Cheat days, what's yours like
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No cheat days. It would just be cheating myself, and what is the point of that.
All things in moderation and work it into my calories for the day.
It has been working for almost 4 years for me, while losing and on maintenance.0 -
Why would you need a "cheat day" when you're at maintenance? I thought the point of those was to take a diet break.
Sometimes I overdo the tacos and margaritas on a special occasion, but I'm not going to stuff myself just because it's Saturday. That seems weird to me.0 -
Thin_Beauty94 wrote: »Thin_Beauty94 wrote: »You cheat days are sad. Seriously y'all need to live a little
@Thin_Beauty94 I like you, you get it. If there was some magic way of having a day for eating whatever I wanted and still losing fat overall, I'd be consuming all of the delicious processed and packaged things. I wish people wouldn't try and suck all of the fun out of a cheat day by trying to redefine it as something else. If you're going to cheat, cheat. If not, fine, good for you, don't call whatever it is you do a cheat day though.
Exactly! Like you're letting your body have for one day that things you don't typically have throughout the week. People keep saying a cheat day is terrible and will only cause you to gain back all the weight you lost. You didn't gain all the weight in one day, so you won't lose all the weight in one day.
Yeah but no. You can gain a pound of fat in one day... good luck losing a pound of fat in one day...
Ah well if you gain a pound of fat that's it, it's all over, you've ruined everything forever and there's no way you can undo that.
It's not my point. My point is that you just can't compare losing weight with gaining weight, which I see a lot on the forums... but just no. You can undo one week of deficit with a cheat day, but good luck having one week of deficit in a day...
Okay, so your point is having a bad week in terms of calorie intake is a major setback that cannot be undone and will ruin everything. I mean you keep wishing someone good luck as if this would be a massive thing that could not be overcome.0 -
Thin_Beauty94 wrote: »Thin_Beauty94 wrote: »You cheat days are sad. Seriously y'all need to live a little
@Thin_Beauty94 I like you, you get it. If there was some magic way of having a day for eating whatever I wanted and still losing fat overall, I'd be consuming all of the delicious processed and packaged things. I wish people wouldn't try and suck all of the fun out of a cheat day by trying to redefine it as something else. If you're going to cheat, cheat. If not, fine, good for you, don't call whatever it is you do a cheat day though.
Exactly! Like you're letting your body have for one day that things you don't typically have throughout the week. People keep saying a cheat day is terrible and will only cause you to gain back all the weight you lost. You didn't gain all the weight in one day, so you won't lose all the weight in one day.
Yeah but no. You can gain a pound of fat in one day... good luck losing a pound of fat in one day...
Ah well if you gain a pound of fat that's it, it's all over, you've ruined everything forever and there's no way you can undo that.
It's not my point. My point is that you just can't compare losing weight with gaining weight, which I see a lot on the forums... but just no. You can undo one week of deficit with a cheat day, but good luck having one week of deficit in a day...
Okay, so your point is having a bad week in terms of calorie intake is a major setback that cannot be undone and will ruin everything. I mean you keep wishing someone good luck as if this would be a massive thing that could not be overcome.
Either you don't know how to read or you have a very vivid imagination.0 -
I have my cheat days on Sundays. Sunday morning until I go to bed I eat whatever I'm craving and I don't count the calories or anything. I might have cappuccinos, pizza, pasta, soda, etc. The next morning it's back to clean eating and I don't weigh myself until Tuesday or Wednesday lol then I weigh myself every morning after.0
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Larissa_NY wrote: »Why would you need a "cheat day" when you're at maintenance? I thought the point of those was to take a diet break.
Sometimes I overdo the tacos and margaritas on a special occasion, but I'm not going to stuff myself just because it's Saturday. That seems weird to me.
If you addressing me about the "Why would you need a "cheat day" when you're at maintenance?" It is because I can not, nor can anyone on maintenance, at least that I know about, eat above maintenance calories, without regaining weight.
No diet break. Diet, by definition, is the kind of foods that a person habitually eats. Different from a weight loss diet. The statistics are very high for regaining back weight lost, some sources as high as 80%, or even higher, by five years after losing the weight. A lot of people gain even more weight back than they lost. I am on a mission to be in the small percent that keep the weight off. 26 months and still watching what I eat. It is the way it has to be for me. I am not going back. I will have to log and monitor for as long as I live, that is a fact for me.
