In defense of the cheat meal

13

Replies

  • laceylucas86
    laceylucas86 Posts: 120
    I do the same thing, save some calories by cutting a bit sunday-thrusday so that Friday and Saturday I have a bit of wiggle room for a glass of wine (when not pregnant) or slice of pizza or bbq cheeseburger lol you have to live a little! may as well plan ahead!
  • alpine1994
    alpine1994 Posts: 1,915 Member
    I always had cheat meals throughout my weight loss too. Most of the time I adjusted my weekly calories so that I wouldn't go over for the week, but sometimes I didn't, and I still was able to reach my goals. I wanted to lose weight SLOWLY so that I could break old habits, create new ones, and make sure that my new lifestyle is one that I could live with forever. That is why all of my previous weight loss attempts never lasted, and it's why I have maintained my weight loss since March of this year.

    Sometimes you just really need a cheeseburger/ice cream/mom's baked mac and cheese...etc. Sometimes you go on vacation and want to have some drinks and try a new kind of food. Sometimes there's pot-lucks, birthday parties, etc. I have found that if I eat healthy (i.e. hit my macros and calorie targets with nutritious food) most of the time, treating myself every now and then will not ruin my progress.
  • shrinkingbrian
    shrinkingbrian Posts: 171 Member
    I like to call it a "reward" meal for my hard work and I have one reward meal per week. I usually go out Friday or Saturday night to a restaurant. I realize that I eat more calories but it helps me to have something to look forward to during the week and one meal a week that I enjoy helps me with my long term health goals. Too many people lose weight (myself included) only to gain it back so a reward meal helps me to stay on track realizing that it's just one meal.
  • ibleedunionblue
    ibleedunionblue Posts: 324 Member
    I had a cheat / reward day Saturday after running a half marathon. I piled up 2000 calories. It was my first day above calorie goal since July 3rd. It actually has re-energized me. I feel I now have the strength to take off 5 more pounds. Where-as I was really getting burned out last week. I'm all in favor of a rare cheat / reward day or meal.
  • sagreenious
    sagreenious Posts: 64 Member
    Cheesecake once a week??!! Man, I eat cake every day if I want.. I just adjust my other foods so I still hit my target calorie intake.
  • conniemaxwell5
    conniemaxwell5 Posts: 943 Member
    If you are saving calories for the splurge at the end of the week, it's not cheating. It sounds like you are still in overall defecit for the week when you do this, which would still give you the same results as if you at right to your goal every day and didn't splurge.

    To me a 'cheat' meal is when you do meet your goal every day and then splurge and go over one day. Depending on how badly you 'cheat,' you could still be at a deficit or go over for the week by doing it this way.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    well hello again dead horse thread...not like this one has been debated a million times....
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    Portion Control and Moderation is key. If you follow this, you can pretty much eat what and when you want so you don't have to worry about have a designated day to eat your favourite food pleasures.

    pretty much this ..if I want ice cream, cheesecake, beer, pizza..I just make room for it...
  • angelamangus1
    angelamangus1 Posts: 164 Member
    The bottom line is we all are different and what works for some will not work for others. The goal is to find what works for you and just do it! People need to stop pushing what works for them on to others. I find this often on MFP and I tend to ignore the negative crap. I do love the variations of what works for whom and it helps in trying out new things that I may not have tried. I try to take from the good and experiment to see if it may work, if not I move on. I see this journey as steps for me to learn what is good for my body. People need to stop being so critical of others and see that what works for some may not work for others.
  • socioseguro
    socioseguro Posts: 1,679 Member
    I don't have cheat days. Or at least I don't call what I do cheating. If I go over in calories for a special occasion, I call it "life happens," and I may or may not make up the calories later. If I plan for a bigger than normal day by "banking" calories (like I did last Thanksgiving), and my week is in line with where it should be, then I don't see it as cheating either.

    And if I am within my calories for the day, and at least somewhat close to my macros, it doesn't matter what I eat, it is not cheating.

    The only thing I do is make sure that life doesn't happen too often - that's what got me here in the first place. But now I am happily maintaining, and my plan seems to be working.

