Opinions on cheat days

RocheBeukes

Hi all,

I have been on this journey of weight loss for some time, fallen off the wagon and got back on too many times to count. I've now decided to make this a lifestyle and not a diet. I have about 20kg to lose, and I want to do it in a healthy way.

My question is do you have cheat days? Mine are one Fridays but then it turns into cheat weekends and then come Monday the scale is back to where it started. Is it healthy to have cheat days or should I just abandon the whole idea and restrict myself forever.

Any advice?

tinkerbellang83

Why are you restricting yourself at all? You can fit foods you enjoy into your calorie allowance or make tweaks to them to fit them in.

Is your "cheat day" an eat everything in sight and wonder later why you can't lose weight kind of thing or is it a day eating at maintenance? There can be a big difference to the impact on your weight loss.

Eat how you intend to eat for the rest of your life and you will find this a whole lot easier.

TavistockToad

i follow IIFYM so fit most 'treats' into my calories. every so often i just eat what i want (special occasions like weddings/birthday/Christmas etc) and then get back to my logging and deficit the next day.

there's no cheating, its a balanced lifestyle.

Nony_Mouse

Stop thinking of it as cheating (god, I despise that word). Either save some calories through the week or choose to eat at maintenance one day a week and accept slightly lower weight loss. Having a day that's just a free for all is never a good idea. It's really easy to blow your entire week's deficit, especially if it spirals out into subsequent days, as you are finding is happening with you.

Having a higher calorie day once or twice a week is perfectly fine, so long as you are in an overall deficit.

RocheBeukes

I'm never really hungry when I'm watching what I eat, I make sure I get to my 1600 target with healthy fats proteins and carbs. But the treats are the ones that get me, overindulgence is my issue I guess

RocheBeukes

Thanx guys, very helpful advice....

Nony_Mouse

RocheBeukes wrote: »

I'm never really hungry when I'm watching what I eat, I make sure I get to my 1600 target with healthy fats proteins and carbs. But the treats are the ones that get me, overindulgence is my issue I guess

Is this because you're viewing these things as stuff you shouldn't have whilst losing weight?

tinkerbellang83

Nothing wrong with having treats now and again, even when I am sticking to my calorie allowance of 1500 net I can get a bar of chocolate in most days no problem. If you are telling yourself that you can't have them, that is more likely the reason you want them.

You can get small chocolate bars that are around 100 calories, one 30 minute walk should burn off about the same amount calories.

TavistockToad

RocheBeukes wrote: »

I'm never really hungry when I'm watching what I eat, I make sure I get to my 1600 target with healthy fats proteins and carbs. But the treats are the ones that get me, overindulgence is my issue I guess

my calorie goal is net 1600, i usually fit a chocolate bar or something in on a friday as a treat...

i also aim to come in 100-200 cals under goal Monday to Thursday and 'save' the calories for the weekend. my weekly goal matters more than my daily goal.

RoxieDawn

Cheat Day? No. I in no way need to feel negative emotions towards food in the form of feeling guilty and shamed for doing it later on.

Stay on point with your diet during the week and perhaps bank a few calories to fit in a nice 'indulgent' meal on the weekends, but make this meal fit in your calorie window. Its okay to enjoy meals with family, friends, social events etc and stay within your calories so that you do not derail progress. Over time you will learn how to create balance.

I will add, if you are restricting too much during the week, you are doing it wrong. Plenty of ways to work with food, balance your nutrition and provide your body with enough fuel so that that you are not feeling so deprived.

swebb1103

Weekends are tough, food wise, for me - we eat out a lot, and one trip to the movies can destroy my calories for the day (I can't resist the popcorn and soda!) - so I try to be more mindful the rest of the week. I don't consider it cheating - just the reality of being a busy family! I cut out fast food during the week, too, which helped a lot to balance my overall calories for the week. Swapping my chicken nuggets and fries or burger and fries for a salad or homemade sandwich 5 days a week for lunch means I can eat that popcorn without too much impact on my overall calories.

amusedmonkey

1600 calories is plenty of calories to fit whatever you want every now and then, especially if you're usually not hungry and more so if you're active. A designated binge day beats the purpose of learning how to handle your calories within your preferences.

KANGOOJUMPS

FOR SURE!, pour me some wine!

bronaghCPM

I have mixed feelings about cheat days, I'm kind of all or nothing when it comes to weight loss so falling off the wagon can set me back weeks. But if you're like me and have a lot to lose I do think it's unrealistic to aim to always be in a calorie deficit, especially as time progresses and you have birthdays, christmas etc to deal with.