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I try to build little rewards into my meals to keep me going. Most of the time, I'll have a cookie I've baked at home with dinner or a little snack as a reward for a good work out. I still keep well within my caloric limits but I don't really need cheat days because I find that they make it really hard to stay consistent.0
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I don't really think of it as a cheat day but on Saturdays I'm not as strict with myself. It is the one day of each week I "allow" myself to go over on calories by more than 100. On Saturday it is more likely that I'll have a "real" dessert (think pie or ice cream VS my typical fruit or a couple big marshmallows) and/or 1 or 2 restaurant meals. For awhile these Saturday indulgences were getting out of control though so I've reined it back in a bit, by having a small "normal" breakfast at home and sweets OR craft beer, not both. Fortunately my husband and I both tend to be on the same page AND we get way more exercise (hiking usually) on Saturdays so it's not quite such a big issue.0
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Thin_Beauty94 wrote: »You cheat days are sad. Seriously y'all need to live a little
Yup agreed0 -
I will usually do one day a week where I indulge in something not as healthy for me. Usually it's more of a cheat meal.0
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I eat at a bigger deficit 6 days a week so I can fit in a big indulgent meal once a week and still lose weight. Usually something like a medium stuffed crust pizza, some cheesy chips and a bottle of wine - I can fit those individual things in on normal days if I want, but I do enjoy having a big blow out meal, it helps me stay on track and not get disillusioned with the weight loss thing. I might only lose two thirds of a pound instead of a full pound, but for me it's worth it.0
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snowflake930 wrote: »Larissa_NY wrote: »Why would you need a "cheat day" when you're at maintenance? I thought the point of those was to take a diet break.
Sometimes I overdo the tacos and margaritas on a special occasion, but I'm not going to stuff myself just because it's Saturday. That seems weird to me.
If you addressing me about the "Why would you need a "cheat day" when you're at maintenance?" It is because I can not, nor can anyone on maintenance, at least that I know about, eat above maintenance calories, without regaining weight.
I wasn't addressing anyone in particular, and your answer doesn't seem to have anything to do with my question. Yes, if you eat too far over maintenance consistently, for long enough, you'll gain weight. What does that have to do with cheat days and why you'd need them if you're not restricting your calories anymore?0 -
Larissa_NY wrote: »snowflake930 wrote: »Larissa_NY wrote: »Why would you need a "cheat day" when you're at maintenance? I thought the point of those was to take a diet break.
Sometimes I overdo the tacos and margaritas on a special occasion, but I'm not going to stuff myself just because it's Saturday. That seems weird to me.
If you addressing me about the "Why would you need a "cheat day" when you're at maintenance?" It is because I can not, nor can anyone on maintenance, at least that I know about, eat above maintenance calories, without regaining weight.
I wasn't addressing anyone in particular, and your answer doesn't seem to have anything to do with my question. Yes, if you eat too far over maintenance consistently, for long enough, you'll gain weight. What does that have to do with cheat days and why you'd need them if you're not restricting your calories anymore?
But I am restricting my calories @ maintenance. I don't eat like I did pre-MFP, not anywhere near it. Just so you realize, some of us do not have to eat too far over maintenance to gain weight. And yes, I am restricting my calories. I do not have cheat days. I eat at or below my maintenance calories. I am only eating about 300-400 more calories per day than I did while I was losing. I could easily eat more than double what I am eating at maintenance.
JW, why do you think such a high percentage of people regain all of the weight they lost, and some gain even more than they lost.
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My only "cheat days" - which I don't think of as cheating at all - are the about ten days per year I have special events (birthdays, christmas, weddings, etc.) There I try to eat reasonably but I don't plan my calories and I have no set goal.
Other than those, I work all the foods I like into my daily meal plans. I gave up basically nothing; some foods I eat in much smaller amounts or frequencies than before but I still have them when I feel like it.0 -
Don't really get the concept as I'm not cheating anyone, including me, by eating more some days than others or enjoying good food.
To me the idea sounds like restriction most days and freedom only a few days - that wouldn't be a happy or sustainable long term routine for me.
This.
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I don't use the concept of a cheat day either. I make better choices every day and if I'm wanting something, then I try to fit it in my calories for the day. If I can't make it fit, I log it and try again tomorrow.
For example, I've had a nice slice of birthday cake for three days in a row and fit it into my calories. I usually have a McDonald's breakfast sandwich or a wrap later in the day - there's pretty much something every day that I let myself have. I just make it work. If I don't give myself that allowance, I will binge eat on the weekends and ruin my progress.0 -
cookielover_96 wrote: »Thin_Beauty94 wrote: »You cheat days are sad. Seriously y'all need to live a little
Yup agreed
"Live a little" is what fat people say to you when you lose weight and you don't want to eat French fries or dessert or whatever it is they're trying to get you to eat so you'll be just like everyone else. Some of us need to stick with our good habits, almost all the time, because it reinforces the harder, but healthier, way of eating.0 -
lithezebra wrote: »cookielover_96 wrote: »Thin_Beauty94 wrote: »You cheat days are sad. Seriously y'all need to live a little
Yup agreed
"Live a little" is what fat people say to you when you lose weight and you don't want to eat French fries or dessert or whatever it is they're trying to get you to eat so you'll be just like everyone else. Some of us need to stick with our good habits, almost all the time, because it reinforces the harder, but healthier, way of eating.
Ok that makes me sad, lol. Can't imagine having to eat that way all my life.0 -
I don't do cheat days and don't ever plan on having them. I've come to realize that the idea that I can eat whatever in certain circumstances or times and somehow not have it count is a big part of what has led me to be overweight. I am working hard to re-teach myself that every calorie counts. If I want to eat something, I need to work it into my overall weekly calorie budget. Just like I would never set aside one day to go to the store and buy whatever I want and pretend it doesn't impact my bank account, I will never set aside a day to eat whatever and pretend it doesn't impact my body. It all counts. I need to manage what I eat just like I manage my money.0
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