How do you feel about a once a week "cheat day" ?

sandyhyde35

I normally do a cheat meal. It's typically dinner on Friday night. If not, one day would turn into two for me. It's so easy to slip back into old habits.

pamdsaul

I don't believe have a cheat day per say. I always try to log my food. If I really want to eat something I just eat it and log it. I eat a much smaller portion that what I use to. I still try to stay in my calorie range.

But we are all different. You have to do what works for you. If you can have days where you eat whatever you want and still lose weight that's great.

The first time I ever went on a diet, a Dr. supervised diet, I started losing weight faster than he wanted. He ask me if I was use to eating out. Of course I told him yes. He then told me that one day a week I should go out and eat a meal at my favorite restaurant. I followed his advice. That helped me to stick to my diet. I was following Dr.'s orders so that's not cheating, right?

The way I see this now is this is a life change. I am doing what I know I can live with the rest of my life. I don't even look at it anymore as a diet. Because of this I don't feel deprived. I'm living and enjoying life. I still go out to eat with friends. I just make healthy choices. I eat smaller portions but I still feel satisfied. If I want dessert I just make sure that I share with someone. I eat a few bites, sometimes just a bite and I'm good. My Dr. that I am seeing now had me to cut out soft drinks. I had not had a soda since November. I tried to drink one a few weeks ago, I just felt like I would love to have a sip. That sip is all it took. My taste has changed, I didn't like it. My dr. also recommended that I eat protein first, veggies next. If I still wasn't full I could eat bread. He has not told me any food was off limits. I guess that is why this is working for me.

ktsmom430

Do what works for you, and keeps you on track.

I don't have them, but that is just because it would be too easy to let it become, days, weeks, months or even years. Been there, done that, and this is what works for me now.

jacquiearchambault

I found a cheat meal instead day when I meet my small mile marker goals to work better. I found when I had a cheat day I set myself back 2 or 3 days

I do a cheat meal once a week, usually on Saturday night. A whole day would set me back too far.

MonicaA2013

I don't do "cheat" meals or days. I eat what i want as long as i don't go over my calories.I have reduced the amounts of a lot of things to almost none or a reasonable amount. B4 i even started here i had already cut out soda and most candy and pastries.

But it's all about what you feel you can do for the rest of your life. If you want to eat a certain way to lose your weight then do it, but i have learned during the time i have been here that it will be tough to do that if that is not how you plan to eat for the rest of your life. If you want to have the same foods that everyone else is eating when you reach your goal then eat it now and learn how to control the AMOUNTS that you eat not just what types of food you eat.

If you end up going out for a special day that is planed then plan your food intake for the day around it as much as possible. If you go out unexpectedly then just chose wisely and do an extra work out to try and balance it out. I have had to do this a few times...LOL Some days i still go over but its not a big deal as long as you stick with the plan you will do fine after a day over.

nicolemontagna22

When I reach 130 (currently 138.5) my husband and I are going out for Chinese) then maybe again at my goal weight of 120. If I had to never eat Chinese again is say is rather stay heavy lol. Life's to short to deprive yourself of everything. Moderation is key!

canadjineh

I agree with the "cheat meal" theory. However, I don't really consider it a cheat since I will log it anyway. It's more of a license to go over once in a while.

I like the line: "a licence to go over once in a while." I work mine the same way... but never more than once a week... and I have to plan the occasion ahead of time, not just randomly go out for beer & pizza if friends decide on the spur of the moment. Usually it's a 'Funday' meal and not a whole day though, simply because I like my healthy diet and don't find it much of a struggle to stick with it. That means usually it will be a smart breakfast, AM snack, lunch/ PM snack; and a dinner of whatever I feel like for 'Funday' BUT logging it afterward so I have tools for the future. It's working fine so far and I don't feel deprived, but I can see it could be a problem for those with binge tendencies especially if they are pre-planning to 'pig-out' crazily.

NyssaDuck

I'm also in the group of no cheat day/meal. I just eat what I want within reason, keep logging and make sure it fits in my "budget" for the day. I'm of the mind that heavily restricting myself sets me up for failure (which it has done in the past). I don't believe in "bad food", only moderation. But it's really whatever works for the individual. Some people need to restrict the types of food they eat. It all depends on what your end goal really is.

sadiebea25

I would never do that. It's not hard to eat whatever you want and fit it into your dauily calorie allotment. Why would you go over? It's just obsessing about food as a "treat" and setting yourself up to fail..

It is impossible to eat whatever I want and fit it into my daily caloire allotment. Why do you think I gained weight in the first place? It's a challenge every day to eat under 1500 calories.

And Peyton, I like the "treat" instead of the "cheat"

Thanks everyone for your responses, I love to see what other people do in their weight loss journey, and I've got some great advice!

Edmond_Dantes

A cheat day is a good idea if it keeps you in control the other 6 days of the week!

Look, most people who have gained excessive weight ate 7 "cheat days" per week - meaning they ate what they wanted without restriction.

If you are now controlling yourself 6 days a week instead of 0, than that is great! It's more sustainable than zero cheating, in my opinion. I used to do a cheat day, but have cut it to a cheat meal/evening so that I could lose more rapidly.

My sister, on the other hand, lost considerable weight (over 50 lbs) with a cheat/binge day - so anecdotally it works.

