Spike days... A most famous myth.

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  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
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    Do not imply that everyone lacks the self control to resume healthy eating after one meal/day off a week. Or, indeed, that these spikes are completely unregulated. Just because you lack the willpower, doesn't mean everyone else does.
  • bcampbell54
    bcampbell54 Posts: 932 Member
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    I'm not addicted to food. I can quit any time I want.
  • femmi1120
    femmi1120 Posts: 473 Member
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    Look. The fact that we needed MFP in the first place debunks the notion of rest day / cheat day / spike day. We're here cause we lost control. We're here cause we gave up control to food. We're here cause we're junkies.

    The notion of rest day / cheat day / spike day is just a weak excuse to fall off the wagon. It's like an ex-junkie celebrating shoot-up day. Or, an ex-drinker celebrating happy hour. You know how that goes.

    Take your spike days regularly and then wonder why your clothes size doesn't change. Or, wonder why your scale never moves. Yeah, go ahead and have that ice cream and then complain about it.

    We are junkies. We have to be above clean, beyond pristine. Either you have the will to beat that down. Or, you don't. Either you can live without it now. Or, you have to make excuses to dodge what it takes. Is it in you?

    So, who are you?

    My name is Brett. I'm a foodie who's been eating clean for two years.

    Spike day =/= cheat day. If you *plan* your day (as you do with a spike) and your weekly deficit remains the same, where's the "cheat"?

    I was at a six MONTH plateau, didn't lose a thing no matter what I did, just maintained. Started spiking, have been losing nearly every week, some weeks more than others (we all know weight loss isn't linear). My spike day contains some "junk" food *as well as* healthy food. Mostly I use it to enjoy takeout, specifically Thai, which I don't eat any other day of the week.

    And as an aside, I have suffered from binging in the past, and spiking has helped me control that in a way that NOTHING has for ten years.

    Don't confuse true spiking with "cheating" where people go all out without concern about the health of what they're eating *as a whole* and no concern about their weekly deficit. It's all about the forest.

    So, yes, I'll continue to have my spike days. And I won't have to wonder why my my clothing size doesn't change or why the scale doesn't move. And why's that? . . . Oh yeah, because they're both changing, for the better.

    ^In other words, there is no cookie cutter plan for everybody. Don't assume it's your way or the highway. Spiking DOES work for some people, especially those of us who don't want our lives to be ruled by calorie counting and our food choices each and every single day. If you've managed to do that for 2 years, that's great, but that doesn't mean it's for everyone. For some, spike or even cheat days (there IS a difference) is what keeps them from giving up on weight loss altogether.
  • Alifall414
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    To: Pu_239: By the looks of the pics you posted. You had great results overall!

    I have done low days and high days to zigzag, same calorie amount overall for the week, and had great results.

    Do what works for you. If it doesn't work, try something else.
  • jdawson1
    jdawson1 Posts: 14
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    That was harsh, but I loved what you had to say so much, that I am going to copy, print and post on my fridge.
    Thanks for sharing that!!!
  • Charloo1990
    Charloo1990 Posts: 619 Member
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    Maybe thats your own personal experience but i didnt join MFP because i "fell off the wagon". I joined because someone told me about the site and having always count my cals i thought what better way of doing it so signed up.
    I like my food yes but im not a food addict. I have treat day every saturday and i eat what the hell i like. This hasnt affected my weight loss at all. Since being on this site i've lost 18lbs and thats based on having a day off every week, sometimes i have the whole weekend off and still lose weight. I don't believe in depriving myself of everything cause otherwise i'd be more prone to binges. I've dropped a size since joining this site so maybe ur theory is right for you but definatly not for me and im sure its the same for many others. I earn my treat days hence why i call it treat and not cheat.
  • cannonsky
    cannonsky Posts: 850 Member
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    I think its ridiculous for you to project your unhealthy relationship with food onto everyone else's diets... If you can have a piece of cake and still lose weight... why the hell not? If you can't have a piece of cake without going crazy.. then don't... it's as simple as that. People need to pay more attention to THEIR BODIES and THEIR relationship to food and stop telling other people what they should do. It's one thing if a person has an unhealthy habit like compulsive over or under eating and wanting to help them... but like it's been said... not everyone treats food like its heroin... and so you can't make that generalization and make the bold claim that because I eat what I want on Sunday's I'm basically like an addict relapsing. I'm not going to OD on cookies. You have to figure out what works for you.
  • kimdoes
    kimdoes Posts: 90
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    Hey Brett, I'm Kim. I've been eating clean for only a little over a month. I don't have cheat days but cheat moments. The other night I wanted a dunkin stick so bad, but when I saw that it would remove half of the calories I burned during boot camp, I changed my mind. I agree with you a good bit, but I also believe that some people have more willpower than others. I am a strong person, but when it comes to food I am weak. This is why I can't do an entire cheat day. It would blow everything I've been working hard to do. God knows it goes on so much easier and prettier than comes off. :)
  • hot_sauce_88
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    I have "cheat" days and I'm down 50 pounds. I also was an alcoholic and I now have a drink every now and again. It's all about control in the big picture
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
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    Look. The fact that we needed MFP in the first place debunks the notion of rest day / cheat day / spike day.
    No it doesn't.
    We're here cause we lost control. We're here cause we gave up control to food. We're here cause we're junkies.
    The solution doesn't have to be complete deprivation, for many that makes one more likely to relapse.
    The notion of rest day / cheat day / spike day is just a weak excuse to fall off the wagon.
    No it isn't
    It's like an ex-junkie celebrating shoot-up day. Or, an ex-drinker celebrating happy hour. You know how that goes.
    Food in moderation != heroin
    Take your spike days regularly and then wonder why your clothes size doesn't change. Or, wonder why your scale never moves. Yeah, go ahead and have that ice cream and then complain about it.
    Thanks for the permission, that's what I was waiting for.
    We are junkies. We have to be above clean, beyond pristine. Either you have the will to beat that down. Or, you don't. Either you can live without it now. Or, you have to make excuses to dodge what it takes. Is it in you?

