How to Stop Binging on the Weekend
With less structure, more going out to eat and travel, and sometimes, more alcohol, navigating eating on the weekends can be a challenge. It’s not unusual to get trapped in a cycle of eating “perfectly” during the week, then binging on the weekend. Learn 9 tips for how to stop weekend binging in this post.
Back when I was (unknowingly) being really restrictive around food, one of the things I would do is save up “splurges” for the weekend. In my mind, this seemed like a totally healthy way to eat all the foods I loved, while still feeling (key word: feeling) like I was in control of my eating and my body.
As you can imagine, that didn’t work out so hot. Because my weekends were essentially a giant “cheat meal,” I used them as a way to overeat the foods I restricted over the week. I was really disconnected from what foods I enjoyed and how food made me feel, since I was making food choices from either a place of restriction (what I was “allowed” to eat during the week) or an impulsive backlash to that restriction. My IBS symptoms were the worse they’ve ever been because my eating was so chaotic. Basically, I felt like shit on the weekends because my stomach was an overfull combination of beer, cheese, and bread, and I felt like shit on weekdays because, well, I was hungry.
Sound familiar? Weekend binging is a really common thing, not least of which because it’s totally normal for weekend eating to look a little different from weekday eating. Schedules are usually a little less structured on the weekend, with more travel and going out to eat, so it makes sense that the types of foods and quantities might look a little different. Also, for many there’s often alcohol involved - we’ll get to that!
Woke up early this weekend to visit Greenville, had a small-ish lunch before a going to a talk, so I was pretty significantly meal hungry by 5. Ate these tacos from White Duck (Bangkok shrimp with pickled cucumbers, BBQ jackfruit with beans and slaw), plus most of the chips with queso.
Where this very natural and understandable difference in weekday vs weekend eating becomes an issue is when the guilt/shame over weekend eating leads to intentional restriction the next week. It’s that diet pendulum swinging back and forth, the restriction leading to weekend binging, and then the cycle starts all over again. We put a lot of energy trying to stop or compensate for perceived overeating, when in reality it’s the restriction that’s causing it.
Also, as I’m talking about binges in this article, I want to point out that the word binge gets thrown around a lot. A lot of times I hear clients tell me about a binge, and when we talk about it, like, they’ve had a cookie. A binge is characterized by eating a significant amount of food in a discrete period of time until one feels uncomfortably full, and it’s accompanied by a sense of lack of control, and significant shame afterward. A diagnosis of binge eating disorder may be made if someone experiences a binge on average, once a week for at least 3 months. It’s possible to experience binge eating without having a diagnosis of binge eating disorder, as it’s also possible to eat until uncomfortably full without it being a binge. Regardless, I think all of the advice in this article will be helpful no matter where you fall. For more information on binge eating disorder, here’s a blog post I wrote on it.
One of my favorite weekend activities is going to the farmer’s market and sampling a few different foods. This Saturday, I had a cheese and avocado pupusa, followed by these cheese breads I split with the hubs.
How to Stop Weekend Binging
Stop starting all over Monday.
The first step it to stop trying to compensate for last weekend. When Monday rolls around, sure, it may be helpful to have some kind of plan in place for how you’ll feed yourself the next week, but that plan should not be rooted in trying to undo what you ate over the weekend (or saving up for the next). Here’s an article I wrote about meal planning in intuitive eating for more tips on what that might look like.
Do weekend activities on a weekday.
Although I suppose this depends on what your weekend activities are. Guessing your employer doesn’t want you rolling up 2 hours late and hungover - and probably won’t accept “but I was trying to make peace with food!” as an excuse. If it’s possible, try to do some weekend activities during the week, like going out to eat or having a get together with friends, so you can get some practice outside of the weekend, and to help break their association with the weekend.
Incorporate “weekend foods” during the week.
If you’re struggling with weekend binging, chances are there are some foods you’re not letting yourself eat during the week. What are the foods you find yourself binging on over the weekend? Try to intentionally incorporate these foods during the week. To help normalize them, plan them in as part of a typical meal. For example, try a baggie of cookies packed alongside your usual lunch salad, fries as your carb source at dinner along with salmon and roasted veggies, or snack on cheese crackers and almonds as a planned afternoon snack. It might feel scary, like you’ll be eating twice as much of these foods, but by planning them in during the week you’re reducing the likelihood of binging on the weekend, and probably eating them in a way that’s a lot more enjoyable.
