Do you cheat or do you earn it?

sal10851

When I first began losing weight I used to rely on cheat days. On such days I would not count calories so it led to overeating. Now my strategy has been to earn the meal. I cut 100 calories from each day and exercise 10 extra minutes for 3 days before a planned meal. By the time I get to eating the meal I can enjoy it more and usually I can't finish it. Mentally I see it as earning the meal instead of rewarding myself for something that is already rewarding. The reward for my efforts is health not food! Weight loss was my original goal but the benefits of a healthier choices is undeniable. I've tried weight loss before but I relied too much on exercise and I never dealt with my bad eating habits. I would eat my regular caloric intake and used the exercise deficit to lose the weight.

Sand_TIger

Right now I "cheat" but only on major holidays - so even if I eat too much at least it doesn't happen that often, since the cheat day is only the actual day, not the days surrounding. Having calorie restrictions the rest of the time means that my capacity is greatly diminished so I get full really fast.

zyxst

Yes and no.

Sweatpants_Sassy

I don't like to label anything as cheating. There's a lot of valid reasons why I don't always make the healthy choice. There needs to be self-acceptance within my healthy lifestyle practices to keep them sustainable and mentally healthy as well as physically. Taking time to reflect on my choices helps turn "cheating" into more intentional eating.

It seems like you're being reflective here by planning to have a more calorie dense meal after using up energy working out more, and eating less incrementally over a period of time. 10 minutes and 100 calories cut per day is reasonable! Go ahead and enjoy a special meal guilt-free. Portion control is key no matter what you're eating.

I also believe it's okay to reward yourself any time for self-determined reasons. Do it with non-food joys if that's a gateway to overeating for you. It's always a good day to celebrate your successes! You're working hard and deserve to feel awesome about it to the fullest capacity.

jamesha100

If I do a serious amount of exercise I will treat myself to some food and drink but only do it once every three weeks or so. Yesterday I cycled a hilly 100km and my fitness tracker told me I burnt 4800 calories total over the day. I treated myself to a pizza and some beer which, along with the other stuff I ate during the day, came to 3500 calories.
In the past I would have eaten that or more without a second thought and no exercise - no wonder I became so overweight.

cpnknight

I eat the same things now as I did before. The difference now is that I consider my calorie limit to be my budget.
If I wish to "spend" 300 calories on a nice treat then that is fine but it comes off the budget and restricts what I consume the rest of the day. No "cheating" involved.
I know I have a roughly 1000 calorie deficit too, so if I go over the budget occasionally then I don't beat myself up too much as long as I stay in deficit.

RunsWithBees

Back when I was losing weight I would earn my extra calories with exercise usually by extra walking or hiking. Occasional I’d relax and just eat more if it was a special occasion or something, going over once in awhile didn’t hinder my loss, it’s about what you do most of the time, no need for perfection IMHO. Now in maintenance I’m not logging unless I go past my weight buffer zone but I roughly guesstimate my portion sizes. I’ll compensate with a long run or hike that day or later in the week. If I really want a big meal then I simply eat more but I stay honest with myself about it. I’ve never understood the point of calling it a “cheat meal” or “cheat day” because who are you cheating? My body will utilize those calories regardless, I’m not “sneaking“ any calories past my body without it finding out staying honest with myself has been an essential tool for maintaining my goal weight for nearly 7 years now.

thebiblewithtina

Fancied an apple pie yesterday but knew it would take me over my calories, so I went on a 10-mile bike ride, came back, logged it, and had my apple pie! It was delicious.

brenn24179

I have started taking a day a month and eat sweets. I cant handle them very often but one time a month seems to work. This month I had cake, cookies, candy bar and lost 2 lbs . Maybe it shook my metabolism.

springlering62

I’ve earned every. stinking. single. pound I’ve lost. By the same token, I’ve earned the right to decide when and what I want to eat, along with the ability to make responsible choices, as well the grace to not consider it a cheat and wallow in guilt when I do.

AlexandraFindsHerself1971

I don't like the word cheat because the only person I'm hurting is me if I go over my calorie limit. I'm in enough of a deficit that if I do eat more than usual it won't seriously matter, and tomorrow is another day. But I have long refused to feel guilty over what I eat or who I love. Guilt isn't fun and I don't like participating in the little "Oh, I'm so bad for eating this" dance that some women do.

Diatonic12

Remember those posters. Earn Your Carbs. My dog and horse don't have to earn their carbs or food. They find movement and exercise they enjoy with an amazing natural ability to moderate their food. It's the humans that overstuff them.

