Cheat day ?

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Replies

  • hesn92
    hesn92 Posts: 5,966 Member
    edited June 2018
    Pretty much what everyone else said. I’m generally against the term “cheat day.” Maintaining a healthy weight and body is about changing your lifestyle, not going “on a diet”. I include cookies and ice cream and whatever in my regular diet because cutting everything “bad” out is not sustainable in the long term. So. I have nothing to cheat on. Plus, if I did try to eat super healthy all week and then have a cheat day once a week, I feel that I would go crazy and eat everything in sight and basically undo the deficit (or maintenance) that I did all week long.

    However i see no issues with going lighter some days and heavier on others. Like I would rather go a little under during the week So I can go over on the weekend. I don’t consider that to be cheating.
  • VUA21
    VUA21 Posts: 2,072 Member
    VegHeadGettingFit wrote: »
    I mentioned having a cheat day to my wife. She wasn't very pleased.

    Did you explain that she could have them too?
  • VUA21
    VUA21 Posts: 2,072 Member
    I don't have cheat days. But, I do have days (even weeks) where I preplan my meals in order to fit in something that would normally blow my deficit to hell. Day before yesterday I managed to rearrange my day and eat enough of a deficit the day before as well, to fit in 1/2 a pizza, a half order of hot wings and a few beers. I was still in deficit for the week (almost for the day), so it wasn't "cheating".
  • walking2running
    walking2running Posts: 140 Member
    "cheat meals" were a remnant of my binge mentality and it made me confirm my suspicions that deep down inside, all I wanted to do was gorge on food all day, so why not cave into it indefinitely. now I'm on round 2 of losing the same weight, and while I sometimes eat out for special occasions, I do everything in moderation. I'm not cheating. I'm living.
  • Mandylou19912014
    Mandylou19912014 Posts: 208 Member
    kzshelbi wrote: »
    So I’m wondering different opinions on having a cheat day once a week and if it’s worked better for anyone or if it doesn’t work. Let me know your thoughts and opinions. Have you tried it? Did it work for you?

    I would aim to have a cheat meal .. and not a day .. so one meal in the week which you crave and is a treat for you. If you spend the day eating badly then your more likely to undo all your hard work
  • zippie2223
    zippie2223 Posts: 37 Member
    Cheat MEAL instead of DAY
  • Candyspun
    Candyspun Posts: 370 Member
    Cheat days, years ago, used, to work for me, until they didn't. I started out just having a cheat meal. Then, it became a cheat day. Then, it became an issue because I was obsessed with cheat day coming up, so I'd move it forward. Then, eventually, I just wanted to continue the cheat day forever, and eventually lost focus. Nowadays, if I'm really craving a food that isn't usually ideal in my regular diet, I just have it, but use portion control, track it, and try to cover it with exercise calories. It works much better and keeps me on track.
  • Motorsheen
    Motorsheen Posts: 20,508 Member
    without reading any of the posts on this thread.....

    cheat meal? sure.

    cheat day? ... an entire day? no so much.
  • inertiastrength
    inertiastrength Posts: 2,343 Member
    I don't have a cheat day once a week but once every 2 weeks I'll go over maintenance by about 500 cals. It costs me very little in terms of my goals but 1K calories more than I would normally eat goes a long way; especially since my maintenance is 2500ish. Sometimes if I want to do this 2 weeks in a row I'll do a little extra cardio and eat a little less weekdays leading up to it.

    It's basically like balancing a checkbook. If you want to buy something you don't normally buy you can save up for it or put it on credit. Either way the cash has to come from somewhere and needs to be saved in advance or paid back with interest.
  • ACanadian22
    ACanadian22 Posts: 377 Member
    Down 33 pounds after I started in mid-January. I bank my calories through the week and have a cheat day on Sunday. I really believe everyone is different. I know many who bank calories and I also know people who take "diet breaks" every 3 or 4 months. We all just have to find what works best for us.
  • khlokins
    khlokins Posts: 31 Member
    To be honest I can't have "cheat days". I find that it really spirals my routine out of control and completely throws me off the wagon.

    Instead, if I'm really craving something.. and I mean really craving it... I just remind myself that if I eat said thing, I'm going to have to burn it off to fit it in my calories. And if I still want it that bad, I have it, work it into my calories, and then work it off, so it's almost like I earned it.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    edited July 2018
    I don't limit my food choices to "diet foods" on any day and I fluctuate my calories based on my hunger, desires, plans, what and when I feel like eating...etc. Some days are lower, others are higher. Some days have foods that people associate with cheating, others don't. What's important is that they average to my desired budget. I don't cheat, I just make food choices that fit my life and desires.

    I only plan specific higher calorie days when I know I have an event that involves high calorie foods (holidays, birthday parties, family gatherings..etc) or when I want a particularly high calorie dish that I need to plan for it in advance. Other than that, they just happen when they happen. I feel planning a steady schedule of higher calorie days is not useful for me. What if that day comes and I don't really feel like I want something high in calories? I would feel like I'm wasting my calories and eating for the sake of gorging. What if I want something high in calories on an unscheduled day? I would feel like I'm holding my breath all week just to finally breathe on weekends, then I dread the start of a new dieting week because it means I have to wait again. I don't do well with that. That's just me, though. Some people do well with planned higher calorie days.

