Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
#116: How to win the weekend and stay on track with 15 easy habits image

#116: How to win the weekend and stay on track with 15 easy habits

Kate Hamilton Health Podcast
Avatar
191 Plays9 hours ago

In this episode of the Kate Hamilton Health Podcast, I’m chat about a challenge so many of us face - navigating weekends without undoing all our hard work from the week. Since weekends make up 42% of our lives, mastering them is crucial for achieving long-term health, weight loss, and fitness goals! I’m sharing 15 realistic, actionable strategies you can start using immediately to manage your calorie intake, stay mindful, and still enjoy your life.

You'll learn how to avoid the all-or-nothing trap, plan for meals out without guilt, and maintain momentum even when social events, dining out, or celebrations come into play. If you’ve ever struggled with overeating on the weekends, or felt like you’re constantly starting over every Monday, this episode is packed with game-changing tips to help you break the cycle for good.

Episode Breakdown:

[00:00] - Introduction: Why weekends are make-or-break for your fitness journey
[01:20] - Tip 1: Managing your weekly calorie budget for long-term success
[02:51] - Tip 2: Why planning ahead keeps you in control, even with a busy social life
[04:33] - Tip 3: The power of pre-tracking your meals to avoid weekend surprises
[05:29] - Tip 4: Smart strategies for dining out without derailing your goals
[06:40] - Tip 5: Mastering the art of guesstimating calories when you can't track exactly
[07:13] - Tip 6: Healthier dessert swaps that still satisfy your sweet tooth
[07:52] - Tip 7: Setting drinking plans so alcohol doesn’t sabotage your progress
[08:40] - Tip 8: What to do after drinking to bounce back stronger
[09:23] - Tip 9: Why tracking everything (yes, even the "bad" stuff!) keeps you honest
[11:16] - Tip 10: How to treat special occasions without ditching your healthy habits
[13:09] - Tip 11: How bringing your own prepped food can save your weekend
[16:55] - Tip 12: Easy ways to stay active and burn more calories naturally
[18:22] - Tip 13: Journaling and self-reflection for better long-term results
[20:43] - Tip 14: Letting go of guilt and anxiety around food choices
[24:21] - Tip 15: The secret to mindful eating and true satisfaction
[25:47] - Conclusion: Final thoughts and a motivational boost to keep you on track

Links & Resources:

  • Connect with me on Instagram here
  • Try my calorie calculator here
  • Apply for coaching here

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with friends who might benefit. For more health and fitness tips, follow me on Instagram and TikTok @katehamiltonhealth.

Music b LiQWYD Free download: hypeddit.com/link/xxtopb [http://hypeddit.com/link/xxtopb] Promoted by FreeMusicPromo   [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbycji-eySnM3WD8mbxPUSQ] / @freemusicpromo

Recommended
Transcript

Introduction to Weekend Management

00:00:09
Speaker
Hello, everyone, and welcome back to another episode of the Kate Hamilton Health Podcast. So in today's episode, we are going to chat about the weekend. Did you know if you considered Friday, Saturday and Sunday as part your weekend, that is over 40 percent of your week, 42 percent.
00:00:28
Speaker
And quite often we all struggle with the weekend. We can be really good Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and we throw it all away at the weekend. And then we end up in this cycle of restriction during the week and binging at the weekend.
00:00:40
Speaker
And because the weekend, when we say Friday, Saturday, Sunday is 42% of our whole week, then we never make any progress because we're like, you know, we're being really good fifty like 58% of the time and then 42% of the time we're like going overboard quite often, although we may not be gaining weight, if we have goals to lose weight, we're not actually getting anywhere. We're kind of going around in circles and we're stuck in this vicious cycle over and over again, which is not what we want.

