Cheat days?? ......how naughty are we talkin?

mommarobb

I don't do "cheat" days as I hate that term. I sometimes have more relaxed days but nothing to crazy. If I know I am going to have one of these days, I try to fit in more exercise, cut some calories out of other meals and to pay attention to what I am actually putting in my mouth. I try to maintain a healthy diet while still enjoying life. I am also a night snacker, usually sweet/salty. To help curb the urge to binge on these kinds of foods, I have found healthier, lower calorie choices. Last night consisted of 1/2 Package of Jello sugar free chocolate pudding, a sliced banana and dessert topping made with extra vanilla for a flavour kick. Clocks in at about 325 cals. Lot better than a banana spilt from the ice cream shoppe and it stills curbs the craving. I found by modifying treats, and not feeling guilty about eating them, I don't feel the urge to have big "cheat" days that I have read from other users.
Good luck on your journey.

trogalicious

IIFYM for me. No need for cheat days. I eat what I like daily along with foods to hit my macros and calories. I don't feel the need to deprive myself then end up bingeing. It's a lifestyle change not a diet.

yup.

I don't get it... I honestly question the dedication of someone willing to lose weight and make a lifetime change if they try to find a way to cheat the 'system' from the get go. For me a cheat day would be something that happens maybe a few times a year, like Holidays, when you want to just enjoy yourself without worrying too much about calories. Otherwise to make it a successful lifetime change I'd think you'd just have to learn to integrate the things you like in your every day diet, so you know how to use portion control and not go totally overboard every time you get the occasion to eat the foods you love (but probably shouldn't eat too much of).

Plus there's the fact that if you gorge yourself on 4000 calories on the week end, you'll just have ruined all your week's effort.

Personally, I've had three cheat days in 6 months when I ate more junk than I normally would, and I still managed to stay under my calorie goal. I think it's very important not to deprive yourself and enjoy special occasions, but you got to keep your eyes on the prize... it's not just about losing weight, but learning good eating habits, and that includes portion control and not binging... that's why I think cheat days are so dangerous. A cheat meal once a month? Sure... but a weekly cheat day? Defeats the purpose, IMO.

Instead of judging someome why not answer the question? This reply just makes you look rude. No **** its a lifestyle change. You were obviously to quick to lecture me that you didn't bother to even read the question. I never said I did this, I asked about OTHER people. Now you just look ignorant and like a douche.

Maaaaaybe you should actually read the response instead of getting all butthurt over it. It's good advice, whether it isn't to the liking of your obviously delicate sensitivities. Ignorant? Hardly. Douchey? Really? No. Not even in the least.

auroranflash

I don't get it... I honestly question the dedication of someone willing to lose weight and make a lifetime change if they try to find a way to cheat the 'system' from the get go. For me a cheat day would be something that happens maybe a few times a year, like Holidays, when you want to just enjoy yourself without worrying too much about calories. Otherwise to make it a successful lifetime change I'd think you'd just have to learn to integrate the things you like in your every day diet, so you know how to use portion control and not go totally overboard every time you get the occasion to eat the foods you love (but probably shouldn't eat too much of).

Plus there's the fact that if you gorge yourself on 4000 calories on the week end, you'll just have ruined all your week's effort.

Personally, I've had three cheat days in 6 months when I ate more junk than I normally would, and I still managed to stay under my calorie goal. I think it's very important not to deprive yourself and enjoy special occasions, but you got to keep your eyes on the prize... it's not just about losing weight, but learning good eating habits, and that includes portion control and not binging... that's why I think cheat days are so dangerous. A cheat meal once a month? Sure... but a weekly cheat day? Defeats the purpose, IMO.

Instead of judging someome why not answer the question? This reply just makes you look rude. No **** its a lifestyle change. You were obviously to quick to lecture me that you didn't bother to even read the question. I never said I did this, I asked about OTHER people. Now you just look ignorant and like a douche.

