How important are cheat meals or cheat days?

katieballenget

I have recently started this weight loss journey. I have learned through many failed diets that weight loss and healthy living are about a lifestyle change. I have lost 19.6 pounds in the last 3 weeks. I have a shakeology meal replacement shake for breakfast every morning and I do enjoy that. I've also thought about having another meal replacement shake at lunch since they do fill me up. I have stuck to a low carb, low sugar diet as best I know how. Cutting out breads, starches, pastas, sweet treats, candies, sodas, and even coffee. Now I have stalled out. I've had numerous people tell me that cheat meals or even cheat days are very important to a successful journey. Anytime I do this, I feel extremely guilty. I don't do an entire cheat day, just a meal and the first time I did it, it seemed to help me over a plateau. My exercise is mainly cardio (a lot of just dance on the wii) and brisk walking. I'm trying to get to a place where I can jog. Not there yet. Although I could definitely do more cardio. I just wonder how important it is to cheat.

ndj1979

first - why are you eliminating breads, starters, pasta, etc? Is that for a medical reason, or just because?

katieballenget

ndj1979 wrote: »

first - why are you eliminating breads, starters, pasta, etc? Is that for a medical reason, or just because?

Basically just because. I've found it is easier to avoid cravings for them if I just completely cut them out. But I honestly don't know what I am doing here. I have no nutrition background at all.

999tigger

MFP is about lifestyle change. Cheat days meals etc mean differnt things to differnt people. Will it be controlled, does it mean you will still be in your allowance? Note it has an effect becayse its extra calories but only you know whether you will be in deficit or not. If you are not, then understand the calorific consequence of that and be prepared to deal with it for the rest of the time.

You have stalled becayse either you are at maintenance or you need to be patient and wait to see if its just your body being non linear. Cheat days are not essential to weight loss, you might need/ want to o over deficit a few days to preserve your sanity and make it more sustainable, but its still extra calories.

Being able to sustain your diet over a long period is the key to crossing the finish line.

booksandchocolate12

Cheat meals/days are EXTREMELY important for me....meaning it's extremely important that I avoid them.

One cheat meal turns into a cheat day. One day into two, etc.

I try to incorporate a treat into my every day plan. And if I know I'm going out and will likely eat a bit more, I plan for it.

katieballenget

I've also been told I'm not eating enough calories. MFP says I need 1900 calories, which seems like a massive amount to me. I'm lucky if I get over 1000. I also used to never eat breakfast, but since I began this journey, I have been doing the shakeology shakes for breakfast. I was told breakfast jump starts your metabolism every day.

tommyatkinson

Instead of a "cheat" meal/day, why not have a planned "maintenance" day instead, where you plan to eat at your TDEE? I have lost around 70 lb in the last 8 months, and around 4 or 5 months in, I started having a maintenance day every two weeks or so. I still log everything I eat and drink on these days because it still counts (I hated logging the "cheat" meals I had my first few months). This really helps me refocus the other 95% of the time I'm eating at a deficit because I've allowed myself an occasional, responsible indulgence.

Also, I might suggest that you try to remove emotions from what you're eating and the meals you've had. There's no reason to feel guilty about having a day where you've eaten too many calories; just learn from it and don't repeat the same mistake twice. The more that your diet becomes just something you do like brushing your teeth, doing your laundry, or washing the dishes, the easier it is to have discipline. I usually try to think about it by the numbers as much as possible: calories in/calories out.

zoeysasha37

Why have you cut out all these foods and why are you paying all that money for beach body products? They really are low quality and expensive. You could buy a much better quality protein shake for less money.

Lefty1290

So, if this is a "lifestyle change," are you planning on living off of shakes forever?

I still eat carbs (just less of them) and sweets (again, less of them) and lose weight. You don't have to eliminate anything unless it's for a medical reason or until you can gain self-control in having normal portions. As long as you stay within your allotted calories, you will lose weight.

I don't really do whole cheat "days," usually it's just dinner and dessert. Sometimes, I'll have gravy and stuff for breakfast, but that's not very often.

booksandchocolate12

1200 calories a day is the minimum amount of calories a woman should consume.

I'm turning 50 this week, sit at a desk all day, use walking as my only exercise, and I eat more than 1200 a day.

If I can lose on that much, so can you.

katieballenget

999tigger wrote: »

MFP is about lifestyle change. Cheat days meals etc mean differnt things to differnt people. Will it be controlled, does it mean you will still be in your allowance? Note it has an effect becayse its extra calories but only you know whether you will be in deficit or not. If you are not, then understand the calorific consequence of that and be prepared to deal with it for the rest of the time.

You have stalled becayse either you are at maintenance or you need to be patient and wait to see if its just your body being non linear. Cheat days are not essential to weight loss, you might need/ want to o over deficit a few days to preserve your sanity and make it more sustainable, but its still extra calories.

Being able to sustain your diet over a long period is the key to crossing the finish line.

I do log the cheat meals and still stay under my calorie goal. I've gotten more notices on not having enough calories than anything else.

Lefty1290

katieballenget wrote: »

I've also been told I'm not eating enough calories. MFP says I need 1900 calories, which seems like a massive amount to me. I'm lucky if I get over 1000. I also used to never eat breakfast, but since I began this journey, I have been doing the shakeology shakes for breakfast. I was told breakfast jump starts your metabolism every day.

1,000 calories/day is not enough. You need to shoot for at least 1,200.

ndj1979

katieballenget wrote: »

ndj1979 wrote: »

first - why are you eliminating breads, starters, pasta, etc? Is that for a medical reason, or just because?

