Should I do a cheat week?

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2

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  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,442 Member
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    Eat like the French?
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Blooperss wrote: »
    I'm ok with gaining back 5 lbs (and fully expect to), but I can lose that easy :)

    Remember, to gain 1 lb of fat, a person has to eat 3500 calories more than their maintenance calories for that time period. I would think even in Paris it would be difficult to consume 17500 calories above your maintenance calories in a week. What will likely happen, though, is that, due to the sudden increase in carbs & sodium, you will have a fair amount of water retention. A pound or 2 could possibly be fat, but for the most part any increase in weight will be water that will dissipate on it's own in time.

    However, I agree with the caution mentioned earlier. If you've been eating a pretty restrictive, low-calorie diet, you don't want to suddenly go nuts with a bunch of rich, high-cal foods or your trip may become memorable for all the wrong reasons ;)
  • anl90
    anl90 Posts: 928 Member
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    I would say allow yourself to enjoy the foods you want to try, but still be mindful. Maybe splurge a little one day, and then the next day keep your diet more strict. Or just make sure you are keeping smaller portions. It's vacation - live a little. :)

    I hope you have a great trip!
  • Falklang
    Falklang Posts: 220 Member
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    Tacklewasher wrote: »
    Cheat week, no. But how about a diet break week? If you've been at it for 2 months it would make sense you are in line for a diet break.

    There is a thread explaining the idea, but it is quite long.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks

    This. Don't cheat all week but instead do a diet break...besides if you eat true french food, it's very rich and stuff so I'd be amazed if you could overeat on that stuff! Most of all enjoy yourself, if you have been consistent the past 2 months 1 week of 'slight' indulgence wont hurt in the long run (months and years).

    Bon appetit!
  • collectingblues
    collectingblues Posts: 2,541 Member
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    Blooperss wrote: »
    Hi everyone, I've been giving my diet/change in lifestyle another go. It's been about 2 months and I've lost 16 pounds in total - went from 161 to 145. I'm going on a trip to Paris for a week soon and I'm REALLY debating on a cheat week but don't know if it will be worth it. It's my first time going there and I will probably not be able to go again for a long time. My question is - should I go all out and eat everything my heart desires while on this trip or should I set restrictions? My goal weight is 125 lbs so I'm not too far off - only another 20 lbs to go. I'm just scared I'll gain back the 15 lbs if I go crazy during that week LOL.

    I've done cheat weekends where I was able to bounce back fairly quickly after resuming my regular diet. But this is 7 days not 2 days and I'm scared the pounds will be harder to shed!

    Any insight/advice is highly appreciated! I just want to lose the weight for good!

    Why not just eat at maintenance for the week? The odds are really good that you'll be walking more, so that'll automatically give you more to play with.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
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    Tacklewasher wrote: »
    Cheat week, no. But how about a diet break week? If you've been at it for 2 months it would make sense you are in line for a diet break.

    There is a thread explaining the idea, but it is quite long.

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10604863/of-refeeds-and-diet-breaks

    This^^
    Most of the key info is in the first couple of pages. A diet break/refeed (notice I didn't say cheat, a term I despise) can have hormonal and psychological benefits. After a longer period of being in calorie deficit, your body will downregulate a little and it helps with weight loss to take a 10 day to 2 week break to normalize the hormones that affect hunger/ satiety and fat loss.
  • jfan175
    jfan175 Posts: 812 Member
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    I agree with the eating at maintenance. I think people put too much emphasis on the eating part of the vacation. Paris is full of non eating things to do. You go on vacation to enjoy yourself, do that with the activities, sites and sounds.....not so much the eating. You said you were changing your lifestyle....have at it!
  • Juan2manyTacos
    Juan2manyTacos Posts: 19 Member
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    I would suggest a cheat day, not a whole week
  • NextRightThing714
    NextRightThing714 Posts: 355 Member
    edited February 2018
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    I was in Paris for 14 days and didn't gain a pound because I did so much walking. YMMV, of course, but you'll likely be very active. I wouldn't worry too much. Enjoy your time there!
  • Marilyn0924
    Marilyn0924 Posts: 797 Member
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    Just eat your heart's desires, it's PARIS!!! Walk everywhere!! It balances out. My last 3 trips, I gained 2 pounds in Paris, 1 pound in Rome and my last trip to Rome, I actually lost a pound! I didn't deny myself anything. No cheat mentality required. Just enjoy everything the city has to offer, culture, architecture, food, wine!!
  • MegaMooseEsq
    MegaMooseEsq Posts: 3,118 Member
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    I’m a total foodie and would definitely not worry about sticking to my deficit while in Paris. My mouth is watering just thinking about the pastries and bread. I would still track, though, at least roughly. As others have said, you’ll be doing a lot of walking, and French portion sizes aren’t anywhere near as big as American (assuming you’re from the US). Be prepared to see a bump as large as 5-10 pounds when you get back. Travel (especially by air) can lead to a lot of water retention, plus you’ll have more food in your system and maybe sore leg muscles. It’s nothing to worry about and most or all of it will drop off in a few weeks at most. Remember as someone said above, you only gain a pound of fat by eating 3500 calories over your maintenance. One week can’t do much damage at all unless you mistake water gains for fat and panic. Enjoy your trip!
  • MelanieCN77
    MelanieCN77 Posts: 4,047 Member
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    Why not eat what you want but promise yourself you will log it all. Unless you've come the point where you can freestyle without going off the rails you could sabotage a lot of your work. There's always two components to the "cheat" or "break" mindset - one is accessing and enjoying foods that have been omitted from your diet that you want to partake of again, and the other is the logging break. Pick one, but not both. Either take a logging break but eat well, or eat what you want but log it. The latter strikes a balance for me that really makes sure little breaks don't become big ones.
  • 1houndgal
    1houndgal Posts: 558 Member
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    Blooperss wrote: »
    Hi everyone, I've been giving my diet/change in lifestyle another go. It's been about 2 months and I've lost 16 pounds in total - went from 161 to 145. I'm going on a trip to Paris for a week soon and I'm REALLY debating on a cheat week but don't know if it will be worth it. It's my first time going there and I will probably not be able to go again for a long time. My question is - should I go all out and eat everything my heart desires while on this trip or should I set restrictions? My goal weight is 125 lbs so I'm not too far off - only another 20 lbs to go. I'm just scared I'll gain back the 15 lbs if I go crazy during that week LOL.

