Who are Cheat Days For?

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  • CARNAT22
    CARNAT22 Posts: 764 Member
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    I prefer to have the opccasional cheat evening (dinner out maybe and a few drinks) but I stick to my plan for breakfast and lunch, plus work out and I am 100% back on plan the next day!
  • sweetheart03622
    sweetheart03622 Posts: 928 Member
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    It's not really set in stone, it's whatever works for you. Originally, I would allow myself one cheat day a week but found that I usually ended up cramming myself with as much stuff as possible just because. I was completely screwing myself up with this. I switched to eating maintenance calories on the weekends and combining it with a good workout those days as well. That way I can usually eat at least 1,000 calories OVER my normal daily amount (depending on the workout). I can still enjoy the treats I like, but I'm still losing.
  • spackham
    spackham Posts: 252 Member
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    Cheat meal works better than a cheat day (which I would never do unless I was a Disneyland or something.) I usually can still stay under my cals or close to it if I watch my other meals and work out extra hard that day. I am working more toward life-style changes than just saying no to all food that is not as good of a choice. Good Luck! You can do this!
  • mummum2
    mummum2 Posts: 415 Member
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    I don't cheat, because I don't/didn't cut anything from my diet (apart from alcohol, which is very limited)......I just watch portions
    and certainly do not go past my daily calories allowance, working out enables me to have a very happy medium . Always eat health/wholesome/freshly prepared foods, but I will certainly not/have not cut food groups out.....agree with the gentleman who said this is a life change and will I never be able to have a couple of slices of pizza if that's what I want one night with salad, or say an icecream in the summer...NO, is my answer, because I will not be able to maintain that strictness and will probably eventually pile the weight back on!!! so my whole outlook is no I don't cheat...I eat all but in moderation and still losing the weight!
  • nerdyandilikeit
    nerdyandilikeit Posts: 2,185 Member
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    i have cheat days so i dont feel deprived and then binge. it's also nice to have a break now and then and i usually have even more motivation after, and do better.

    i feel pretty much this way about it. at least until this lifestyle is more of a habit than a goal. i have fun food friday with my best friend, but we still try to watch portions so we arent stuffing ourselves, and its only at dinner on that one day. we also eat a little less strictly the rest of the weekend, but again, we still watch our portions and we generally have more time to exercise to actually earn it. it may make the journey slower, but it keeps our sanity! plus, im very much a binge eater so i have to take it slow or ill give up out of frustration.
  • fabulousgran
    fabulousgran Posts: 3
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    Some people can handle a cheat day without falling off the wagon for good, but people like myself would have a very difficult time getting back on program.:smile:
  • getfitdiva
    getfitdiva Posts: 1,148 Member
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    Hmm for me I wouldn't call it a cheat day - I have unplanned cheat moments LOL. Since I will inevitably go a little over board or indulge at times I don't plan for it. I just record it and move on and try to do better next time. If I restrict anything I will crave the thing I'm restricting - so no restrictions just portion control and lowering sugar/sodium.
  • mielikkibz
    mielikkibz Posts: 552 Member
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    I don't have cheat days. They just don't work for me.

    If I want the food I will exercise the calories off first.

    Kinda bingo. . .if i overeat at work, I go home and bust my butt to get the calories off :) I don't deny myself anything I want, I just eat it in moderation :)
  • 1Tammy2luv
    1Tammy2luv Posts: 8
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    I had 2 cheat meals a week allowed, not a whole day. It was only for what I felt like was an emergency or a special occasion,so that I could stop unreasonable cravings, but not ruin my diet. You have to keep track if you are doing this,so you can be sure how much you are eating. Bad eating can stall you out.
  • Christie23
    Christie23 Posts: 357 Member
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    I think this may be the most debated topic on MFP. And I have been all over the map about it myself. But here's where I (currently... lol...) stand on it. I don't believe in cheat DAYS, but a cheat MEAL once or twice per week is actually good for you. Mentally speaking, It keeps you from feeling deprived... and if you find yourself craving something like crazy all week, there is your chance to have it. But eat it slowly, drink lots of water with it, and you'll be surprised how much less you'll need to eat of it. Physically speaking, throwing your metabolism a curve ball every now and then is not a bad idea. The most important thing as you work on your weight loss is keeping a healthy attitude about it and balancing your physical and mental needs. You are changing your life... and that's amazing! But you also have to take care of your heart and head too.
  • BrianJLamb
    BrianJLamb Posts: 239 Member
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    Studies show that an OCCASIONAL cheat day like once a week or every other week is actually good for your weight loss. It causes your body to work harder to get rid of the extra calories and in turn causes your metabolism to increase!!! It also helps your mood and from being deprived from foods. Most weight loss plans like weight watchers, jenny craig and others give you extra points of free foods so you can have those cheat days. It becomes an issue when you want to keep cheating and you lose self control. I actually had a cheat day recently last week and i woke up the next morning starving.. that is how I knew it worked. It's okay with self control and not all the time.

