Cheat Days - yay or nay?

taso42_DELETED

I've employed a "free day" once a week since I first started. There's a twofold benefit: 1. psychology - you never have to feel like some particular food is off limits for the rest of your life; 2. metabolism - after 6 days of calorie restriction, if you go over for a day, your get a little boost and your body is less inclined to hold on to the fat.

To those who think a free day leads the end of your diet - get over it. You wake up the next morning and it's back to the routine. Simple as that.

disappearingact206

I'm not trying to get ahead of myself (I've only completed 3 days on myfitnesspal) but I want to have a game plan for this weekend. I lost over 3 pounds this week and I feel like splurging a little bit.

Do you have "cheat days?" or "cheat meals?" What do you typically indulge in?

If you don't, why not?

In my opinion I think it might be too soon to allow cheat days....and a whole day us complete destruction! Take some time and discipline yourself, then try a small treat/snack and then work your way to a MEAL. One cheat meal a week....soon you'll see that u won't even want that! No pain. No gain. Good luck!

lauram1153

hi i'm on day six here and loving it. today is gonna be my first weigh in. when i was on "diets" before i always felt a cheat day was good for me. and thought tonight i'd be getting a takeawy and wine. turns out my hubby has to work and if i'm honest i'm not bothered about the chinese..now if you knew me you'd know that is amazing. now not saying i'll never have one i will if i want . i just feel that i'd rather be healthier. i will have treats sometimes rather than cheats but i feel this time could be a lifestyle change rather than that fated to fail diet..hope this is of some help please feel free to add me as a friend for sdditional support x

rocket_scientist

I don't do cheating but I have planned treats where I allow myself to go over my calories for the day but only if I have saved some from previous days.
This way I don't feel deprived but I'm not getting off track. Having full on cheat days turns into a downward spiral for me.

wonrob

If I have a cheat day I'll just binge on anything in sight..

So if I feel like a treat I'll eat it in smaller portions

iwillsoonbeslim

I've never understood 'cheat days'? In 3.5 years of losing weight, I've never felt the need to 'cheat' - just who would you be cheating?! lol My tastes and cravings have altered so much, that a real treat for me is a bowl of cheesy pasty, or, like tonight, I'm looking forward to a small Tesco pizza, with a mahoosive sald - Its 8 hours away, and I'm already salivating at the thought...and it's the SALAD part I enjoy the most!

Cheat if you like, but all you'll do is slow your losses and undo much of your good work. Much better to experiment until you find foods you can truly enjoy AND stay on plan :)xx

teens62

I have a free day, usually when I go shopping,, I will go out for a nice lunch, But usually try to make up for it on one of my other days, I try not to go overboard as too much good work canbe damaged, Taker easy,:::wink:

shanice_22

I don't have "cheat" days as such, but I tend to go over some days when I shouldn't and weekends are always naughty for me. Like today, I'm planning to go to pizza hut, BUT I actually haven't been out for a meal for a while, let alone gone out with my friends for a few months so it will be a nice little treat if my friends don't already have plans.

Mattymuss

Totally agree. I always relax my regime on a weekend and eat pretty much what I want and enjoy some beers. It definitely keeps you motivated and allows a long term diet to work. If you're calorie counting seven days a week, you're bound to have day when you go over the limit you've set. So allow a break in the diet rather than maybe beat yourself up about deviating from your chosen regime. So I think weekends off allow for a well earned break from dieting. Also, I'm convinced it allows the body some recovery as a low calorie diet puts a degree of stress on the body I think.

fteale

Nay

babyblake11

i dont believe in cheat days i believe in changing your diet to something you love and can stick with.
i still have a bulla frozen yogurt once a week and a lerice once a week. i love them but theyre not that bad for you. you should change your lifesttle not just aim for quick weight loss

xjlishey1

yes...I have cheat day..It is good to have that way you do not deprive yourself of the things you like and will most likely succeed on your weightloss journey

rosieposie24

I have cheat meals. It may some times have more then one in a week depending on what's going on. But really I'm more about a lifestyle change then about dieting. If you don't have "bad" food once and while you are going to start wanting and when you get your hands on it there is a chance that you are going to binge. Everything in life is about balance. If I am going out for the evening with a couple of girlfriends then I watch what I eat all week or that day to balance whatever I will be doing that evening. If I want a piece of cake, I'll have a piece of cake.

3LittleMonkeys

Nay

Neek170

I agree with some of the previos posts...This should be a lifestyle change for you and in the early days of the change we are still learning how to eat...I like to eat mostly healthy foods and I like to stay under or right at my calories...I do however have some days where I will go over my cals but not too far over... I personally don't think its healthy to cut out completely one group of food...its all about moderation. I like to stick to the serving size or half of, as you will find it helps to keep you on track...Ultimately you have to do what is correct for you and your change...

lmelangley

I don't like regularly scheduled cheat days because my life isn't that predictable. But, I like the sporadic cheat day - anniversary dinner with my husband, holidays, last minute get togethers with the "girls" (only 3 - 4 days a year). Generally, try to cheat calorie wise only once a month or so, and I still log my food. But, also give yourself some flexibility - my mother in law was hospitalized and I didn't track food for a couple of days. Didn't really hurt my progress because I was committed to getting back on track as soon as the crisis averted.

caroline150

I've employed a "free day" once a week since I first started. There's a twofold benefit: 1. psychology - you never have to feel like some particular food is off limits for the rest of your life; 2. metabolism - after 6 days of calorie restriction, if you go over for a day, your get a little boost and your body is less inclined to hold on to the fat.

To those who think a free day leads the end of your diet - get over it. You wake up the next morning and it's back to the routine. Simple as that.

