Punishing myself for indulgence :P

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tails86
tails86 Posts: 17
in Health and Weight Loss
Last Saturday evening, my friend stopped by with pizza and beer right after I got finished with my final meal for the evening. Needles to say, I went way over my dietary goal that day. The next day, I decided to go well under to make up for that.

My goal is about 1,600 calories daily. Saturday I consumed ~2,500. Sunday I consumed ~1,000 in 4 small meals. The average for the two days is ~1,750 which I feel better about.

So did I do an unhealthy thing yesterday or is this ok to do every once in a while? I know MFP nags me when I go below 1,200.

Replies

  • dls06
    dls06 Posts: 6,774 Member
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    You did good. I think they call it zig zag. Search the topic above to find more info.
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
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    It depends (inb4 everyone disagrees LOL).

    If you plan this out ahead, there's nothing wrong with having variance in your daily intake (calorie cycling/etc).

    However, if you overate, and then had guilty feelings the next day and decided to punish yourself, I would label this as bad for psychological reasons (developing an ED being one of them).

    Your best course of action when you slip up is to simply RESUME YOUR PLAN.
  • LisaKyle11
    LisaKyle11 Posts: 662 Member
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    don't beat yourself up about it... 2500 one day isn't going to necessarily make you gain. in fact, it could be helpful for your metabolism. sounds like you have down a few tricks that will likely make it seem like it didn't happen (zig/zagging a little). you will be fine!
  • AngelikaLumiere
    AngelikaLumiere Posts: 862 Member
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    My hubby and I "over-indulge" every Saturday as a reward for having a good week watching our weight. As a result we usually stick to our diet during the week and have more energy to exercise on the weekend and so far we have continued to loose weight without a break. This might not work for everyone but allowing ourselves this weekly treat makes the whole life-style change workable for us.
  • emmiee921
    emmiee921 Posts: 224
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    I feel like I zig zag all the time. When I have binges now they are common once a week or twice, I need to stop, then the next 2 days I'll eat low under 1000. I still end up gaining weight in the long run. I'd like to make This only occur once a month or less
  • UsedToBeHusky
    UsedToBeHusky Posts: 15,229 Member
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    It depends (inb4 everyone disagrees LOL).

    If you plan this out ahead, there's nothing wrong with having variance in your daily intake (calorie cycling/etc).

    However, if you overate, and then had guilty feelings the next day and decided to punish yourself, I would label this as bad for psychological reasons (developing an ED being one of them).

    Your best course of action when you slip up is to simply RESUME YOUR PLAN.

    I agree with this. One day over isn't going to hurt you, and one day under isn't going to hurt you. The guilt is your biggest issue here. At the same time, you can't deprive yourself. And on top of it, this was a social situation. A lifestyle change shouldn't affect your interaction with others. If it makes you feel better, I think you made all the right choices, including having a little pizza and beer with your friend. It was a one time thing and not something you are going to do everyday. Be confident that you have control. Best of luck!
  • Nundaii
    Nundaii Posts: 5
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    They say it is important mentally to allow yourself to indulge sometimes, especially when starting a new food regime. It's best to not completely cut out all the bad stuff to begin with, as you'll do yourself over in your head with cravings, etc.
    As Angelika said - designate a day a week or every two weeks or something to indulge yourself in a take out dinner, or a nice dessert. Keep going about your usual diet in the days leading up and the days just after.
    As SideSteal said as well - if you do have a big slip up day, don't worry about it too much and don't punish yourself by severely reducing your calories. If you want to "Punish" yourself - maybe do an extra 30 minutes at the gym or something. But keep your eating as it was :)
    Don't feel too bad about one day ;)
  • tails86
    tails86 Posts: 17
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    However, if you overate, and then had guilty feelings the next day and decided to punish yourself, I would label this as bad for psychological reasons (developing an ED being one of them).

    Interesting concept. Taking the psychological aspects into account. (Really? Could that lead to ED?)

    Maybe I will start to "zig-zag" in order to keep my metabolism going. During stressful periods at work and in class, I do tend to under eat because I'm busy. Maybe I could plan to rack up those 'points' and use them when they are necessary like the weekend :) I'll try it out and see if that works for me.
  • Raf702
    Raf702 Posts: 196 Member
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    Last Saturday evening, my friend stopped by with pizza and beer right after I got finished with my final meal for the evening. Needles to say, I went way over my dietary goal that day. The next day, I decided to go well under to make up for that.

