So, how far do you go on a cheat day?

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Replies

  • msjames1999
    msjames1999 Posts: 528 Member
    I don't have any "cheat" days.
  • sukatx
    sukatx Posts: 103
    I don't even call it a "cheat day". It's in my plan to have one day a week where I don't think about losing weight. I don't exercise and I don't count calories on that day. I feel like if I called it "cheating" I'd be giving myself permission to go way overboard. Since it's part of the plan, it's not cheating.

    Yesterday, for example, we went out to eat to celebrate Father's Day. I got biscuits and gravy for breakfast, which is huge in calories. Normally I order an egg white omelet and fruit when we go out for breakfast. Not a really big deal since it's a once-a-week thing. But if I'd "cheated", I'd have given myself the go-ahead to get lunch at a drive thru, plus an ice cream sundae, and then when we went out for dinner I could have gone even farther.

    BTW my dinner was grilled salmon, broccoli and rice pilaf. Even on my day off, I don't go overboard.
  • femmefae
    femmefae Posts: 65 Member
    No cheat days...maybe a cheat meal once a week (if that). I can KILL some chic-fil-a though.
  • genofreek
    genofreek Posts: 75
    I don't cheat regularly, but every now and then I just need to take the day off and not panic about the calorie count of something I really badly want. Once I've had my curly fries or whatever, I'm usually good and I eat reasonably for the rest of the day. That's not always the case, but I've found that if I allow myself to let loose every now and then, it's not really rebelling, so I'm less likely to want to go crazy!

    I don't think I've gone over 2500 on any given "cheat day" yet so far. :)
  • gensteele1
    gensteele1 Posts: 60 Member
    Just remember that we didn't all gain weight because of one me, just as one meal won't make all of the weight go away. You are only human and just continue to live your life as you would and if you want it, eat it. Move on, don't harp on it. Good luck!
  • o2bADyer
    o2bADyer Posts: 208
    Moderation is the key...allow yourself a treat, not an entire day! You don't want to regret it later. Good luck! :wink:
  • ahviendha
    ahviendha Posts: 1,291 Member
    as i get closer to goal weight, i have less wiggle room for calories. my cheat days are usually within my calorie allotments. i just eat crap instead of lean meats and veggies.
  • Kita328
    Kita328 Posts: 370 Member
    On the days that I have had a cheat day its usually just a cheat meal, not the whole day

    Same- I know that it is easy to get into a funk and have a whole day- but I know for me knowing I had a moment of weakness is easier to recover-mentally- from than a day of weakness.
  • Nooshkabob
    Nooshkabob Posts: 5
    I rarely plan a cheat day, but I know when I'm craving something it's usually because my body needs it - so usually I'll eat it even if it means going over my limit (and usually then some) but I balance it out by doing more exercise on those days. Sometimes its a few hundred over, on a really bad day then a thousand but it all balances out in the end! One cheat won't make much difference, as long as you usually maintain a healthy lifestyle :)
  • majica8
    majica8 Posts: 210 Member
    I feel really guilty if I have a cheat day so I try not to anymore. The only time I will is for special occasions. For example it is my brother's birthday (twins, they are 30) on Thur and we are going out for a family meal on Friday night. I will probably skip breakfast or lunch, and/or go for an extra long cycle and then I won't care what I eat when we are out. I still won't go that crazy, but I expect I'll have a dessert :) Also having a family party on Saturday with pork, apple and stuffing rolls plus other nibbles. Again I won't go crazy but I expect I will be over for the day.

    I also have treats other times. I just got myself a cheap (so low-ish in sugar and fat) plain chocolate bar. I'll treat myself to a few squares a night probably. At 60-80 cals it's hardly anything but still feels like a treat and is enough.
  • andiroot
    andiroot Posts: 43
    my bf and I have cheat days on sunday and try to stay with our goal, but we get treats like a biscuit for breakfast or tater tots for dinner. maybe frozen yogurt. I think if we go over its still less than 200 calories.

    the first few we gorged and felt horrible, now we cheat smart. that's how it becomes a lifestyle
  • endoftheside
    endoftheside Posts: 568 Member
    I don't indulge the "oh, so very "hungry"" type of cheating. That kind of hungry is in my mind, not my body and there is no food that will fix it, so I don't even bother (I gave up emotional eating back in January). If the hunger is persistent, I have a few times gone up to maintenance level, and that usually gets me 300 calories or so which is a decent sized snack or meal. I have no problem at all with exercising to get a few hundred extra calories to eat and do it probably at least once a week.

    That being said, for me sticking to my calories is very important. Number 1 was logging, and when I had that ingrained, sticking to calories/no emotional eating was next. There are other ways to get the job done and I probably have more day to day treats than some, but this works for me.
  • xLoveLikeWinterx
    xLoveLikeWinterx Posts: 408 Member
    IDK, I don't really have "cheat days". There are days that I don't eat as well as I should, or I may go over, but they are balanced out by all the other days that I was under my calorie goal. If you wake up starving, have a glass of water first thing.

    Same here. I have days I eat more than I would like or days I eat more of X than I think I should, but not "cheat days". * shrug * I figure that's how real life is so I don't stress too much over it.
  • smwkent
    smwkent Posts: 10
    I agree with others, drink 16oz. water maybe add lemon juice. This helps me to feel full
  • vjm7981
    vjm7981 Posts: 42 Member
    On my cheat days I try to eat reasonably (and most of the time succeed). My culprit on these cheat days is alcohol. We all know that a few drinks adds up to ALOT of calories. It's not so much the cheat day itself that I have the problem with, it's the day after my indulgence of alcohol that leaves me craving all the bad things. I just have to tell myself that I have the willpower and eat healthy versus gorging myself which would result in two bad days in a row.
  • SlimSumday
    SlimSumday Posts: 379 Member
    I don't have 'cheat days". But I do cheat once in a while. I feel if I have a regular cheat day it will only serve to sabotage everything I've worked so hard for leading up to it.
  • Marley2310
    Marley2310 Posts: 304
    500 or 800 ? lol that's a treat not a cheat ..mine is something like 5000 to 6000 Above my daily intake ..i don't recommend it thought haha ...the healthy range is 1000 over maintenance calories

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