Basically just because. I've found it is easier to avoid cravings for them if I just completely cut them out. But I honestly don't know what I am doing here. I have no nutrition background at all.

OK fair enough …

I don't believe in cheat days/meals because it implies that said foods that you are "cheating" with are someone "bad" and should be avoided the rest of the time.

The truth is there are no "good" or "bad" foods, there is just food that your body uses for energy. What is important is hitting your calorie/macro/micro targets for the day. So yes you need to eat nutrient dense foods like chicken, fish, vegetables, etc, but there is noting wrong with incorporating breads, pasta, ice cream, pizza, etc into your diet.

What I would suggest is find a way to incorporate most foods into your day that you enjoy and not view it as "cheating"..

so if you want to have some pasta for dinner that is fine; just have eggs for breakfast, whole wheat bread and turkey for lunch, and pasta with some marinara for dinner < the way you are balancing out your carbs/fats/proteins eating the food that you like, and staying within your targets…

I hope that makes sense….

katieballenget

booksandchocolate12 wrote: »

Cheat meals/days are EXTREMELY important for me....meaning it's extremely important that I avoid them.

One cheat meal turns into a cheat day. One day into two, etc.

I try to incorporate a treat into my every day plan. And if I know I'm going out and will likely eat a bit more, I plan for it.

That is a worry of mine. That's why I just stick to one cheat meal if I do one. I'm scared I'll fall off the wagon. I'm addicted to food. Stress eating, emotional eating, happy eating, all of it. But in the last 3 weeks I have cut all of the addictive eating habits out.

ndj1979

katieballenget wrote: »

I've also been told I'm not eating enough calories. MFP says I need 1900 calories, which seems like a massive amount to me. I'm lucky if I get over 1000. I also used to never eat breakfast, but since I began this journey, I have been doing the shakeology shakes for breakfast. I was told breakfast jump starts your metabolism every day.

if MFP is giving you 1900 then you should be netting 1900. At the bare minimum you should be at least netting 1200….

Breakfast has nothing to do with metabolism.

I would say ditch the shakeology shakes and eat a real breakfast. Shakeoloy is over priced garbage….

jenncornelsen

to me a lifestyle change isn't cutting out entire food groups. do u plan to never eat them again? do this in a way u can keep up for life. i have tried cutting out foods too. then i end up giving up or binging. i don't have cheat meals or days. i just make foods work in my calories. 1000 calories a day is nothing. add a tablespoon of peanut butter or something and ur there.

katieballenget

tommyatkinson wrote: »

Instead of a "cheat" meal/day, why not have a planned "maintenance" day instead, where you plan to eat at your TDEE? I have lost around 70 lb in the last 8 months, and around 4 or 5 months in, I started having a maintenance day every two weeks or so. I still log everything I eat and drink on these days because it still counts (I hated logging the "cheat" meals I had my first few months). This really helps me refocus the other 95% of the time I'm eating at a deficit because I've allowed myself an occasional, responsible indulgence.

Also, I might suggest that you try to remove emotions from what you're eating and the meals you've had. There's no reason to feel guilty about having a day where you've eaten too many calories; just learn from it and don't repeat the same mistake twice. The more that your diet becomes just something you do like brushing your teeth, doing your laundry, or washing the dishes, the easier it is to have discipline. I usually try to think about it by the numbers as much as possible: calories in/calories out.

Congratulations on your amazing weight loss! That is very inspirational! I have noticed that my diet has become more of just my everyday routine. And I am glad for that.

tlflag1620

You've lost about 20 lbs in 3 weeks.....
Am I the only one seeing that as crazy? Subsisting on meal replacements so you can lose 6-7 lbs a week is not a "lifestyle". It's a crash diet.
You say you've "stalled"? How long have you been "stalled"? Obviously most of what you've lost in the past 3 weeks has been water (and some muscle). Do you really expect to sustain a 6-7 lb per week rate of loss?

kimny72

You should be eating AT LEAST 1200 calories every day, unless you are under doctor supervision to make sure you aren't hurting yourself.

I am 42, 5'4' I weigh 135 and I am losing slowly on 1600 calories a day. I don't need cheat meals because I fit the foods I love into my daily calorie goal. What you are doing now will probably just lead you to another burnout. Slowly work your way up to eating the calories MFP is giving you and make sure you are logging accurately and consistently. No reason to use meal replacement shakes when you are already not eating enough - eat food!

Read all the stickies - especially Sexy Pants in the Getting Started forum. You can do this, without restricting yourself so much. Good luck

katieballenget

thorsmom01 wrote: »

Why have you cut out all these foods and why are you paying all that money for beach body products? They really are low quality and expensive. You could buy a much better quality protein shake for less money.

I was given a bag of it by a friend and have enjoyed it. I've cut those foods out because the less I eat them, the less I crave them. Which makes sense in my mind I guess.

LovelyIvy466

tlflag1620 wrote: »

You've lost about 20 lbs in 3 weeks.....
Am I the only one seeing that as crazy? Subsisting on meal replacements so you can lose 6-7 lbs a week is not a "lifestyle". It's a crash diet.
You say you've "stalled"? How long have you been "stalled"? Obviously most of what you've lost in the past 3 weeks has been water (and some muscle). Do you really expect to sustain a 6-7 lb per week rate of loss?

THIS.

20 lbs in 3 weeks and eating under 1000 calories a day? This is the epitome of a crash diet. If you don't increase your calories and start eating real foods (not crap shakeology nonsense) this is going to rebound on you in the worst way. You are setting yourself up for a lot of dysfunction.