On gym days I eat my 1600 calories.
My question is that, if
1500 x 4 =6000
1600 x 2 = 3200
added together gives 9200 less 1000 calories from exercise = 8200
my weekly goal is 11200 so subtract the 8200 =3000
I have 3000 calories to enjoy one day per week?
(My boyfriend and I have "date night" at a restaurant or order in a takeaway once a week as a treat and I don't want to ruin my maintenance but I like to live a little on these nights and not have to worry about what I'm eating, to a certain extent)
Does this seem reasonable? Or should I eat back more exercise calories?
I find the whole thing pretty confusing to say the least.
Any help muchos appreciated!
Firstly, over the past few years I've lost about 85lbs and I'm now trying to maintain my weight. My TDEE is apparently 1600. I've been adding 50-100 calories per week to achieve this but have found that my weight stays stable when I eat about 1500 each day.
I work out twice a week, mostly cardio, about 45 minutes running on the treadmill and about 10-15 minutes on the bike. I try to do some strength excercise but I just don't enjoy it and manage about 15 minutes each time, if I even bother. According to my Polar HRM I burn about 500 odd calories in this hour of cardio. On gym days I eat my 1600 calories.
My question is that, if
1500 x 4 =6000
1600 x 2 = 3200
added together gives 9200 less 1000 calories from exercise = 8200
my weekly goal is 11200 so subtract the 8200 =3000
I have 3000 calories to enjoy one day per week?
(My boyfriend and I have "date night" at a restaurant or order in a takeaway once a week as a treat and I don't want to ruin my maintenance but I like to live a little on these nights and not have to worry about what I'm eating, to a certain extent)
Does this seem reasonable? Or should I eat back more exercise calories?
I find the whole thing pretty confusing to say the least.
Any help muchos appreciated!
0
Replies
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My daily calories are all over the place - range from 650 to 3500.
I follow an uneven eating pattern and also have wide variations in exercise (and eat back those calories).
Despite that I'm maintaining very happily. You just have to have a relaxed attitude to the inevitable and natural weight fluctuations while looking at long term weight trends.
Like you when I'm out (or in...) for a nice meal I want to choose what to eat based on taste and enjoyment and not calories.
Maintenance does mean finding what works for you. A rigid, same every day, allowance would feel dreadfully restrictive to me - like being on a permanent diet.0 -
I look at it more as a whole week, as you are suggesting your OP. That has been working for me!0
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I will even transfer a few calories here and there to the next day... I look at calories in and calories out at the end of the week.. I download data from my Fitbit Charge!
I eat out once a week but I know what I am having before I get there and the nutritional values to put in MFP...
I still enjoy my food! I still am and will always be a foodie!
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A rigid, same every day, allowance would feel dreadfully restrictive to me - like being on a permanent diet.
This, exactly.
My daily calorie intake ranges from about 1700-4000. Yet I maintain happily.
My TDEE is a little above 2500. That gives me at least 17,500 to work with in a week. During the workweek, I typically eat about 2000 a day. That equals about 10,000. So that gives me 7,500 to enjoy on Saturday and Sunday. If I see the scale go up, I log at maintenance one or both weekend days for a couple weeks.
Here's the thing: I know some people can log their food every day without going crazy. I'm sure some people get a lot of enjoyment out of guessing and logging food served on a tasting menu date, or at a wedding or family reunion, or just a night out.
I'm not one of those people.
The reason I've found maintaining my weight loss pretty simple (I lost 130 pounds and have been maintaining for 2.5 years) is because I take what is a sane approach for me, and that means days off. I don't binge, but I eat and drink what I choose without counting or worrying about calories.
So yeah, banking calories works great for me.
(should also add: when I'm lifting hard and regularly, I am pretty damn inpervious to weight gain)
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I agree with the vibe going along in this thread. It certainly isn't something that your body calculates on a daily basis. Just because you went to sleep doesn't mean your body starts all over and the non-existent numbers magically reset to 0. You can have a day/meal where you eat a higher number of calories and your whole diet isn't going to go to crap. Depending on what you order, you may feel a little bloated or something if the food is way out of the norm, but as for long term change, you'll be fine to go out and splurge once in a while.
