ONE cheat day a week....

michaelflynn1985

Do you do it?

Saturday nights are my struggle.
It's a takeaway night. Usually a vegetarian curry, garlic naan, onion bhajis and pilau rice!

Does anyone else do the same?
Does it have an effect on your long term goals?

AnnPT77

Log it, even if you have to estimate, and you'll know the answer.

It's absolutely possible to eat enough in one day to wipe out your whole week of calorie deficits, or reduce the deficit so much your weight loss will be very, very slow. But it depends on how big your deficit is the rest of the week, and how much you eat on the "cheat day".

Or, stick with this routine for a month or two, and see if you actually lose weight.

(I'm not trying to be snarky here; these really are the only ways to know or estimate the effect, that I'm aware of.)

michaelflynn1985

Sounds like I might I have to make it a monthly treat.
I did log it down.
I never do finish it but I demolish the naan!
I did log it yesterday, by adding "Indian takeaway - 1 plate (1,500)"

Last night's treat took me 500 or so calories over my calorie goal.

MikePTY

michaelflynn1985 wrote: »

Sounds like I might I have to make it a monthly treat.
I did log it down.
I never do finish it but I demolish the naan!
I did log it yesterday, by adding "Indian takeaway - 1 plate (1,500)"

Last night's treat took me 500 or so calories over my calorie goal.

What do you have your rate of loss set at? 500 calories over is not that bad. It could still even be a deficit.

I personally think that's totally manageable once a week. I think what AnnP is referring to is going over by thousands during a "cheat".

xxzenabxx

michaelflynn1985 wrote: »

Sounds like I might I have to make it a monthly treat.
I did log it down.
I never do finish it but I demolish the naan!
I did log it yesterday, by adding "Indian takeaway - 1 plate (1,500)"

Last night's treat took me 500 or so calories over my calorie goal.

Trust me I’m south Asian and we can pack the calories into our food. 1500-2000 calories sounds about right for one sitting. The only way to go about this is to increase your activity on that day. Do an intense workout or just walk a lot and be active. But don’t eat more than this. Also onion bhajis are calorie dense. Those are deep fried in oil. I would give those a miss. Be more selective only order one of your favourite things not a 4 course meal. I know it sounds harsh but I’m speaking from cultural experience here. One trick could be to have a protein shake before the meal to reduce hunger. Or some psyllium husk in a glass to reduce overall consumption. Or even an apple before. Just something to fill you up before eating and you will end up eating waaaay less.

NovusDies

You could do a different system of calorie management that gives you more calories one day a week. I do this:

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10735146/the-six-day-calorie-deficit-aka-banking-calories

michaelflynn1985

I've been set a calorie goal of 1,590 to lose 2lbs a week.
Last night I went over by 544, by having that takeaway treat, but saved my calories to the best that I could, during the day.
As a plant-based eater, I'm never going to go over by thousands.
My Saturday night cheat meal is always a vegetarian curry, rice, naan and onion bhaji, but might ditch the onion bhajis and bread next time.

NovusDies

michaelflynn1985 wrote: »

I've been set a calorie goal of 1,590 to lose 2lbs a week.
Last night I went over by 544, by having that takeaway treat, but saved my calories to the best that I could, during the day.

That would barely phase your weekly weight loss. Your deficit for each week is 7000 calories. You are now around 6500.

michaelflynn1985

xxzenabxx wrote: »

michaelflynn1985 wrote: »

Sounds like I might I have to make it a monthly treat.
I did log it down.
I never do finish it but I demolish the naan!
I did log it yesterday, by adding "Indian takeaway - 1 plate (1,500)"

Last night's treat took me 500 or so calories over my calorie goal.

Trust me I’m south Asian and we can pack the calories into our food. 1500-2000 calories sounds about right for one sitting. The only way to go about this is to increase your activity on that day. Do an intense workout or just walk a lot and be active. But don’t eat more than this. Also onion bhajis are calorie dense. Those are deep fried in oil. I would give those a miss. Be more selective only order one of your favourite things not a 4 course meal. I know it sounds harsh but I’m speaking from cultural experience here. One trick could be to have a protein shake before the meal to reduce hunger. Or some psyllium husk in a glass to reduce overall consumption. Or even an apple before. Just something to fill you up before eating and you will end up eating waaaay less.

Thanks. I'll take that into consideration.
I do already take nutritional protein shakes with my meals and it helps.

michaelflynn1985

NovusDies wrote: »

michaelflynn1985 wrote: »

I've been set a calorie goal of 1,590 to lose 2lbs a week.
Last night I went over by 544, by having that takeaway treat, but saved my calories to the best that I could, during the day.

That would barely phase your weekly weight loss. Your deficit for each week is 7000 calories. You are now around 6500.

Thanks That gives me even more motivation, knowing that.
I've got 2st to ditch!

NovusDies

michaelflynn1985 wrote: »

NovusDies wrote: »

michaelflynn1985 wrote: »

I've been set a calorie goal of 1,590 to lose 2lbs a week.
Last night I went over by 544, by having that takeaway treat, but saved my calories to the best that I could, during the day.

