Do you find the weekends to be the hardest times to keep up with your nutrition? You know, all those events, dinners, parties, and barbecues that go on, do they seem to throw you off? Not to worry! I have some great tips to help you stay healthy on the weekends and still lose weight.
Let’s first take a look at what it takes to lose weight. We must be in a calorie deficit to lose weight, no question about it. A weekly deficit of 3,500 calories is needed to lose 1 pound per week. This is a deficit of 500 calories per day. Now, what seems to happen to a lot of people is that they have a deficit for the week, but they make the decision to have a “cheat meal,” “cheat day,” or “cheat weekend.” Calories can add up faster than you can blink, especially when meals are eaten at restaurants. A single meal can be 2,000 calories or more (and that’s not including dessert). This could easily get someone out of their weekly deficit and back onto maintenance calories. When we are consuming maintenance calories we do not lose weight. Now, this doesn’t mean we’re never allowed to indulge when dieting, it just means we need to be a little more strategic. For example, if you know you have a big dinner planned, continue to eat mostly lean protein and vegetables throughout the day. This will help keep your calories low so that when you eat out you don’t completely throw off your diet. Another example would be customizing your dinner with a salad instead of fries or skipping a hamburger bun and saving it for another day or eating only half of your meal.
Well let’s do it, here are simple tips to keep you on track on the weekends.
Tip 1: Treat the weekend as if it were a weekday. Stay laser-focused on those goals as hard as you do all week.
Tip 2: Fill up on lots of green vegetables to keep you full.
Tip 3: Make healthier, lower-calorie versions of your favorite treats! (*See recipe below)
Tip 4: Host dinner or bring your own plate to a potluck that’s aligned with the way you want to eat. You will be in control of what is served and how much you consume.
Tip 5: Find other activities to do that don’t revolve around food and get active!
Tip 6: Enjoy today’s moments with your family and friends without so much emphasis on food and eating out.
So now that you have a few tools in your pocket to keep up this weekend, here’s a healthy, low-calorie snack if you’re in the mood for chocolate!
Chocolate Avocado Pudding – Makes 4 servings (vegan)
They mix:
2 avocados, only the meat
4 tablespoons of raw cocoa or cocoa powder
4 tablespoons maple syrup
pinch of sea salt or Himalayan salt
Divide into 4 servings of about 1/2 cup each and enjoy!