    I've done cheat weekends where I was able to bounce back fairly quickly after resuming my regular diet. But this is 7 days not 2 days and I'm scared the pounds will be harder to shed!

    Any insight/advice is highly appreciated! I just want to lose the weight for good!

    I would go for a cheat week if I went on vacation to a Paris. I would log my food intake during my cheat week as best I can. Have fun!
  • Tmountainmom
    Tmountainmom Posts: 16 Member
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    Cheat days have not worked for me whether it's one day (ends up turning into a week off course) or a vacation week to some fun place where I was then off my plan for several weeks afterward. But I wouldn't want you to miss out on a fun and delicious vacation! Maybe you can eat moderately most of the time and try to keep track of your calories (if you are able to) but still work in some great and indulgence food :-)
  • StevefromMichigan
    StevefromMichigan Posts: 462 Member
    edited February 2018
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    I once went on a cheat week on a cruise. It did not end well, and it did not end after the cruise :) Hopefully, you'll have more willpower than I had ;)
  • lois1231
    lois1231 Posts: 331 Member
    edited February 2018
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    Last time I went to europe. I ate everything I wanted and lost 12 pounds from all the walking. I am also going to europe this year and plan to do the same because I know it is going to be hectic but fun. I expect there to be tons of walking and am working on getting in shape for it.
  • ITUSGirl51
    ITUSGirl51 Posts: 192 Member
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    I wouldn’t call it a cheat week, but enjoy yourself. Don’t log, but try to eat at maintenance or a smidge higher by paying attention to serving sizes and keep active. Dont feel guilty about enjoying your trip! Just be sure to go back to logging as soon as you return (that day) and don’t wait until Monday.

    I’ve done three 10-day long vacation diet breaks over the past year, including a cruise. I didnt gain weight and it actually helped kick start losing again. I’m close to my goal and have another vacation break planned next month. I’m excited!
  • genpopadopolous
    genpopadopolous Posts: 411 Member
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    We usually have a vacation or two a year and I don't worry about my calories at all. I exercise, i have a small notebook with my fav bodyweight exercises that I take with me- and walk when I can.

    But as far as food- nope. I eat what I want, have the obnoxious frozen drinks and eat all the food.
    For me, it's easy to get back to logging when I get home, and I don't feel bad about it. Same as I won't feel bad about the wings and spinach and artichoke dip with lots o' beer I will have tomorrow with the Superbowl. I figure I will lose it as I will live it afterwards and that includes an occasional big *kitten* pile of wings and a margarita the size of my face.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 13,739 Member
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    Like many have said:

    Your current deficit is too aggressive.

    Don't cheat, have a maintenance break and take extra walking into account. If you go over occasionally, so be it.

    Do keep logging. There is a difference between not restricting and pulling a me at an all you can eat buffet! Do as I say not as I sometimes do! :lol:

    Both from maintenance eating and air travel you WILL have a scale increase. Do not panic. Set yourself a reasonable deficit when you get home.

    In spite of the woo-ing, someone who suggested up thread that you taper to maintenance before the trip was correct in that it would help you separate the weight increase from having more food transiting your system when you start eating at maintenance from your travel weight changes. Whether that is necessary or not is more of a mental game.

    Trending weigh applications are very useful things when you're not set to losing a million pounds a day...

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