Cheat days vs no cheat days

Aerohead21

Oh, and it doesn't help I am planning a trip to the zoo tomorrow and I have nothing to take to eat and they don't offer healthy selections.....stressing over tomorrow already!!

mzhokie

I don't know if you call it a cheat day if I can still keep it with a 500 calorie deficit....... that's with eating exercise calories back. I think I have only once since I started keeping track ate more than I burned on any given day. I'm not totally sure since those days consist of eating things that is hard for me to enter since I don't know totally how it was prepared.

What I do is try to eat clean as much as I can for the majority of the time. We love to eat out on the weekends. I told myself this time I was going to figure out how to lose weight and still live like I have been living. So I wasn't going to give up our going out. Instead I learned how to make smarter choices and work on portion control. I also work out since I know I'm going out.

I would get a pedometer if you don't have one so you can see how many calories you really do burn during the day. That really does help me out. I use a Fitbit which syncs here and gives me my exercise calories. I make sure I net at least 1200 calories so I have to eat some or all of those exercise calories back. I like to have those extra calories at least one night a week so I don't have to worry about what I order as much. I do think it's good for me not to be hovering at 1200 net every day.... I don't do anything drastic mind you but I eat almost all of my exercise calories back so I net the 1410 that MFP gives me.

You have to figure out what you are happy with. If there is a lot of stress going right now, make sure you get your exercise in. Exercise helps so much with stress and anxiety. It's just such a good release and will help you mentally too. I know that when I was going through some family drama, I would do about an hour on the treadmill every morning to just to let me mind go blank for a little while.

I also about once a month enjoy myself to the point where if I am one calorie below what I burned for that day, it's a huge success. There are always special occasions that come up or events where you don't want to worry about it. I don't lose sight of what I'm trying to do. Those days, those special times, I think more about maintenance because once I'm done I am going to need to maintain. So practicing maintenance at times is just as important as sticking to your limits.

It's good you could take time off, not gain too much and then get it back off. Give yourself credit for what you have done. Learn ways to deal with the drama, stress, etc. so it doesn't effect your diet. Maybe with all the drama you need to eat a little more calories... like just 100 or 200 more.... go to 1400 a day. Just for a little while. Then drop back once you feel like you have it under control. Just a thought.

mzhokie

Oh, and it doesn't help I am planning a trip to the zoo tomorrow and I have nothing to take to eat and they don't offer healthy selections.....stressing over tomorrow already!!

Eat healthy before you go.... a good breakfast with eggs, some high fiber toast, turkey sausage or veggie sausage. This will stick with you for a long time. Put a protein bar or some almonds in a ziploc bag for your purse. Drink lots of water. Smart snacks really help to keep you from getting hungry and eating the bad stuff. If they search your bag tell them your diabetic and you must maintain your blood sugar! It's not a lot they usually let you take it in.

Is it just you and the kids or a big group going to the zoo? Can you get away for 15-20 mins to walk around the place by yourself to burn some calories. I know at an amusement park you could walk while they are on a ride but not sure what situation you are in at the zoo. Just keep moving.

Aerohead21

At least me and my 2 yr old, maybe one other adult friend with no kids. Either way, my son keeps me on my toes. He likes to run like a maniac. I'm actually not worried about the exercise part tomorrow because the zoo is so big and I will have to lug everyhing around and push the stroller some of the way. I'm actually just concerned with the food. I could stop at the store and stock up on some of those healthy things....I have to go to the store anyway so I might as well do that early and then go to the zoo good planning! See, I need to develop that social support system and maybe this wouldn't be so hard!

Aerohead21

I think I need to incorporate the not so healthy stuff in every once in a while. MFP has me set to 1200 because my exercise levels are so low and my weight loss goals are 2 lbs a week. It's too much at the moment and I just know if I did this for another 10 months I'm going to blow it. That is just too hard for a lifestyle.

chevy88grl

I think I need to incorporate the not so healthy stuff in every once in a while. MFP has me set to 1200 because my exercise levels are so low and my weight loss goals are 2 lbs a week. It's too much at the moment and I just know if I did this for another 10 months I'm going to blow it. That is just too hard for a lifestyle.

Have you considered lowering your weight loss goals per week? If you were to go from 2lbs to 1lb per week, you would get more calories per day. Having more calories each day would allow for a treat. Most people find trying to do this all or nothing doesn't work for very long. You begin to feel cheated, resentful and downright angry that you can't enjoy at least SOME of the things you once loved. Finding a comfortable balance in your eating will help. I've found as long as I eat healthy 80% of the time, I'm content. I get to eat the things I enjoy the other 20% of the time and it keeps me from wanting to binge eat.

Aerohead21

Yeah, I have considered it. It would make the food part more manageable.

ChicoKass2010

It is absolutely essential to have a cheat day(s) or whatever you want to call them to sustain weight loss. Who wants to live never eating a chip, cookie, cake, pizza, or fried chicken again? That's a miserable existence. So whether you choose to have 1 cheat day or 2, or just 3 cheat meals a week, or small treats every day, it's necessary.

rapt1

Cheat days, cheat meals.. Think one poster said it, go by a weekly goal. So if your daily goal is 1200 calories a day then cut it to 1100 then on day 7 you will have 600 extra calories if you want that cheat day or meal.

The key for myself was litteraly drinking 60-80 ounces of green tea a day at least. So I'd get hungry, drink my tea any maybe have a piece of cheese. I was eating under 1k calories a day, lifting heavy 3 days a week and swimming 2-3 days a week.. so in retrospect with my lvl of activity I would never drop that low or maybe not drop that low for a great length of time again because at the end my weights to a fast drop and thats where I lost a lot of muscle.

losingthehealthyway

For me it's important to enjoy food! I make room in my calorie count for a little comfort food every single day, and I am giving myself one flex day a week to NOT count calories. It's not that that's a binge day or a "cheat" day. It's just to give my brain a break from counting calories so I can enjoy eating meals with my family! Those days will help me learn to recognize fullness so that when I'm done losing weight, I can maintain without obsessing over calorie counts.

This is a lifestyle change, not a diet. I am looking to lose 20 pounds over the course of 7 months, so I can learn tools to keep my weight in check ALL the time. That's why flex days are important to me.

patranus

A meal here and a meal there is irrelevant in the long run of things.

It is all about getting into a healthy lifestyle. Making the right choices day in and day out. Know what a tablespoon of something actually is. Once you stat to live the "healthy' lifestyle the rest will take care of its self cheat meal or not.

People get so focused on a single meal or day they lose sight of the big picture.
The point is to create a long term shift in lifestyle and a trend in calorie consumption/exercise.

Weight loss and maintenance is a long term proposition. No single day or meal is going to make or break it.