15 Tips for Weekend Calorie Management

00:01:09
Speaker
So this is going to be a quick snappy podcast. I have 15 tips for winning the weekend, no matter what you have on. OK, so we're going to talk through all 15 tips.
00:01:20
Speaker
Number one, think about your daily calories multiplied by seven okay over the whole week. So if your calories are 2000 calories per week, multiply that by seven, that's 2000 multiplied by seven, seven, two is 14. So that's 14,000 calories for the whole week.
00:01:40
Speaker
So you can save some calories from during the week to put towards your weekend. So if you're on 2000 calories, you could have like 1800 calories Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and then you've saved 200 per day. So you've gained 800 calories to give you a bit more flexibility at the weekend to get that balance right. But the really important thing here here is you have to track the weekend.
00:02:03
Speaker
if you've got a goal and you want to make progress. And if you're tracking midweek, you need to track the weekend to never save more than 200 calories per day because then you're into the restrict and binge cycle.
00:02:16
Speaker
And if you restrict too much, midweek, then you're going to really, really struggle with actually staying within even your extra calories, being able to track and stay within your calories at the weekend because restrictive eating always leads to binging.
00:02:32
Speaker
I'll say that again because it's so important. Restrictive eating always leads to overeating. I know I've said that before, but it's just so, so important. So we never want to be super restrictive.
00:02:42
Speaker
We want to be structured and yeah we can bank a little bit, but we definitely don't want to be super restrictive because it leads to us losing control. Number two, plan ahead.
00:02:53
Speaker
So this is something that you need to do when you have time. And I know I've talked about this before, but maybe at the weekend, if you' have more time on a Sunday morning, sit down and plan your whole week, plan out the whole week.
00:03:06
Speaker
That organisation doesn't make you rigid and boring. It'll actually make you more relaxed. It'll make your week less stressful and it'll make it easier to stick to your calories. So if you actually just Sit down and be like, what are we having for dinner?
00:03:20
Speaker
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday. And plan that out. What do you eat for your breakfasts and your lunches? Plan that out. Make a shopping list. Do an online grocery shop. Boom. Ordered. Sort of for the week.
00:03:31
Speaker
It's really, really important that you're not just skating by. Oh, what we have for dinner today? Have the shit in your house. So that... When you're like, oh, like what are we having for dinner? Oh, I don't have time to stop. We'll just grab this frozen stuff or we'll just order a takeaway. It's like, no, you have the stuff. If you have the fresh ingredients in your house, you're be like, no, it's chicken curry tonight. Let's go home. Let's get it done.
00:03:49
Speaker
So it's just being that organized is going to just set you on a nice routine and make it so much easier. So that's in relation to your week. To bring that towards the weekend, if you know that you have...
00:04:01
Speaker
something coming up at the weekend and you're saving some calories for being organized. If you've reduced your calories by 200 each day, it iss going to be even more important. And you need to plan the calories for whatever is ahead. So how many calories do you need for Saturday night?
00:04:13
Speaker
Do you need 2,800 calories or whatever it is? Plan for it. Have an idea of what you're going to have. Just