Entertaining ourselves with food rewards is human but I take my cues from my dog. Trying to out outexercise your food rewards can lead to an exercise addiction. Oooo yes, it happens. Release all of that exercise food reward thinking. Enjoy your exercise and food. Life is too short to overthink it.

Carp614

I log everything view everything in a weekly context. If I'm over for a day but way under for a week, I feel like I'm ok.

got2bemybestself

I don't label foods bad or good, cheat meals or off limits. I have a history of binge eating and thinking of a cheat day or cheat meals was very unhealthy. I eat much smaller portions than what we (Americans) now consider normal, I practice mindful eating, I've cut out sugar, exercise for15 -20 minutes twice a day. With those small changes to the way I think and my lifestyle I have finally started losing weight and it's been easier than I thought. I am done with restrictive diets that when you really stop to think about it, sometimes promote unhealthy habits.

jenilla1

Not sure what the point of "cheating" would be, since this is only for me personally, and not some kind of public competition where cheating might help one get ahead of others, avoid punishment/judgment or help you win something.

In this case, cheating doesn't actually do any good. If you do it a lot, it certainly doesn't help you hit your goals. Plus, the word implies wrongdoing, and I don't think having a treat or enjoying food is wrong. I guess that means I don't cheat, then.

If I want a big piece of chocolate cake or whatever and I'm low on calories, I go for a run or a bike ride or a long hike, and suddenly it fits right in. No "cheating" necessary. I pretty much eat what I want this way and don't derail my goals or sabotage myself while doing it. I've been maintaining for almost 10 years this way.

TealTrinket

I don't "cheat", and while I generally eat healthier (tons of fruit, veggies, and healthy grains), I still let myself have whatever I want. I just eat the higher calorie foods on days I burn more calories, or I make the portions smaller to fit into my budget that day.

For example; Saturday, my guy and I did a 10km hike that consisted of nonstop up and down along the coast, and when we got home, he made mac and cheese from scratch. So many calories, but it still fit into my day after the hike we did.

siyeonsimpp

I feel like as long as you've been counting you calories and eating less than you did before for a while, eventually you just don't need to eat as much food, and you get full quicker, so it could barely count as a cheat day. So as long as you only have a cheat day once in a while, you should be fine, and you'll still lose weight.

nexangelus

Planning to eat more is not "cheating". I no longer use bad and good words to describe my eating and the foods I eat. Being too strict and not eating at maintenance when one has been dieting hard for a long period (12 weeks or so most commonly is the time scale), is more detrimental to the long run (hormones and other things need to come back to normal levels in order to keep on dieting or being in a deficit for a long period)...and no I do not run more, walk more, exercise more to eat more, I just eat according to my TDEE and if I have eaten more one day, one meal, it gets logged and then I can adjust over the week or even the next day accordingly.

It is no biggie, unless one is still struggling with binge eating, which is another subject altogether...

Jch4mb3rs

I have a cheat meal every week so long as I have managed to lose weight that week. I dont do cheat days. On weigh in day I count all my calories and have a dinner where I just eat until I'm full and dont bother counting the calories for that one meal. I will admit it is something I look forward to.

sardelsa

I don't call it cheating but I always deserve any food I eat whether I earn it (it fits) or not. I also reward myself with food I love but that works for me. If I didn't work or account for it, no biggie I most likely will naturally be less hungry the rest of the week. And while I wouldn't recommend working off calories, an extra walk or cardio session the next week works for me too.

AndreaTamira

I count everything, but I sometimes have days where I go over calorie allowance, maybe even well over. I am under most of the time, so I dont feel bad about this, but I still count things because

a) I like being honest with myself
b) It seems to work as a good initiative to keep the over-calorie days to once in a while.
c) I can check if I am still under for the week and do curse-correction as needed.

MelBFit40

I do a cheat meal a week. If I cut more calories from my daily allowance, I won’t be eating enough to sustain me and that leads to giving up and overeating. I don’t have a whole cheat day, just one treat (and as much of it as I want in one sitting — typically after eating healthy all week, that’s not a huge amount anyway). It’s a balance. One indulgence a week won’t break me when I’m consistently working out and eating well, and having that treat to look forward to helps me stay on track. If I’m having a craving, I just tell myself that can be my treat on my “cheat day.”

TonyB0588

I don't "cheat". If I have a very active day I calculate half the calorie burn as excess food allowance. On a very lazy day I try to eat less. When I eat excesdi food, I calculate how many calories I need to burn and go for a walk.