    This
  • toofatnomore
    toofatnomore Posts: 206 Member
    The reality is, even on "cheat days", I am still 1500 calories below a "normal" day before changing my eating habits.
    Had sort of a cheat day this past weekend and ended up around 2400 cals for the day. Felt gross!!!! lol However 4 months ago, 2400 cals would leave me starving for more bad food.
  • FITnFIRM4LIFE
    FITnFIRM4LIFE Posts: 818 Member
    Call it cheat or free day or whatever...I eat healthy 80 percent of the time, the other 20 is whatever.. Every Sunday I eat anything and everything I want or have craved. I lost and maintained my weight almost 3 years doing this weekly, sometimes twice. I never deprived, if I want it I work it in. Lift weights get a bit of cardio in and just move daily...and eat the foods;-) That has worked for me.


    Edited -hit post too soon, lack of coffee before typing.
  • melham
    melham Posts: 233 Member
    well hello again dead horse thread...not like this one has been debated a million times....
    Sweet, the million and first thread on the topic! Do I win? :tongue:

    I would love to eat what I want when I want at all times, but I'm so short and weigh so little that my maintenance calories (1320/day - no kidding) don't allow for much wiggle room. Guess that means I should run and climb more!
  • boophil
    boophil Posts: 99 Member
    I think it's the term "cheat" that gets people's panties in a wad. I will always have cheat days, and I honestly don't think I could have been successful without them. It fits my personality to have a planned day of decadence from time to time, but I know they don't work for everyone. Whatever gets the ****ing job done!! :smokin:

    I have a "higher calorie day" once a week. Nothing crazy, but it helps me to not feel deprived. Plus, if I do have a special event where I really want to indulge (and those days are few and far between), it helps ease my guilt and helps me to get back on track the next day.
  • Lconsla
    Lconsla Posts: 226 Member
    I was listening to a local radio show and the DJ had a guest on that was some sort of Nutrition specialist and he said that you SHOULD have cheat days. Not just for the fact that you don't feel like you're depriving yourself, but it will confuse the body with giving it more calories and it helps in weightloss.
  • Christi132
    Christi132 Posts: 67 Member
    I'm alright having a cheat day, especially if I"m going for a long run the next day.
  • HittinMyGoals
    HittinMyGoals Posts: 30 Member
    I like to call it "Re-feed day". I don't consider it cheating when I re fuel my body with a little extra calories/macro's and its a little extra for one meal for me not a all day eating binge.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I don't plan cheat meals or cheat days, but they happen anyway. Which is pretty much why I don't plan them. Parties, birthdays, family reunions (or most any family gathering), weddings, etc. I am not going to analyze the ingredients of every offering and wonder if it fits my daily goals. I just eat, drink and be merry and get back on track when it's over. Realistically, how much damage can be done in one day?

    Just need to make sure those days aren't every day.
  • CollieFit
    CollieFit Posts: 1,683 Member
    I think it's the term "cheat" that gets people's panties in a wad.
    [/quote]

    I agree it's the terminology more than anything.

    Some people have a bad enough relationship with food without further reinforcing that by using terms like "sins", "cheating", "treat", "reward" etc. They are so value laden and keep making an emotional connection with food in ways that's not particularly helpful.
  • padams2359
    padams2359 Posts: 1,093 Member
    I think it would be better to have them with people that do not know how you are dieting, and not say a thing. Let them wonder, "How do they eat like that and still stay that size?" That is worth it right there. You don't have to tell them what you are doing on all the other days. If they ask how you can eat like that, just tell them you love food.
  • happysherri
    happysherri Posts: 1,360 Member
    If I want or crave something I try to plan for it. Meaning, if I know I'm going to the movies I know I'm going to eat butter popcorn. SO, I work my butt off that day to 'earn' my exercise calories and thus stay under my calories. I don't do that too often, but yep gotta have it.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    I think it would be better to have them with people that do not know how you are dieting, and not say a thing. Let them wonder, "How do they eat like that and still stay that size?" That is worth it right there. You don't have to tell them what you are doing on all the other days. If they ask how you can eat like that, just tell them you love food.

    I say it's a genetically fast metabolism. :wink:
  • Lindymae1
    Lindymae1 Posts: 9 Member
    I know that I, personally, have a much better attitude about the whole thing if I know that there is one day coming up that I can eat exactly as I please. I weigh in on Friday mornings and then the husband and I get donuts and chocolate milk on the way to work :bigsmile: I'll pack whatever sounds good for lunch that day or get take-out and then we go out for dinner after work. Date night! :heart:

    Whenever I've tried to lose weight before, I was making myself stay perfectly within my calorie allowance 24/7 and I'd get burned out and pissed off after 10 lbs or 3 months, whichever came first. And then I'd get so sick of the whole thing and quit altogether. This time around I've done the "free day" approach on Fridays and stay on track the rest of the week. After the 1st couple of weeks I found that I didn't actually eat as much crap on those Fridays and I think it's because it doesn't feel like forbidden fruit anymore. I'm one of those stubborn types that if you tell me I MUST do ABC then I'll run straight to doing XYZ instead even if I know that ABC is the better choice and XYZ is going to totally sabotage me. Personal flaw...