Managing Eating Out and Alcohol Consumption

00:04:19
Speaker
be prepared. Don't be like, oh, shit, oh, God, I forgot I had so-and-so's 40th on. It's like, just now. So taking that little bit of time for yourself, make yourself nice little coffee or whatever, Sunday morning when it's nice and quiet and think about the next seven days ahead.
00:04:33
Speaker
Number three, always plan your calories the night before. This is so important. I have said this loads of times as well. Set a reminder on your phone. Make sure that alarm goes off at a time when you're going to be sitting down for the evening. So, you know, maybe 9pm whatever, if you're sitting down before you go to bed. When that reminder goes off on your phone, stop what you're doing.
00:04:52
Speaker
Take out MyFitnessPal or whatever you're using to track and track your calories for the day ahead. Now, once you get into a routine with tracking, that's literally going to be copying and pasting the same breakfast, lunches and snacks, give or take a little bit.
00:05:04
Speaker
And then it's just like but you'll you'll already plan your meat, your dinners. So you'll know that it's like chicken curry or spaghetti bolognese the following day. then you can just put that recipe in it's tracked and it's done. And it gives you structure for the day ahead. And this is even more important for the weekend because you need to know if you're going out for dinner, you want to kind of know what you're having. It doesn't have to be restrictive. You can actually have what you want to have.
00:05:27
Speaker
But it just needs a bit of forward planning. Number four, if you're going out to eat, check the menu and guesstimate. Head out with the plan. So the same thing, as I said before, all restaurants now have their menus on the internet, on their website. OK, you will be able to access their menu.
00:05:43
Speaker
A lot of places actually have started putting calories on the menu. So you might be lucky if you're going to Nando's or somewhere, you know, if the calories are on the menu. If not, don't worry. You're even just guesstimating and just knowing that realistically, if you're trying to stay within a calorie deficit,
00:05:55
Speaker
And if you choose not to, and that's fine, you're like, I'm going to have a maintenance week. That's fine. But if you you you want to continue to make progress that week, you need to realize that you can't go out and have breakfast not breakfast, starters, main course and dessert and actually stay in a deficit because your main course alone, you need to allow about a thousand calories for.
00:06:14
Speaker
So obviously, if you throw in a dessert and starters, you're probably talking another thousand calories. So you're talking 2000 calories for the whole meal and you can't go all day not eating anything.
00:06:26
Speaker
So, you know, like go out with a plan, be like, I'm going to have main course, try as best as you can to stick with that. You might be able to manage ad dessert or a starter with that. But being realistic, if you want to stick in your calorie deficit, you're probably not going to be able to do all three. Number five, when guesstimating from the menu,
00:06:43
Speaker
search the most suitable match for what you're having. So for example, if I'm having pizza in a local Italian restaurant, I might search up the calories in a similar pizza from like a bigger chain restaurant like Milano's.
00:06:57
Speaker
Chances are they're going to be similar. Same with burger joints, think TGI Fridays, coffee shops, think Costa or Starbucks. You know, you'll find a big chain version of whatever restaurant you're in. It's going to give you similar enough idea of calories for your guesstimation.
00:07:11
Speaker
Number six, if you're going out for dinner, there's nothing wrong with slipping a little chocolate bar in your bag for dessert. If you're like, no, I really want to stick with my calories. I really want to reach my goals. I do this all the time. What I'll do is I'll buy myself a skinny latte and I just like to have something sweet with it.
00:07:26
Speaker
And yeah, OK, fair enough. It's not a fucking cheesecake. But if you've had a decent dinner and maybe even a little starters, then you still feel like you're having a dessert because you're having skinny latte. You're having the little, I have my little Freddo bar or whatever with me.
00:07:38
Speaker
And then I don't feel deprived and I'm still moving towards my goals. Now, obviously, I'm not talking about in general in your whole life. I'm talking about when you're trying to stick to a deficit, you have a specific goal and you don't want to break it.
00:07:51
Speaker
That's what I'm talking about. Number seven, if you're going out drinking, plan ahead. OK, even if your plan goes to shit, the more you have more chance of it not if you head in with a plan.
00:08:02
Speaker
So like how many drinks are you planning on having and track them in your calories? some You know, as we know, usually when we have two or three, it end we end up having more than we intend to have.
00:08:13
Speaker
But rather than just going out be like, well, I'm free, just you're having a little bit of a plan, like you will thank yourself the next day and the calories will thank you. Also, just be really careful on the snackies with it as well. If you're going, you know, for a wine night with the girls and, you know, there's going to be cheese and crackers or whatever there, you might want to bring your own little snackies.
00:08:31
Speaker
individual stuff or you might want to just track ahead for that stuff. And that's totally fine as well. But just trying to plan ahead as much as you can to catch these little things at the weekend. And if you're going out drinking, please have your food planned unprepared and and tracked for the following day. It's the following day that's so important after a night of drinking.
00:08:52
Speaker
And don't plan for a salad. You know that that won't make the cut the following day. So have, you know, the ingredients for a nice fake away or have some of those like fit meals in the house. Have a couple of them because one of them probably won't fill you.
00:09:03
Speaker
Have the smaller versions of the chocolate and the crisps ready to go. You know, have it tracked. It's all great when you're feeling good before you go out drinking. But then after you've been out and you're wrecked. You're not going to feel the same way as you felt before you went out.
00:09:15
Speaker
So just plan for the tired version of yourself the next day so that you're straight back on it the next day, but also feeling satisfied.

