Anyone else eat low cal in the week and binge on weekends?

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  • leahxxoo
    leahxxoo Posts: 23 Member
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    If I ate it all at once I would, but this is over 18 hours or so. I feel full, but not overly full or sick.
    I still don't see the problem with banking calories and eating them back on weekends. I listen to my body.. if I ever felt hungry or starved then I wouldn't do this, but I'm full of energy all the time and I feel great.
    I'm just gonna eat less chips. Maybe. We'll see
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
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    leahxxoo wrote: »
    According to mfp, I need to eat 1400 cals per day to lose weight. I was doing this, but I was binging on weekends so I wasn't losing. I work 6 days a week and me and my close circle of friends go out on Sunday and go for a meal, drink all day and then eat loads of rubbish from the takeaway. Unhealthy, I know, but we have a great time and I really look forward to it. Anyway, a few months ago, I decided to try something different. 1400x7 days = 9,800, meaning I should consume around 9,800 calories per week. Instead of 1,400 cals per day, I've started eating a healthy 1,000 calories 6 days a week which amounts to 6000 cals. Then I've been going crazy on Sundays, consuming 3,500-4000 calories. I've been losing 1-2 pounds per week this way and I can enjoy myself without guilt. I've finally found something that works. Anyone else do this? I know it's unhealthy but I love having one day a week were I can go absolutely mental and eat whatever I want, whilst still losing at a steady pace.

    Your OP is full of indicators that you are aware this is physically and mentally unhealthy, so yes, seek professional help.


  • dankylosaur
    dankylosaur Posts: 5 Member
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    Shell, I'm pretty sure the main reason people have daily calorie goals is because one big weekly, monthly, yearly or lifelong goal would be hard to keep track of. Are you a doctor? Do you KNOW that you have to eat a certain amount every single day to be healthy? OP is still getting an average of 1400 per day. From what I understand, bodies don't really care about day to day stuff, and the important thing is to eat enough to sustain healthy weight loss. OP is losing a healthy amount of weight and is able to control herself, so I see nothing wrong with what she's doing. Do you have some studies you could share that might explain why you think what you think? Also, I noticed that you used the phrase "extended period of time" but refuse to understand when other people explain that you can't judge a person's diet with a single day as an example.

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
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    leahxxoo wrote: »
    If I ate it all at once I would, but this is over 18 hours or so. I feel full, but not overly full or sick.
    I still don't see the problem with banking calories and eating them back on weekends. I listen to my body.. if I ever felt hungry or starved then I wouldn't do this, but I'm full of energy all the time and I feel great.
    I'm just gonna eat less chips. Maybe. We'll see

    After years of ignoring them, it's not unusual for hunger (and satiety) cues to no longer work.

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,988 Member
    edited September 2015
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    dankylosaur wrote: »
    Shell, I'm pretty sure the main reason people have daily calorie goals is because one big weekly, monthly, yearly or lifelong goal would be hard to keep track of. Are you a doctor? Do you KNOW that you have to eat a certain amount every single day to be healthy? OP is still getting an average of 1400 per day. From what I understand, bodies don't really care about day to day stuff, and the important thing is to eat enough to sustain healthy weight loss. OP is losing a healthy amount of weight and is able to control herself, so I see nothing wrong with what she's doing. Do you have some studies you could share that might explain why you think what you think? Also, I noticed that you used the phrase "extended period of time" but refuse to understand when other people explain that you can't judge a person's diet with a single day as an example.

    OP mentions in her OP "going crazy" and "absolutely mental" on Sundays, so no, she's not in control.

    And it's not a single day, it's a restrict/binge cycle.
  • leahxxoo
    leahxxoo Posts: 23 Member
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    hahah kshama2001... don't take what I said literally :D Don't worry.. I eat lots of kale.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
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    Um...I eat like 1300-1400 on week days so I can enjoy a maintenance day. Not the same.
  • atypicalsmith
    atypicalsmith Posts: 2,742 Member
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    I tend to eat less during the week because I'm working and busy and it's easier to eat less. On weekends, it's a little more relaxed and easier to eat more. As long as from week to week you're consuming enough calories to fulfill your average daily recommended intake, I don't see where there is a problem.
  • Protranser
    Protranser Posts: 517 Member
    edited September 2015
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    The way op phrased their whole premise was different from the way a guilty person describes their eating style. The op recognizes they may be scrutinised for their high calorie day, and preemptively addresses this by including the highlighted terms. If there was guilt and powerlessness, then the op would've asked for help. I didn't interpret this as a "help me get my life back in control" post. Op also clarified there is no guilt or pain about how they're going about this.

