Weekend willpower

Many people follow a weekly calorie goal so some days are higher, some lower but they balance out. Others eat a little less over the week (like 100 calories per day) so they have extra banked for the weekend. This works fine as long as you're eating enough to keep yourself well fueled and sustained throughout the week.

LittleTee76 wrote: »

I’m a few days in on this “lifestyle change”. One of my biggest weaknesses is weekends. I do well all week then blow it on weekends (drinks lead to eating, then more eating, then poor eating). Any tips on staying on track? Other than laying off the booze, obv.

Kami's weekly goal/calorie banking idea is a good one. Also, weekends can be an opportunity to get in some extra workout time (maybe fun activity, not necessarily just routine gym stuff), to create extra calorie room. Even going someplace with dancing, not just eating/drinking, can help.

It may also help to intersperse a glass of water between glasses of alcohol, to slow things down, fill the stomach a bit, and keep a tiny bit more clear-headed.

Since reducing booze is "obv" not happening, I won't mention setting fitness goals, and developing a social life that supports them, as an adjuct or alternative. (My rowing team likes to go out for beer and dinner after rowing, for example. There's calorie room for the beer. ).

If you continue to drink, but you want to lose weight, you'll need to find your way.

I'm the exact same when I have a glass or 3...straight for the snacks. Plan for Jan is no alcohol. Then from Feb on, no alcohol at home, so if I feel I really would like a drink, I'll make myself be sociable and go out which we never do and it's not healthy! Save calories and exercise will be plan for when I will be going out.

JohnnytotheB wrote: »

I feel it takes planning. If you know your going out, eat less for the other meals. I find that a light breakfast and lunch allows you to have ALMOST everything you want for the night out!!!! Good luck!!!

Oh yeah, I also switch to the "white" alcohols like vodka, tequila because they are supposedly lower in calories. I also don't do any soda additions to stuff. Vodka press, gimlet, tequila shots or a dirty martini are good examples that I drink.

You know that common recipes for press drinks, gimlet and dirty martini include sweeteners? For the gimlet, simple syrup (strong sugar water) or Rose's lime juice (US version includes high fructose corn syrup, though usually not much in context of the total drink) are fairly common. There's usually not a lot of vermouth in a martini, maybe none, but vermouth also has added sugars. The standard press recipe has 7-up or Sprite in addition to unsweetened plain soda water. (Using artificially sweetened 7-up/Sprite means no sugar, of course, and ordering skinny versions may get you that.)

Sugar's not evil in any way, within reason, but does add calories - it's not that hard to work your way up to the equivalent of soda additions, depending on the recipes.

You're right, tequila or vodka is low in calories, for alcohol. Some of the flavored-but-not-sweetened vodkas are also pretty low. Something like that, plus plain soda/sparkling water, and a wedge of lime: Relatively lower calorie, pretty tasty.

Color per se of the distilled liquor is irrelevant, mostly: Dark rum, light rum, and vodka (among others) vary in color, but are very close in calories. Any of the distilled, unsweetened liquors get most of their calories from alcohol (at 7 calories per alcohol gram), so they'll typically run close in calories per ounce, if the same proof/ABV.