Cheat days.....or meals

CassieJones104

Do you give yourself a cheat day or just one cheat meal? and how often?

Chef_Barbell

You can't cheat on food. Eat it, log it and move on. I fit what I want in my calorie allotment.

duddysdad

If I have left over calories for the week, I will add them up and eat whatever I want with them, as long as I don't go over. I don't have cheat days or meals, I could easily undo the entire week's effort in a single day.

ogtmama

On a day that I didn't feel like I could do my calorie goal, j allowed myself to go up to maintenance...it probably happened two or three times a month but at least by just going to maintenance you can feel more satisfied without undoing any of your hard work.

Eta:i didn't consider it cheating, I considered it part of the plan

JaydedMiss

I find people new starting out already wondering about cheat meals annoying. The site is filled with people screaming to shut it down now. Eat what you want. Weigh it. Log it. Move on and stop making it difficult. Second you think of food as the enemy or a reward things fall apart.

riffraff2112

I don't plan cheat days, they just kind of happen.
I am much better at allowing myself a small sample of something than going all in and devouring 3 helpings.

In the long run one horrible day doesn't do much to derail your overall plan, assuming this isn't every day.

I do like to look at two week blocks (just because my weight training workouts are also in 2 week blocks), and I can usually save up a few calories on a daily basis to allow for a cheat meal or two. I also don't log exercise calories, so I always know I have those in my back pocket if I run into food I can't resist (or I have that third, forth , or fifth beer!)

cwolfman13

cassiekimbrough104 wrote: »

Do you give yourself a cheat day or just one cheat meal? and how often?

How do you define "cheat"...what is it that you're doing that is "cheating"

amusedmonkey

Depends how you define "cheating". If by cheating you mean foods which people usually call "bad", then every day and every meal is a potential cheat day/meal for me because I could feel like having something people don't usually associate with diets any time, and I act on these urges every time I feel it's worth it. If by cheating you mean going over daily calorie budget, then every day is a potential cheat day because I never know when something could happen and I might need to eat up to maintenance, although I try to keep these to a minimum. If you mean not counting calories or letting loose without being generally aware of my intake, then no, I don't have cheat meals/days.

I don't usually "cheat" on a schedule. The only planned cheat meals, however you choose define them, are the ones I know in advance will happen, like a night out, a party, a birthday or some kind of holiday/event. I often plan for these days by saving calories in advance.

I believe flexibility is the most important aspect of my adherence to dieting.

successgal1

A cheat day/meal to the average person, unversed in MFP trolling, is when you eat over your MFP goal for the day. I find it helpful, as others do, to at least look at my overall calorie deficit for the whole week, not just one day. If you work on that for a few weeks, as a newbie, you'll see that you can go over on your calories here and there, while still keeping an overall deficit for the week. You can also exercise to build a bigger deficit.

You're not really "cheating", you're "Strategically planning".

I have no trouble supporting newbies. There is far too much misinformation and misleading terms out there that can make it difficult for a newbie to separate advertising from reality. And the struggle with cravings and feeling like you're missing out on foods because of calorie counting, before you really get into the groove, can be overwhelming and can make a newbie feel like its too hard, too much work, too much denial, before they get the hang of things, understanding that they can eat what they want as long as its within their calories.

Some people here can easily toss "oh its no big deal" off the cuff like a newbie is overreacting. This is not helpful to the newbie in my opinion, and lets face it, some people are very detail oriented and need to know the WHY'S, not just the how's. Knowledge is power after all. In this case, the power to resist overeating so regularly that you lose your weekly deficit, and that allowing yourself treats here and there is perfectly ok.

melaniedscott

I'm not dieting, so I can't cheat. I'm changing my relationship with food. If I want cheetos, I eat them. If I want chocolate, I eat it. But in moderation. I plan what else I'm eating to make them fit. Or...I add some exercise...10-30 minutes so pilates to balance the 30 cal I go over in my allotment or 30 minutes of walking (better calorie burn, honestly). If I know I'll have a really calorie heavy meal (like mexican), I'll plan salad for the non-brekkie meal.

There's no cheating when I eat what I like. And, I've lost nearly 30 lbs this way.

dfc4

I do Intermittant Fasting (18 hours Fasting / 6 hours eating phase) eating phase is from 12:30 - 18:30
Saturdays i extend the eating phase, late breackfast /Brunch at about 10 o clock and last meal at about 20:00 hours (thats my cheat day) i still stick to the healthy foods and keep sugar and simple carb intake very low.

kgirlhart

I don't consider foods good or bad. I eat whatever I want and fit it into my calorie goal. Sometimes I have to decide if I really want something that might leave me hungry later. Sometimes I do and sometimes I decide against it and eat something else that is more filling. I could never change to a way of eating that I felt a need to "cheat" on. There are a few special occasions or holidays where I might go over my goal, but as long as those days are the exception and not the rule I don't worry about it.