The weekends are a time to cut loose, lay back, relax, and get away from the stressors of the work week.
However, amidst this time spent maxing and relaxing, many individuals take their hands of the reins a bit too much, especially in regards to their nutrition plan. This laissez faire attitude on the weekends can (and will) impair your progress during your transformation challenge.
It is entirely possible to undo a great week of dieting with an awful weekend of binging.
Fortunately for you, we’ve compiled a list of 13 can’t-go-wrong tips to help you avoid overeating on the weekends. Even better, these tips will allow you to still enjoy the foods you want on the weekends while still staying on track with your weight loss goals.
Let’s get started!
13 Ways to Stop Overeating on Weekends
#1 Don’t Skip Meals
Quite often individuals will try to save calories for a big indulgent meal by skipping one or two meals during the day.
While this strategy can work for certain individuals, for others it leads to overeating.
If you do plan to have a higher-than-usual calorie dinner on the weekends, still keep some small snacks in your meal plan throughout the day, as this will help keep blood sugar levels stable and prevent you from overeating come dinnertime.
#2 Eat at Regular Intervals
Building on the previous point, sticking to your normal eating schedule can do wonders to help prevent overeating on the weekends.
This helps keep blood sugar and energy levels stable, helping avoid those ravenous hunger cravings that can rear their ugly head when you go for long periods of time without food.
So, if you stick to a regular meal schedule during the week, try your best to adhere to it on the weekends. The foods you eat at these times can differ (see #1 above) but keeping to your schedule can help keep you on track with your plan, which ultimately yields better results during your transformation challenge.
#3 Have a Protein Shake
Protein is a macronutrient that is essential for recovery and muscle building. Protein Shake is a very convenient and a fast way to get your protein in. It helps with sweet cravings while dieting and it will keep you full. Check out these 5 protein sources you can choose HERE
#4 Stay Hydrated
Consuming enough fluids (water and electrolytes) is essential to staying properly hydrated, which in turn helps you keep your hunger and craving cues in check.
However, on the weekends, we tend to be less aware of our weekly habits, like drinking enough water.
Individuals also tend to imbibe on the weekends with an adult beverage (or two...or three), which can dehydrate the body.
Setting a reminder or remembering to drink (water) at regular intervals can help you stay hydrated and avoid mistaking hunger for thirst.
#5 Use the 80/20 Rule
We’re going to let you in on a little secret, to get results, you don’t have to eat perfect all the time. In fact, embracing the “all or none” mentality with diet, fitness, etc. more often leads to failure than success.
Regarding dieting, understand that it’s ok to not be a saint with your diet on the weekends. So as long as your weekend meals are 80% wholesome, nutrient-dense foods, the other 20% can be more “fun” (dirty) foods.
By embracing this 80/20 mindset, you can still have the “naughty” foods you enjoy (in moderation), without feeling deprived and still getting the results you want!
#6 Treat Yourself Regularly
Common dieting practice is to diet hard all week, avoiding all the “fun” or “dirty” foods you typically crave, and then go ham at the buffet on the weekend.
Whereas at one time you had one cheat meal on the weekend, you’ve progressed to having cheat weekends.
This can be a recipe for disaster. As we mentioned at the outset of this article, overeating and binging on the weekends can (and will) undo an entire week’s worth of diligent dieting.
By treating yourself to little mini-indulges throughout the week, or configuring your daily nutrition plan to have some sweet treat each day (see the tip above about 80/20 mindset), can help avoid embracing the over-indulgent, binging mindset.
These during-the-week indulgences don’t have to be anything extravagant. They can be something as simple (and delicious) as a piece of really high-quality dark chocolate, a small scoop of ultra-premium ice cream, or whatever other type of treat/food you enjoy.
As we said before, any food can fit into your diet plan. You just need to make sure you’re consuming enough other quality foods in addition to those “other” foods to hit your macro and micronutrient needs all the while sticking to the confines of your calorie requirements.
#7 Portion Sizes are Important
The weekends are a time when we typically loosen the reins on our diet and enjoy higher calorie, more indulgent foods like pizza, ice cream, french fries, etc.
It’s perfectly fine to enjoy these foods too.
However, keep in mind that you need to be mindful of how much of these foods you are eating. These “dirtier” foods are tasty and highly craveable, but they’re also packing a considerable amount of calories in a smaller bite.
So, while you definitely have the freedom to enjoy these foods each weekend, make sure you’re keeping an eye on how much of these foods you’re eating.