If you are planning on having cheat days, there's a few things you can try to ensure cheat days don't ruin your week:
1. set a decisive limit, even if I know I'm going to overindulge I'm still not going over 2000cal (or whatever you decide)
2. still track absolutely everything you eat in your food diary, so you're not kidding yourself
3. have a plan for the next day, whether it's having your meals prepared or a good fitness class booked, something that's going to make sure you get immediately back on track.

I don't think it's a good idea to have a scheduled cheat day every week, it kind of fosters an unhealthy attitude to food I think? I find it better personally to have the treat within my allotted calories, this usually means being a bit hungrier that day (a glass of wine won't fill you the way an avocado will!), but I'm more determined to eat filling foods the next day.

Fursian

If your Friday rolls over into other days, then putting that one day aside may not be for you. Many opt to just fit whatever it is that they want into their daily calories, having smaller portions, and they seem to swear that this works for them.

Good luck, hope you find your rhythm!

TimothyFish

Having a cheat day means you have to restrict eating or workout more on other days to make up for it. If you don't then you will gain weight.

Goal179

Well I may seem like Captain Obvious, but if cheat days aren't working for you, then you should probably stop doing them. Like the others said, instead of having designated "cheat days" maybe just work some of your special treats into your daily macros. For me, going off plan and introducing foods that are not in my plan cause an increase in cravings for those foods. Something with my hormones, and insulin spikes and all that physiological stuff that just create havoc for me. So really listen to your body and document how the "cheat days" affect you overall.

Bry_Fitness70

It makes more sense to do 3-4 "cheat" meals spread out throughout the week than to eat them all in one day.

hydechildcare

I am having a cheat meal today the calories from that meal is 1,200! that still leaves me with 600 calories. But it is super salty and full of carbs (fires, mac and cheese, and baked beans) My favorite meal from the BBQ place next door, first time eating it in 50+ days. Hoping to spread the meal out into two meals so that way I can add my salad with each meal. I look at cheat meals that still need to fit in my calories for the day. I usually have a cheat meal every week, usually on the weekends. I know to avoid the scale for 3 days afterwards because my water retention is going to go up. Since starting to eat healthier foods I have found certain cheat meals react horribly with me know. I don't eat pizza anymore because it makes me sick. I am hoping today's meal sit okay with me.

JustRobby1

I can generally squeeze in something I really want on any given day without having to go over my calories, so I do not really have cheat days per se. When this happens my other meals that day are just lighter than normal. I have only gone "off the reservation" completely with no logging and no tracking a couple of times when I was on vacation. These situations do not really bother me since a few days of reckless abandon over the course of a 365 day year is fairly insignificant.

fitoverfortymom

I either work it into my calories if I REALLY want it, or I will chalk up a meal or day to a "special occasion." Special occasions are extremely infrequent and are things like my birthday or a true holiday or something. Other times (like other people's birthdays or dinners where we are eating at someone's house who has cooked), I will eat at maintenance.

I don't think of it as "cheating," I think of it as balance. Life is gonna happen and we have to deal with those occasions. For me it's a lot of the mental preparation and strategy for how I am going to not eat 5 cupcakes at a Boy Scout ceremony vs. enjoying an excellent meal with everything I enjoy eating in the quantity I want with my family to celebrate something like my son's confirmation. When that big eat happens, the next day, it's back to normal. I don't try to overcompensate for it--it was just a day or just a meal...and then I move on.

fitoverfortymom

Also, I very much like cupcakes.

MegaMooseEsq

I eat at or above maintenance twice a week and average everything out twice a month. I don't think of it as cheating because that's been the plan all along. I love going out to eat, and this way I don't have to stress out about it. *That said*, my TDEE is high enough that I can manage a pretty solid deficit on my lower-calorie days, so it makes averaging easier. If you're working with a smaller deficit, it would certainly be trickier. I've estimated taking six months to lose my last ten pounds so I can keep up roughly my current eating habits, and hoping to let exercise give me a little more wiggle room.

kristen8000

I can't do "cheat days" because as soon as I "cheat" (which for me, eat something that I know negatively effects my ability to keep "on the wagon") I tend to keep doing it.

