Zig Zagging Calories

XxBri22xX
XxBri22xX Posts: 183
edited October 2024 in Health and Weight Loss
Do you think zig zagging is a good idea? I have been the same weight for almost 3 weeks now. It's really becoming frustrating. I've heard that zig zagging works for some people and doesn't work for others. I've already looked up the amount of calories I should be eating while zig zagging. As of right now I am eating about 1200 calories and sometimes 1500 with exercise. My calories would be Monday: 1622, Tuesday: 1297, Wednesday: 1946, Thursday: 1622, Friday: 1459, Saturday: 1784, Sunday: 1622. Please let me know if I should do this or not. Or give me other suggestions on how to get out of this plateau. Thanks!

Replies

  • skinnyjeanzbound
    skinnyjeanzbound Posts: 3,932 Member
    Try i!! It works for me when I get stuck. It also makes more wense for me in general b/c I tend to work out hard every other day. You'll never know if it works for you unlees you give it a go =)
  • Cookie22684
    Cookie22684 Posts: 585 Member
    Bump
  • reese66
    reese66 Posts: 2,920 Member
    I like zig zagging calories, I think you should at least try it, if doesn't work no harm no fowl...
  • lilsmittens
    lilsmittens Posts: 4
    It works for me <<<
    I have a incredibly slow metabolism and i feel like i don't loose weight at all if I don't zig zag my calories.I try once a week to zig zag my calories.Sundays I eat more calories then Monday-Saturday go back to the my daily calorie allowance.
  • Jill_newimprovedversion
    Jill_newimprovedversion Posts: 988 Member
    I have done this before and it's gotten me off the dreaded "plateau."
    In fact, I'm doing it this week to bust thru another one...on day 3, have 4 more to go before I find out how "successful" I am...



    I liken it to rocking your car when you're stuck on the snow. Over one day, under the next.

    This is the site I've used to calculate what my caloric intake should be for 7 days:
    http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
    ( go to the 7 day caloric cycle- zig zag- and put in your height/weight/age/gender, ect. to set up your daily targets...it will give you EXTREME FAT LOSS and FAT LOSS- I aim for somewhere in the middle.

    I also have gone back thru my food diary and looked to see if there's some keys there... I am noticing that I get stuck on these plateaus if I am consuming a lot of red meat in the same week. I also get stuck on the plateau if my sugar levels are way over for a long period of time.
  • XxBri22xX
    XxBri22xX Posts: 183
    Thats the site I used but I have another question

    Does this mean NET calories or just calories from food?
  • Jill_newimprovedversion
    Jill_newimprovedversion Posts: 988 Member

    Does this mean NET calories or just calories from food?

    The philosophy is the same...this is the am't of calories you need to consume per day...if you exercise some of them off, you need to eat them back.
  • XxBri22xX
    XxBri22xX Posts: 183
    But doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose of exercising? Why burn off calories if you need to eat them back?

    Sorry I'm just confused :/
  • LadyOfOceanBreeze
    LadyOfOceanBreeze Posts: 762 Member
    I have done this before and it's gotten me off the dreaded "plateau."
    In fact, I'm doing it this week to bust thru another one...on day 3, have 4 more to go before I find out how "successful" I am...



    I liken it to rocking your car when you're stuck on the snow. Over one day, under the next.

    This is the site I've used to calculate what my caloric intake should be for 7 days:
    http://www.freedieting.com/tools/calorie_calculator.htm
    ( go to the 7 day caloric cycle- zig zag- and put in your height/weight/age/gender, ect. to set up your daily targets...it will give you EXTREME FAT LOSS and FAT LOSS- I aim for somewhere in the middle.

    I also have gone back thru my food diary and looked to see if there's some keys there... I am noticing that I get stuck on these plateaus if I am consuming a lot of red meat in the same week. I also get stuck on the plateau if my sugar levels are way over for a long period of time.

    luvit! nancy drew style!
  • vettle
    vettle Posts: 621 Member
    But doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose of exercising? Why burn off calories if you need to eat them back?

    Sorry I'm just confused :/

    The purpose of exercise is not actually to burn off calories to lose weight. This is a delusion we all get when dieting. The purpose of exercising is to be healthy. reduce risks in health, feel better, gain strength and muscle, etc. In order to be healthy,your body needs fuel to exercise.
  • vettle
    vettle Posts: 621 Member
    Anyway, my weight loss was slowing down for sure, so in order to avoid a plateau I started zig zagging this week. I haven't weighed in yet, so we'll see what happens on Monday. It makes a lot of sense, because your body needs to be tricked once in a while. On one of my high calorie days, I ate a GIANT breakfast, and about two hours later I was hungry. I couldn't believe it! My stomach was revving up to burn calories and wanted more already, so my metabolism was coming back.

    I am also increasing my calories by 200 per day because I was eating below my BMR which is absolutely not healthy in the long run, and I am eating back every single calorie I burn. I looked at my weekly weight loss goals over the last couple of months and every single week I was way under my calorie goals. No wonder my body was slowing down. it was going into starvation mode. eek!

    Give it a shot, I think you'll be pleased. Plus, there are some days where you'll get to eat a bit more! But believe me it's hard to do (healthy, not a big burger lol).

    The free diet tools site is what I used too. very useful.
  • Jill_newimprovedversion
    Jill_newimprovedversion Posts: 988 Member
    But doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose of exercising? Why burn off calories if you need to eat them back?

    Sorry I'm just confused :/

    Your calorie goals that you set up on here have already factored in the am't your body needs to run efficiently, based on your activity level. If you exercise, you'll burn some of them off. It's important to eat them back so you are at the level to lose weight.
    Staying below your recommended level can put your body in starvation mode- like running your car on an empty tank of gas- NOT GOOD...screws up your metabolism...and your body thinks it's starving itself...so the food you eat- healthy or not- will be stored as FAT instead. Which is counter-productive when you're trying to lose weight and get rid of it, yes?

    There are LOTS of discussions about this on here- Search and you'll find page after page.
    Here is one VERY GOOD one if you're interested...and make you own informed decision.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/10589-for-those-confused-or-questioning-eating-your-exercise-calo
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    I zig-zag calories and carbs the way that Tom Venuto explains in his e-book Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle. For 3 days, I eat around 1500 calories with higher protein than carbs. Then every 4th day, I eat around 1800 calories with higher carbs. I have great success doing this, and it also eliminates "cheating" for me because every 4th day I have something like whole wheat pizza or some sort of pasta dish that fits right in my diary perfectly. And being every 4 days, I don't crave things like I used to. I also have been losing inches and pounds consistently since starting this.
  • XxBri22xX
    XxBri22xX Posts: 183
    That makes sense. Thanks everybody! (:
This discussion has been closed.

Categories