DeliriumCanBeFun

Look I have seen bodybuilder and bikini competitors eat a fricking burger and fries every now and again. We are all human and unfortunately we've been brought up in a society involving bad foods, which taste amazing. I follow the 80% 20% rule. I'm good 80% of the time but the other 20% i indulge in what I'd like to eat IF IM CRAVING IT. You make your lifestyle how you want it. if you have a piece of chocolate cake one day don't bully yourself over it. Fitness and a healthy lifestyle is a lifelong journey it won't ever stop so dont deprive yourself. If you do eat something unhealthy and you feel a little guilty why not take a 30 minute walk or something. even if you don't STILL DONT BULLY YOURSELF OVER IT!!!....I've done my fair share of research including talking to a licensed nutritionist and even he said you can have the piece of cake I just don't want you to eat the whole thing! Maybe do some research on your own. Figure out what works for your body. What works for me or someone else might not work for you. If having a indulgence once a week works for you then do it. To lose weight and get whatever body your aspiring to get its 80% your diet and 20% exercise....you can do it girl! keep your head up! and don't bully yourself for having a treat every once in awhile.

Exactly. There's no way I'm going to go without some amazing chocolate cake on my birthday. Or when I ride for hours and burn over 1000 or even 2000 calories, I might even get onion rings with my burger. I feel sorry for someone who thinks they don't deserve to be healthy and in shape if they don't eliminate all "bad" foods. It's moderation! Granted lack of moderation is what caused most of us to be overweight, but a lot of us are also trying to make changes that we can live with live forever. I don't log my food on Sundays, period. It's a lot of work which I don't mind doing all week, but I take Sundays off. More time to spend my day the way it was intended. And it is not a "cheat" day. I eat well and less restrictive than the other days, but I don't take it as an excuse to be glutenous. This has worked well for me for the past 2 1/2 months, and I have continued to lose 1+ pounds a week.

Keep_The_Laughter

OP, if your current plan is working and you are having success then keep doing it. Don't fix what isn't broken.

Avoiding the concept of "cheating" and negative connotations works best for me. Food is fuel but also part of our cultural existence. You are not "cheating" when you and your sister make a white pizza with arugula and prosciutto. You are fueling your bodies and celebrating your shared family history. Food does not exist outside of the context of the rest of our lives. Exercising enough control to meet your nutritional goals while still enjoying your culinary traditions sounds like balance, imo.

Again for me personally, I would ignore anyone who seems to have a "war on food" mentality. Our diets are not context free. Dietary content, biology and energy expenditure all play a part in weight maintenance. You are losing a pound a week, so good cheese is not a nutritional Hindenburg for you. There is very little point in reinforcing guilt and shame where food is concerned.

You are doing what works, so just tweak it a bit. Still have your foodie days, but maybe take an extra bike ride with your sister on those days. Walk to the farmer’s market to pick up your supplies. Challenge yourselves to make higher protein/lower carbohydrate versions of some of your favorite foods. Why not alter your cheese plate and reduce the amount of cheese and add some dried fruits or flavored honey. There are so many positive and interesting options to increase a caloric deficit, if that is what you desire; why go into any negative connotations at all?

WaterBunnie

I prefer to save up some unused exercise calories from the week which I can then use for a logged cheat meal but would say a whole cheat day could be jeopardising a whole week of hard effort.

Izakg

I usually have two cheat meals a week because I think things (for me) could easily spiral out of control. I do go to the gym every day and I try to work a bit harder the morning after a cheat meal. I always lose when I have had a good week with a cheat meal or two.

Izakg

The word treat is dangerous in my house as it occurs too often lol it has been banned ha ha ha

RRB2000

I had the same mentality as you until just this week. I used to have a cheat day, usually one day during the weekend. This is my 2nd go round on MFP as well. The first time was 2012, I lost 30 lbs, my goal was 50,but once I reached a 30 lb loss I didn't try as hard and was happy where I was. Anyways....gained all that back and restarted in January of this year. This time around, granted I started a little heavier than 2012,but only 7 lbs, I haven't lost as "fast" or as much as I did in the past. It is totally b/c I have been taking a cheat day, and I mean whole day of not logging and just eating basically whatever, and then sometimes that one day has turned into the next day too (weekends) and I won't log and by Monday I've put back on the 2 lbs I lost when I weighed the Friday before. I haven't been as strict as I should be and I am not one that eats only salad or just fruits and veggies. I eat basically what I did before (to a point) just in smaller portions and that's always worked for me. I do plan to still eat some "goodies" sometimes and will go over my calories BUT if I want this to happen and see results I need to have less cheat days b/c as many others have said, 1 day seems to turn into 2 and so on. Good luck!

Pirate_chick

I log everything. Cheat days become slightly over days. But I really don't feel a true need for them as I don't deny myself what I love. If I want chocolate, I have chocolate. But I log chocolate. Being open and honest with yourself and your consumption are key.

chelstakencharge

I don't believe in a cheat day or meal.....everything in moderation. Nothing is off limits because I know how to control myself

Lives2Travel

Well, this is only my second week this round on MFP, but I've used it before and have successfully lost weight. I tend to have a "cheat day" once a week where I don't track, and just eat whatever. So far I've lost about 1 lb a week (same as in the past) with staying under 1500 cals 6 days of the week and not tracking the 7th. Does anyone else do this? I know I'd lose faster without that cheat day, but it keeps me sane and able to stay on track the rest of the time.

Whatever works for you is right. I'm a big believer that what you do has to be sustainable for YOU. If a weekly cheat day keeps you sane and moving in the right direction, go for it!

j75j75

I used to have one cheat meal a week, but I found that I was robbing myself of all the hard work I had done all week because I would really overdo it. Now I have a cheat meal whenever I feel like it, I just make sure to stay under (or reasonably over ) my daily calorie goals.