Saving calories for the weekend?

meworkma
meworkma Posts: 5 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Is it bad to save calories for the weekends? My calorie limit a day is 1,200 and I exercise 3-4 days a week. Those days I'm almost always under my calorie goal, because at times I find it hard to eat back all of the calories I burn through exercise. For instance, yesterday I burned 325 calories on the elliptical, and was 300 calories under my goal after I was finished eating for the day. So, can I "use" those 300 calories on Saturday to enjoy a treat, and consider it even?

Replies

  • mcknz121
    mcknz121 Posts: 44
    If you eat under 1200 calories a day...especially several days in a row, you're putting your body into starvation mode and slowing down your metabolism which will hurt your weight loss even more when you splurge on the weekends. I am all about cheating a little on the weekends, but make some compromises. If you know you're going to be out drinking on Saturday night go for a run on Saturday morning and try to eat healthy throughout the day...save up your calories that day you know? If you're splurging on unhealthy foods, try to make healthier substitutions (ask for a side of veggies at the restaurant instead of rice, make substitutions in your baked goods, etc.)
  • HolllyBot
    HolllyBot Posts: 33
    I do it sometimes. Not nessicarliy on the weekends but I pay more attention to weekly than to daily totals. Hope that helps! I am assuming you mean save your exercize cals for the weekend, but still eat at least 1200 a day!
  • Nikkei24
    Nikkei24 Posts: 282 Member
    I think the poster meant they are eating the 1,200 calories but not all the exercise caloires back. they wanted to know if they could bank the exercise calories they have left to enjoy treats on the weekends. I don't know the answer I'm guessing everyone's body is different and it may affect your loss or it may not.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Is it bad to save calories for the weekends? My calorie limit a day is 1,200 and I exercise 3-4 days a week. Those days I'm almost always under my calorie goal, because at times I find it hard to eat back all of the calories I burn through exercise. For instance, yesterday I burned 325 calories on the elliptical, and was 300 calories under my goal after I was finished eating for the day. So, can I "use" those 300 calories on Saturday to enjoy a treat, and consider it even?

    If by underfeeding your body so bad your glucose stores are depleted more and more each day, ya, the weekend can top those back off.
    If they are getting topped off through the week, then the weekend will just be seen as surplus, and stored as such, ie fat.

    Now in reality, what probably happens is, you are 300 short on Wed, Thu and Fri are good, and just make up for Wed, so Sat going over just makes up for Fri workout. That works out fine as long as you don't keep compounding it by being 300 below on Thu and Fri.

    Weekly balance is a great method used by many, when they have decent routines that are steady through the week. Where it falls apart is either huge deficit to make up by on weekend, or opposite, a huge workout on the weekend you do not make up until eating through the week.
    Either extreme may workout math-wise on paper, but to the body it really doesn't help much.

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