Question for ladies using spike days...

Channing

Hello all!

I've just started incorporating a spike day into my week and it seems to be working, but was wondering about some of the parameters you all are using? How many calories do you go over on your spike days? Do you spike once a week? for just one meal, or a whole day? Would love some feedback!

netsirk12

sat and sunday I dont track but I still workout. I eat within limits but will sometimes eat things I wouldnt during the week. in 6 months I have lost 29 lbs doing this. If I track on the weekend what I would consider a spik day I am only 100-500 over in calories. Sometimes without trying u will still b where u need to be. Thats the goal for when u loose the weight that you will be able to maintain it and have a general idea of what u should eat within reason. I guess thats what I consider "spike" days.

rbbrrmqn

BUMP, as these are my questions, too! Thanks for asking and good luck!

rodneysmom98

bump

countdowntotarget

I take it a 'spike' day is like a cheat day ? - I normally just treat myself on one meal and thats mainly only bread or something similar

ldalbello

Monday through Friday I stick to my 1200 calories and do 20 minutes on the treadmill each day. On weekends anything goes. This weekend I drank alot of rum and ate alot of food I shouldn't. I have lost 34 pounds, so it's working for me.

dolphin9803

Every Friday is my spike day as we have movie night with our kids and it is homemade pizza, stomboli, pep balls. My kids love it and since I started this I didn't want to take it away from them...lol I track everything the morning of and try to eat just fresh fruit or veggies for that time to conserve as many cals as I can for the dinner, then dinner it is a free for all. I normally am over my cals about 400-500 cals for that meal. My workout stays the same that day too. This is normally the only spike day that I have. I say normally because sometimes I do fall off a little

RockChick1984

i have a spike day usually at a weekend, and i go over anythin between 500-1000... its good to know you can be naughty at least 1 day of the week to stop you going completely off track and feeling deprived... although some would argue there is a difference between a spike day and a cheat day... but i eat just whatever i want when i spike

lucybell333

I don't go as extreme as some people do (or at least I don't plan to, although it sometimes happens)! I work on the following weekly cycle:

Monday: 100%
Tuesday: 80%
Wednesday: 100%
Thursday: 90%
Friday: 110%
Saturday: 120%
Sunday: 100%

Where the percentages are of my average daily target calories(currently 1,325).

hongruss

I am not a lady but ONCE a week I will eat over my calories by 10%, I still eat healthy but just eat more. I normally eat what I like & just make it fit my daily cal limit.

Russ

sheilarosella

bump

Channing

I always try to net right at my bmr which is 1590, so on my spike days I've been going over around 500 cals. However I read somewhere that a true spike day means doubling your bmr, and I cant imagine that eating 3000 plus calories in a day is going to make me feel good.

TheLastBeginning

My calories jump all over the place. I usually try to eat 1200 but sometimes it is more, sometimes less. It has seemed to work well though.

Mrsairforce

I dont spike every weekend, usually if my husband wants to go out for sushi which is like once per month, and then I only spike the one meal, not the whole day. I keep my breakfast and lunch as normal as possible and then for dinner I eat but I don't over eat. I allow myself the two sushi rolls and some miso soup and I'm done

amaryllis88

When I first started being diligent about working out and watching what I eat (August 2011) I would allow myself to have 1 treat a week, and I'd designate a day, not only do I have a sweet tooth, I probably have an entire sweet mouth, it's my downfall, unfortunately. It would either be a meal or a sweet dessert that I would not ordinarily eat the other days of the week. It would be a whole day for me, that way I wouldn't limit myself that much, because from past experiences, limiting myself would cause me to binge eat and get off the weight-loss wagon entirely.

Good luck! It's difficult, I've been on loads of diets since I was 10 yrs old, so I'm quite familiar with the frustrations of all this. This one though is the first diet that I put my mind to do for myself, so I'm hoping that with this in mind I'll be more successful than I was before!

KatyE213

If you go over your calories by 500 on one day that just means you have no deficit for that day, as the default deficit on this site is 500 per day! So not really a spike day as such.

Sabineslims

I have heard to double your calories as well but I have not done it myself yet.
I read a lengthy article about it but I can't seem to find it again.
Essentially what I am trying to get at here is that I am of no use ha-ha but I am curious to learn more about this topic.
I think it is a little more involved than a 'cheat' day but I don't know the guidelines. I struggle sometimes to eat all of my calories ( I know, call me a weirdo!) and I can only imagine how it would be to eat nearly 3000.
The article I did read about it, there were many supporters.
I hit a bit of a rut myself and thought about carb cycling or throwing in a 'spike' routine but then I looked at my diary & noticed my carb intake was high while my protein was low. I began limiting my heavier carb consumption to breakfast and have seen some nice results I do have a carb for a snack or lunch here and there. I just began this but it really gave me the shove I needed. I already feel so much better rather than bloaty all the time.
I hope you find what you are looking for. I will keep up with this post b/c I am quite curious, too!

Channing

If you go over your calories by 500 on one day that just means you have no deficit for that day, as the default deficit on this site is 500 per day! So not really a spike day as such.

That's true... essentially the purpose of a spike/cheat day or meal in my mind, is to give your body those extra calories to trick it into losing fat. Maybe I need to go over maintenance cals in order to truly do that.

KellyBurton1

Are you talking about a "cheat" day or the actual program "spike"?

ashley67203

I'm not doing it now but I used spike days after I plateaued on my big diet last year. I'd lost 35 pounds and really wanted to lose five more but I was stuck and had been for weeks. During the spike cycle I'd eat <1,100 calories/day six days a week and go up around 1,700 on a spike day. It worked and I lost the five pounds. I didn't care for it much because I was hungry all the time and I think the one day of good eating only made the rest of the days suck more.

I eventually gained back ten pounds. There are lots of reasons for that and I think one of them is that I let the spike day make me think I could eat bad every once and awhile and get away with it.

lambertj

Here is what I do, I have to earn a spike day (or cheat day). My week starts on Sunday, to get a spike day I have to eat good Sunday thru Friday and I save my exercise calories from those days. I am allowed to have 1/2 of my exercise calories per week back on Saturday evening. It helps to keep me motivated to go to the gym and work my butt off every night and I know I will be rewarded at the end of the week. I also work out on Saturday so I get 100% of those exercise calories back.

worldhurdler

I read about a spike/cheat day plan from another MFPer, and it made a lot of sense!
1. Set your goals on MFP for a moderate loss (ex. 0.5lb per week, or -250cals/day)
2. 6 days of the week actually eat at a -500 deficient
3. On day 7, you will have "earned" 1500 extra calories to slurge with, but still be within your weekly weight loss goals of 0.5lb/week. That does seem like a lot of calories, but 2 beers or 2 glasses of wine (~400cals); one super-yummy favorite meal (easily ~800cals), and you're pretty much there! Your tummy gets a treat day, and you don't feel deprived!

However, I would not recommend making weigh-in the day after the spike day ;-)