Cheat days

mblair4185

So three/almost 4 weeks into this Im wondering when and how people get to have those days where they don't worry about how many calories are in what they are eating and just enjoy themselves.

My favorite thing to do is eat..and if I had to do this for the rest of my life I would go insane. I was on a medication that was the main cause for gaining 30 pds over the past 5 years. Other than that Ive always been able to eat what I want..in large quantity if I wanted.

I decided to do this long enough to lose the 30 pds (as Im now off the medication) but assumed I would be able to go back to say 2000 calories a day at least or something. According to this however, Im looking at now even 1800 a day.

Do most of you have a cheat day? When is it okay to go and eat a couple cupcakes, some dip and chips and candy etc. Like for example, on Christmas day or Thanksgiving. If you take a day and eat what you want does it completely throw off all of your work for that week?

Is it possible to just eat what you want say, once a week?

I loath the idea of having to get out and exercise everyday in order to enjoy a small piece of cake.

Are there any of you that have lost the weight you wanted and are in maintain mode that pretty much are able to eat what you want?

Sorry, if this is whinny and negative sounding but I keep reading where people are saying the weight just flies back on once you stop basically starving yourself (which at 1450 calories a day right now I feel like I am.)

StaciMarie1974

I eat candy, cake, ice cream, etc. several times (or more) a week. I just factor it into my daily food plans. I'm newly in 'maintenance mode' and aim to eat 1800-1900/day. Portion control is still a relevant topic.

Even when I was eating 1400-1600, I didn't consider anything cheating. Sometimes I had a day where I ate at maintenance. Sometimes I had a day where I ate higher. One day will not make or break your life goals. Its the habits you form that are important.

If you feel hungry/deprived on your current calorie intake there are a few things you can do. Decrease your deficit -you'll lose slower but may be more satisfied along the way. Move more in order to burn more, earn more calories in. If you have some sedentary activities - do them while moving. Watch tv with the family? Run in place. Just an example.

ladystarr

I'm only giving up foods that were really bad for me that I was eating...Like Pizza, fried foods, etc. BUT when it comes to Skittles, I will never give those up. I did "cheat" yesterday and bought a 2.17 bag of them and ate the whole thing in the course of the night. I say, eat what you want in moderation. My mother always told me, "It's not what you eat, it's how much you eat of it."

gothchiq

Sadly, no. I'm resigned to the diet for the rest of my life unless I want to get fat again. I chew a lot of gum and drink a lot of water. I get 1200 calories, and even so I don't lose any at all unless I work out hard and often. Once a month or so, I can have one day that I permit myself some extra calories. Any more than that, such as once a week, and I start gaining it back quickly; I've tested that out. (middle age plus head meds plus busted thyroid.) I've just had to accept that my eating days are over.

StaciMarie1974

I don't often eat fried food - but won't/don't rule anything out. I do regularly eat pizza and fast food - but I'm aware of my options/choices.

I think we all have things we know to avoid. For me its the bags of Twizzler Nibs. The little cherry flavored candy. If I open them, I'll eat them. All. And then feel that sick-in-the-stomach-I-can't-believe-I-did-that kind of feeling. Like a kid on Halloween night after Trick or Treating and before Mom takes the candy away for the night. So I don't buy them. Other things I can have on hand and eat a little at a time.

Kalikel

It isn't cheating; it's overeating.

I plan to do it on Thanksgiving. I am not going to ask my cousin to measure things, lol. I'm not going to ask about calories. I'm going to eat the stuff, not log it, and move on with my weight loss journey.

If you aren't on a special diet, it's all about what you want. If you want to take a day off, do that! If you don't, don't!

It really is that easy. Do what makes you happy.

mblair4185

Technically, I could eat a bite or two of some of the foods I like but honestly, no. Most of what and how I am used to eating cannot be fit into a calorie counting diet. As it is if I want to be able to eat anything late at night (I am up until 12-1am working) I basically can't eat breakfast. Im eating about a 300-350 calorie meal around noon...maybe 100 calorie snack pack of some sort and apples with a tablespoon of peanut butter in the afternoon and then about a 450-600 calorie dinner (at most, sometimes on 350) then I can eat another frozen meal (300 calories) or bowl of cereal with milk or something later in the evening. All of those meals are frozen meals btw..tiny. IF I eat breakfast in the morning I can't have anything after dinner because there isn't anything left. I don't see how people are eating what they want on this restriction? Even when I am in maintain mode it will only be a few hundred more calories than what I currently have. Its really discouraging to me.