But allowing one to have treats daily while keeping a deficit tends to help. I do know that I eat less during the week days to compensate for knowing I'll drink more on the weekends. That's just balancing life. But I don't consider it a cheat. A cheat for me would be going back to past habits (like eating a bag of potato chips and a tub of french onion dip in one siting or downing a whole pint of Ben and Jerries). I just don't do that any more. I don't consider a drink or a piece of cake a treat, it's something I fit in if I want it.

mlrtri

Some good sound advice has been posted. I will not give myself a day to eat whatever I want. I am trying to find balance. For me that means following my plan as much as I can but allowing myself a bit of breathing room at times. I usually try to make up for this breathing room by upping my activity that day or the next. We meet friends once a month for dinner. I still do that. It is important to us. I make the best food choice I can and then enjoy myself. It is important to live life while losing/maintaining weight. But no one needs a free for all.... be it one meal or one day.

tiffdaski

I've been dieting off and on for 10 or so years and "cheat days" were always one of my downfalls. I'd do a cheat day and I'd do it HARD. Eating until I was sick, just wanting to get as much delicious food in my mouth as possible in that one day. But then the cheat day would turn into a weekend and then into a week and then I wouldn't see the point in going back to eating well at all. Mind you, a lot of the diets I was doing were fad diets and super restrictive.

Now I feel like I'm being smart about weight loss. I'm allowing myself treats here and there so I don't end up binging (I also don't keep a lot of stuff at home that I would be prone to binge on). I also do have "cheat meals" rather than "cheat days" (although, I don't tend to call it cheating anymore since it sounds so negative). If I know I'm going out to a restaurant and want to really enjoy it, I just watch I eat the rest of that day leading up to it. Or sometimes I'll bank calories through the week in preparation for a calorie-dense weekend.

I've been back at it for just about 2 months and, so far, I haven't' gone off the "deep end" like I have before. I've also been really good at starting over the next day if I do end up with a "bad" day. Maybe I've got it this time Good luck to you!

Pamshebamm181

Holidays, my birthday, my husband's birthday, weddings, vacation.
I don't log these days and I consider them my cheat days.
I don't go crazy but I do enjoy foods that I typically don't get to enjoy on a regular day.

cwolfman13

IMO, if you want to consistently lose weight, you need to be more disciplined. Not saying you can't have indulgences, but you're not going to get anywhere turning a whole weekend into a weekend of debauchery on a consistent basis.

I typically had one day per week where I just ate maintenance for the day when I was losing...usually Saturday as those were our most social days. I've been in maintenance for years and my weekends are usually pretty indulgent, but I have a lot more wiggle room in maintenance and I'm also typically a lot more active on weekends.

I don't really consider it "cheating" per sei...

JeromeBarry1

I have them, but I don't schedule them often. For instance, yesterday turned into one, just 5 days after the previous one and the same day I noted that I'd finished eliminated all the water retained from the previous one. This is my Sisyphean task.

Ready2Rock206

RocheBeukes wrote: »

My question is do you have cheat days? Mine are one Fridays but then it turns into cheat weekends and then come Monday the scale is back to where it started. Is it healthy to have cheat days or should I just abandon the whole idea and restrict myself forever.

Any advice?

Ummm - yeah. This is why I don't do planned cheat days like that. You're likely completely wiping out your whole deficit for the week plus some.

Now if there's a special event or a holiday or something I'm not going to be as strict - so you might call those "cheat" days.

RunStart34

tiffdaski wrote: »

I've been dieting off and on for 10 or so years and "cheat days" were always one of my downfalls. I'd do a cheat day and I'd do it HARD. Eating until I was sick, just wanting to get as much delicious food in my mouth as possible in that one day. But then the cheat day would turn into a weekend and then into a week and then I wouldn't see the point in going back to eating well at all. Mind you, a lot of the diets I was doing were fad diets and super restrictive.

Now I feel like I'm being smart about weight loss. I'm allowing myself treats here and there so I don't end up binging (I also don't keep a lot of stuff at home that I would be prone to binge on). I also do have "cheat meals" rather than "cheat days" (although, I don't tend to call it cheating anymore since it sounds so negative). If I know I'm going out to a restaurant and want to really enjoy it, I just watch I eat the rest of that day leading up to it. Or sometimes I'll bank calories through the week in preparation for a calorie-dense weekend.

I've been back at it for just about 2 months and, so far, I haven't' gone off the "deep end" like I have before. I've also been really good at starting over the next day if I do end up with a "bad" day. Maybe I've got it this time Good luck to you!

Got to agree with you @tiffdaski. Same deal with me. Now that I am eating clean I don't crave a lot of the bad food. So I no longer need cheat days or even cheat meals. If i want to indulge in something that is not my usual I share the meal or dessert and I am good since i always felt I had to eat the rest because it would be a waste to throw away hahaha. There are times when I do enjoy a good steak or burger but i always have someone to share or eat the leftovers (usually guy friends) since I now can't eat as much. Don't deprive yourself but mentally prepare yourself to workout or walk more that day if you did overeat. I feel less guilty and am able to pick myself up the next day.!! By the way i think everybody comments are good advice whichever direction you go.