    Here is what my calories looked like in the past 6 days to lose 1 pound a week:
    gd92h19zlr38.png

    P.S: you may want to clarify what you mean by cheat day to get better answers.
  • saintor1
    saintor1 Posts: 376 Member
    Most of my weight loss, I had a cheat day every two weeks (and now too). Very convenient for social happenings.
  • LiftHeavyThings27105
    LiftHeavyThings27105 Posts: 2,086 Member
    kzshelbi wrote: »
    So I’m wondering different opinions on having a cheat day once a week and if it’s worked better for anyone or if it doesn’t work. Let me know your thoughts and opinions. Have you tried it? Did it work for you?

    So, I am HUGE on mind set! To me, that is everything. So, you can imagine what is about to follow!

    This is not directed at you. Not one bit....so please dont take any of this personally.

    For me, there is nothing good about the eord cheat. Nothing. You cheated on your test in school. You cheated on your girl friend in college. You cheated on your taxes. You cheated on your wife. None....absolutely none....of that is positive. In any way, shape, or form.

    So the term cheat day seems counter-productive. Setup for failure.

    I alsi believe that refeeds are the better thought. Specifically, two refeeds in a row. So, one meal....no bueno. One day...no bueno. Two days in a row? Bueno. So, caloric deficit for five successive days followed by two days at maintenance seems to be the answer. And on the two refeed days....carbs are where the increase lives (mostly, anyway).

    That is what Lyle McDonald and Eric Helms seem to believe. Generally speaking, anyway.

    So, for someone like me where mindset is huge the word sets the tone. One meal has been shown ineffective. One day has been shown to be ineffective. Two successive days, generally speaking. If you are already very lean then a third day may benefit.

    Seems counter-intuitive, I know. Its all about working with leptin.

    Hey, I helped a woman who was 53 snd was 5'2" @ 203lbs. She was eating 70p calories a day. I told her that she needed to eat more. The look....followed by "You are telling a fat person that you need to eat more to lose weight?". It worked. We reverse dieted her and in the six weeks we worked together she lost weight, gained a ton of energy and felt amazing. Total game changer for her. My point? That seemed counter-intuitive but was the right thing to do.

    Enjoy!
  • Crafty_camper123
    Crafty_camper123 Posts: 1,440 Member
    To me, cheat meals or days seem to indicate depriving oneself of treats or indulgences until a set time where you will have your cheat day or meal. My mind is wired weird I guess. The second I tell myself I can't have the thing I'm craving I want it even more. This eventually leads to me overeating on it later. Setting a cheat day just gives me permission to go hog-wild for a whole day on everything I've been craving or wanting earlier. It's best for me to just be flexible and base my calories around average intake over the week. If I'm craving potato chips for example, it's best for me to eat a smaller amount now and satisfy my craving then it is to wait and nosh on half the bag a week later. If my calories for the day went over, I'll eat a little less for the rest of the week to make up for it. Or, I'll try to squeeze in another workout. I get dinner plans that tend to pop up last minute too. So this works to keep my weekly average between calorie goal and maintenance. If I find I am having a hard time with hunger and consistently eating over my weight loss goal, I know it's time for a diet break or refeed. I'll eat at maintenance until my hunger levels out, then go back to plan. This has been working well for me so far.
  • kzshelbi
    kzshelbi Posts: 73 Member
    lots of great replies !!!
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    @kzshelbi I'm always willing to remind you to answer this question: Who am I cheating?
  • Sol_Yuu
    Sol_Yuu Posts: 1 Member
    For me I know that once I have a cheat meal I'm gonna binge eat and make it longer to achieve my goal.
  • d3gus
    d3gus Posts: 97 Member
    I have a 'cheat' day or 're-feed' whereby i can eat carbs ( bread/rice/chocolate/cakes ) i normally do it when socialising at the weekend and can have a drink. I know from the comments above no one likes the word 'cheat' and literally i dont see it as permission to eat loads of food.. but to eat things in a standard meal i wouldnt normally do during the rest of the week.. i still have found bread bloats me so stay away from that now all the time. I dont count calories and i dont log food - i eat until i am full! i still lose 1 - 2 pounds a week and this is a system that works for me.. as i feel on a 'diet' if i am constantly logging everything i put in my mouth.. i do'nt feel on a diet, i dont feel as though i am being restricted and i am always 'full' - this has been the only thing that has worked for me :)
  • Tdolson4025
    Tdolson4025 Posts: 13 Member
    I would honestly allow yourself 1 cheat meal per week on a heavy training day at the gym or on the same day as a heavy exercise apposed to a full day of binge eating that can throw away the progress that you made for the week of maintaining a caloric deficit. I personally just fit foods in my everyday eating lifestyle that I actually enjoy so there really is no temptation at the end of the week to go on a ravenous binge. Good luck and be consistant and you will get consistant results! 😁💪

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