Does anyone do a cheat day?

NCoursen

HI everyone!
Just found this site and I love it Anyway, I have been counting my calories and trying to work out more. Just wondered if anyone allows themselves a cheat day once a week? I only have about 10 or so pounds I want to lose and am currently eating about 1500 cal a day.

Thanks for any advice!

Tourney3p0

I can't speak for everyone, but I don't do any cheat days. If I want to go above my allocated calories, I spend some extra time in the gym. If I plan on going out that night, that might mean an hour and a half of cardio.

I find it's also helpful to do this cardio before going out so that I earn it before I use it. It keeps me from saying, "I'll just work it off tomorrow". All it takes is one time of not following through, and I've undone a few days of progress. Not worth it in my opinion.

hapoo100

I havent risked a cheat day yet. I am afraid I will fall back into old habits. Many people do them and think they are great. Im just scared. :blushing:

XoSaraoX

i do allow my self a cheat day every sunday i dont work. i dont go crazy but i allow myself to eat what i want within reason. I log everything though just so i know.. But i also do 1.5 ish hours of cardio 4 days a week.

danapellerin

Last time I did a cheat day it took me almost a week to start losing weight again. No more for me.

laineylynnfit

I absolutely do cheat meals but only 1-2 per week. I am careful about it because it IS easy to fall back into old habits! I have done that before but I'm never going back now


Oh and IF I feel like I overdid it on a cheat meal, I aim to do better. I have to remember that every day is a new day to eat right and work out

maddiedog22

I do a cheat day every Sunday. I eat what I want but I still log them. I do my normal workout and then the next day I do a bigger workout. I would go crazy without sweets. I have a slow weight loss but I am loosing weight

coraliethomas

im not ready to cheat yet... my cheat days are "not going to the gym" days... which is usually a friday or a monday. Im to scared to scarf it all down and completely blow it.

lschuttem

up until now I have always worked extra hard in the gym if i wanted to eat something extra. Yesterday I had a big cheat day (i ate almost 3000 calorie...around 1000 more than i should have) so i'll be watching my weight loss closely the next couple of days to see what happens next. I felt like the cheat day was worth it, but i'll know for sure when i see how it affected the scale. This morning I was up by over a pound but that could jut be water weight from the salty foods so we'll see!

HonkyTonks

I go over my TDEE at least one day out of the week.

SteveHunt113

I go over my TDEE at least one day out of the week.

Me too! Every Saturday. Hey, that's today!!! :happy:

TriedEverything

Yes, I generally take a Saturday as a "day off" from my eating plan. But lately I've tried not to get too "carried away" on my day off - I just have a few things that I wouldn't normally have through the week - and I don't bother to count or log them. I don't know if it's necessarily the best way of doing things, but it gives me something to look forward to, and stops me feeling deprived! I've still lost weight doing this, but I suspect I may have lost it faster without the cheat days!! :ohwell:

slkehl

I don't cheat on a regular basis. I only do so if its a special occasion, probably a couple times a month. Even then I try to eat lightly during the other meals of the day. But if we're going to do drinks, dinner, and dessert, I go for it! No fun to count calories then.

FORIANN

According to lots of stuff I've read cheat meals are probably helpful in the long term because they prevent your body from going into "holy crap we're starving to death" mode and you continue to lose weight. Also, it seems to me that most people that PLAN for a cheat meal once a week and indulge a little bit are happier and stick with it. Those that don't cheat (in my experience) tend to burn out....or they're just going to go through life foregoing a lot of happiness. It's life....live it. Tomorrow is my cheat meal and I'm pretty psyched. It's easy to pass on eating bad the rest of the week because I know I have one pass each week.

NCoursen

Wow...seems pretty mixed. Thanks eveyone, can't believe the support on here!!! Keep up the good work

Amberetta82

I do a "treat" day. Its on my kid free Saturdays every other weekend. I try to stay around my cals but if I go over I don't get upset. I tend to not eat breakfast on those days since I'm going crazy through the morning to get the kids up and over to their dads. I will treat myself with Chipotle or something like that for lunch.

DopeItUp

Every Saturday night. Helps keep morale up for the long-term and gives you something to look forward to. Plus most of my cheat calories are alcohol which is fun in itself

SteveHunt113

toho5555 wrote:
... Also, it seems to me that most people that PLAN for a cheat meal once a week and indulge a little bit are happier and stick with it. ...

Absolutely! That's what keeps my wife going; knowing she has a day to look forward to gives her more will power on the other days. It also reinforces the idea that you don't have to completely give up those things you like.

BTW, awesome profile picture!

SteveHunt113

Every Saturday night. Helps keep morale up for the long-term and gives you something to look forward to. Plus most of my cheat calories are alcohol which is fun in itself

"Like"

inside_lap

I totally have "cheat" days. However, my definition of a cheat meal is something totally unhealthy with ALOT more calories then I would normally eat during the week (ie, fast food without the healthier option or non-healthy option at a restaurant). However, I usually try to workout harder that day to help compensate for the increase calorie intake. AND I make sure I still fall within my allotted calories for the week. So really I try to make it a "splurge" instead of a "binge".

rubysphoto

I have a cheat meal every 2-3 weeks.

tinaruby

Last time I did a cheat day it took me almost a week to start losing weight again. No more for me.

I second that, I went out drinking with friends (actually my profile pic was taken that night) and I won't be doing that again until I hit at least a 40 lb weight loss. :-)

FORIANN

Last time I did a cheat day it took me almost a week to start losing weight again. No more for me.

I second that, I went out drinking with friends (actually my profile pic was taken that night) and I won't be doing that again until I hit at least a 40 lb weight loss. :-)

Do some more reading about alcohol calories vs other types of calories. It's not the same thing and something to be aware of.

sportyskylar

I do a cheat day every 2 weeks or so. girls get cravings for certain hormonal reasons.. i gotta satisfy them or people are gona see a grumpy meee :laugh: I work it off at the gym though!

BIGJIMMYU

I do one cheat day evry 3 weeks. Don't ask me why, it just works better that way. So long in between keeps me on the wagon.

eventualrainbow

HI everyone!
Just found this site and I love it Anyway, I have been counting my calories and trying to work out more. Just wondered if anyone allows themselves a cheat day once a week? I only have about 10 or so pounds I want to lose and am currently eating about 1500 cal a day.

Thanks for any advice!

I agree with Tourney; I do the same thing. Of course, I have a lot more pounds left to lose (156). I am currently eating around 1800 calories a day but that's because I've become more active since starting my weight loss plan.

rockerbabyy

i do a sort of cheat day - i use sunday as a day to make up for any exercise calories i didnt eat throughout the week. i never go over my weekly goal, though.

bshedwick

The only time I have a "cheat day" is when I do my long runs. On those days, I still log, but I can almost eat anything I want (within reason), and still not go over my calories.

ampa916

I just started my weight loss journey, but I don't think I will have like planned cheat days, Like my anniversary is coming up and we might do something special this upcoming weekend for it, but I will still have to be conscious of what I am eating and plan ahead and choose the healthier option.

bendybum

I have the odd cheat meal, but I make sure that I still log what I have eaten so I have to 'face it;. I have heard that it is helpful to rev up your metabolism as your body gets used to your calorie allowance.

Dilfster

sundays are my cheat days. That doesn't mean I go nuts though.