StaciMarie1974

Prepackaged meals will leave you feeling like you have not eaten much. Try making more of your own, or supplementing by adding a salad.

Examples:
Salad of mixed greens, veggies w/ .5 ounce reduced fat cheddar or blue cheese crumbles and light dressing: 100-150 calories

Scrambled egg whites w/ veggies & some 2% cheese 100-200 calories

Lean meat (4-6 ounces) with baked/grilled veggies 150-250 calories

PB&J sandwich on light bread w/ no-added-sugar jelly or jam 250ish calories

My diary is open if you want to browse. I eat real food. And I log realistic amounts based on scale weight. I don't really worry about sodium, as I have no health reasons of concern that are related to sodium.

T1DCarnivoreRunner

For Thanksgiving this year, I intend to be hiking/camping and not gorging on food. But... I do have "cheat" days when I reach certain goals (the first time, not again after I lose the weight I gain from the cheat day). There are occasionally days I will call "overeat" days where I'll go maybe 1,000-2,000 calories over, and I do this when I'm really down (last time was about a month ago, and I do this every month or 2 it seems). My last "cheat" day was in August, and it generally takes 3-4 months to get to a cheat day (or to get to the weight where I allow myself a cheat day). For me, a cheat day is a day where I will eat whatever I want without regard to what it is or how much it is. I did log what I ate last time (I think it was around 12k calories, which is much less than my planned 30k calories but I found I cannot eat as much as I used to be able to eat).

DannehBoyy

Ever since i started trying to lose weight I've had a cheat day every Saturday. It may have slowed it down, i don't know... but i know for a fact that if i didn't have a day where i could eat what i wanted to...i wouldn't have got this far. Eating what you want for one day will do nothing, just like eating what you should for one day would do nothing. Hope this helps you

chudak

I think it depends on the person and what it is... portion control is amazing! I learned that if I want to have my diet goals intact, I can't have bags of trail mix lying around : ( I "cheat" all the time when I know I'm going for a long run or have worked enough calories off that I can have a treat, but certain things are DISASTEROUS! You'll find that when you give something up for awhile (like pop is a good example) you actually stop craving it and you'll find you don't like it. As far as Christmas and Thanksgiving? GO FOR IT! One "skinny" mean won't make you skinny, just like one "fat" meal won't make you fat... and there are healthy versions of things you can make. You can always leave the marshmellos off the sweet potatos and have a great meal! One day at a time, right?

mblair4185

These are all really great points! I think I do need to take a look at what meals some of you are fixing...maybe I would feel more satisfied!!!

Paul_Collyer

I think a day off here or there isnt going to do too much damage as long as you follow the rules and eat balanced the rest of the time. Maybe slightly different if you are just starting out as you need to get some momentum going but once you have lost some weight and know how to lose more then damn right allow yourself some time off!

gothchiq

aha. Frozen meals. That's why you feel like you're starving to death. You might as well be eating a kleenex. Those are low volume, low satisfaction, low nutrition. Bake up some skinless chicken breasts. Cook up tons of nonstarchy vegetables. Have a broiled salmon filet. Boiled eggs. Kashi cereal and lowfat milk. lowfat or nonfat yogurt. Be very moderate about most starches such as rice, potatoes, pasta, and bread. Use light salad dressings. Eat 4 oz portions of lean meats. And then, low cal fruits and vegetables will fill up your stomach. For grains that work, did you know grits are only 100 cal per serving? Oatmeal is pretty low cal too. A cup of frozen blueberries is only 80 calories. Those are my dessert nowadays. Or cut up, core and peel an apple, stew it with cinnamon and just a touch of sugar. Strawberries, fresh. Pre-prepared/processed stuff will never leave you satisfied and is full of chemicals also.