This is a public forum and this was this person's opinion. You can't control who responds or how they respond. They were contributing to the conversation and sharing their opinion, as they're supposed to. You sounded far more rude than the person you were responding to.

lessofme43

why does it have to be called a 'cheat day' and then have people jump down your throat for not truly making a lifestyle change? I am serious about eating better than I have for 40+ years - not every day, every meal, every snack, but - in general, being good to my body. If I am still getting the results I want which for now is weight loss and eventually will be maintenance, then I am not cheating anybody, certainly not myself.

FitandFab33

My "cheat" day is not a cheat day. It's a planned refeed where I eat at or slightly above maintenance. I still satisfy my protein, fat, and fiber minimums but since I'm eating more cals in general, I have more room to play around. There's not a whole lot of junk that I really enjoy, but I sure enjoy fine foods so it's a chance to get a little luxurious and still take steps in the right direction.

AndiGirl70

I always take one day a month and live it up and enjoy a night out with my mommy friends to eat, drink, and be very merry. I don't log it, I don't worry about it, I just enjoy the sanity saving powers in the glass I tip back & the appetizers that cross my lips. IMO, a healthy lifestyle includes having fun and being laid back and having no worries about calories for one night. And its cheaper than having to make payments on a room rental at the local sanitarium! lol

One day of reckless abandon in the calorie department will not derail a healthy lifestyle IMO.

Seesawboomerang

Long-term, if you 'cheat' you won't win.

Make poor food choices, slow up on the exercise: calories will creep up and the fat will stay on.

I eat and drink what I like, pretty much, but overall feel so much better when making healthy choices.

A LITTLE of what you fancy does you good.

neandermagnon

Long-term, if you 'cheat' you won't win.

Make poor food choices, slow up on the exercise: calories will creep up and the fat will stay on.

I eat and drink what I like, pretty much, but overall feel so much better when making healthy choices.

A LITTLE of what you fancy does you good.

this is why I don't like the word "cheat" - it implies someone is doing something wrong. Enjoying food is not wrong, it's human nature. As long as someone is fitting the so-called unhealthy foods into their diet in a way that's not going to sabotage their health or long term progress, then they're doing it right, so why call it cheating? I think it's better termed "planning to enjoy the foods you really want to eat without letting them sabotage your long term progress" - not as snappy as "cheat day" but really that's what it is, it's not cheating so why call it that?

what's described in the post above isn't cheating (not in the sense that is meant on this thread), it's slipping back into bad habits. That's not the same thing.

ashleyisgreat

My "cheat" day is not a cheat day. It's a planned refeed where I eat at or slightly above maintenance. I still satisfy my protein, fat, and fiber minimums but since I'm eating more cals in general, I have more room to play around. There's not a whole lot of junk that I really enjoy, but I sure enjoy fine foods so it's a chance to get a little luxurious and still take steps in the right direction.

Me too. Just did one this week (I'll admit it wasn't planned, though!). Ate at maintenance and I feel just fine about that. As long as you don't go wild and eat above TDEE, you won't actually gain weight, though your weight loss may slow down. In general, I am more interested in my weekly goal than many daily goal, so I tend to have lots of high days where I might be 100-200 over my goal, but they're just evened out by the low ones. I try to hit my weekly goal every week.

Seesawboomerang

I agree that 'cheat day' can be a misleading term. But also, if you are aiming to go crazy every weekend, you probably won't lose stubborn lbs.

One outrageous excess isn't going to reverse all the hard work done. But one after another after another will do.

Each time I have empty calories, I try to redress the balance with more water and healthy sides or vitamin rich meals.

ashleyisgreat

Also, I don't consider any food to be naughty or bad, so I don't feel like I'm cheating if I eat...well, anything. I think that terminology is silly and only serves to make people feel guilty about eating food and increases the likelihood of failure (because when you feel like an idiot for eating it can totally trigger a backslide).

Eta: had to fix stupid spelling. Smart phones are not always so smart.

mark1978mark

Cheat day today,bacon and pizza!

lauriem1966

I don't like the word cheat....I prefer treat. And I find that I cannot treat myself too often because once I have sugar and flour in my system I crave it.

