One cheat day?

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mazecraze30
mazecraze30 Posts: 30
in Health and Weight Loss
Is it ok to have one cheat day? I usually have this on the weekend but im not sure if its ok or not. I cant really track the calories of local restaurants but I know im over for sure some times. We usually eat out saturdays. So, will it hurt to have one cheat day each week?

Just calculated my calories by estimating since local restaurants are not in the database and there is no info at the restaurant. I came out to 1455. I usually eat 1200 a day. Is it ok for once a week? This wouldn't worry me usually but lunch alone was a lot of food and I have not been able to work out this week since I haven't been feeling well.

Replies

  • zoeluiisa
    zoeluiisa Posts: 392
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    If it's just a question of going over by a couple of hundred calories at the weekends, why don't you eat forty less on weekdays so your weekly average is still correct? I'm not sure if it's recommended, but I do it all the time ;)
  • Toddrific
    Toddrific Posts: 1,114 Member
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    So, MFP calculates you eating at a deficit. Depending on your settings you probably have 200 to 500 calories before you are eating at maintenance.

    The question is really is it worth all the effort you put in during the week to go off the wagon on the weekend. If its just a little bit, no big, (ie cheat item, or cheat meal) but if its cheat day, you are just taking 2 steps forward one step back.

    I personally eat what I want, otherwise I tend to have an explosion of eating everything in sight.
    --
    summary: going over a few hundreds calories isn't going to harm anything. if a cheat meal/day exceeds 1000...dont do it =P
  • cpettigrew
    cpettigrew Posts: 168 Member
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    I do a full cheat day per week. usually saturday. I eat what i want, just at small portions. If i eat out on Friday, standint tradition at work, i just dont cheat on saturday. if you deprive yourself of what you want, it will only get worse as time goes on. you may also notice if you maintain a strict diet during the week, by your cheat day, you will have less and less interest in your "cheat foods" as time goes on. i have been maintain this round of diet/exercise religiously for 4 months (a record for me, i get bored easily), but have noticed i have lost my taste for fried/fast foods.
  • BlaireV
    BlaireV Posts: 137
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    The outcomes of a cheat day depend on how many calories you consume overall, and how often you do them. I "cheat" on special occasions and it hasn't stalled my weight loss at all. 2 weeks ago I ate around 3000 calories in one day, and proceeded to lose 2 pounds that week. Today is Easter Sunday, (hence a lot of food/desserts in my family) and I've already roughly logged my food for the day, which came just over 3000 calories. I expect to see a loss this week because I've been in a deficit for 2 weeks. It's the overall that matters, not one day. Letting go for a day every once in a while is good for you mentally, and some would even argue it has metabolic advantages :)
  • kbmnurse
    kbmnurse Posts: 2,484 Member
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    Don't care if ok gotta have it.

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