CICO - Weekly Totals?

Acidique
Acidique Posts: 119 Member
edited November 20 in Health and Weight Loss
Long time member, but I rarely post. I swear a while back I read some information another member had posted regarding caloric totals. Naturally MyFitnessPal tracks your calorie totals and macros for each day. My question is, what if you watch your totals weekly instead?

So if my goal is to be somewhere around 1500 calories a day, but I eat 3000 calories one day and 1000 calories another day, as long as my 7 day total is still 10,500 calories it averages to 1500 daily. Right? I am assuming this should theoretically amount to the same success as 1500 a day. I am eating the same calorie total weekly, just changing up the days a bit. I hope that makes sense. I am hoping some of the more seasoned or professional trainers here can throw in their two cents.

Also, obviously I am not going to go dangerously low in my calories on any day. I was just using the above as an example. I typically work out harder on high calorie days and chill on lower calorie days.

Thanks in advance.

Replies

  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    You can follow weekly calories on the app, not the website
  • Acidique
    Acidique Posts: 119 Member
    malibu927 wrote: »
    You can follow weekly calories on the app, not the website

    Yes, I know...

    What I am asking is if it's equivalent to watching daily. If my thinking is correct. If my weekly total is on target does it matter how it's spread throughout the week?
  • Duck_Puddle
    Duck_Puddle Posts: 3,237 Member
    I am not a professional trainer but that is the theory I have used all along. My daily intake varies, I aim for the average at the end of the week. It makes the most sense for me to vary my intake due to preference and workout schedules (since exercise calories don't always line up with when I want the food/fuel that goes with them). Or if you "bank" calories for a special meal or anything along those lines. I think that's a very common approach.
  • AliceDark
    AliceDark Posts: 3,886 Member
    Yes, sticking to a weekly total will work. I do two higher says and five lower says, and I lose just fine when I'm trying to. Keep in mind that you may see small bumps on the scale after your higher calorie days, so either weigh in before your high day (if you're weighing weekly) or just don't freak out (if you're weighing daily).
  • eisterunicorn
    eisterunicorn Posts: 158 Member
    edited August 2017
    Disregard this pls
  • psuLemon
    psuLemon Posts: 38,431 MFP Moderator
    Your body doesn't work on a 24 hour clock, so yes, you can cycle calories throughout the week. I will note, that if your weigh in day is after a high calorie day, your weight might be a lb or two higher, especially if your sodium/carbs are higher than your lower calorie days.
  • noirelb
    noirelb Posts: 216 Member
    I do it often about 1300 on week days and 2500 on weekends and still lose. But I do not weight myself from sunday to tuesday!
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,140 Member
    For about the last 2 months I've focused more on my weekly average than hitting my exact calorie allowance every day, some days I am over, some days I am under, it hasn't impacted my weight loss since I switched my focus.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    yes it works, i do it.

    you just have to keep in mind that if you have a high day then the additional carbs/sodium etc may cause fluctuations. i weigh on a Friday as i 'save' cals from the week to use over the weekend.
  • Acidique
    Acidique Posts: 119 Member
    Thanks so much everyone! This helps a lot.
  • MegaMooseEsq
    MegaMooseEsq Posts: 3,118 Member
    edited August 2017
    Yeah, my personal observation over the last seven or eight months has been that I'm losing weight as expected even with big differences between days. My current goal is five days around 1550, one day at 2100, and one day at 2700. It averages out to about 1800. Another data point: this past Sunday my spouse and I decided to do a quiet week in after exceeding goals for a couple of weeks. I felt totally normal through Wednesday afternoon, which seems to have been when the lack of a big meal Tuesday caught up to me and I definitely noticed the drop in calories. Friday is usually my largest day of the week, so I'm kind of expecting to eat over 1550 Saturday and Sunday to compensate.

    ETA: Also, I am not eating exercise calories here, I just love eating out!
  • InkAndApples
    InkAndApples Posts: 201 Member
    This is what I do, my activity levels vary wildly from day to day and my hunger rarely matches up with that. I tend to eat slightly less and exercise more over the week and then eat more calories at the weekend.

    I weigh every day but use a trending app to iron out the fluctuations.
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