And besides, if you're maintaining and can't enjoy a meal out once in a while then whats the point =P0 -
One of the best ways to think of your "diet" is as a lifestyle of eating. A diet is something that you go on and off, a lifestyle is a way of life. That way you can continue to eat healthy and and maintain your weight.
If you are having trouble keeping your weight down or have hit that dreaded plateau, add more cardio (if you aren't doing at least 30 minutes a day) or add more strength training. The more muscle you have on your body, the faster your body burns calories.
I'm a personal trainer (age 68) and have fallen off the wagon (not eating right and not exercising as hard as normal). So, I've started following myfitnesspal. Its working.0 -
I look at weeks. You can't hit your calorie goal perfectly ever day - you're going to go up and down. And you exercise a lot one day and are hungry the next. I usually make my days. I almost always have a day every week when I've over by a few hundred calories. I always always always make my weekly calorie goals.0
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That's true, my calories aren't exactly on the 1500/1600 mark every day. Thanks for your help! I'm going out with my boyfriend and my parents on Sunday to a Fish and Chip style restaurant - I've been before and the portions are huge! I read somewhere, and when I entered it into MFP, that the average fish supper has about 1600 cals so I'll definitely be over on that day so I was hoping to save up a few calories through the week
Definitely need to stop worrying about it so much and just enjoy!0 -
immortalities wrote: »That's true, my calories aren't exactly on the 1500/1600 mark every day. Thanks for your help! I'm going out with my boyfriend and my parents on Sunday to a Fish and Chip style restaurant - I've been before and the portions are huge! I read somewhere, and when I entered it into MFP, that the average fish supper has about 1600 cals so I'll definitely be over on that day so I was hoping to save up a few calories through the week
Definitely need to stop worrying about it so much and just enjoy!
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Yep, you can for sure do that! I wouldn't recommend weighing yourself right after your 3000 calorie day since it would be artificially high, and you might notice some water retention (would go away in a day or two), but that's about it!0
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One note on your calculation...you multiplied 1500 by 4, should be multiplied by 5.
Calories you eat:
1500 x 5 = 7500
1600 x 2 = 3200
Total = 10,700
Calories you burn:
500 x 2 = 10,000
So that only gives you an extra 700 to play with, not 3000
I would say to try it out and see how it works. While you're on maintenance, you could get lax about tracking so the 1500 is actually 1700. 500 calories an hour burned also seems really high. So if you see the pounds creep back, you just need to know why.0 -
Weight is going to fluctuate some even if your math is perfect because your math is all based on approximations. You approximate your calorie burn, you approximate your calorie intake and your body processes all of it differently every day depending on mood and other factors.
I don't think of banking anything, or stocking up, having something in advance, etc. If I know that I may splurge on vacation I have two choices - get ahead of it before I go, or overcome it when I return.
You've successfully lost weight, if you did that through eating practices and exercise you should be able to apply those same principals whenever the scale shows you a number you're not happy with.
I overheard a conversation at a family gathering that went something like this:
"I really need to get back on track after the holidays, I've put on nearly 5 pounds."
"Ha, what's 5 pounds? I've got 40+ I need to lose, I wouldn't worry about just 5 pounds".
"If I don't worry about the 5 pounds now, it will become 6, then 7, then more. Five pounds is 5 pounds and I need to lose it while its still easy to lose."
She made a lot of sense. Weight is easy to lose if you catch it before it truly becomes a part of you. I call them 'fluff" pounds. Easy on, easy off.
So my advice is watch the scale each week, if it goes up, nip it in the bud. If it goes down, don't go hog wild, it'll balance out sooner than you think.0 -
When I was losing weight, I never tried banking but now that I'm in maintenance, I do it during the week so that I can enjoy the weekends without obsessing over "seeing red". In fact, I don't log my food on weekends anymore but make educated guesses and just do a Quick Add.
