Treats and Weight Loss

MaddieUnicornRainbow
MaddieUnicornRainbow Posts: 28 Member
edited November 21 in Health and Weight Loss
Hey everyone, I was wondering how people feel about incorporating treats every now and then that go beyond your set calorie limit that you have normally. Do you think it hinders weight loss or do you find it doesn't have much of an effect? I have a plan where I eat no more than 500 calories over my goal for the entire week or weekend. (So I eat my normal calorie limit and then have no more than 500 calories total for extra treats on the weekend. So Saturday's and Sunday's allowance added together can equal no more than 500 calories). I make this allowance usually on the weekends, but sometimes I do it during the weekday and not the weekend. Let me know your thoughts! (I do incorporate treats that fit in my calorie limit, but it's nice to be able to indulge without going overboard). I have continued to lose weight following this plan.

Replies

  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    If there are days where I go over, I just compensate by subtracting the calories off days from the rest of the week
  • MaddieUnicornRainbow
    MaddieUnicornRainbow Posts: 28 Member
    @malibu927 So no "cheat days" for you then?
  • MommaGem2017
    MommaGem2017 Posts: 405 Member
    I think many people on the forum use the same method. They "bank" extra calories for the weekend, so it evens out over the course of the week.
  • wenrob
    wenrob Posts: 125 Member
    I bank calories during the week usually in the form of exercise. Not that it never happens but doing this keeps me from going over my weekly allowance and keeps me on track. In the past I've found that regularly going over is a slippery slope that eventually catches up to me especially in maintenance.
  • estherdragonbat
    estherdragonbat Posts: 5,283 Member
    A treat is not a cheat. I make room for indulgences within my calories.
  • MaddieUnicornRainbow
    MaddieUnicornRainbow Posts: 28 Member
    @estherdragonbat As I said, I do make room for indulgences within my calorie limit. What I also do is allow myself to go outside of it, so I feel like I can have some fun with food and keep it in check.
  • MaddieUnicornRainbow
    MaddieUnicornRainbow Posts: 28 Member
    @malibu927 Good for you! I personally couldn't just stick to my calorie limit or else subtract however many calories I went over the previous day for the next day. But kudos to you if you've been able to sustain it! Different strokes for different folks.
  • wenrob
    wenrob Posts: 125 Member
    MaddieUnicornRainbow wrote: »
    @malibu927 Good for you! I personally couldn't just stick to my calorie limit or else subtract however many calories I went over the previous day for the next day. But kudos to you if you've been able to sustain it! Different strokes for different folks.
    Eventually that 500 calorie gap is going to close though. Right now you're losing so you have a little more leeway but eventually it will slow things down. If you continue this in maintenance you will gain about 7.5lbs a year. You might consider just subtracting 100 a day during the week to give yourself that 500 for the weekend because sooner or later they're going to start to count.
  • kokonani
    kokonani Posts: 507 Member
    I eat "treats" everyday, it can be a donut, slice of cake, ice cream, whatever. I make it fit into my daily Calories. So if I want to indulge in a high calorie dessert, I make sure to either have a low cal meal, or go lower cal the next day. Just balance it out.
  • MaddieUnicornRainbow
    MaddieUnicornRainbow Posts: 28 Member
    wenrob wrote: »
    MaddieUnicornRainbow wrote: »
    @malibu927 Good for you! I personally couldn't just stick to my calorie limit or else subtract however many calories I went over the previous day for the next day. But kudos to you if you've been able to sustain it! Different strokes for different folks.
    Eventually that 500 calorie gap is going to close though. Right now you're losing so you have a little more leeway but eventually it will slow things down. If you continue this in maintenance you will gain about 7.5lbs a year. You might consider just subtracting 100 a day during the week to give yourself that 500 for the weekend because sooner or later they're going to start to count.

    @wenrob I think I'm still in a deficit overall though, and I'm regularly presenting my body with the chance to have a bit more than my calorie limit, which I think another MFP user said was a good thing. Almost like calorie cycling.
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,337 Member
    MaddieUnicornRainbow wrote: »
    wenrob wrote: »
    MaddieUnicornRainbow wrote: »
    @malibu927 Good for you! I personally couldn't just stick to my calorie limit or else subtract however many calories I went over the previous day for the next day. But kudos to you if you've been able to sustain it! Different strokes for different folks.
    Eventually that 500 calorie gap is going to close though. Right now you're losing so you have a little more leeway but eventually it will slow things down. If you continue this in maintenance you will gain about 7.5lbs a year. You might consider just subtracting 100 a day during the week to give yourself that 500 for the weekend because sooner or later they're going to start to count.

    @wenrob I think I'm still in a deficit overall though, and I'm regularly presenting my body with the chance to have a bit more than my calorie limit, which I think another MFP user said was a good thing. Almost like calorie cycling.

    All you're really doing is reducing your deficit, but if you're happy with that and your rate of loss, no harm done.