That would barely phase your weekly weight loss. Your deficit for each week is 7000 calories. You are now around 6500.

Thanks That gives me even more motivation, knowing that.
I've got 2st to ditch!

Umm No. You should not be trying to lose 2 pounds a week with only 2st (28 pounds) to lose. That is way too aggressive. You need to reset your weekly loss goal to 1 pound per week. You want to lose fat weight not muscle which will happen because you do not have enough fat stores to support such a large deficit. The leaner you are the slower you should lose weight.

kbmnurse1

I do the 80/20 rule. Eat healthy 80% of the time. End of story life is to short.

apullum

michaelflynn1985 wrote: »

I've been set a calorie goal of 1,590 to lose 2lbs a week.
Last night I went over by 544, by having that takeaway treat, but saved my calories to the best that I could, during the day.
As a plant-based eater, I'm never going to go over by thousands.
My Saturday night cheat meal is always a vegetarian curry, rice, naan and onion bhaji, but might ditch the onion bhajis and bread next time.

It's just as easy to overeat on a plant based diet as it is on any other diet. I've been vegetarian for 14 years, and in that time I've been both an obese vegetarian and, now, an optimal BMI vegetarian. Just because a meal does not have meat and/or whatever other animal products you avoid does not mean it is necessarily much lower in calories than a similar meal with animal products. Depending on what style of curry you have, it may have a lot of oil, ghee, cream, and/or coconut milk, all of which can add calories fast. Naan calories can also add up fast, especially if it's brushed with a generous amount of butter/ghee.

None of this means that there's anything necessarily wrong with your meal or your plan. The point is just that you shouldn't assume it is impossible for you to significantly overeat just because your diet is plant based. Restaurant food in particular can pack a lot more calories than we expect, due to the extra fat that they often use.

echmain3

I’m always against the “cheat day” (who are you cheating?)

Not because of the calories but because of the discipline.

It’s so easy for a cheat day to become a cheat week then a cheat month...

You’re only delaying the day when you finally hit your goal weight.

NovusDies

echmain3 wrote: »

I’m always against the “cheat day” (who are you cheating?)

Not because of the calories but because of the discipline.

It’s so easy for a cheat day to become a cheat week then a cheat month...

You’re only delaying the day when you finally hit your goal weight.

Too much required discipline was always a path of failure for me. When I started focusing on being satisfied and happy-ish each day I realized that I didn't need as much. For me this means I am never resistant to getting back to work after eating more on a special occasion or vacation. I never call it cheating though. I just call it living.

NovusDies

echmain3 wrote: »

I’m always against the “cheat day” (who are you cheating?)

Not because of the calories but because of the discipline.

It’s so easy for a cheat day to become a cheat week then a cheat month...

You’re only delaying the day when you finally hit your goal weight.

I failed to respond to this. I don't worry about when I will hit my goal. I don't even know what my goal is right now. I have been going for more than a year and I know I won't be in range of a goal by the end of my second year.

Considering how long weight loss takes I can't imagine why I would care if it takes a little longer because I enjoyed myself occasionally along the way. There is no point in being in a hurry.

sardelsa

echmain3 wrote: »

I’m always against the “cheat day” (who are you cheating?)

Not because of the calories but because of the discipline.

It’s so easy for a cheat day to become a cheat week then a cheat month...

You’re only delaying the day when you finally hit your goal weight.

I actually take one to two week diet breaks while I'm losing which while they do delay my weight loss a bit, are essential for my adherence and well being, especially the leaner I get. They made such a difference for me and will incorporate them again during my next weight loss phases.

liz0269

Look at your weekly stats. (Under the Nutrition button at the bottom of your diary on the app only.) You can look at a weekly view which will tell you how many calories over or under you are for the last seven days. Budget calories for Saturday night and make it part of your plan.

paperpudding

liz0269 wrote: »

Look at your weekly stats. (Under the Nutrition button at the bottom of your diary on the app only.) You can look at a weekly view which will tell you how many calories over or under you are for the last seven days. Budget calories for Saturday night and make it part of your plan.

I second this.

Takes the whole cheat meal thinking out of the equation.

Just aim to have your weekly calories at the right level - so plan higher days and off set them by lower days.

Eg if your so called cheat day is 500 ish over your allowance, just eat around 70 calories less each other day.

Danp

Nope I never have cheat meals or cheat days because 'cheat' implies that I've done something wrong.

I just manage my weight consciously. This includes sometimes having days or meals that I know fully will impact my weight loss. Be that reducing the amount I lose that week, resulting in no loss for that week or even gaining a little that week.

The difference is that I am making a choice, consciously and deliberately. I am in control and making a decision that, for example, going out to dinner and eating XYZ is going to slow, stall or reverse my weight loss progress temporarily and that's something I'm OK with.

For example I put on about 1.5kg (~3lb) over the Easter break. I knew that was gong to happen, I planned for that to happen and I decided that spending a few days enjoying too much chocolate and eating a few lavish meals with my family was more than worth it.

The danger, as I see it, isn't weight gain, but uncontrolled and unconscious weight gain. There's nothing wrong with deciding to manage a little weight gain to enjoy your life as long as you're in control.