Cheat days ... yes or no?

JLink823

I've been doing this diet/workout thing for nothing short of 15 years and I still don't have a definite answer to this question. I've lost weight on weight watchers and I've lost weight and toned up on the Body for Life diet. For those who aren't familiar with Body for Life, it allows one cheat day a week but a strict diet and workout for the other 6. Weight Watchers boasts a consistent diet.

I've also heard that if on a low calorie diet, a high calorie diet every now and then helps "shock and restart" the metabolism. Thoughts on cheat days are appreciated.

casi_ann

Actually weight watchers gives you, or at least use to give you an extra 30 points per week. Many people on the boards at weight watchers uses their 30 points in one day for just what you describe. These people feel that it kick starts your metabolism. Weight watchers use to say you can use the 30 points over the entire week or all at once. This started around the time a girl named wendy proved to the ww online group that she was losing weight very quickly by doing just that.

Purple_Orchid_87

i consider my journey to be a lifestyle change rather than a diet.....
personally, knowing what i used to put into my body, its good to have a less strict day every now and again, but for me, that doestn mean a take away, a treat for me is bread, or a bag or normal crisps

Jillian2128

sunday's are my cheat day. i try not to get too crazy..i TRY and have just a cheat meal, but that doesnt always happen, i just make sure mon-sat i stay under cals and soduim..so far its been working for me.

donnamariemoon

Hi, there,
Interesting question. I have decided not to "cheat." I have picked a plan that allows me to eat the way I want (lower carb, under 100G primarily from fruits/veggies and not limiting fruits or veggies) and find that I can lose weight this way and my cravings for "other" foods (cookies, candy, Italian bread, etc.) are diminished to non-existent. When I crave a "sweet" I eat fruit or a yogurt. Hence I satisfy the crave without having to "cheat."When I am done losing weight I plan to add back some grain carbs on a really slow basis until weight loss stops. Then I will know how much I can have in maintaining this weight for life. I expect I may add a cookie or a serving of bread or rice or something I really want and then maybe have a night I drink some light beers or something. But my philosophy was to pick a way of losing weight that I could live with, hence I would not have to "cheat" or feel restricted and could know exactly what to do to maintain. So, since you asked this is my philosophy/thoughts on cheats. Good luck!
Donna\\
Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Weight Loss Tools

luppic8

Everyone's body is different. I say, do what works for you. If a cheat day worked for you in the past, then go for it. I live by enjoying life as I diet and exercise so I don't restrict myself 100%, but I don't go crazy eating whatever I want either. I think what I'm trying to say is, be sensible because if you can't have that little bite of something you are craving, it make dieting a nightmare and it causes you to be depressed. Good luck to you!

elizabeth60

I find that I need a cheat day once in awhile or I end up going on a huge eating binge sooner or later, so I would rather plan and cheat then let my emotions take over and I have no control

sharesb

I don't have "cheat days"....I know what I eat each day and I eat very well so when the opportunity comes around to go for lunch with the girls at work or I am invited out to an event where I know there is going to be munchies and drinks, I know I can afford to enjoy myself while I am out because the next day I am back to my healthy lifestyle. I earn it to treat myself every now and then and I am not going to put a whole lot of "rules" around when I can eat, it would make things too difficult. I have had huge success thus far losing weight without stressing out about "cheating". Good luck in your journey! ♥

Irene8509

I agree cheat days are a necessity. I don't like to think of it as cheating...hmmm, sometimes you have to be bad to feel good:devil:

shreyaj

I have a "cheat" meal vs. a whole cheat day. I also find that after eating really healthy all week to the urge to binge on unhealthy foods is less and I treat myself to a high calorie dinner usually on sundays.

happy_summer

Cheat days turn into binge days for me, unfortunately. I'm trying to get out of the 'all or nothing' diet mentality so for me that means trying to think less in terms of 'being good' or 'cheating'. Well I'm trying anyway! xx

kriswigg

Like some of the others have posted, I look at this as a lifestyle change, not as a diet. I figure that we all have days when we just don't eat the way we ought too. I try not to look at those as "cheats" or failures, just not a great day and start again fresh the next. If I know I haven't eaten well and have a chance, I will try to work in a little extra exercise, to help counter act the extra calories.

sinclare

if you think it will help you stay focused on the the other days, then try it. See how it goes.

I personally don't have one, instead I save it for those unexpected nights "out" or when someone shows up and wants to go to dinner. Then I don't worry about what I eat at the restaurant, knowing how good I am all the other days!

MysticMoon

I try to be quite strict on myself 5 days a week, i workout no less than 5 days a week as well. So come the weekend when kids are home or we may go out and i have less control on the foods we eat i relax more. I don't necessarily 'cheat' nor do i see it as cheating or rewarding myself. If i see them as cheats it implies i'm doing something wrong? Or if i see it as a reward perhaps i'd be tempted to eat more or the foods than are harming my body?
I prefer to see them as relaxed days when i don't weigh the food out, and if we are watching a film we can all tuck into popcorn.
Not sure if it works as of yet as i'm early days so it's only my opinion and by no means do i know it all xx

krissybug72

If you count calories,you are not cheating! Eat what you want and count it...If you eat a burger and fries for lunch eat a low cal dinner such as salad and fruit. Make it work...I hate the word cheat you are not doing anything wrong, but living...


