Weekend dining hinders healthy weight management

With the 3-day holiday weekend upon us, I thought it would be interesting to explore the cause of weekend weight gain. Did you realize you weigh more on Sunday evening than you did on Friday morning? This is true even for those who are actively trying to lose weight.
Weekend indulgences can slow weight loss efforts and cause people to gain weight, say researchers from Washington University in St. Louis.
In the study, 48 healthy men and women tracked their diets for one year using food diaries. To determine the effects of their weekend eating habits on weight loss efforts, they were assigned to one of three groups.
The first group decreased their caloric intake by 20 percent; the second increased their physical activity by 20 percent; the third group made no changes their diet or exercise habits.
Prior to starting their assigned regimes, researchers noticed that people often gain weight on the weekend – and lose some, but not all, of it during the week. The accumulated effect of weekend weight gain translated into an increase of nine pounds per year.
While attempting weight loss, people would continue to overeat on the weekend.
Researchers found that those who were trying to lose weight by cutting calories would stop losing weight on weekends. On average, people who were exercising more in an attempt to slim down actually gained a small amount of weight (0.17 pounds) on the weekend.
People who were not trying to lose weight experienced no loss or gain after a weekend of indulgence.
These findings, published online in the July 24, 2008 issue of Obesity, may explain why many dieters may not experience their desired rate of weight loss.
So, what can you do? Nutrition experts advise dieters to remain conscious of portion control and healthy food choices on the weekend in order to keep small indulgences from turning into large setbacks.
When faced with a weekend full of celebrations, try eating more whole grains, fruits and vegetables for breakfast, or as a mid-morning snack, to reduce the impulse to overeat at lavish meals later in the day.