    EbonyBliss....I think you are dead on. This is what I always try to tune others into, but nobody ever wants to believe me. I undercut my calories most of the week. I will do cardio, not eat my calories, and try to skim by at a low intake. I like the idea of shrinking my stomach all week long. Then on a Saturday, depending on my motivation, I might eat a larger breakfast, or something carby like a bagel, drink some juice, take in all of this stuff I dont normally take in, for lunch I will eat whatever I want, but again it is usually not high quantity because my stomach doesnt want a ton of food anymore and then for dinner I don't limit myself...this weekend I want to try to get some Dominoe's and those new wing thingers for like $5.99 each. I will eat a couple of slices, eat some wings, and then feel like poop. The next day I will feel gross for a good portion of the morning, but that makes me work out harder because I feel not so good. Any bad food cravings are gone, my body can replenish whatever it has been missing all week, and I can workout harder because of all of my extra calories.
  • ladybg81
    ladybg81 Posts: 1,553 Member
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    I do not do cheat days though I have certainly considered it! My husband is doing this program with me so I feel extra accountable now that I know he is watching me too! I still allow myself treats but I just keep them low cal and within my daily calorie count.
  • Nailrep
    Nailrep Posts: 966 Member
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    i have one cheat meal - not day - per week. Keeps me motivated for the next week, and I don't feel so deprived. But i usually like to do some cardio on my cheat meal day. And I try to keep the calories of this meal to about 1000 or less.
  • jjmcin5
    jjmcin5 Posts: 1
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    I think your answer is the best one. I did Weight Watchers for several years and they intentionally buily in extra "points" to allow you to plan out your week and budget your calories so you can splurge once in awhile and not feel deprived. It worked for me. I agree with the "cheat meal" though and not a whole day, because it can get totally out of control and then spill over to the next day, especially if it's a weekend. Bottom line is we need to be working towards a lifestyle change and that means being able to adapt and make wise choices over the long haul not just daily.
  • emchamberlain
    emchamberlain Posts: 133 Member
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    I don't have a specific, scheduled cheat meal or cheat day but (for example) this weekend I'm going out to dinner with my husband. Am I going to blow it and order 4 courses plus booze plus popcorn at the movies? No. But I'm not going to be at the gym for three hours and panic about logging every last little calorie. I'll keep it healthy, split a dessert, have a glass of wine with dinner, and be right back on track the next day.

    Life happens and will keep happening whether we're at maintenance or still working on losing....no need to beat ourselves up about birthday dinners and weddings and date nights!
  • pink_gerbera
    pink_gerbera Posts: 33 Member
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    I don't have cheat days but allow treats every now and then. At the wkend OH and I will have a nice meal couple of glasses of wine and sometimes pud, but then for the rest of the wk Im good and it helps motivate me to carry on. On saturday I've got friends coming round for a girly evening, we're having chips from the chippy and choc trifle, so I will just enjoy it and be good for the rest of the wk and prob try and do some more excercise
  • superwmn
    superwmn Posts: 936
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    Everyone is different and free meals/free days are always a hot topic of discussion. Each person needs to do what is right for them :)

    THAT said, I take a free meal or a free day whenever the need arises. Since they are part of what I consider a healthy lifestyle, I don't consider them 'cheating'. Usually once a week we have some kind of social function that I use as an opportunity to eat freely which to me means no counting and no restrictions on my food choices.