    Eta: Additionally, the terms healthy and unhealthy seem to be describing op's judgement of calorie sources, not introspective judgement of behavior.
  • Bshmerlie
    Bshmerlie Posts: 1,026 Member
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    I think some people are reading too much into the OP'S choice of words. This is a young kid who probably didn't use the best words to describe what she's doing to still enjoy her youthfulness. She likes to party on the weekends with her friends without worrying about blowing her weekly deficit. Big deal. I do a similar plan although maybe not as extreme but the same idea. Early on in my weightloss journey I identified that my high calorie days tended to be Friday's and Saturdays. So I lowered my Sun-Thursday calories to 1200 which allowed me to eat 2200 on Fridays and Saturdays and still maintain my weightloss pace. That allows me to be able to go out to a nice dinner with my family on Friday night or have Popcorn and a coke at the movie theater. Planning ahead is responsible. Knowing what your faults are and addressing them is part of planning a healthier lifesyle. Knowing that you can't have 3000 calories without making up for it somewhere is being smart. Whether the OP can maintain doing a 1000 calories is what I would question. Sure you could probably pull it off for a month but it would be difficult to do long term. She may need to adjust and raise the weekday calories a bit if she begins to struggle. But that's also how we learn what our body needs. It's trial and error.
  • iwearthejumper32
    iwearthejumper32 Posts: 57 Member
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    I do the same kind of thing OP... I think it's a smart move especially if you know you have an event or outing planned. I don't go below 1200 on weekdays... But weekends I'm allowed to eat back the cals I "save." It gives me something to look forward to and fits within my calorie goals for the week. Some people have treats everyday... I just save mine for the weekend. Oh also I'm losing appropriate weight on track. ;)
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,485 Member
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    Blooming heck, when I was young I did much worse without a thought.

    The OP is aware of what she is doing, and as such would be aware of adverse effects.

    Do I wish that she would eat at 1200 a day, yes, but that is the mother in me.
    (I can remember back when 1000 was the minimum for a woman.)

    As for the weekend fun, I wouldn't mind having just a silly crazy weekend with no responsibility occasionally. The hang over, no.

    OP, have fun and take your multi vitamin.

    Cheers, h.
  • PinkPixiexox
    PinkPixiexox Posts: 4,142 Member
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    You are doing EXACTLY what I was doing two years ago.

    I was incredibly strict throughout the week. Every calorie was counted and I exercised every single day (and hard). I was totally uneducated about the process so I wasn't consuming more than around 900-1000 calories per day through the week (Silly, right?). Come the weekend, HELLLLOOOOOO FOOOD. I used food as a reward for my 'strict week' and wow, the intake was enormous. Saturday morning would consist of around 3 large breakfasts, followed by high calorie snacks (Shortbread, chocolate etc), followed by a huge lunch and a takeaway in the evening. This was repeated on Sunday. Come Monday, it was back to serious restricting again.

    Not healthy and totally unintelligent of me. I wasn't losing weight, of course.

    You need to control your weekend binges. Perhaps ease up on yourself during the week so you don't feel like you have to load up on the good stuff while you can on Saturday and Sunday. To lose weight, you need to change this habit. It's a simple as that. As soon as I dealt with my serious food issues, I didn't have this problem and I am losing steadily and healthily now.
  • smotheredincheese
    smotheredincheese Posts: 559 Member
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    But won't you feel tired and lack energy during the week if you're eating so little? Couldn't you try and just ease up on what you eat at the weekend a bit so you don't have to cut your calories so much - have the meal with your friends and enjoy a few drinks, but then skip the junk they eat in the evening and maybe take some healthier snacks along with you? Or try and suggest doing something different one weekend?
    I can see the appeal of your plan but don't know how sustainable it would be over time.
  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,472 Member
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    I work my butt off all week and some times even do double,, I aim at burning over 1000 calories a day,,, then come weekends I let loose and party on.
  • KateTii
    KateTii Posts: 886 Member
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    Hmmm, the basic rule of CICO is applying here and plenty of people chose to work weekly with calories...

    It personally doesn't sit right with me but if it is working for you & you are being guided by a licensed practitioner, I can't see how I could say much against it.

    Doesn't work for me personally but if it is working for you (hitting macros, energy levels good etc.) that's good. It might just not be sustainable long-term but you should one day go into maintenance and be able to balance out the week a bit better.
  • lhtbuzz123
    lhtbuzz123 Posts: 40 Member
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    I aim for 1200 during the week & closer to 1800-2000 at weekends. With 1200 during the week it is a lot easier to fulfill your nutritional needs & keep it up long term.
    My slightly unhealthy advice would be, on your high calorie days, prioritise your favourite foods (those things you really really enjoy & have been looking forward to) & cut back some of the mindless or less enjoyable treats. For me, on my high cal days, that meant saving myself for that cooked breakfast, meal out & magnum ice cream I'd been craving, & ditching the bread, starters & bags of crisps/sweets that I was just filling up on (I loved them but wasn't too bothered to lose them becuase I'd enjoyed eating my favourites). Just makes a high cal day slightly less unhealthy by cutting the less sexy food, still enjoying the high cal day, still losing 2+lb a week, & most importantly still going out & having fun with friends :)

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