Here Comes The Weekend
By Nancy Adler
I could go all week meal prepping, saying no to the office candy jar, snacking on fruits and veggies, and hitting the gym after work. But then the weekend came and I’d be completely thrown off.
It’s all too common to have the weekends stop all your hard efforts to get to that long awaited weight loss goal. If your diet during the week is strict, you are much more likely to binge as soon as Friday night hits. After 5 days of unflavored veggies, plain chicken, and mounds of brown rice…pizza starts to look just so much more appealing.
If you strictly eat boring food all week, of course your mouth is going to start watering the second you see something appetizing. Did you know it’s possible to eat healthy foods that taste delicious? You need to be eating foods you actually like during the week. That way when Friday night comes and your girlfriends want to order nachos and binge on ice cream, you aren’t as easily tempted to overindulge.
So stop over-restricting Monday-Friday. When you over restrict all week, it makes 5:00 on Friday feel like a finish line. “Ok I made it to Friday following my plan, now I get to reward myself”.
If you’re struggling with sustaining your diet, you might be overly restricting. This is inevitably going to lead to weekend binging. Learning to balance your daily food intake is crucial. A little bit of this, a little bit of that is what leads to long term success.
Weekends entail different things for everyone. But whatever your situation, most people find it hard to workout on the weekend. For some of you, between driving to soccer games, feeding your kids, and trying to fit in yard work, there just seems to be no spare second to work out. For others, you like to go out with your friends, dance hard, and indulge in some weekend night “drinks”. And some of you worked hard all week, by the time the weekend hits, all you want to do is just chill. Weekends entail different things for everyone. But whatever your situation, most people find it hard to workout on the weekends.
The reason you can workout during the week is because it’s part of your routine. Whether you’re an early bird exerciser or you dutifully hit the gym on your way home from work, it’s your routine. It’s scheduled and you know it’s going to happen. Schedule your exercise. It’s an important part of your daily routine.
“But Nancy, weekends are so much less predictable,” you say. You might not get your full hour routine in on a weekend. But this is my advice to my clients, find a way to squeeze in a workout.
Ten minutes is better than nothing
You’ll still get those good endorphins that come from exercise. Exercising naturally influences you to choose healthier foods. (Have you noticed that?) So even if you don’t burn hundreds of calories in your workout, it might save you hundreds of calories of binging. You’ll feel proud of yourself for not falling totally off the wagon
You can actually do a lot in 10 minutes. In 10 minutes, you could run a mile, do a few circuits of weights.
So throw on those running shoes and do a few laps around the block, turn on your favorite workout video, or make a quick stop to the gym this weekend. Trust me, you will thank yourself for your Monday morning weigh in.
Weekends are actually a perfect time to make exercise fun. Especially now that spring is coming There’s so much you can do that will be enjoyable while also getting your heart rate up.
Get some friends and go for a hike somewhere beautiful to kayak, canoe, or give paddleboarding a try. Grab a ball and some friends to start a game of basketball or beach volleyball. Take your family to an amusement park (bring your fitbit to this one, because you’ll sure be doing a lot of walking)
Pull out your rollerskakes and hit up the park with someone special. Go out dancing. Enjoy a bike ride somewhere beautiful. This one might not be the most exciting, but yardwork and deep cleaning can actually burn a lot of calories!
If you’re hungry and have no healthy food in sight, you’ll definitely feel more inclined to say yes to that convenient pizza slice, or stop by Taco Bell . Food prep and planning is key. So let’s fix this. Are you going to watch a baseball game? Portion out a bag of nuts.Going to the lake? Cut up some watermelon. Watching a movie? Make sure you have some unbuttered popcorn in the cupboard.
Trust me, I used to laugh when I heard stuff like that too. But it is not as hard (or weird) as it sounds. It takes just a bit of time and thought, but it can do wonders to keep your progress on track so you’re not derailed by the weekend.
And so starts the mental game. And trust me I’ve heard it all. If the weekend has wreaked havoc on your diet, chances are you have the wrong mentality. Have you ever told yourself any of these? (Or have your friends peer pressured you into indulging with one of these lines?)
“I worked hard all week, I don’t need to work out”
“It’s the weekend, calories don’t count”
“After all my dedication this week, I deserve a break”
“Sundays are for brunch and mimosas”
This is the type of thinking that leads to weekend indulgence. In the end, it’s all about your mindset. Of course we all know to eat healthy and exercise, but we let ourselves start thinking like this, and we slip up!
Try to get out of the mindset of “rewarding” a hard working week with food.
Or “punishing” a bad weekend with extra weekday workouts.
Instead, after a week of strong dedication, reward yourself with a manicure, a massage, guilt free Netflix watching.
When you exercise, think about how your lungs are getting stronger, you’re getting faster, and your muscles are becoming more efficient. Exercise for health, not punishment.
Eat balanced and healthy meals throughout the week
Plan time to workout on the weekends (even if it’s just 10 minutes)
Try to make exercise fun
Plan meals and snacks ahead of time
And, keep a healthy mindset with food and exercise
Weekends don’t need to be the end all.
Sent from my iPad