beamer0821

yes you definitely need to find more satisfying meals than those frozen meals and/or cereal. you should divide up your calories throughout the day where you want to eat. i tend to be hungrier at the end of the day like most people so i eat most of my calories in the evening. i eat light breakfast and lunches which is easier for me to do. but i make all my meals. like breakfast is oatmeal which sticks to my bones and keeps me filled.

as for treats, definitely fit those in so you don't feel deprived. you can get those mini store bought bakery cupcakes and they are what 90-150 calories. surely you can fit that in.

i don't believe in cheat days, thats a setup for disaster.

you can still have days where you have a high caloric meal. just do it and move on. but make it special. eat something you don't normally eat or can't make at home. for example, french fries aren't that important to me so i don't bother with the fries when i eat out. i eat something i really want. record it and move on. I've lost 50 lbs so far. you just can't eat like that every meal, its all about balance.

silentKayak

No, you can't eat everything you want and expect to keep the weight off. Your choices are:

- go back to your old habits and old body. Gain back everything you lose, and then some.
- find some smart substitutions: fresh fruit for candy, seafood for steak, air-popped popcorn for chips, vegetables for carbs. The longer you do this, the more you'll find foods you enjoy that satisfy you.
- add in some exercise. You don't have to kill it in the gym. A moderate 45 minute walk daily will give you 200 extra calories so you can have a beer or some chips that evening.
- eat what you like but cut back portions. Do you really need "a couple cupcakes" at 300 calories each, or will one or even a half do just as well?

If you feel like you're starving, something's wrong. You're probably eating foods that don't fill you. One thing is that sugar and starchy carbs make you ravenously hungry. Try cutting them way back and adding lean meat, fish, and as many vegetables as you can stand in their place. If you do that for a week, you'll be surprised how little you miss them.

Feel free to add me. You sound just like me a few years ago.

beamer0821

chudak wrote: »

One "skinny" mean won't make you skinny, just like one "fat" meal won't make you fat...

love this. just when i think I've heard it all i hear something new

esjones12

I don't have cheat days, I have cheat meals. And max 2 a week. The rest of the time I strive for clean, wholesome foods that I find filling and nourishing.

In my experience if you lose the weight through a real lifestyle change, maintenance comes naturally. For most of this year I didn't count calories and ate pretty much whatever I wanted. However I am extremely active and by weighing in once a week I knew when I had to dial back on the food some. On long weekend vacations I'd put on 3-4 pounds but they'd fall off within two weeks without even trying. However, I want to drop weight so I am back to calorie counting.

I saw a video with a sports psychologist who talked about how your body automatically resets after doing something for a long enough duration. For example when you first start running it's really hard because your body isn't used to it and it "fights" it. If you do it long enough, your body resets and if you stop running your body will fight it. You'll feel restless, antsy, etc. Same goes with food. If you eat tons of sugary stuff your body is used to it and wants more. Stop eating it and your body will protest. If you keep eating healthy your body will reset and if you feed it sugary food it will not react well.

gothchiq

I know I can't eat greasy stuff any more. The last time I tried, I felt so sick and like I was going to explode for several hours. And the amount was quite moderate. Bleurgh, goodbye fried crap!

T1DCarnivoreRunner

Ah, but I understand. I've been dieting for months and I've been hungry for months. I would like to be able to tell you it gets better, but it does not. There are 2 things that I've found fill me up enough, but that is it. For those who say that packaged foods are the problem, you are wrong. Even when I eat non-packaged foods, I still cannot get enough to eat. So I go hungry in order to lose weight. I will be hungry even at a maintenance calorie level.

By the way, here are the 2 foods that fill me up and allow me to not be hungry even when eating at a deficit:

1. Watermelon
2. Salad, but only if prepared in a certain way. It took months to figure out the right combination/preparation. I could eat 3-4 lbs. of lettuce and still be hungry (but within my calorie goal). Or, I could add loads of ranch dressing to 2 cups of lettuce and be satisfied, but way over my calories.