Glad it's Friday but terrified of weekends

Why does it go down hill? Are you not paying attention to what you eat? Laying around on your duff? You just have to keep monitoring your intake. Take a longer walk than you would at lunch, and skip the work out. You can lower your intake throughout the week to give yourself some weekend cushion, but if you go hog wild you're still going to un-do your progress. Some people like to have one day where they eat what they like, some people have one meal, some people work in daily treats. You have to find what works for you.

I exercise a whole lot more on weekends. That helps.

First, make a specific plan for the weekend. Don't just try to do your plan for the work week, and don't just chuck it out the window. Decide what you are going to eat and when. I would give yourself a little more leeway on the weekend than during the week, but still plan it out. Is there a way you can exercise on the weekend? Maybe something you couldn't do during the week? Make a sensible plan that takes into account things you have to get done, or things you really want to do on your weekends, but also takes into account eating well and moving. Then stick to it!

Secondly, do you ever pay attention to your weekly average? It's in the nutrition tab in the app, and it's so helpful! If you've been eating under your goal all week, you can see how many "extra" calories you could eat on the weekend without blowing your deficit for the week. I love this because it lets me go a little bit over now and then, and I don't have to worry about sabotaging all of my efforts.

Third, stop weighing yourself on Monday! The recommendation is to weigh once a week. Try weighing yourself just on Fridays, and look at your progress from week to week instead of stressing about the daily fluctuations. If you're on a general downward trend, that's good!

Do what you do during the week on the weekends.

I agree, Weekends are tough. I get up at 6am and run/walk 10 miles. That way, at least I'm starting the weekend with a solid deficit.

It's hard to structure on the weekends.

GaoleeYaj wrote: »

I do very well on the weekdays, always under my calories, walk during lunch for at least 40 minutes, exercise at night, drink lots of water and seeing the scale going down ounces per day.... then the weekend hits and all goes downhill....then comes Monday the scale goes up 3-4 pounds and takes all week for the scale to go down then here comes the weekend again. My weekly struggles!

Any one in the same boat? Any solutions, suggestions will be greatly appreciated

Zig-zag your calories. Give yourself some wiggle room on weekends by eating a little less during the week.

Find your "future" maintenance (TDEE calculator): http://scoobysworkshop.com/calorie-calculator/
Even if you eat this number on weekends....you still aren't gaining weight. You're just losing a little slower. Eventually your goal is to eat at this number 7 days a week.

GaoleeYaj wrote: »

Thanks everyone. My weekends are busy, with 4 kids in every sports, church band practice, out of town games. I always end up eating out and I'm not drinking alot of water just because there's either no bathrooms available or I'm in a long car ride.

I totally feel you on all of these points. Here's what I've been doing to try to keep it together while at tournaments during sports weekends:

• Coffee or water to drink only - no soda, no sports drinks
• I always pack some healthy foods in my car in a small cooler. Sometimes that's what I end up eating for lunch (because I know we'll go out for a team dinner in the evening) and sometimes it ends up being eaten by hungry little people. Common items I include are string cheese, baby carrots or other chopped veggies, grapes or berries, greek yogurt tubes (frozen).
• I keep an emergency protein bar in my bag. If I find myself thinking about wandering to the concession stand for treats, I eat the bar and drink some water.
• I try to stand while watching games instead of sitting on bleachers. I may even throw in some heel raises or side-to-side steps as I watch. Nobody seems to notice as long as I'm not blocking their view.
• If I absolutely must visit the concession stand, I choose something with protein - usually a grilled chicken sandwich or hamburger - instead of candy or popcorn that won't keep me satisfied.
• I also do intermittent fasting most days, meaning I only eat during a specific window of time (usually noon to 8 or so). That really works for me, though it's not for everyone. Google it if you're not familiar with it and do a little reading.
• The bathrooms thing is tough - obviously they have them, but sometimes it takes a long time to get there and back to the game, or they are gross portable toilets. No advice there. I just try to think of the trip as extra steps (silver lining!).
• Try to hang out near the parents on the team that are also practicing healthy habits. It's hard to make good choices when the person next to you is always generously offering you some of their nachos or skittles. Instead, sit near the parents that are doing the things you do. This helps big time in reducing temptation.
• I walk laps around the sports complex during breaks between games (provided the team doesn't need me to do something elsewhere during that time). Or I find some stairs and go up and down a few times to get in some extra activity.

I know it's challenging, and I certainly don't stick to these things all the time because I'm human and I make mistakes and I love pizza! Best of luck to you!

Go hiking on the weekends.

Oh, and a filling breakfast can be very helpful, too! Whenever I skimp on breakfast, thinking I need to "save" calories for later in the day, I end up so hungry that I way over-eat and it doesn't work at all. I like to have two pieces of bacon, a fried egg, and mix that into half a serving of grits. Add a cup of coffee with 3 tbsp of milk and 1 tbsp of sugar, and that's a hearty breakfast for only 323 calories. Pretty darn good! That makes it easier to have a light lunch on the run, and still have a reasonable dinner.

You are busy with a lot of kid stuff on the weekends, but that doesn't mean your goals are less important. Get walks in early in the mornings. Walk between games, stand/pace during games. If you have a step counter (Fitbit, etc), use it and make sure you get your steps in no matter what. Almost every restaurant will substitute some kind of steamed vegetable for french fries (sadly, it's almost always broccoli, which I despise, but hopefully that's not a problem for you). Or, like others have mentioned, get a baked potato and top it with salsa or something like that. Grilled chicken. A nice piece of broiled/grilled fish. You know what I'm talking about.

I guess what I'm saying is that your goals matter and need to be prioritized despite it being a weekend. And I also agree with those who said to stop weighing on Mondays. I vote for Fridays for you, based on what you've described. Seeing a nice loss right before the weekend chaos starts might be an encouraging thing to help you stay focused on your goals.

Oh, and whoever said to keep distance from people who pull you off your goals was right. Stay away from the candy pushers. And the funnel cake sharers.

GaoleeYaj wrote: »

All great advices. Do you guys think the weight gain on Monday is mostly water since I'm drinking so much less?

Salty foods, more carbs, more activity, stress -- these can cause water retention