Ding, ding, ding!!

knightke23

Wednesdays for me. Cause I have gym in the morning, soccer training in the evening, plus i have to run to and from soccer cause I don't have a license, so super exercise day allows me to splurge a bit without going over the limit. In fact usually I still have a couple hundred calories that i'm still 'allowed'!!
Oh and my spurge item: BANANA MILKSHAKE WITH EXTRA ICE CREAM mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

lmelangley

I agree with some of the previos posts...This should be a lifestyle change for you and in the early days of the change we are still learning how to eat...I like to eat mostly healthy foods and I like to stay under or right at my calories...I do however have some days where I will go over my cals but not too far over... I personally don't think its healthy to cut out completely one group of food...its all about moderation. I like to stick to the serving size or half of, as you will find it helps to keep you on track...Ultimately you have to do what is correct for you and your change...

:flowerforyou: Absolutely agree with this!

sarahliftsUP

I like to follow the 80/20 rule. Eat healthy 80% of the time, and for the rest of the 20% treat yourself. For example, this whole week I ate healthy so I allowed myself to have some of my mom's home made blueberry crisp. I find that this is helping me out mentally, and maybe even physically because it's keeping my metabolism up.

THIS!

And I hate the thought of the word 'cheat.' You can't look at food that isn't 100% nutritionally sound as a 'cheat.' Because that's when you might feel guilt for eating it, or put yourself down for having a cookie or a piece of cake. It's okay as long as it's within your alloted calories for the day. If you have to run a little extra on the treadmill or do an extra workout video for a piece of pie, then it's all okay! If you don't treat yourself once in awhile, you will feel restricted and then are more likely to binge.

zoodalia

Yes, yes and YES.

I've done 'I'm cutting everything unhealthy out until I'm thin' plans and I would give in every second day. Whereas now I have Friday each week and eat what I like, and I'm actually finding that due to my diet I'm eating less and less on my treat days anyway. It means I am happy, losing weight and still eating all the foods I love.

Good luck!

kjnicol

BUMP

UpEarly

Nope - I never 'cheat'. :-)

But... I do plan indulgences/treats into every day. Whether it's a donut on Saturday morning (like today), or a couple pieces of pepperoni pizza or a dish of peach ice cream after dinner, I always make room for foods I enjoy.

I'm working on losing weight slowly, so my daily calorie goal is higher than many other MFP members. But, it makes it easy for me to lose weight without deprivation or dieting. And so far, it's working really well! I've lost over 25 pounds since April 10th.

ninpiggy

I end up cheating and completely falling off the wagon, so to speak. I can't cheat because I can't stop, but then again, I seem to only be able to sustain super healthy eating for two weeks until I get burnt out and want something chocolatey or salty.

LorinaLynn

Once I hit my initial goal of 135, I stopped logging on weekends. I don't think of it as "cheating," just "normal living." And normal living for me includes pizza, boneless wings, alcohol and sometimes a donut or piece of cake. Some weekend days, I know I go way over my calories. Some weekend days, I'm way under, if I'm crazy busy active and/or have no appetite. It balances out.

I don't WANT to count calories the rest of my life.

stevwil41

I tend to relax a bit on weekends. I still try to stay within my limits but about every other Sunday I get together with friends and we eat out. If we go to a buffet I try to keep very small portions and sample a lot of different foods. I still eat too much but I've found that if I have a salad and a good size portion of veggies that a couple bites of mashed potatoes or mac and cheese will take the edge off any craving I have. I also plan ahead when eating out. We tend to go to chain restaurants so their nutritional info is usually online. I find that I can enjoy my meals more as long as I'm aware of what I'm eating. I also excercise a little more on my relaxed days. 30-45 minutes of walking or bike riding takes the edge off of any guilt that may be lurking:)

Jennwith2ns

I do a cheat meal about once a week, maybe twice. I don't plan it, simply because there is always something coming up where I need to eat out, happy hour, birthday party, etc. So I wait until that arises, or like this week when I have a day where I am just DYING for something.

MedievalFreak

I cheat once a week. I'm not exactly a vision of health right now, but when I was on WW a few years ago, I got down to my goal weight, and for a whole year I had Monday after Weigh In be my cheat day. I actually learned that if I didn't cheat, my metabolism would burn out and it became extremely difficult to lose weight.

So, cheating once a week, and going over my calories has always worked for me. I think it's called caloric cycling, and can be beneficial to healthy living. On the flip side, no matter how bad I am, or how much beer I drink, I log EVERYTHING. Seeing what you're putting in your body is the key!

Qarol

I'm a fan of cheat days. Some people are not. It gives me something to look forward to, so that my diet doesn't seem so miserable. I like having things to look forward to, whether it's food related or not. You do what works for you. However, I would not suggest a cheat day this soon. I build in cheat days once or twice a month. But cheating for me knocks me out of ketosis on my low carb diet. So it's a pretty big deal to decide to cheat, since it will be a few days before I'm back in it again.

SusM321

Nope. No cheat days/meals here. I eat what I want, when I want it. I truly believe it helps me feel like this is more of a lifestyle change than a "diet". I also don't feel resentful when I see someone enjoying something I like too. I think it helps with binging (sp?) because I don't have to wait for a certain meal or a certain day to have whatever I want. I've learned to eat serving sizes of things - everything in moderation.

Chevy,
I feel the same way. For me the word diet = denial, I just can't deny myself or I will binge! I grew up the "skinny kid" never dieted, don't plan on starting. If I have the urge to splurge, I try to counter balance that splurge with exercise (of which I have been way to lax on over the years). What I am doing/want to do is change my lifestyle and that's why I am here on MFP. Logging helps me keep on track and be accountable and eat responsibly. Thanks to MFP and all the wonderful folks on here it's working for me. Thanks to all you amazing people!!