I still weigh myself weekly to keep myself honest and it looks like others are doing the same thing. Now, if only MFP had tools to support banking so we could see weekly calorie totals...0 -
My daily calories are all over the place - range from 650 to 3500.
I follow an uneven eating pattern and also have wide variations in exercise (and eat back those calories).
Despite that I'm maintaining very happily. You just have to have a relaxed attitude to the inevitable and natural weight fluctuations while looking at long term weight trends.
Like you when I'm out (or in...) for a nice meal I want to choose what to eat based on taste and enjoyment and not calories.
Maintenance does mean finding what works for you. A rigid, same every day, allowance would feel dreadfully restrictive to me - like being on a permanent diet.
^^ a refreshing point of view ... I agree.0 -
It drives me nuts to not know what I'm eating vs. what I'm actually burning, so I use a Fitbit to track my actual calorie expenditure and use it as a guideline to kind of reassure me that I'm more hungry because I've moved more that day, etc. and I also look at my weekly calorie goals and how much I've been under. If you can afford it, I would recommend a fitness tracker, because it's made a massive difference for me. Using hunger as a guide for how much of your exercise calories you should eat back would be a good place to start. Also, keep in mind that MFP really overestimates calorie burn, so be careful what you're actually eating back. If it's giving you credit for more calories than you feel you should have burned, its because it is. It almost always is. So don't eat back all of them. You can eat back some.0
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I look at weeks. You can't hit your calorie goal perfectly ever day - you're going to go up and down. And you exercise a lot one day and are hungry the next. I usually make my days. I almost always have a day every week when I've over by a few hundred calories. I always always always make my weekly calorie goals.
^^ this0 -
I save calories and go out for dinner on a Saturday night (for example). I don't feel bad cos I still maintained an overall deficit.
Oh and I should add, I have set up my diary now so that my goal is set to "maintain" and rather than aim for meeting a target I aim for having green numbers at the end. I felt like it was too hard trying to hit the same target every day because that's not what my life is like.0 -
I bank all the time. In fact, that's pretty much how I've always done it. I eat at a slight deficit M-Th knowing I'll go over on the weekend. The amount I eat during the week varies based on my goals.0
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jarnold390 wrote: »It drives me nuts to not know what I'm eating vs. what I'm actually burning, so I use a Fitbit to track my actual calorie expenditure and use it as a guideline to kind of reassure me that I'm more hungry because I've moved more that day, etc. and I also look at my weekly calorie goals and how much I've been under. If you can afford it, I would recommend a fitness tracker, because it's made a massive difference for me. Using hunger as a guide for how much of your exercise calories you should eat back would be a good place to start. Also, keep in mind that MFP really overestimates calorie burn, so be careful what you're actually eating back. If it's giving you credit for more calories than you feel you should have burned, its because it is. It almost always is. So don't eat back all of them. You can eat back some.
I have a PolarFT4 Heart Rate Monitor that says I burn 500+ calories in just over an hour of cardio. I still take this an an overestimation though because I know it seems high so I don't eat them all back. Like I said in my OP, I eat about 100 or so calories more on gym days than non gym days. I'm going to invest in a Fitbit to monitor my daily activity as the HRM is only really useful for cardio workouts! thank you for your input though!
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honkytonks85 wrote: »I save calories and go out for dinner on a Saturday night (for example). I don't feel bad cos I still maintained an overall deficit.
Oh and I should add, I have set up my diary now so that my goal is set to "maintain" and rather than aim for meeting a target I aim for having green numbers at the end. I felt like it was too hard trying to hit the same target every day because that's not what my life is like.
This is what I've been trying and it's working so far so fingers crossed that the dinners out don't ruin it! This seems the best way for me.
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Weight is going to fluctuate some even if your math is perfect because your math is all based on approximations. You approximate your calorie burn, you approximate your calorie intake and your body processes all of it differently every day depending on mood and other factors.
I don't think of banking anything, or stocking up, having something in advance, etc. If I know that I may splurge on vacation I have two choices - get ahead of it before I go, or overcome it when I return.