Tracking and Maintaining Eating Habits

00:09:23
Speaker
Number nine, don't be an ostrich. Just track it.
00:09:26
Speaker
Even if your weekend doesn't go according to plan, track what you do eat, even if it's way over, because you can't change something that you're not aware of. So if you keep burying your head in the sand every weekend, whether you've got a drinking night out, whether you've got a dinner out, whether it's just a normal weekend that's just kind of busy,
00:09:42
Speaker
run around after the kids and you're at home most of the time. If you're not aware of how many calories you're consuming in the weekend, you can't do anything to change it. And it doesn't mean go from the way things are now to being absolutely perfect.
00:09:55
Speaker
That's not what it's never about being perfect. You know that even if your step one with the weekend is whenever you are listening to this, if your weekends at the moment are totally out of control and they're holding you back from reaching your goals,
00:10:08
Speaker
Please just try and commit to yourself. Just make one commitment this weekend to track absolutely everything you eat regardless. It doesn't even have to be from a place of restriction. So it doesn't have to be like I have to try and stick to 2400 calories or whatever.
00:10:25
Speaker
1,700 calories or anything like that. You're not saying you have to stick to any calories, but you're going to track it and see how many calories you currently are eating at the weekend. Because once you actually see what you're eating, you can start to make minor adjustments to pull that back.
00:10:38
Speaker
Especially if you're tracking in a deficit all week, you'll be able to do the maths and figure out that average and see does what you're eating at the weekend take you way out of your calorie deficit. That's why you're not losing any weight.
00:10:49
Speaker
And it can be so much easier to do than you think. Just the extra few squares of chocolate, the extra nibbles of different bits and pieces, having a takeaway dinner instead of a home cooked dinner. All of these things are hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of calories added up, added up, added up. And it's very easy to make minor adjustments step by step to change that.
00:11:08
Speaker
But you have to be aware of it first. So start by just tracking everything the way it currently is. See where you're at. See where that's your starting point. Number 10, if you have a dinner out or an occasion, keep the whole day up to it with normal habits and then get straight back to it the following morning.
00:11:25
Speaker
So what I mean by that is I remember being in a slimming club and the leader telling me to, you know, just basically eat as little as I could during the day to save myself for the night out and then I could just relax and enjoy myself and eat whatever I wanted.
00:11:39
Speaker
So, you know, if you're eating lettuce leaves all day long to go out for dinner, you're going to go mental because you're going to be so fucking starving. So don't do that. Have your normal breakfast.
00:11:50
Speaker
Have your normal lunch. If you want to have a little bit less carbohydrates than you usually do to save some calories and a bit extra vegetables, that's fine. But keep your protein source in place for breakfast and lunch. Don't skip a meal.
00:12:03
Speaker
Your blood sugar levels will drop. You're setting yourself up for serious cravings and uncontrollable eating. and it will also roll into the next day. So, Keep the regular meals in place. It's so, so, so important.
00:12:14
Speaker
And from the banking of calories, you'll have the extra calories to have a few more calories on that day. So it's OK. And then just get straight back to it, back to normal the following morning, like I said, being prepared for that.
00:12:25
Speaker
So if you've done all the planning and it all goes to shit, nothing goes according to plan. Don't restrict the following day to try and make up for it. Draw a line under it and start fresh. You've got that day planned before you've gone out, remember, from one of the previous steps.
00:12:41
Speaker
So just stick to the calories that you planned for. Because if you start on this guilt and this restriction, you feel like you're constantly trying to catch up on yourself. And it's very difficult, especially if you're tired from after being out and then you're going to have had a lot of, you know, sugar foods with a bit more.
00:12:56
Speaker
calories than usual, you're going to probably feel a bit hungrier the next day. And if you're trying to restrict on top of that, and then if you throw a hangover in on top of it, it's just a recipe for disaster. So just draw a line under it, start fresh again the next day if that's happened and you'll be absolutely fine.
00:13:09
Speaker
Number 11, there's nothing wrong with bringing prepped food with you on a day out. Salads, sandwiches, overnight Weedabix, overnight oats, leftover dinners, cooler bags. Whatever needs to be done.
00:13:21
Speaker
I'm telling you cooler bags of the new cool. I swear. My point is now I'm not talking about when you're going to restaurants. I'm talking about if you're going to your kids football match, if you're going to a picnic in the park, if you're out for the day, rather than grabbing something quick in the petrol station, bring the stuff with you.
00:13:37
Speaker
At least you know where you stand with it. And it just takes a little bit of preparation the night before. Again, back to that forward planning thing. There's nothing wrong with that. Just do it. Even like, you know, I've often, if I've even gone to hang out my parents' house and I know there's loads of junk food there and I'd be snacking that stuff.
00:13:51
Speaker
I often just bring my own stuff to pick on because then at least I know where I stand with it. And then I can still have my dinner with everyone or whatever, but that my snacky bits I have with me or, you know what I mean? Or my coach, Lindsay, mentioning her a lot in the podcast lately.
00:14:04
Speaker
Shout out to Lindsay. But she always brings her little Tupperware with her when she goes to her boys football matches and she's out and about for the day. She'll have her meals with her, her lunch with her. And she absolutely nails it.