    Birthday dinners, anniversary dinners, cocktail parties, family barbecues, holiday parties... these kinds of events are where I take advantage of a free meal.

    Free days are taken on major holidays such as Christmas and Thanksgiving.

    My only rules are:

    1 - No more than two free meals or one free day per week.
    2 - If there is no food related function or major holiday in a particular week, I do not take a free meal or a free day that week.
    3 - I can not eat to discomfort. It's not an eating contest or an excuse to binge and I always wear fitted clothing and a belt to serve as a physical reminder to not over do it.
    4 - I weigh in the morning of my free meal/free day and not again until the following week (I'm a weekly weigher).

    Giving myself this freedom has kept my weight loss on track and helped me break through plateaus.

    Good luck!

    Charmagne
  • SiltyPigeon
    SiltyPigeon Posts: 920 Member
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    I do have cheat days but they are more for others then myself. It is hard on my family to be restrictive all the time. if they want to go out to eat they don't like me stressing about it. yes it does slow me down some but I'm still learning how to incorporate my life style change to a sustainable level for the long term. This is more then a diet so for me i have to figure out how to balance eating and working out so that the need for a cheat day isn't needed because my habits have changed enough that a single day is not going to mess me up in the long run.

    ^^This^^ :flowerforyou:
  • SiltyPigeon
    SiltyPigeon Posts: 920 Member
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    Studies show that an OCCASIONAL cheat day like once a week or every other week is actually good for your weight loss. It causes your body to work harder to get rid of the extra calories and in turn causes your metabolism to increase!!! It also helps your mood and from being deprived from foods. Most weight loss plans like weight watchers, jenny craig and others give you extra points of free foods so you can have those cheat days. It becomes an issue when you want to keep cheating and you lose self control. I actually had a cheat day recently last week and i woke up the next morning starving.. that is how I knew it worked. It's okay with self control and not all the time.

    EbonyBliss....I think you are dead on. This is what I always try to tune others into, but nobody ever wants to believe me. I undercut my calories most of the week. I will do cardio, not eat my calories, and try to skim by at a low intake. I like the idea of shrinking my stomach all week long. Then on a Saturday, depending on my motivation, I might eat a larger breakfast, or something carby like a bagel, drink some juice, take in all of this stuff I dont normally take in, for lunch I will eat whatever I want, but again it is usually not high quantity because my stomach doesnt want a ton of food anymore and then for dinner I don't limit myself...this weekend I want to try to get some Dominoe's and those new wing thingers for like $5.99 each. I will eat a couple of slices, eat some wings, and then feel like poop. The next day I will feel gross for a good portion of the morning, but that makes me work out harder because I feel not so good. Any bad food cravings are gone, my body can replenish whatever it has been missing all week, and I can workout harder because of all of my extra calories.

    I agree with both of you.
    Though I only "log" my weight once per week, I "peek" every morning. Over the past two months I have noticed that if I keep my calorie intake the same every day I will stall by Thursday. So, two weeks ago I started "cheating" on Thursdays (and Sundays, but I always did that). Not by A LOT, but by 200 - 300 calories. Sometimes a little more. No more stalling! I lose a little (if only 1/10 of a pound) every day.
    I think the occasional cheating is not only ok, but good for you... with moderation, of course. I don't know why, but it works for me! Find what works for you!
  • 123456654321
    123456654321 Posts: 1,311 Member
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    What do people define as "cheating?" Going over you calories one day? Eating some not so healthy foods but staying within your calories? I do both of these things from time to time and I don't view them as cheating.... just as part of the plan. This is a lifelong commitment for me and It's impossible for me to make perfect choices all the time. Also, a lifetime without treats sound dreadful!

    .....I guess it depends a lot on peoples personalities too. I have a lot of self control when it comes to food so I can easily sit down and have 1 serving of chips or 1 cookie and be ok with that. If you have binge tenancies I suspect it would be a whole different story.

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