What do you think of a "cheat" day?

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  • KettyLan
    KettyLan Posts: 440 Member
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    in my personal exxperience, if i have a day off, i will tend to eat every bad thing that i have been craving for the rest of the week...

    what results is that the next morning, i have put on 2-4lbs, and i spend the next 3 days trying to shift that back off, and overall loose 1lb for the week if im lucky..

    i found that i spend the whole week that im sticking to my diet, just waitng for my day off, when i will totally over indulge.. where as without the cheat day, my mind gets around the new diet/excersise, and accepts it as a final decision, and i can just get on with it.

    I feel the same way.
  • FAVOLOSOMII
    FAVOLOSOMII Posts: 188 Member
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    Sundays are MY day. Most of the time I don't exercise, but I DO log my food in my journal. And if I blow all my calories in one meal, so be it.
  • Sandy2658
    Sandy2658 Posts: 20 Member
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    I don't think of this as a diet...I think of it as a life plan, so "cheats" don't exist. I allow myself to have whatever I want *in moderation*. (When my husband and I go out to dinner he keeps asking can I find something at a restaurant. I tell him I
    can eat anything...just not ALL of it.)
    If you're constantly telling yourself you can't have something, of course you're going to crave it. If you eat healthy, you'll find
    yourself craving the "bad stuff" less and less. Do I still crave chocolate...certain time of the month we all do (ok, not the guys). I have a Weight Watcher english toffee square and that is enough. When you see how far you've come and you feel pride (the feeling that was absent in fatter days) in your achievement, you really don't want to blow it...at least I don't.
  • blacksterbmw
    blacksterbmw Posts: 7 Member
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    If you are training hard with weights and plenty of cardio then 1 or 2 days a week will be good for you. I'd personally only go for 2 half days and eat everything you want as it will spike your metabolism and keep the fat burning, especially if you are being strict during the week.
  • brucedelaney
    brucedelaney Posts: 433 Member
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    I highly recommend a "bad day" It's how I've lost over 100lbs.

    1. It's guilt free
    2. You can really enjoy the food you're eating
    3. It's spikes up your metabolism
    4. Gives you a day to look forward to
    5. Balances out your hormones that go out whack from dieting
    6. Makes your following day workout better.
    7. It's fun and will NOT mess up your long-term weight loss.

    Here here, I actually bought Russell's book and have a cheat day every week. I feel great, and continue to lose 1.5 to 2.5 pounds weekly, in fact I just did the math the other day and I've been on my weight loss journey for 90 days with 2.6LBS average per week since I've started and 6 weeks have incorporated "Cheat" or "Spike" days.
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
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    I don't do cheat meals or cheat days. I eat what I want, whenever I want to eat it. I make sure that I have room in my daily calories for it (or I'll go workout so I will have room), I log it and then I choose something that gives me the most enjoyment for my calorie buck.

    I've found that being able to eat the treat NOW makes it feel less like diet and more like a lifestyle change for me. I would rather enjoy that treat today than have to wait for a set day to have it. Denying myself what I really love only leads to resentment and binge eating (for me, anyway).
  • Nursepoca
    Nursepoca Posts: 1
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    Not fan of the whole "cheat day" concept. Often the reason we have such a hard time loosing weight is our body has become dependent on the bad stuff we have been eating (basically addicted to carbs, sugar, extra salt). Get rid of the bad stuff, and the cravings that go with, and that's the biggest battle won. If you revert back, you run the risk of developing those cravings again, and destroying all the hard work you've done (basically, giving in to the addiction again). That being said, every once in a while, if I have a HUGE craving, I find a healthy item that is very close. Example, if I crave something sweet...I will have frozen fruit with sugar free whipped topping. Or, a cup of dark chocolate almond milk takes care of my chocolate fix, the fat in the almond milk controls cravings...don't know if that helps or not.
  • joseph9
    joseph9 Posts: 328 Member
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    What do I think of a "cheat" day?

    Well, it's very kind of you to offer, but I'm not that kind of guy, and in any case, I don't think my wife would go for it.

    Seriously: I track average calories for the week, and try to keep them in line without going too low. So if I have a 2300 calorie day, I might plan a few 1500 calorie days until I get back to an average of 1700.
  • NinjaTurtleDude
    NinjaTurtleDude Posts: 39
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    I believe in a little indulgence. A day off from exercise is perfectly reasonable, but I wouldn't have a free-for-all eating day. Instead of it being an entire cheat day, one cheat meal a week seems to work for me. I get to enjoy what I love, relax, and still stay slim.
    I hope this helps :)
    What she said
  • aosmith101991
    aosmith101991 Posts: 1
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    i would be okay with a cheat "meal" not a whole day....