Coaching Services and Physical Activity

00:14:17
Speaker
I just wanted to interrupt the podcast for a moment to talk to you a little bit about Kate Hamilton Health online coaching. So we have two coaching options available.
00:14:28
Speaker
We have our elite coaching. And we have our group coaching service. Our elite coaching service is bespoke individualized coaching, which will help you to finally break free from diet culture with one to one, anytime support from your coach and with access to a safe, supportive community.
00:14:47
Speaker
This is a higher ticket coaching option and the coaching is by application only. If you go to my web website, KateHamiltonHealth.com, you will be able to apply for elite coaching through there and we will be in touch to organise a call and to get you up and running.
00:15:03
Speaker
In relation to our group coaching, our group coaching starts on the first Monday of every month. When it's full each month, we do close the doors. With the group coaching is about building the habits, body and energy of the healthiest version of yourself and finally make it stick.
00:15:20
Speaker
We include personalised calories and portions, food lists, recipes, Meal plan ideas, step goals, home or gym based workouts, depending on what you want, changed every eight weeks.
00:15:34
Speaker
Mindset work, app access. So that's the Kate Hamilton Health app, which will be your hub for everything. Weekly yoga classes, WhatsApp group community. weekly group Q&A with myself, fun challenges, daily habits form, weekly self check-in, fortnightly check-ins with your coach, a library full of lifestyle guides, a library full of lessons, seminars, and all of this is updated regularly.
00:16:00
Speaker
We have a weekly group Zoom calls with myself and the team, regular guest seminars where we get experts on to talk more to you about different topics that we need experts on for.
00:16:10
Speaker
And then we have in-person events twice a year that you will get at a major discount as being a member of the Kate Hamilton Health community. So as I said, this starts the first Monday of every month. If you go to my website, KateHamiltonHealth.com, you will see when the next group coaching intake is starting for you.
00:16:31
Speaker
So we close the doors as soon as that intake is full or the Monday before the group coaching starts. So usually that last Monday of the previous month.
00:16:41
Speaker
So if you head over to KateHamiltonHealth.com, all of that information that I've talked through is on the website. You'll be able to book your spot for the next intake there. And I will chat to you all then.
00:16:54
Speaker
Number 12, keep active. The weekends are a great time to catch up on steps. So although the weekends can be more challenging when it comes to food, if you're eating out, if you're drinking, if you've got your outer routine, if you're busy with social ah occasions, the weekends,
00:17:09
Speaker
yeah Most people, I know it's not everyone, but most people are off at the weekends. Not everyone I know, but that gives us a little bit more. Our time is less constrained, which means it's great time to head up the hills and go for a hike, go for a walk around your neighborhood.
00:17:24
Speaker
It's easier to give yourself that time to yourself to get your workouts in, to get your walks in at the weekend. So don't be afraid to schedule if yourre if your weeks are chock-a-block. schedule gym time for yourself on a Saturday afternoon or a Sunday morning or whatever.
00:17:39
Speaker
When your partner's at home and they can look after the kids or, you know, you have help from family or friends around you that you can get away for a little bit of time to yourself. That's a good time to do it. So, you know, instead of looking at the weekend, as oh my God, i have to control my eating. i to control my eating. Be like, what can I do?
00:17:55
Speaker
Can I meet a friend for a walk and a coffee? You know, instead of sitting and having coffee and pastries, do a coffee walk. Get active with your friends. Organise going for a hike. Bring the kids to the park. Get them on their bikes. You get moving.
00:18:07
Speaker
What movement can you add in? Because I promise you it's going to make you feel amazing. If you get up first thing at the weekend and get out, get some fresh air, get some sunlight and move, it changes everything and it sets your energy right for the whole week ahead.
00:18:22
Speaker
Number 13. Journal. Reflect. Most of us have more time to do this at the weekend. So but when it comes to reaching goals like losing weight, getting fitter, getting healthier, we need to change and adjust some habits in order to get to where we want to go.
00:18:37
Speaker
But if you're not aware of your current habits, your current thoughts, your current beliefs, limiting or empowering, if you're not aware of them, you can't make the necessary adjustments.
00:18:48
Speaker
to change your path slightly to where you want to go. So it's really important to and this doesn't have to be complicated. Sit down with a pen to paper and be like, what was good today? And then just write one thing down. doesn't have to be a paragraph. can be if you want. It can just be one word.
00:19:01
Speaker
What wasn't so good today? Just ask yourself those questions. See what comes up. What can I do different next time? And don't jump to drastic changes. Think about it something small that could be different.
00:19:12
Speaker
So like what was good today? You could say i planned my calories. the night before. Brilliant. That's such a win. And you need to celebrate these wins because not everyone's doing that.
00:19:23
Speaker
And if you're doing that, you're already a step ahead. What didn't go so well today? i didn't have time to get out for a walk and finish the day in 3000 steps. It's no point in life. Doesn't make you bad person. Shit happens.
00:19:35
Speaker
But next question, what can I do different next time? I'll get out for a walk before we leave the house for football training or whatever it is you're doing at the weekend with the kids or whatever. I will schedule my walk next Saturday morning at 10 a.m. or whenever.
00:19:50
Speaker
Then what you've done is you've like, OK, rather than me beating myself up and feeling shit and being like, oh, I never got a walk in. Oh, like there's no time for me or whatever. Instead of, you know, that negative narrative, you're changing it to to be proactive and be like, right, I didn't prioritize myself this time, but the next day I'm going to be ready for it and I'm going to learn from it. So like there's no such thing as failure.
00:20:10
Speaker
We either win, which is our win for the day, or we learn. We're never all going to be perfect. Shit's going to happen. Life's going to get in the way. And then it's just like, OK, adjust, pivot slightly.
00:20:21
Speaker
What do I do different next time? And that's really, really important. And that can only be done by taking time to reflect. So in my opinion, having a little journal and pen beside your bed, literally five

