Cheat Day? You clever little lesson, you!

SwampWitch666

My birthday was on March 4th and I told myself that I was going to not log my entire food day until the night was completely over. I was going to eat whatever the want, however I wanted it, and whenever I wanted it!

And so I did!

When I logged in my results the next day, I was actually pretty surprised. Pleasantly so! Not only did I not go over my calorie limit naturally (thanks shrunk stomach!) but I felt completely full and satisfied and happy throughout the entire day/night. No binge eating and no desperate attempts at shoveling food in my face "while I still could". So my new diet that I've been maintaining has definitely paid off in the sense that my portion control is naturally regulated now.

But unfortunately, it wasn't all fun and games. I've also had a bit of a tough lesson learned. Although my chocolate, alcohol and pizza (first red meat in months!) were AMAZING going down, I had the absolute worst next day. I was tired, had low energy, was grumpy, had bouts of nausea, craved sweets, felt excessively under-stimulated... and honestly it was the first day I've had since my first week of clean eating/exercising that I absolutely did not want to get up and work out. I had to literally talk myself out of staying in bed and just skipping breakfast. It was dreadful. I was miserable. It was like a food hangover... on top of an actual hangover.

I don't understand how people can do the one cheat day a week. One cheat day a month sounds like a LOT! Although the experience was well-worth it for the sake of my birthday, I felt nutritionally cheated and I'm finding myself wondering if cheat days in general are even for me. *slow shrug* And I'm definitely going to drink loads more water next time!

How do you feel about cheat days? Any tips for tackling the "food hangover" the next day?

jwdieter

I've always felt the concept of cheat days was pretty silly. Eating good food on your birthday isn't cheating. It's the right thing to do. Log it, carry on.

sarainiowa

A "Cheat Day" for me turns into a cheat week. I can't have one. It's like a trigger in my body that sends me back to the "old" way of eating, which made me fat.

Francl27

Well typically I don't do all those things at once, so I've yet to feel tired after one. I'm surprised you didn't go over your calories by eating that diet though!

JoRocka

I don't do cheat days really I can only comment so much.

But yes- if you severely change/restrict your diet- and introduce things that are vastly different it's going to impact you- it would work the same way as well.

If all you ate was pizza and beer- for a month and then suddenly ate ONLY chicken and veggies for a day- you'd feel crappy the next day too. Sudden shifts do the GI track in- not the TYPE OF food.


I stopped eating sugar (processed cakes and candy stuff) for six weeks as a challenge- for discipline not for diet.. and the next time I had it I was sick- on the toilet and not well. Normally I'm totally fine with sugar- not an issue- but the complete absences of it- and then the reintroduction of it- caused me some issues.

general rule of thumb (sans medical issues) is to avoid sudden changes- and you avoid "food hang overs"

jennycina93

I do a small cheat day once a week. Sometimes I eat just over maintenance and sometimes I eat well over maintenance. This helps me to not cheat during the rest of the week. But everyone is different, do what works for you and listen to your body.

SunKissed1989

That's a sign of your body changing. It's a good thing so well done! You've got to remember that while you're making a lifestyle change, you still have to live your life - there will always be birthdays, Christmases, nights out, celebrations and the likes. Don't deprive yourself of delicious treats, but make sure they are just kept as treats and not a regular occurrence.
My suggestion for the 'food hangover' is to try to get back into your routine again asap. Drink plenty of water (as with a normal hangover).

Last Easter, I realised how much my body had changed - had a complete pig out (I was eating even though I knew I was full) and was sick at 3am. The thing is, a couple of years earlier, I would've eaten the same amount and felt fine. That was when I realised how much my body had changed.

Also, there are no calories in birthday cake

happyfeet1993

When I decided I was gonna do the whole getting in shape and being healthy stuff, I decided I would have a cheat meal once a week. It was a way for me to look forward to something and not go crazy. It would be a MEAL and not a full day of junk, and if I went over my calorie limit that day then so be it.

But that's not how I could see myself living for a long time. I'm gonna wanna have subway, or a burrito, or a chicken wrap from McDonalds and that's okay for me. Yah it's eating out but I'm still making BETTER choices. I feel if I didn't allow myself this then I would surely fail very quickly.
The thing is, I make sure I try my best to stick to IIFYM on a daily basis. I check my nutrient stats to stay within the limits.

So once a week I will allow myself to go over my calorie intake for the day, and completely disregard my macro % if I want something like some pizza or burger and fries and chocolate then I'll have it.
That's my cheat.

peleroja

I have an iron stomach and feel GREAT after I pig out, so no advice there, haha.


But I don't really do cheat days as generally defined, though. I will just graze continually with no remorse or physical illness. Instead, I have infrequent days where I give myself a higher limit than normal. I still have to have a limit, though, because my brain and body don't work all that well to tell me when I should stop.

judyde

Was the pizza at Cheesecake Factory a kid's pizza? Because I very much doubt that 2 pieces of pizza at CF is only 350 calories.

SwampWitch666

Was the pizza at Cheesecake Factory a kid's pizza? Because I very much doubt that 2 pieces of pizza at CF is only 350 calories.

Wow, hostile much?

They're thin crust. I'm not trying to lie to you or anything, I'm just going by the books. On the CF website it says around 1570 calories in total for the pizza. Cut into 8 slices, it's about 196 calories a slice. MFP said 175 calories. Give or take, 175-200. Not the end of the world by any means. I'll pretend to skim off those calories by dabbing the grease layer, how about that.

SwampWitch666

Well typically I don't do all those things at once, so I've yet to feel tired after one. I'm surprised you didn't go over your calories by eating that diet though!

I had a busy day, out and about! Ended up sleeping in, getting a fair-sized tattoo, went shopping... didn't have much time to just sit around and snack!

Suzibluski

I do a meal on the weekend that I usually wouldn't have during the week. It allows me to have a "cheat" meal if you want to call it that. I usually stay on or around my daily calories so I don't worry to much about it... But for me it is something I need and want to do since this is for life not just until I lose my weight and I know that in life there will be celebrations and dinners out...

JoRocka

Was the pizza at Cheesecake Factory a kid's pizza? Because I very much doubt that 2 pieces of pizza at CF is only 350 calories.

Wow, hostile much?

They're thin crust. I'm not trying to lie to you or anything, I'm just going by the books. On the CF website it says around 1570 calories in total for the pizza. Cut into 8 slices, it's about 196 calories a slice. MFP said 175 calories. Give or take, 175-200. Not the end of the world by any means. I'll pretend to skim off those calories by dabbing the grease layer, how about that.

cool your jets.
he's not being hostile. nothing he said was hostile.

Just a reality- it's rare any piece of pizza much less 2 of them are 350 calories.