Help!! Messing up diet every weekend :(

I think most of us find this a real problem too.... I still do, but how I tackle it is to eat at deficit during the week to allow for extra 500 cals on Saturdays/Sundays. Even at maintenance I still do this. It works perfectly

(I maintain my goal range by eating Mon - Fri 1800-1900 cals and at the weekend 2300-2400 calories.)

So shave of 100-200 cals or even more if you have to (as long as you're not eating less than 1200 cals to do that!) on week days to make up for weekend excess e.g

Logging everything helps because it's a huge eye opener.

But yeah... eat out less. It's just much harder to stay on track when you eat out because there's more temptation.

vegankid1990 wrote: »

kshama2001 wrote: »

vegankid1990 wrote: »

I'm vegan so all of that is out of the question haha! But yeah I do need to walk more on the weekends, I can be lazy.
My sweet tooth is usually my downfall, although I rarely have fizzy drinks and juices I can fall in to cake and sweets frenzy sometimes!

I know I'm going to eat more on the weekends so I exercise more those days.

I can have sweet tooth frenzy if I don't get enough protein, which is much easier for me, as an omnivore. Are you diligently working on getting enough protein? My healthy vegan friends make legumes and seitan the base of their diets.

I usually exceed my daily protein goal. I think it's a bit of a myth that vegans don't get enough protein. Plant foods are packed full of it.

I wouldn't say I really crave anything it's more "oh I know that tastes good so I'll have it" haha so. Lack of discipline on my part.

Thanks

What's your daily protein goal?

Even as a vegan, it's important to get enough protein - and it's possible. Legumes, peanut butter, nuts, soy foods (edamame, tempeh, tofu, dry-roasted soybean snacks, edamame pasta), seitan, etc. And choose veggies and even fruit that have a little bit of protein, instead of those that have none (asparagus, spinach, broccoli, guavas, many more).

And +1 to logging the weekends, even if you have to estimate portions and meals. Just be as honest as possible with yourself, and don't pick the lowball entries in the MFP database when you estimate. If you log, you can see the impact. Then you can think about whether it's worth it to you, whether there are specific behaviors you can change to get an improvement while still enjoying the weekend, etc.

You can do this.

Just implement cardio during the week, or more cardio, to account for the excess cals you will consume during the weekend. Or do it on the weekend whatever works.

vegankid1990 wrote: »

JaneiR36 wrote: »

vegankid1990 wrote: »

Medical professionals advice getting 0.5g of protein per kg of body weight so I try to stick to that rule.

Please don't make me have the protein debate with you guys that not what I'm here for. I just needed some tips on staying on track on the weekends when my routine is out of whack. I can assure you that's in no way linked to the amount of protein I eat.

I base my macro nutrients on medical studies and doctors advice so you don't need to worry about me!

Thanks again everyone! Xx

Please be explicit: Are you saying that if, say, doubling that amount could help you easily stay on track, you do not want to hear any more about it?

By all means fire away! And help is appreciated! I just don't want to board the "vegans don't get enough protein" train.

I'm one of the people who mentioned protein. I was completely saying that because extra protein has helped me stay on track - so, SO not saying that vegans as a group lack protein (or even that you do in a general nutritional sense) - it's just that I've found it satiating/sustaining, and there is some scientific evidence that extra protein may be helpful (for lean body mass preservation) when in a calorie deficit, especially if working out regularly.

I'm an ovo-lacto veg. I don't diss vegans as a group (though I do encourage some who I think are individually getting too little protein to get more). I did better while losing after I made a conscious effort to increase my protein into the range .6-.9g per pound of goal weight.

Your mileage may vary, but I really was targeting your original question.

As an afterthought, it may help to think about what activities (or lack) are your triggers on the weekend. I scrolled/skimmed back through the thread and didn't see where you were specific about whether it was a social thing - going out to eat/drink with friends, etc. - or an issue of grazing on yummy stuff at home, or something else entirely. We might have more focused advice if given a little more info.

Folks have already made some suggestions for the eating out scenario. If it's more grazing at home that's the problem, it may help to put a bit of focus on getting out of the house, especially if you can think of fun activities that aren't near food (your idea of walks, if outdoors, would be one example). Other active hobbies could help - hiking, biking touring houses or gardens or museums if that sort of things appeals to you. One thing that helped me with bored/habitual eating was focusing on hobbies (new ones if necessary) as a pastime. Ones that require clean hands (like crafts - embroidery, knitting, etc.; or arts - drawing, etc.) or keep your hands busy and require focus (like learning to play a musical instrument) are some options.