The Weekend Binge

 
 

You’re good Monday through Thursday.  It’s easy.  You most likely have a regimented lifestyle.  Especially if you’re working, you can control your food intake better by packing a healthy lunch and bringing your exercise clothes to work so you have to hit the gym right afterwards.  You also may go to sleep at a relatively normal time.  You’re down 1-2 pounds from Monday.  Woo hoo!  Then the weekend comes and all that hard work just went out the door!

I’m no stranger to this.  I have a great diet during the week and I can easily lose control over the weekend as well.  Usually my husband and I are running around so we don’t prepare many meals at home.  We indulge in foods and drinks that we don’t normally consume during the week.  On the plus side, I usually fit in some great workouts in and I burn more calories on the weekends.  I can be a little lax on my diet as I’m burning more calories and I’m not trying to lose weight.  I still have to be aware not to overcompensate and overindulge.  But if you’re trying to lose weight, even this trick of working out harder/longer/faster might not work so well.

Suppose you normally work out for 45 minutes on Wednesdays and 75 minutes on Saturdays.   You may burn an extra 400 calories on Saturday.  Then you reward yourself with a bowl of ice cream after lunch and two glasses of wine with dinner.  Those small indulges will add about 600 calories to your normal intake.  And that’s if your dinner was a typical dinner at home.  If you go out to eat, you might be  at an extra 1000 calories.  And if you do this on both Saturday and Sunday that scale will definitely not please you on Monday.
If you are trying to lose weight, the weekend binges have GOT to stop.  This is usually the cause for not meeting a weight loss goal.  Then the frustration and guilt kicks in and it’s easy to fall off the wagon completely.  If you are able to recover from a weekend binge and lose that 2 pounds you gained from the weekend, imagine what you’d weigh if you didn’t binge on the weekends?  You could be down 2 pounds/week!  All the hard work you put in being diligent with your eating and exercise habits will actually start to pay off.
I can’t legally dispense diet plans to my clients.  I can only provide healthy tips and very basic advice (which frustrates me beyond belief).  So here is some advice for the weekend bingers:

• Download a food tracker app such as Calorie King, Spark People, My Fitness Pal.  Make sure to keep good logs on the weekends.
• Spread out your indulgences.  It’s okay to have the occasional bowl of ice cream or a glass of wine. You just need to avoid packing them all into two days of the week.
• Eat prior to attending parties then nibble on healthy treats.  You can also bring your own healthy snacks.
• Look at a menu ahead of time if you are going out to eat with friends.  Seek out some healthy options.  Then don’t even open the menu at the restaurant to get tempted.  Let your friends know you are trying to eat healthy so they don’t tempt you in to getting a fried appetizer.
• Keep healthy snacks in the house.  If you have girl scout cookies, cakes, danishes, etc in the house, someone is going to eat them.  That stuff doesn’t belong in the house.  It’s not good for you, your spouse, or your kids!
• Get outside!  It’s summer.  Plan for something active.  If your friend wants to get together for lunch, suggest going for a walk.
• If you can’t seem to get your weekend binges under control, see a registered dietitian.   They can help you design a food plan that fits your lifestyle.  They also help make you accountable
• Make sure you fit in a workout.  I mean a GOOD workout.  The usual week day exercise routine may not be suitable to accompany a weekend binge.  See me for ideas.