Cheat Day vs. Cheat Meal?

AJs_Journey

I do one thing in a week that I do not track. For me its after I recored my weight on Saturday. I have a really nice dessert after dinner and a french vanilla cappuchino. This way I don't feel deprived of the things that I love. Other then that I stick to it. Hope you find what works for you!:happy:

dawLs

i think it depends on what works best for you. also it depends on what your idea of "cheating" is. some people see it as a dessert, or maybe a meal they normally wouldn't choose, like a hamburger and fries or something. in my opinion, things like that might keep you sane!
i find it really hard to just have a cheat meal because i tend to just keep going! haha. i normally eat really, really healthy though, so if i have a full day of cheating then it really doesn't affect me too much.
i say, try and find a good balance that will keep you happy and committed.
good luck

gregavila

What defines the meal itself being a cheat, rather than the day?

Simple... if I had a cheat day I could easily eat 3000-4500+ calories and turn it into a true binge day (food, drinks, etc.). By having a cheat meal, I limit my overage for the day. Yes, I am still over but the fact is a single meal isn't likely going to cause eating two days worth of calories.

The world isn't as black and white as you seem to make it out to be (over vs. not).

princeza9

I don't really have cheat days or cheat meals, but I don't deprive myself either. For example, I really wanted spaghetti carbonara one night, so I made it myself- whole wheat pasta, fat free half & half, egg beaters, turkey bacon (that I just happened to have on hand) and low fat mozzarella cheese since I'd forgotten to pick up some Parmesan. Like others have said, it's all about moderation.

That said, if I ever get to any of Tyler Florence's restaurants- calories will NOT be counted. And a great time will most definitely be had.

kschmi24

I don't ever plan a cheat day or a cheat meal. I think if you plan appropriately and factor in food that is not necessarily healthy in moderation without going over your calorie goals, that is the best route. Like today I wanted some ice cream, so I worked out a little more to have it, but I wouldn't call it cheating since for me, the only thing that is off limits is over indulgence or not meeting my goal for the day (and technically meat, since I'm a vegetarian!). I don't say "I will never eat peanut butter cups but one day a week on my cheat day" because then I'd go all the time thinking about PB cups or when I do decide to eat PB cups on my "cheat day", it would probably turn into three or four since I was depriving myself of something I really liked all week or month. I'm not good with self control so it just doesn't work for me to have off-limit-except-on-cheat-days foods.

Of course that is my opinion. . . I just don't like to get in the habit of rewarding myself with food or getting off track, because I know myself---if I get out of the habit of every day being careful about what I eat, I slip very very easily. But if you are able to meet your goals with one day out of the week or month where you do whatever you want, then more power to you! Experiment and see what works best for your lifestyle and your body.

carolemack

I had what I considered my "cheat meal" last night after my WW weigh-in. It was the first time this year that I had something I considered a 'cheat'. A friend took me to White Spot for dinner and I had my favourite...a Beef Dip with fries.

I knew that I was going out for dinner so I was very careful during the day. At dinner I ordered the small size and only ate 1/2 the fries. I logged it all in my diary. Today I did twice as much exercise than I normally do and will try to do that for the next couple of days.

I have consistently lost every week this year so I doubt that I will have done much, if any, harm and I enjoyed it immensely! I really think giving myself permission to do that will help me stick with this new lifestyle change.

neverstray

Big believer in cheat days. Keeps me sane. I don't go crazy. I learned that lesson, but I allow myself to not count and just enjoy the day. Usually Sundays.

chrisdavey

It's only a "cheat" if you don't log it IMO.

Planned spike days are a good idea to give leptin levels a boost. This means eating at around maintenance or above for the day.

So if you were to have a single meal that you deemed to be a cheat but were still in calorie deficit then that is defeating the purpose of the "cheat". It still helps psychogically however.

So I eat whatever I want that fits into my cal/macro goals. The body sees macro/micronutrients not food names.

adamsilva

It's only a "cheat" if you don't log it IMO.

Planned spike days are a good idea to give leptin levels a boost. This means eating at around maintenance or above for the day.

So if you were to have a single meal that you deemed to be a cheat but were still in calorie deficit then that is defeating the purpose of the "cheat". It still helps psychogically however.

So I eat whatever I want that fits into my cal/macro goals. The body sees macro/micronutrients not food names.

^^^^ What chris said. i do the same.

Shedding4Wedding72

I have always given myself a cheat day on the weekend. My feelings on the situation is that if ONE day ruins all the work that I do all week, then im doing something seriously wrong. Also, im on a 1600 calorie/day diet, so when I say cheat day I mean I probably eat 2000-2500 calories/cheat day. Which is the average persons every day calorie count. I cheated every single weekend, all day long, and still managed to lose 45 lbs from february - august last year. Not to mention im disabled so my workouts are toned down a bit from limitations and pain. And my last point --- Dr Oz talked about cheat days a week or 2 ago and he said he has Faturdays (Fat Saturdays) where he eats whatever he has craved the entire week. Its healthy and perfectly normal. I think never allowing yourself a cheat something is just a diet set up for failure. However, this is just my experience and my opinion. You do whatever is best for you. Good luck

Thank you so much for your opinions and support everyone. I took all of your opinions into account (especially the one above about Dr. Oz's Faturdays! (Brilliant!) and I made up my mind and had a cheat day instead of meal today.

Good and bad came with that.

Good: I chose to have Panda Express this evening instead of a whole order of my local burger shop's cheesy fries and a burger, because I was too guilty about eating that many calories today. That is something I NEVER would have done before.

Bad: I already notice my body and my energy lulling. I never thought that my guilt would get to me like that, because I have never been guilty about eating a food before (which is probably why I am 100 pounds overweight).

So long story short, I'm glad I did a cheat day, because it taught me that from now on, I am going to have a cheat meal instead.

kkrondon

Cheat meal...don't throw away the entire day. You might undo all the work you've done that week if u have a full day of cheating.