Mindful Eating and Well-being

00:20:30
Speaker
minutes. This is not a huge exercise where you just reflect on the day and make a decision of what you're focusing on for the the following day.
00:20:38
Speaker
It's absolutely life changing. I promise you that. And you have more time to do this at the weekend, you see. Number 14, no guilt or anxiety allowed when we're busy living our best lives here. OK, from this moment on, I want you to make every decision with the thought, how will this make me feel?
00:20:57
Speaker
OK, will this energize and satisfy me or will it make me feel sick and sluggish? I want you to start thinking. removing emotions from food and from habits. OK, if things didn't go according to plan, please drop that guilt.
00:21:13
Speaker
Take a deep breath. Breathe in some lovely white, cloudy, clean air um breathe out. Like and obviously you're visualizing this. Breathe out this black cloud, this black smoke, which is all the negativity. Just breathe it away.
00:21:28
Speaker
OK, visualize that. And it's OK to have a thought, but we don't want to fixate on it just because you think something doesn't mean it's true. OK, so breathe it away.
00:21:39
Speaker
That guilt that you feel when things didn't go according to plan, you have nothing to be guilty for. You're human. OK, that's totally OK. And same if you've got a meal out or, you know, a weekend away and you're feeling anxious about food, breathe that away too.
00:21:54
Speaker
What is the point in losing weight and getting healthier and getting fitter and feeling better All of the stuff that you have done to improve your life. What's a point in it all? If you cannot take a weekend off every now and again to go away with your family or, you know, go out for dinner and relax and enjoy good quality food with people that you love. What is the point?
00:22:12
Speaker
You're just going to be a miserable, skinny person and you don't want to be a miserable, skinny person. but You want to be full of life and full of crack and full of enjoyment. OK, so that's really important. Breathe away that anxiety. So what if it doesn't go according to plan?
00:22:26
Speaker
You'll learn from it. And as I said there a minute ago, by just making a commitment from this day forward to ask yourself with every decision that you make, how will this make me feel? Because we often don't give focus.
00:22:38
Speaker
For example, let's take eating, for example, and just say you've got the packet of biscuits out in the evening time and you're about to dig in and probably eat half the packet, if not the full packet of biscuits. We're thinking about how we're feeling before that happens.
00:22:51
Speaker
We're enjoying the feeling during it. But rarely do we actually stop for a second and think, how will this make me feel afterwards? So taking that moment, is this packet of biscuits going to energize and satisfy me?
00:23:04
Speaker
Or will it make me feel sick and sluggish? And that can be enough for you to make a decision in the moment. The same in relation to exercise. Let's say you come in from work and you're wrecked and you don't feel like going for a walk and You know, you know that you really should go for a walk because you haven't you've been sitting all day in the car or whatever.
00:23:20
Speaker
And you're like, oh, because I won't go. And then it's like, again, you can say, will not going for a walk energize and satisfy me or will it make me feel sick and sluggish? You know what the right answer is there.
00:23:33
Speaker