One way to do this is to measure out a full serving so you know how much you’re eating. After a few times of doing this, you’ll be able to eyeball and appropriate serving so that you can still continue to enjoy these foods whilestaying on target with your fat loss goals.
#8 Tap the Brakes Before Getting Seconds
It can take up to 20 minutes before your brain registers that you’ve had enough to eat. As such, before you decide to refill your plate for seconds (or thirds), sit back and relax for 20 minutes, or (better yet), take a walk around the block or neighborhood.
If you’re still hungry after 20 minutes or so, then feel free to have a second helping!
#9 Use a Hunger Scale
When we get bored, one of the first things we default to is eating. This happens even if we’re not really hungry.
To help prevent overeating during the weekends, take stock of how hungry you actually are.
Use a ranking scale, if it helps.
A ranking of 1 means you’re not hungry at all, and a ranking of 10 means you could eat a horse!
The next time you find yourself heading to the pantry or fridge for a snack, pause and ask yourself, “how hungry am I?”
“Am i eating out of boredom or stress? Or, am I legitimately hungry?”
Asking (and honestly answering) these questions not only on the weekends, but weekdays too, can help prevent overeating.
And, if you’re someone who constantly struggles with hunger issues, it may be worth looking into an appetite suppressant, such as 1UP Appetite Suppressant, which was specifically formulated to help keep those pesky cravings at bay in between meal times.
This amazing product 1UP Appetite Suppressant will help you eat less so you do not go over your daily calories. It’s a Non-Stimulant Formula (no caffeine). Take four (4) capsules 1 hour before whenever seeking to curb appetite cravings. Most people have bad cravings at night so maybe take it around 7/8 PM.
#10 Use a Fullness Scale
Building off of the previous point, in addition to using a hunger scale to assess how hungry you actually are, it’s also useful to rate how full you are after eating.
1 means you feel like you haven’t eaten at all, while a 10 means you overdid and a bordering on feeling bloated and possibly nauseous.
Ideally, you want to eat until you’re satisfied (not stuffed).
If you find yourself not that full following a meal, take time to assess what you just ate.
Was there an adequate amount of protein and fiber on the plate? If not, that may be one of the main reasons you’re hungry as both protein and fiber are highly satiating, meaning they help keep us feeling full.
If your plate does happen to be low on fiber, it may help to add a fiber supplement to your meals, or (even better) take it immediately before your meal with a tall glass of water to help take up room in your stomach (which also helps prevent overeating).
1UP Fiber Plus supplies 8 grams of natural fiber in every serving along with Vitamin C and probiotics.
Fiber is the indigestible portion of carbohydrates contained in plant foods, such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Fiber is an important part of a healthy diet. Research shows that individuals with higher intakes of fiber have a lower risk of having belly fat. Check out 1UP Fiber Plus
#11 Find Ways to De-Stress
Stress-eating is a real thing, and something we’ve all experienced at some time or other. Sure, the weekends are supposed to be a time to relax, but it’s common for the stressors of the work week to bleed over into the weekend.
Instead of turning to food to reduce stress, explore other means of beating stress.
Some of our go-to ways to help beat back stress (and prevent overeating on weekends) are to:
- Go for a walk in nature
- Listen to calming music
- Exercise
- Have a cup of herbal tea
- Practice breathing exercises
Make a list of your favorite/most effective ways to de-stress and post it on the refrigerator, pantry, etc. so that you’re reminded of how to unwind and relax the next time you’re heading towards stress eating.
#12 Find a Hobby
As we mentioned before, eating out of stress and/or boredom is incredibly common. One of the most effective ways to avoid both stress and boredom (and ultimately stop overeating) is to pick up a hobby.
By dedicating time to a new venture, craft, or hobby, you’ll be enriching your life while also avoiding mindlessly munching.
#13 Remember the Last Time You Overindulged
The next time you overeat, write down (or record a video of yourself detailing) how you felt mentally and physically.
Did you feel physically uncomfortable? Were you disappointed in yourself? Etc.
Then, the next time you feel tempted to over-indulge, pull up your notes or video and remind yourself how you felt when you overdid it.
Keeping notes about how your mind and body reacts to certain foods can help you identify foods that cause you to overeat, feel sluggish, cloudy-headed, etc. so that, in the future, you’ll know what to eat (and how much of it to eat) to keep feeling energized while not blowing your diet plan.