SW-172
CW-160
GW-145

mrstessbowen

Don't beleive in cheat days. Maybe a meal but still be mindfull of what it is and spend that extra time to work it off. Our taste buds are only excited for the first three bites so if it is a certain item, have three bites and push it away ( i will pour salt and pepper on mine to ruin it after three bites). If you cant push it away dont "cheat". Plus it only takes 30 minutes or less to put it in your mouth and it could take a much longer time to loose it off the hips =(.

trishlambert

My brother-in-law lost more than 60 pounds, and his approach was what a few folks have said--On plan Mon-Sat, eat whatever he wants on Sunday. I was very impressed.

There are a couple of things about this approach that concern me for ME (not advising anyone else!). First, it is a proven fact that men lose weight faster than women, so I need to be careful using him as a role model. Second, I worry that if I took this kind of approach, it would be a slipper slope for me. I think this concern is one I need to lay to rest; as several have said, this is a lifestyle change, and "white knuckling" to stay on plan isn't going to work in the long term. I have a long way to go still, so I need to focus on making the way I eat now a habit rather than a temporary phase.

As I read the responses here, it makes sense for me to 1) ease up on myself and 2) have an occasional (not weekly) day where I eat what I want to. If I go to some kind of event like a street fair, for example, I won't pull out my MFP app and calculate what I can and can't have. At home, though, I'll continue to work on getting in the habit of staying within my number.

Ervie317

I only allow myself a 1 cheat meal a week. At one sitting I can have whatever I want but I don't eat until I get sick but for the other 4 meals that day I stay on track. It really helps me to eat what I'm craving but doesn't net my diet back.

pjharr

I'm using the diet to restructure my eating so that I can live with the difference. I will burn X calories when I am in normal range so I am using the calorie reductions not to lose weight but to reach that. As I get closer the calorie limit for losing drops closer to my normal eating range.

Do I use "Cheat days" yes and no. I use a day which is eat to maintain the current weight with the option of eating 15% more that day. Do note this is with the option of eating 20% less calories a day for maintaining my current level. For some reason it seems to have kickstarted me when I was on a plateau and I haven't hit one since. I don't "cheat" eating up [which is what I call it because I am not cheating. I'm just maintaining that day] by eating a lot of junk food. That's the day that I'll have the 8 ounces of Filet Mignon or other high calorie nutritional foods or simply eat more of what I do eat. It is never on an exercise day.

I also eat back on exercise days. I may or may not reach the full calories burned but I do eat back esp if I walk out of a workout and think the fat little pug the woman is walking by the gym would look good on a stick with some Jerk rub. However I do not use these as 'cheat' days.

It must be a no exercise rest day for me to eat up. Do I eat goodies without any nutritional value? Yep. Rarely and rarely enough it is a real treat. And I only do that on exercise burn days.

Dang doctor says that this is the best condition he has ever seen me in.

CookieCatCatcher

None here, I just incorporate what I want to "cheat" eat into my daily calories. I never feel deprived, and I am consistently losing weight. If I want ice cream, I'll opt for some low calorie fro yo, with berries. If I want chocolate, dark chocolate in a small dose does the trick.

Cheat days lead to cheat weeks, and then cheat months. IMHO.

RadicalCharlie

I say yes and no.

Yes, because if you're eating a low amount of calories worth of food, then you'll need a day or two a week where you kind of just pig out (reasonable) so your body doesn't think it's short on energy.

No, because dieting is more than dieting, it should really just be called a lifestyle change. Are you going to cheat your lifestyle?

Just consume everything in a reasonable amount. A little indulgence never hurt anyone.

chevy88grl

I find that I need a cheat day once in awhile or I end up going on a huge eating binge sooner or later, so I would rather plan and cheat then let my emotions take over and I have no control

I'm the same way. I will start to feel like my eating is getting a bit out of control. I have a "cheat" day- eat what I want, when I want and I'm good to go. I don't do it once a week or even once a month -- I'd say I do it once every 4-5 months. Also, I still log everything on those days -- just to see. I've found I'm not THAT horrible even on "cheat" days.

elliecolorado

I am not on a diet so I don't 'cheat' this is a lifestyle change. I still eat the things that I want, I just eat less of them. I am only making changes that are realistic for me to stick with for the rest of my life. I don't think it's realistic to think that I will never eat my favorite things or that I won't have days where I want to go out to dinner with friends or go out drinking. If I know in advance I will be going out I try to factor things into my daily calorie goal or work out a little extra, but if something comes up and I go over my goal I don't worry to much about that either. Personally I think 'cheating' has a negative connotation and me living my life is not cheating!

alifer

After reading these responses I think my definition of a cheat day may be a little different than most. I allow myself one day once a week to eat up to a couple hundred extra calories that day, but still count everything the best I can. Usually it is on the weekend and is related to what is going on that day. So far I have found that I end up close to calories and feel the need to work them off anyway. Still relatively new to this as I just started about 7 weeks ago, but seems to be working for me. And I find myself getting full long before I ever was before I started this.