And I've spoken before about the five minute action. The five minute action is really useful for making yourself get up and go. But after you start getting up and going and you're building momentum, when you get to the stage that every decision, everything you eat, everything you do, every person you spend time with, every movement that you make, that you're like, how will this make me feel in this moment right now? What do I need right now?
00:23:58
Speaker
Once we can start to do that and we build the evidence, You will start to do things because of how you know it's going to make you feel afterwards. That's what I do now. Everything, even when I'm like, oh, I feel like going to the gym or, oh, I don't want to do this at all.
00:24:12
Speaker
I'm like, no, it's what I do. And I do it because I know how it's going to make me feel afterwards. And that is the delay gratification that changes everything. Last one. Number 15, please remember the danger is in the dose.
00:24:26
Speaker
OK, so you don't need to cut anything out, but it's also really important to remember there's nothing more in the 15th bite that you don't get in the first few bites.
00:24:36
Speaker
OK, so bite, maybe it's being the wrong word. Let's take a pizza, for example. Not that you're having 15 slices of pizza, but there's nothing in the seventh slice of pizza, you're not getting any more from it that you didn't get in the first four slices of pizza.
00:24:52
Speaker
So eating slowly and mindfully, enjoying the food, stopping when you're full, taking your time eating it and really savoring it, really enjoying it and be like, I'm full now.
00:25:02
Speaker
And just because that's sitting on the table in front of you doesn't mean you need to keep eating it or keep eating it. Like put someone else's dirty napkin over your plate when you're like, no, I'm full. I don't want to keep picking at it. It's the same with the biscuits.
00:25:14
Speaker
It's like you having two, three, even four biscuits if they're tracked, whatever, with your cup tea is no harm. You're talking anywhere between 200 to 400 calories probably.
00:25:25
Speaker
Yeah, that's no sweat. And when you go past whatever amount it is that you have planned for, It's not actually giving you any more of a dopamine hit than what you've already gotten from the from the previous two. So when we can start to recognise that, it can be really, really powerful.
00:25:41
Speaker
So yeah, just food for thought. No pun intended there.

Podcast Conclusion and Audience Engagement

00:25:45
Speaker
But just to give you some tips, these 15 points will help you to win the weekend. No matter whether your weekend is a nice...
00:25:53
Speaker
quiet weekend just doing your few bits or whether you've got loads of social occasions on it's not gospel you can adjust and you can take ones that resonate with you and not listen to me on things that you're like no Kate I don't want to do that that's totally fine these are just my thoughts I hope you have found them helpful and I will talk to you all next time
00:26:19
Speaker
I just want to say thank you so much for listening to the podcast. And I would just ask for one thing from you, if at all possible, could you make sure that you subscribe to the podcast? It really does make such a difference.
00:26:33
Speaker
If there's a particular episode that you've enjoyed, please do share it in your WhatsApp groups, share it on your stories, tag myself and the guest in your stories. All of these things really do help to grow the podcast. And obviously, if there's anything you'd like to reflect on, please do leave a comment.
00:26:50
Speaker
It would mean the world to me and i will see you on the next one.