[Sheena82]

Hi everyone,

Quick question, i've been sticking to my 1300 calorie diet with the exception of a few meals out which i logged in my food diary, i initially intended to take my lovely husband out for dinner at least Once every two weeks but have started avoiding it out of anxiety about going over my cals. I've been reading up on cheat meals etc to see how people do with them, mixed responses on that one!

Sooo to get to the point i am regularly under my calorie goal and i was thinking of counting my calories on a weekly budget instead of a daily one and any extra i could use on say a friday night? Has anyone tried this? Did it work out? Bit nervous because i've had fairly consistent losses but am thinking of using this if my weight loss stalls. I'd be interested in hearing the opinions of anyone who uses, "cheat days" "spike days" or any day where they go a bit over their normal calories.

[seagirl]

I use sparkpeople which gives me a range of calories per day - 1470-1840 per day. Most days I'm around 1500, which gives me some wiggle room if I want a higher calorie day on a weekend or something.

Maybe figure out a good range for yourself, but don't start eating 1000 calories a day to save up for a good meal.

[LiannaKole]

I do it. And it's working pretty well for me so far (I've been doing it for almost 5 weeks, I think).

I've tried it before but did it very wrong. I get in the habit of letting myself eat too far below my daily calories, and then I get really hungry and overeat. Bad, and due to a bit of laziness on my part. But if I make sure I get enough to eat, it's not a problem for me.

I do daily AND weekly calories. So I'll do so many days with X amount of calories, and then I get 1 or more days with Y amount of calories. For example, If I ate 1500 calories a day normally, and I wanted a day or two where I could eat more than that, I could cut that # by like 50 calories a day for 6 days, and on day 7 I'd have an extra 300 calories (1800 calories for that day). Or some variation of that - whatever works.

Maybe try it for a bit and see how it goes. But don't restrict or indulge too much (if you're anything like me, either can throw you off track). But try it and see if it helps with your date nights. It's a shame to not have those. Good luck!

[Sheena82]

Thanks for the responses!! Nah can't cut calories too drastically, don't have it in me!! Lowest has been 900 cals due to being a bit distracted but am usually between 1100 to 1250 i realised that it gives me a little bit of room for a higher calorie dinner on the weekend.

I was just curious to see if anyones found it useful in dealing with plateaus etc.

[Liz45]

I'm happy to see you brought this subject up. I've been thinking of doing the same thing, because when my husband is off on weekends, that's when it's hardest for me to stick to a plan. He's a great griller and we both love to cook, so it would be nice to have the option to enjoy one day of the week without going too overboard. I'm going to give this a try.

[Sheena82]

Okeydokey,

I tried it this weekend but ended up going a bit over due to an impromptu shopping trip and ice cream, we live in the middle east and its baking hot so i deserved that ice cream damnit!! Anyhoo, my weight jumped up for a few days after the weekend from 164.4 to 166.6, which created a bit of a kerfuffle and my husband giving me sympathetic looks and motivational shoulder rubs as a drama queened my *** off about it. However as of this morning i'm 162.6. So if theres any weight gain anyone whos trying this i can guarantee its water weight. I was a little worried as i understand that it takes the body about 48hours before it lays down fat so was worried i hadn't logged correctly etc.

Liz45, exactly the same reason for me, my husband is a great cook, unfortunately you cant get the cream out of his little paws once he starts, he seems to be convinced that potato is an actual food group too LOL

[Liz45]

LOL Sheena, Same here. My husband and I are both meat and potatoes people. I'm just learning to live with a little less of both those things.