Don’t forget to eat breakfast…
Sleeping in later on the weekend, it’s really easy to skip breakfast. Try to eat something within about an hour of getting out of bed, whether it’s breakfast, brunch, or lunch.
… and then continue to feed your body consistently throughout the day.
With unstructured weekends, you might find yourself going too long without eating. It doesn’t matter if under-eating is intentional or unintentional, an underfed body can trigger a binge. Meal/snack times may not fall at the same times they do during the week, but do try to eat something about every 3-4 hours, whether it’s a meal or a snack.
Was hanging out with friends having a beer on a Saturday afternoon when I got a little hungry. A tuna poke taco was the perfect snack.
Have a way to decompress after work on Friday.
Food can be a way to relax, and that’s OK! But it’s also nice to have other tools in your self care toolbox. Try scheduling a Friday night yoga class, a post-work glass of wine with a friend, or take the dogs to the park.
Plan to have food available on the weekend.
Do you run out of meal and snack food by the weekend? For those who do any kind of meal planning, I find there’s a tendency to plan for the week without thinking about the weekend. That’s not to stay you need to meticulously plan out meals for the weekend (or during the week, for that matter). But it is helpful to make sure you have some foods available at home, even if it’s just leftovers, frozen meals, or ingredients for a pantry meal.
Easy weekend meal. Frozen Stouffer’s lasagna, a slice of whole grain toast, and an easy salad I made to use up a small head of romaine, the last bits of Caesar, a little goat cheese and sun-dried tomatoes I had.
Consider alcohol.
Consider how alcohol plays a role in weekend eating. I think it’s important to note that while alcohol lowers inhibitions, if all foods were available to you all the time, you probably wouldn’t be binging when you are drunk or buzzed. If you find yourself consistently binging when you drink, that means there’s likely some level of restriction going on when you’re sober. That said, 3 am drunk pizza isn’t necessarily because of restriction, because pizza at 3 am drunk pizza is also delicious - and if it’s 3 am, you’re probably pretty hungry too, especially if you last ate at dinner time. Also, when you’re drunk, you’re probably not all that in touch with fullness cues, so it’s easy to eat past fullness.
Another thing to be really honest with yourself about is whether you’re using alcohol as an excuse to binge. Are you intentionally drinking more to give yourself an “excuse” to eat the foods you wouldn’t normally allow yourself to eat?
Be aware of how alcohol affects you the next day. Alcohol decreases ghrelin, a hunger hormone, so you may undereat and wake up the next morning feeling pretty hungry. It also causes your blood sugar to drop the next day, hence the morning after starchy carb cravings. This explains why me and my college roomies were at Hardee’s almost every Saturday morning. This is totally normal, and in the absence of fatphobia, can be an enjoyable and satisfying eating experience!
If you’re working with a dietitian or therapist, this may be helpful to talk through and come up with a plan for how to handle drinking, but here’s a few tips that may be helpful. First, slowing down with alcohol is always a good idea, regardless of the effects on eating. Try sipping more slowly, lower alcohol drinks, or alternating with water. Be sure to eat a substantial meal or snack before drinking, as drinking on an empty stomach is usually a bad idea. You might even want to throw a bar or something to snack on in your bag.
My favorite weekend brunch spot - Bourbon! Fried catfish over hoppin’ John.
Give yourself a big dose of compassion.
So, you ate in a way that you don’t feel so awesome about. It’s OK! Remember, weekends can be tricky with navigating food and eating. One day (or weekend!) of eating is not going to make or break your health. Imagine someone else ate the same food/amount that you did - does it still feel concerning, or are you being hard on yourself? If you did make a mistake with eating, remember mistakes are also a great opportunity for learning! Can you identify any restriction or other factors that led up to the binge? What could you do differently the next time? Might I put in a nudge for giving yourself more freedom around food during the week?
If you’re struggling with regular weekend binging, you may need support from a dietitian who can help you implement these tips (and more!) to help you feed yourself with confidence. We work with clients throughout the US providing recovery and intuitive eating coaching. Learn more about our services here, and reach out if you’re interested in working together.
If this blog post on how to stop weekend binging was helpful, you might also like:
Emotional Eating Isn’t Bad for You
What My Dog Taught Me About Binge Eating
How to Eat Intuitively on Vacation
