Straight answers on the weeks that have something in them — a night out, a holiday, a wedding, Christmas.
A pint of lager is about 180–200 calories, stout about 210 and cider 230–250. The full list, plus what to drink instead if you want to keep the night and lose the calories.
A typical night out runs 1,500 to 2,500 calories once drinks, dinner and the walk home are counted. Here's the breakdown, and how to cover it without staying in.
A week away can't undo months of progress — the maths doesn't allow it. Aim to come back the same, and three habits that do nearly all the work.
Most advice is about resisting things at the table, which is the hardest place to do it. Move the decision earlier and a restaurant stops being a problem.
The season feels like two months of eating. It's actually about ten days. Here's the arithmetic, and how to get to January without having quit.
Work out maintenance, take 15-20% off, and never go below your floor. The numbers, and why most people pick a figure too low to stick to.
A deficit is eating less than you burn, but it doesn't have to be daily. Thinking in weeks rather than days is what makes it survivable.
Five good days and one big Saturday usually nets out at maintenance. The arithmetic, and how to keep the Saturday anyway.
By cuisine: what's usually lighter, what's heavier than it looks, and the one change that saves the most without anyone noticing.
About 1.6g per kilo of bodyweight when losing fat. Why it matters more in a deficit, and how to hit it without supplements.
Leeway is a free tool that does this arithmetic for you. Put what's coming up into the week and it spreads the cost across the days around it, with a floor it won't plan below.
Open the planner — freeLeeway is a planning tool, not medical or dietary advice. Calorie figures are typical estimates and vary by brand, measure and recipe. It isn't suitable if you have, or have had, an eating disorder or a disordered relationship with food. If you're unsure what a safe calorie target is for you, speak to a GP or registered dietitian first.