  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    edited August 2017
    What sort of thing are you thinking is a treat? A discussion here today reminded me that I spent 45 days last Christmas season eating 100 calorie bits of fruitcake every day. It wasn't a treat all those days.
  • MaddieUnicornRainbow
    MaddieUnicornRainbow Posts: 28 Member
    @JeromeBarry1 So a treat is 250 calories over my limit on Saturday and 250 calories over my limit for Sunday, or 500 calories on Saturday or Sunday.
  • Mezzie1024
    Mezzie1024 Posts: 380 Member
    I've been banking calories this week so I can eat just about everything at my niece's birthday party tomorrow. Pizza, cupcakes, ice cream... who knows what there will be, but I'm hoping to enjoy a lot of it and still fit into my work clothes on Monday. :smile:
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    i save 1-200 cals monday to thursday to eat over the weekend. i only run a tiny deficit as i only have a couple of pounds to lose, so if i just ate more on a Saturday and Sunday i would not lose weight.
  • MegaMooseEsq
    MegaMooseEsq Posts: 3,118 Member
    I also do the average by week thing and don't have any issue with it. I do understand that as I lose, the margin will close, but that's why it's important to me to bake the "treats" into my goals/expectations. Plus, I've found that I've become more disciplined as time goes on. When I first started reducing calories I was going out more and losing slower, but as time passes I've gradually pushed myself to go out less, eat less, and exercise more, and my rate of loss has actually increased even though my available deficit has gone down. This month has been a big bump in terms of exercise, and I actually feel really good about it because I'm ready. I think if I'd tried this six months ago it wouldn't have stuck, but now it feels comfortable. I really do believe that this process is working for me because I'm taking it easy - it turns out weight loss doesn't have to be torture!
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    I never tried to eat the same number of calories every day. I would eat low during the week so I could eat and drink a lot more on the weekends.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    When I was losing weight, I typically ate maintenance calories on the weekend...I still lost weight...it may have been a bit slower than otherwise, but where the big picture was concerned, I really didn't care...I was never in a big rush.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    I do it in more than one way, depending on what I feel like doing. Most of the time I bank or make up in more than one way, I but there are times where I eat a higher calorie allowance on purpose and don't make up for it. There is no wrong or right there. As long as you realize that eating 500 calories more on weekend means doing away with 1000 calories and slowing your weight loss by about a 1/3 of a pound and you are okay with that, then go ahead. Your calorie allowance and rate of weight loss are not written in stone. If you feel that slowing down or completely stopping every once in awhile is okay and doesn't cause you distress, then why not? Personally, I even have planned mini gains sometimes. As long as you are in control and your calories over time achieve a deficit you will lose weight.
  • DamieBird
    DamieBird Posts: 651 Member
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    I do it in more than one way, depending on what I feel like doing. Most of the time I bank or make up in more than one way, I but there are times where I eat a higher calorie allowance on purpose and don't make up for it. There is no wrong or right there. As long as you realize that eating 500 calories more on weekend means doing away with 1000 calories and slowing your weight loss by about a 1/3 of a pound and you are okay with that, then go ahead. Your calorie allowance and rate of weight loss are not written in stone. If you feel that slowing down or completely stopping every once in awhile is okay and doesn't cause you distress, then why not? Personally, I even have planned mini gains sometimes. As long as you are in control and your calories over time achieve a deficit you will lose weight.

    If you don't mind me asking, what's the purpose of the mini gains?

    Also - I think the italicized bit is really the 1 and only secret to weight loss :).
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    DamieBird wrote: »
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    I do it in more than one way, depending on what I feel like doing. Most of the time I bank or make up in more than one way, I but there are times where I eat a higher calorie allowance on purpose and don't make up for it. There is no wrong or right there. As long as you realize that eating 500 calories more on weekend means doing away with 1000 calories and slowing your weight loss by about a 1/3 of a pound and you are okay with that, then go ahead. Your calorie allowance and rate of weight loss are not written in stone. If you feel that slowing down or completely stopping every once in awhile is okay and doesn't cause you distress, then why not? Personally, I even have planned mini gains sometimes. As long as you are in control and your calories over time achieve a deficit you will lose weight.

    If you don't mind me asking, what's the purpose of the mini gains?

    Also - I think the italicized bit is really the 1 and only secret to weight loss :).

    No purpose, really. I just like to eat more sometimes, like during holidays or when I'm working on a stressful projects and would rather not have to put a lot of thought into my food. As long as it's controlled and accounted for I'm fine with undoing a bit of progress for the sake of more leeway. Gain is only problematic if you're spiralling and losing your grip or if the gain is having negative effects on your diet (like feeling guilty or "off the wagon"). In my case I'm pretty relaxed about it because it feels like part of my plan. Nothing that can't be fixed with a month of dieting afterwards, so why not enjoy my time?
  • Silentpadna
    Silentpadna Posts: 1,306 Member
    cwolfman13 wrote: »
    When I was losing weight, I typically ate maintenance calories on the weekend...I still lost weight...it may have been a bit slower than otherwise, but where the big picture was concerned, I really didn't care...I was never in a big rush.

    ^^^^ This is all about mindset ^^^^^

    I eat in a deficit. I have a target. But, since I'm doing this for good, i.e. tracking and being disciplined, I don't worry about a day where I miss my target. Since I'm still losing weight, at my general goal level, eating at maintenance or even a bit over doesn't worry me at all.

    During the process my goal shifted from chasing a number on a scale to becoming healthy. Since becoming healthy is not a process that is accomplished well while rushing to lose weight, rigidity of a "calorie limit" has gone away. I'll take health over a number any day. I still plan and log early when I can, I am getting in better and better and shape, and if I had a choice to fuel a workout vs. stay under my calorie goal, I'll fuel the workout every single time. The whole purpose for losing weight is overall health. Losing fat is part of the bigger picture.
  • Duck_Puddle
    Duck_Puddle Posts: 3,237 Member
    Eating 500 calories over your limit for the week is going to slow your rate of loss by some % (the actual % depends on how aggressive your deficit is). It's likely a very minimal difference though. It's obviously your choice to do so and if it makes you happy and helps you sustain your efforts-have at it. Being happy and having a sustainable plan is really the most important thing (barring medical issues).

    I am in the Bank/save calories during the week and eat them on the weekend group.
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