You've successfully lost weight, if you did that through eating practices and exercise you should be able to apply those same principals whenever the scale shows you a number you're not happy with.
I overheard a conversation at a family gathering that went something like this:
"I really need to get back on track after the holidays, I've put on nearly 5 pounds."
"Ha, what's 5 pounds? I've got 40+ I need to lose, I wouldn't worry about just 5 pounds".
"If I don't worry about the 5 pounds now, it will become 6, then 7, then more. Five pounds is 5 pounds and I need to lose it while its still easy to lose."
She made a lot of sense. Weight is easy to lose if you catch it before it truly becomes a part of you. I call them 'fluff" pounds. Easy on, easy off.
So my advice is watch the scale each week, if it goes up, nip it in the bud. If it goes down, don't go hog wild, it'll balance out sooner than you think.
I understand that it will fluctuate and I have a sort of 5lbs window that I'm happy for my weight to stay between. 0 -
healthy_life2015 wrote: »One note on your calculation...you multiplied 1500 by 4, should be multiplied by 5.
Calories you eat:
1500 x 5 = 7500
1600 x 2 = 3200
Total = 10,700
Calories you burn:
500 x 2 = 10,000
So that only gives you an extra 700 to play with, not 3000
I would say to try it out and see how it works. While you're on maintenance, you could get lax about tracking so the 1500 is actually 1700. 500 calories an hour burned also seems really high. So if you see the pounds creep back, you just need to know why.
Ahh, I didn't mean I would have an "extra" 3000 cals, I meant for that day I would have 3000 cals i.e. my 1600 recommended cals plus the 1000 I "earned" through exercise and the 400 cals I didn't use on the four days I ate 1500 but now I've confused myself.
I understand that these are just approximations even though I'm pretty strict with my logging and that nothing is 100% accurate here but I just wanted yo have a clearer view on the idea of banking calories
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peter56765 wrote: »When I was losing weight, I never tried banking but now that I'm in maintenance, I do it during the week so that I can enjoy the weekends without obsessing over "seeing red". In fact, I don't log my food on weekends anymore but make educated guesses and just do a Quick Add.
I still weigh myself weekly to keep myself honest and it looks like others are doing the same thing. Now, if only MFP had tools to support banking so we could see weekly calorie totals...
That's what I'm going to attempt, It will just be one day a week of no logging, just quick adding!
That's probably the only thing that's better about the MFP iphone app than using a computer, you can see your weekly average calories and macros etc. and it tells you how much you are under/over on your calories for the week 0 -
Sometimes I 'save up' exercise calories and add them to a day I know I'm going to go over so I don't get the dreaded red numbers...
I think you have to be realistic when banking calories. I know I personally can't be too aggressive or I end up over-hungry and eat too much, using up all the banked calories before the meal/night out/treat I was saving them for, and usually more on top of that.0 -
I've been on maintanance for a year. I look at my weekly calorie goal more than my daily. I tend to go over on the weekends all the time, so during my work week I consistently eat under. So far it's worked fine.0
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I look at my calories over the month now i'm maintaining. Works for me.0
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I think I'm going to have to start looking at weekly calories too. Somehow I'm always hungrier on the weekends but some weekdays I'll have 200-300 calories left.
A question for people doing this. How do you log it? Do you just let there be red numbers some days and make sure it evens out with green numbers other days? Or do you log things on the wrong day so they all stay green? (I've done this a few times when I was about to go over, lol. So far my weekly averages have always been under though.)0 -
themaybird wrote: »How do you log it? Do you just let there be red numbers some days and make sure it evens out with green numbers other days? Or do you log things on the wrong day so they all stay green?
More the later. I have a separate category in my food log called "Carry-Over/Calorie Banking" where I quick-add the excess balance from a previous day onto the next.
Somebody on here recommended that technique last fall, and it's been awesome. Wish I could remember who, but uh... thanks!
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feisty_bucket wrote: »I have a separate category in my food log called "Carry-Over/Calorie Banking" where I quick-add the excess balance from a previous day onto the next.
Thanks, that's a great idea!0
This discussion has been closed.
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