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  • blacksterbmw
    blacksterbmw Posts: 7 Member
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    Its more beneficial in the long run to have a cheat day if you want to really see a change in body composition, its one thing to lose weight on scale but most of us want to look good naked and that's by lower body fat and more muscle tone, just eating what you want and staying inside calories will never achieve that look, sorry to be the barer of bad news guys
  • blueyeb
    blueyeb Posts: 85
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    I highly recommend a "bad day" It's how I've lost over 100lbs.

    1. It's guilt free
    2. You can really enjoy the food you're eating
    3. It's spikes up your metabolism
    4. Gives you a day to look forward to
    5. Balances out your hormones that go out whack from dieting
    6. Makes your following day workout better.
    7. It's fun and will NOT mess up your long-term weight loss.

    That's what I was thinking by a "cheat day" or a "bad day" being beneficial.... oh the irony! Maybe we should call it "indulgence day", lol :-)
  • flabulous4
    flabulous4 Posts: 599 Member
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    I don't see the problem with a cheat day or in cheating every so often...I'm close to goal weight and must admit I don't log food any more because I want to be able to make food choices without worrying, and it's still working.

    Lots of people on here will say that having an odd day over recommended calories, or not exercising for a weekend, will do you good - it's about what works for you, so try it and if it's not for you, you'll soon find out!
  • TheFitHooker
    TheFitHooker Posts: 3,358 Member
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    I do have a cheat day once in awhile but I usually beat myself up for it, I really don't like to have a cheat day because I fear if I cheat I'm going to slip back to my old ways.
  • SmartFunGorgeous
    SmartFunGorgeous Posts: 699 Member
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    Sundays are my rest days for workouts and everything else, so they are also my "cheat" days. I still log, and I usually still fall under, but those calories are not planned and thought out ahead of time like most of the rest of the weak. I'm trying to change the way I live, and so, for me, I'm not going to try to be perfect and not go over for the rest of my life. This has worked really well for me.
  • anthony008
    anthony008 Posts: 21
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    I plan my diet around 3-4 cheat meals a week, usually during the weekend. Friday night, Saturday night, Sunday afternoon and night (beer included.)

    I'm aware this isn't ideal for losing fat but I'm not on a diet, it's a lifestyle change. I simply know I wouldn't ever last by avoiding beer, wings, and pizza on Sundays or going out on the weekends. Bet your *kitten* I do some serious cardio Monday to feel less guilty though.
  • Russellb97
    Russellb97 Posts: 1,057 Member
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    I highly recommend a "bad day" It's how I've lost over 100lbs.

    1. It's guilt free
    2. You can really enjoy the food you're eating
    3. It's spikes up your metabolism
    4. Gives you a day to look forward to
    5. Balances out your hormones that go out whack from dieting
    6. Makes your following day workout better.
    7. It's fun and will NOT mess up your long-term weight loss.

    That's what I was thinking by a "cheat day" or a "bad day" being beneficial.... oh the irony! Maybe we should call it "indulgence day", lol :-)

    Exactly, cheat is negative. That's why I call it a "Spike Day"
    It's spikes up our metabolism, leptin, glycogen, mood, and results.
    It's a good thing to do, and far from "cheating"
  • npostma
    npostma Posts: 33
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    I think of it this way...

    This is a lifestyle change and although right now I am working to lose weight, I eat what I want when I want. I stay in my calorie goal. Realistically, life happens and some days, I won't be in my goal. That is ok because as "LIFE" continues, I am going to live it. So no, I don't schedule a day to "cheat" - if I "cheat" I am cheating on LIFE! Everyday is different and some days will not be as good as others.

    ~Nikki
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,835 Member
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    Cheat day for me is more of a carb refeed day. And I will have that on legs day normally. (for all the same reasons Russell said)

    Having said that, I follow the IIFYM style of dieting so I can eat pretty much whatever foods as I want as long as it fits into the macro goals each day. So I'm never really feeling like I need to "cheat" anyway.
  • mariapuhl
    mariapuhl Posts: 529 Member
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    I haven't read this whole thread but here's my take:

    I don't say "every Saturday is my cheat day. Gonna do whateverrrrr I want tooooo wooo hooooo"

    I just eat normally, healthy, all the time, and if a meal comes that I'm going to eat out, I enjoy it as a random cheat meal. Or this weekend, I know is Oktoberfest in town. I'll eat a sausage (or two!!) and have a beer. And I'll enjoy it. But I don't generally plan it. That's just setting yourself up for disaster. You'll binge more that day if you're always expecting it.

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