How weekends make you gain weight. Do you strictly follow all the rules of healthy eating but still see no results? You may have fallen into the weekend trap. Studies show that people tend to overeat in the second half of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday – and these three days can completely undo all your efforts.
Research shows that people aged 19 to 50 consume an additional 115 kcal on weekends (Friday to Sunday) compared to weekdays (Monday to Thursday). Over a year, this weekend indulgence can total an extra 17,940 kcal or nearly 2.7 kg. This additional caloric intake primarily comes from alcohol and fats. Three days of overeating can completely negate the effects of four days of dieting, creating a vicious cycle of "starvation-binge" within a single week. This cycle is often exacerbated by reduced physical activity and disruptions in circadian rhythms.
What to Do?
1. Recognize your behavioral patterns and false beliefs.
Identify where you're avoiding self-monitoring, how you're justifying overeating, and where you're giving up self-control. Examples include: "The weekends are my time. This is my only chance to relax. Hey, it’s Friday (or Saturday or Sunday). You only live once! I'll do it next weekend. Who the hell is Belaveshkin to tell me what to do on the weekend?"
These beliefs are rooted in moral compensation (feeling morally exhausted, so you compensate with immoral indulgence), where good behavior justifies bad habits. There's also a cultural inheritance of passive rest from when our ancestors did physically demanding work, making it necessary to rest as much as possible on weekends. Weekends often hide a compulsive overeating cycle (binge on weekends, starve at the start of the week).
2. Plan for non-caloric dopamine.
The desire for a dopamine hit becomes stronger when you're tired. However, never reward yourself with the very thing you're trying to change, as it will sabotage your dopamine system (for example, don't reward yourself with lying down after a workout or food after restricting it). Try non-caloric rewards that are aligned with your goals. If you're trying to lose weight, schedule a massage, a photoshoot, new clothes, or a sauna session instead.
3. Choose active rest instead of passive.
Yes, we get tired, but active rest restores us from stress much faster. A walk is more effective than lying on the couch, and in-person interaction is far more energizing than scrolling through social media. New experiences, travel, social events, and activities all provide dopamine from proactive novelty. Passive rest, on the other hand, increases the risk of weight gain. For example, a 60-minute increase in sedentary time on weekends is associated with a 0.5% gain in body fat.
4. Recognize eating patterns.
An empty fridge by the weekend increases impulsivity. Weekends are often associated with typical food patterns like Friday work treats, alcohol with fatty snacks, fast food, or late-night delivery. What triggers this behavior? What alternatives can you think of? You could cook something delicious yourself, relaxing and enjoying slow cooking with family or friends. Always keep frozen foods on hand to quickly prepare meals when your fridge is empty.
5. Social and food jet lag.
Stick to a schedule all the week. On weekends, many people wake up later, disrupting circadian rhythms and meal timing, similar to jet lag after a long flight. If you wake up even one hour later on weekends, it increases your chances of obesity by 30%. Skipping early meals leads to overeating later in the day. What to do? Wake up at the same time daily, stick to consistent meal times, and don't skip breakfast on weekends.
6. Make weekends champions’ days.
Instead of indulging, focus on activities during the weekends. You have more time, so dedicate more to your health. Plan a 24-hour fast on Saturday or engage in significant physical activity (a cycling trip, basketball game, workout, or a long hike). Studies show that increased physical activity only on weekends is enough for weight loss (on days when you're busy with sports, you automatically eat less).
Weekend physical activity mediates the association between baseline fat mass and fat mass after one year of follow-up among adults. "Weekend warriors" – those who are regularly active during weekends – show improvements in both abdominal and general fat reduction.
Influence of Weekend Lifestyle Patterns on Body Weight Volume16, Issue8 August 2008 Pages 1826-1830
The associations of "weekend warrior" and regularly active physical activity with abdominal and general adiposity in US adults Obesity (Silver Spring) 2024 Apr;32(4):822-833.
Weekend Eating in the United States Is Linked with Greater Energy, Fat, and Alcohol Intake 2012 Obesity Research
A Marker of the Variability in Meal Timing and Its Association with Body Mass Index Nutrients 2020, 12(3), 816.