Most Common Mistakes - Weekend Blowouts

This happens all the time. People are “good all week”, so they reward themselves with a few drinks and a takeaway at the weekend.

Don’t reward your hard work with food. It defeats the object.

What’s the point in restricting calories and struggling to get through the week, only to over-consume calories at the weekend and undo all of the work?

Let’s say you’ve got a 300-calorie-a-day deficit x5 days = 1,500 calories.

Now we get to the weekend and you have a couple of beers and a kebab & chips on Friday night - there’s your 1,500 calories right back again.

Then on Saturday you have a couple more beers...

Suddenly your 1,500-calorie deficit that you’ve worked so hard for in the week has turned into a 500+ calorie surplus for the week (and we haven’t even got to Sunday lunch yet!).

This is how easy it is to undo all of your work and get nowhere, despite thinking you’re doing what you need to do. You spend 5 days a week “being good” and think that’s enough to do whatever you like at the weekend.

Sadly, if you want to lose bodyfat, there will have to be a few sacrifices.

It doesn’t mean you can’t go out (Covid’s taking care of that right now anyway!).

It doesn’t mean you can’t have the odd drink or a takeaway.

It doesn’t mean you can’t have the foods you enjoy.

It just means you have to be mindful of everything you’re eating (and drinking) and make sure it all fits within your calorie target.

Want a glass of wine and pudding with your dinner? Go for it. Just account for the calories.

It may just mean having smaller portions or finding an acceptable alternative with fewer calories.

If your goal is weight loss, using food as a reward at the end of the week is the most nonsensical thing you can do. It’s like rewarding someone who’s given up smoking with a cigarette at the end of the week!

...yet it’s something that so many people do, possibly without realising, but normally because they subscribe to the “I’ve been good all week” philosophy and feel they’ve earned it in some way.

Consistency is the name of the game and that HAS to apply 7 days a week.

5 days on, 2 days off won’t work because it’s so easy to over-consume calories, and so hard to under-consume (if you don’t know how to do it properly).

It’s unfair. There’s no balance. It’s quite possible to starve all week only to consume your entire deficit in just one meal!

That’s why it’s important to follow a sensible nutrition plan, that’s suited to you and your tastes, and allows you to eat the foods you love, with a sensible calorie deficit - not starvation.

There are no banned foods, but there are also no “free” foods.

If you can eat the foods you like all week, you’ll be less likely to have a blowout at the weekend - you’re not constantly testing your willpower.

It’s all about a sensible and appropriate approach.

If you need help figuring this out for YOU, DM me and let’s talk through your options :)

Mark