Tonight I'm having mexican, and that is a total treat to me....I'm making everything as healthy as possible but I will indulge in some queso dip because I want it so darn bad!

angiewf

I prefer to go by the 80/20 rule. If you're strict 80% of the time you can allow yourself a bit of leeway the other 20%. Not to go crazy, but there will be birthdays and other family occasions.For example, if your partner surprises you with a nice meal out, are you really going to say, 'No thanks, I'm on a diet'? As John Lennon said, 'Life is what happens when you had something else planned'.The important thing is healthy eating for life, not just to lose weight.

CycleGuy9000

I'm always hearing about people who are working out and eating healthy during the week but allowed themselves 1 day a week to rest from the gym and cheat on their diet. Does anyone else do this, and how far are you takin the cheat day? Chinese food? Pizza? Brownies??

I try to just cheat on one meal one day a week, not for the whole day because I feel like that's just to much destruction I'll have to repair the next week but one meal won't hurt and it'll keep from losing my marbles.

rockinchick221976

:happy: I don't have a scheduled cheat day. However, I know people who do schedule cheat days every week or every other and have had great success. If it's a special occasion like a cookout, Holiday dinner, or birthday party I will have what I want, but not overdue it and still log it into my food diary, but I don't really stress about staying under all my macros. My idea of a cheat day is not a day to binge eat til I want to throw up either. I mean won't eat 3,000 or 4,000 calories. The highest I've ever gone on a cheat day is maybe 2,000. It just simply means that I would eat something that I wouldn't eat on a typical day like a piece of cake or a bowl of ice cream. The last two cheat days I had were on my sons' birthday where I had a couple of small pieces of pizza, a couple of thin slices of calzone, and a normal sized piece of cake. Not too bad. I went over that day, but it was still only under 2,000 calories, my daily goal is 1,200. The second was at a fourth of July cookout. I had an 8 0z steak and chicken sausage, passed on the pasta salad, but had a couple of mixed drinks and a couple of jello-shots. I don't drink often at all so that was definately a cheat day for me; but amazingly, still didn't exceed 2,000 calories. On a typical day before I started MFP I was eating 2,000-2,500 everyday ,which is why my weight kept creeping up until I was a whopping 209 lbs (I'm only 5 feet tall), so staying under 1,200 calories actually is a big improvement, plus most of the time I'm somewhere around 1,000 calories and feel very satisfied so at the end of the week I have a little leeyway anyway. I try to integrate "naughty" things I like into my daily logs and still stay under my macros so that I don't really feel the need to have cheat days all that often. Last week I had a couple of clam cakes, but I balanced everything else around it so I wouldn't go over too much and I exercised a little more. I think that you have to do this so you don't feel deprived. I typically prelog all of my meals a day in advance so that everything's balanced off and all my macros are either at or under what they should be and I don't even have to think about it, I just eat what my meal plan says and I will intergrate things into it that some people would consider unhealthy, if it's something I feel like having. On a cheat day I won't prelog I'll just eat what I want to a certain extent and if it goes over it's no big deal, it's only one day out of an entire week of sticking to my goals.

Kymwho

Yep!! I had mine last night!! Margaritas and Mexican food!!! :-) Yummm-frickin'-ooooh!!

salladeve

I just don't feel comfortable having a "cheat/treat" day yet. I'm only a few months into this, and I have a really long way to go, so going over my calories for the day really makes me nervous, and not worth it to me. I'm hoping as I get closer to my goal I will be able to enjoy an evening out without worrying about the calories, but not yet! I'm not ready to give back my hard earned loss, not even 1 pound, and right now I think that is what I'd be doing.

If someone feel comfortable and it does not derail their progress I say go for it! I hope to join you some day

MySweetPotato

I enjoy a banana split with fudge topping. But I am really clean on the other days.

trisH_7183

why does it have to be called a 'cheat day' and then have people jump down your throat for not truly making a lifestyle change? I am serious about eating better than I have for 40+ years - not every day, every meal, every snack, but - in general, being good to my body. If I am still getting the results I want which for now is weight loss and eventually will be maintenance, then I am not cheating anybody, certainly not myself.

What she said.