    My goal is about 1,600 calories daily. Saturday I consumed ~2,500. Sunday I consumed ~1,000 in 4 small meals. The average for the two days is ~1,750 which I feel better about.

    So did I do an unhealthy thing yesterday or is this ok to do every once in a while? I know MFP nags me when I go below 1,200.


    First off what is your maintenance calories a day for your current stats? 2,500 total calories consumed on Saturday, or 2,500 calories excess on top of your maintenance calories? Key point to remember 3,500 calories= 1lb. If you only ate 2,500 calories, and your maintenance is around 2,000. You only ate 500 calories above your maintenance. You didn't even scratch the surface. Now even if you ate at maintenance of say 2000 cals, and ate an excess of 2,500. That would equal to 4,500 calories consumed. BUT, with your daily BMR of say 1500-1600. Your body will have only absorbed about 3000 cals. Which leaves you still 500 calories short of 3,500 calories(1lb).

    Basically you didn't do any damage. Just stressing yourself out. Stay on track and keep up the good work!
  • tails86
    tails86 Posts: 17
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    Last Saturday evening, my friend stopped by with pizza and beer right after I got finished with my final meal for the evening. Needles to say, I went way over my dietary goal that day. The next day, I decided to go well under to make up for that.

    My goal is about 1,600 calories daily. Saturday I consumed ~2,500. Sunday I consumed ~1,000 in 4 small meals. The average for the two days is ~1,750 which I feel better about.

    So did I do an unhealthy thing yesterday or is this ok to do every once in a while? I know MFP nags me when I go below 1,200.


    First off what is your maintenance calories a day for your current stats? 2,500 total calories consumed on Saturday, or 2,500 calories excess on top of your maintenance calories? Key point to remember 3,500 calories= 1lb. If you only ate 2,500 calories, and your maintenance is around 2,000. You only ate 500 calories above your maintenance. You didn't even scratch the surface. Now even if you ate at maintenance of say 2000 cals, and ate an excess of 2,500. That would equal to 4,500 calories consumed. BUT, with your daily BMR of say 1500-1600. Your body will have only absorbed about 3000 cals. Which leaves you still 500 calories short of 3,500 calories(1lb).

    Basically you didn't do any damage. Just stressing yourself out. Stay on track and keep up the good work!

    I have a spreadsheet where I've been tracking this. My maintenance calories is about 2,000 to 2,100. Using the estimated 3,500 calories per pound, the slope of the estimated weight matches up pretty well with the slope of my actual weight. Therefore, I can say that these estimates are pretty accurate for me.

    I do understand that I didn't do much damage. 500 or so calories over amounts to 0.14 pounds, which isn't so much. I feel as if one bad day will tarnish my record which I know that is not a good way of looking at things. I don't want to fall off the bandwagon because one bad day leads to another then another.
  • Raf702
    Raf702 Posts: 196 Member
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    I have a spreadsheet where I've been tracking this. My maintenance calories is about 2,000 to 2,100. Using the estimated 3,500 calories per pound, the slope of the estimated weight matches up pretty well with the slope of my actual weight. Therefore, I can say that these estimates are pretty accurate for me.

    I do understand that I didn't do much damage. 500 or so calories over amounts to 0.14 pounds, which isn't so much. I feel as if one bad day will tarnish my record which I know that is not a good way of looking at things. I don't want to fall off the bandwagon because one bad day leads to another then another.

    Don't punish yourself at all for just one day of "bad" eating. We all have cheat meals, etc. I eat a cheat meal 1x or 1x ever other week. And I don't even count the calories in the meal. And I still continue to lose weight. As long as your consistent with your calorie consumption as to a calorie deficit. Then you won't have any issues of gaining weight. 6 days of calorie deficit, 1-day of a cheat meal, then back on to your diet. ZERO damage will be done, sure you might retain some water weight due to that meal. But that's not fat, just water, and you will shed that water weight within a day or two. Don't worry stress yourself over this, continue staying focus, give yourself 1 cheat meal a week or every other week and you'll be fine.
  • Marcel7
    Marcel7 Posts: 52 Member
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    I agree that the occasional day of eating more than planned is no big deal. I also sometimes feel guilty when I go over my calorie goal. The main thing is to get back on track if you have a day when you splurge. It sounds like you are doing well and that you will meet your goals.

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