    So, who are you?

    My name is Brett. I'm a foodie who's been eating clean for two years.
    Maybe you have to be that way, I don't.

    I'm a foodie who still eats food I enjoy, just less of it.
  • carrietehbear
    carrietehbear Posts: 384 Member
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    Really you mean I can't lose weight and have rest days? And I can't have days where I don't care about the calories? Then someone please explain how I lost 33 lbs so far?
  • harrietlg
    harrietlg Posts: 239
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    i feel like i'm being told off for eating or drinking more once a week :/ it works for me and a lot of other people even my trainer told me to do it ! if i didn't have a spike day i wouldn't still be here nearly half way to my goal. Were all entitled to our own opinions it just annoyed me that this annoys you, we all eat healthy the rest of the week, this is a moderation lifestyle not a diet
  • Beastette
    Beastette Posts: 1,497 Member
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    Bollocks. Not everyone is alike, not everyone here has the same goals.

    In Communist Russia, the days spike YOU.
  • Charloo1990
    Charloo1990 Posts: 619 Member
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    I think its ridiculous for you to project your unhealthy relationship with food onto everyone else's diets... If you can have a piece of cake and still lose weight... why the hell not? If you can't have a piece of cake without going crazy.. then don't... it's as simple as that. People need to pay more attention to THEIR BODIES and THEIR relationship to food and stop telling other people what they should do. It's one thing if a person has an unhealthy habit like compulsive over or under eating and wanting to help them... but like it's been said... not everyone treats food like its heroin... and so you can't make that generalization and make the bold claim that because I eat what I want on Sunday's I'm basically like an addict relapsing. I'm not going to OD on cookies. You have to figure out what works for you.
    Too bloody right, couldnt have put it better myself :happy:
  • nnylee
    nnylee Posts: 814 Member
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    Mmm, I just had ice cream. It was delicious.
  • onedayillbeamilf
    onedayillbeamilf Posts: 966 Member
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    Look. The fact that we needed MFP in the first place debunks the notion of rest day / cheat day / spike day. We're here cause we lost control. We're here cause we gave up control to food. We're here cause we're junkies.

    The notion of rest day / cheat day / spike day is just a weak excuse to fall off the wagon. It's like an ex-junkie celebrating shoot-up day. Or, an ex-drinker celebrating happy hour. You know how that goes.

    Take your spike days regularly and then wonder why your clothes size doesn't change. Or, wonder why your scale never moves. Yeah, go ahead and have that ice cream and then complain about it.

    We are junkies. We have to be above clean, beyond pristine. Either you have the will to beat that down. Or, you don't. Either you can live without it now. Or, you have to make excuses to dodge what it takes. Is it in you?

    So, who are you?

    My name is Brett. I'm a foodie who's been eating clean for two years.

    :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: .....unless this is a serious post. If that's the case, I change my response to :huh:
  • raisingbabyk
    raisingbabyk Posts: 442 Member
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    I've lost all my weight enjoy many cheat days. But I control myself enough to be able to not do it every. single. day. and fall off the wagon. I'm sorry if you can't do that, but it doesn't mean cheat day are a myth.:happy:
  • cannonsky
    cannonsky Posts: 850 Member
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    In Communist Russia, the days spike YOU.

    HA
  • Sox90716
    Sox90716 Posts: 976 Member
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    Brett, run your own race.
  • myfitnessnmhoy
    myfitnessnmhoy Posts: 2,105 Member
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    Look. The fact that *I* needed MFP in the first place debunks the notion of rest day / cheat day / spike day. *I'M** here cause *I* lost control. *I'M* here cause *I* gave up control to food. '*I'M* here cause *I'M A junkie.

    ^^^^^ ftfy (fixed that for you)

    Different people regain control over their food differently. If being obsessive works for you, then I'm very happy for you that you've found your path. But this isn't like a religion where you either believe in the One True Entity (or set of entities) or you're a heathen. We're all here to lose weight (edit: technically, that's not true - most of us are here because we want to lose weight, some people just want to learn about food, and others just want to ogle before-and-after pictures), but this site is a set of tools that can support many paths to the same goal.

    We're all adults, and by and large we're all here because we've shown that we're perfectly capable of making our own decisions and just want some tools to make the decisions a little easier.