    I have a coworker who will completely derail herself if she allows herself to have even 1 bad snack or meal in a day. It all boils down to what works for you. What works for and makes the best sense for one person is going to be the thing that wreaks havoc with the next person. We're all different and that's ok!
  • blacksuburban
    blacksuburban Posts: 2 Member
    I have those days when I feel "HANGRY"... And it's time to feed the beast. I usually have those days after I am extra active and it's my body telling me to eat. So I listen. I don't go crazy with too much unhealthy stuff, but an extra helping of healthy food seems to do it.
  • Mcgrawhaha
    Mcgrawhaha Posts: 1,596 Member
    when i was losing, i had an entire cheat day, once every other saturday. i still lost 95 pounds in just under 1 year. now im on maintenance, and i continue to eat at a deficit during the week, and then have what i want on the weekends. its working great for me, i love it, and im even still losing a bit...
  • cherrybomb_77
    cherrybomb_77 Posts: 411 Member
    I don't really like the dichotomy of "good" and "bad" foods, so it follows that I don't care for the phrase "cheat day." I generally eat a certain way because it makes my body feel good. But if I want something, I have it. Normally I try to make sure it fits into my daily calories/macro goals, but if occasionally it doesn't, I don't worry about it. A slice of cheesecake doesn't make you fat or give you high cholesterol. It's repeated overindulgence combined with a sedentary lifestyle that does that (generally speaking).

    FTR, I'm coming from a lifetime of disordered eating and thinking about my body, which has a lot to do with why I reject that terms and labels.
  • spookiefox
    spookiefox Posts: 215 Member
    I know the cheat meal/cheat day is a hot button topic at times here at the wonderful world of MFP, but I am a firm believer of saving a few calories every day so I can have a treat at least once a week. It keeps me on track and curbs cravings before they're out of control. My cheat day is normally Saturday, and I am having cheesecake for dessert tonight. Love me some cheat day. :drinker:

    ETA: I posted this in Maintaining Weight because I am in maintenance. I also lost the weight using the cheat meal strategy, FWIW.

    The only reason I don't believe in cheat meals/days is because I don't believe it's "cheating" to eat things you enjoy that aren't good for you occasionally. "Cheating" implies some kind of dishonesty. The only ""cheating" that gets done around here is when people say they never desire anything that isn't healthy anymore.
  • spookiefox
    spookiefox Posts: 215 Member
    LOL this makes no sense!

    The hot button is ACTUAL cheat days, in which you go wild in fast-food land, and sometimes don't even log it. 3-4k calories that you can't "even out" with the other days.

    Just redistributing your calories over a week or two to fit in a slice of cake is not cheating, is brilliant!

    OMG! OMG! You mean actually eat whatever you want to all day and not keep a record of it!?! Once in a while! OMG! You can die from that, right?

    Geeze. So what? The world doesn't end if you skip a day of paying attention to every bite you put in your mouth occasionally. It just doesn't. Relax. You only get one life. Try to enjoy it as much as you can.
  • spookiefox
    spookiefox Posts: 215 Member
    I think cheat days are fine if you are at your goal weight. If not, you just fooling yourself.

    Way to make it a diet rather than a lifestyle change.
  • gabbygirl78
    gabbygirl78 Posts: 936 Member
    I know the cheat meal/cheat day is a hot button topic at times here at the wonderful world of MFP, but I am a firm believer of saving a few calories every day so I can have a treat at least once a week. It keeps me on track and curbs cravings before they're out of control. My cheat day is normally Saturday, and I am having cheesecake for dessert tonight. Love me some cheat day. :drinker:

    ETA: I posted this in Maintaining Weight because I am in maintenance. I also lost the weight using the cheat meal strategy, FWIW.

    I agree! If it were not for a day I get to have what I wanted I would throw in the towel because I feel like I'm depriving myself. Cheat day = Treat day.... reward yourself!:drinker:

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