Cheat days, kill me!

Spiritwarrior3000

Hello guys,

Now it always seems that when i have a cheat day it always gets out of hand, i mean when i have some sweets after i've ate like 100g later i will crave more and more or maybe even want a take away later on. Now having this once aweek may seem ok, on average but the next day my cravin seems even stronger and it keeps knocking me off edge. i know i should learn self control but junk food is always made so one sweet leads to another. So i've decided im not gonna do junk days anymore they seem to pull me back and slow my results down, which makes me feel guilty.

Does anyone else find cheat days are more harm than good?

NS1216

I agree. I no longer have cheat days. If I go over one day by a couple hundred cals I dont stress but I make it up over the next few days before I allow it to happen again. I find allowing myself little indulgances here and there is a lot more rewarding. Plus all out cheat days just make me feel like crap since Im used to eating so healthy now.

NS1216

BTW try skinny cow candies and ice cream for your sweet tooth. And no more than one a day. ;-) That should help keep your sweet tooth at bay

BeckyLH

I went over by 600 cals yesterday by eating dessert and chocolate! It's a rarity for me but I've gained 3lbs on the scale this morning -sooo not worth it! Am hitting the gym this morning!

TheRealParisLove

Perhaps you can cook/prepare your own cheat meals from scratch? I love to make pizza and plan to make some on Sunday for my free meal. I even have the ingredients to throw together some fudge brownies. There is something visceral about seeing each and every ingredient that goes into the preparation of food that makes it hard to over indulge (for me). However if I get a restaurant meal, it is hard to tell what all went into it, I will mindlessly eat whatever is set in front of me.

FitBunnyEm

naaaaa, i never have vheat days cuz my one cheat day always turns into a cheat week which turns into putting on the pounds again! i always used to do it....now i treat myself with a can of diet coke or some pasta etc...nothing sweet....cuz my cravings go crazy.. x

TravisBurns

Pre-plan what you're going to have. I do that. It helps me evaluate how much I should have and what I maybe should cut out. You should always have a free day to eat whatever. 1-3 times a month never hurts anything.
It's all about moderation NOT deprivation.

XXXMinnieXXX

Try one savory treat meal per week... Thai green curry is my fav . U can exercise more that day to help with cals. X

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shezlar1

I dont do cheat days (never have) for me this isnt a 'diet' its a healthy eating regime... MFP is encouraging me to have a healthy eating lifestyle so I can eat healthy foods with a few treats chucked in (thats real life) When no foods are off limits I tend not to want to indulge as much if I allow myself to have a what i want when i want it ( within reason and always within my cals limit) there is no ned for a 'cheat day' who are you cheating at the end of it all only yourself. Happy Chowing x

m60kaf

Maintaining a healthy weight is about having a good relationship with food

To me cheat day is all about the thought processes that go on when you were fat. Don't get me wrong - eating excessively once in a blue moon at some celebration is fine - but saying every Saturday is pig-out day it's going to fail.

I was saying to my gym bud how a cheat day has for me turned into at worst a cheat meal ... last week I bought a 1500cal pork pie - I palmed a 1/3 off on him and ate the rest over two days - I think that is bad - but realistically hardly comparable to what some people seem to have on cheat days

smartmom0818

I am going to be honest with you, if I try to have one piece of candy, I am left unsatisfied. I tried it last week. I had 4 King Size candy bars in my freezer for me to pick off slowly as a treat. Well, two Kit Kat sticks led to 4, which led to both halves being ate and me having to log it in shame. Then I said f- it, the damage is done, so throughout the week I ate all the other. Unnecessary. Since I can't control myself around it just yet and I only eat it if it's in the house, I refuse to buy it. I won't let my husband buy me any candy either. I don't even want to see it because I felt so guilty about eating those empty calories that for the first time in my life, I didn't feel like chocolate was my friend, if that makes sense. I can eat a piece and still crave more, and that worries me. So, maybe no cheating with things you can't control, it just seems better that way. I haven't had or thought about candy since last week, and that is new for me. Hope this helps.

phoebeandralph

I agree. I don't have cheat days, because I would just go nuts on that day and eat a whole heap of crap food, then on the next days would find it harder to stick to healthy eating. I just eat healthily and have a little naughty treat every now and again.

EmmaM2211

I dont believe in "cheat days", why would anyone want to cheat themselves. I have what I want when I want IN MODERATION. If I want chocolate I'l have some (and I do....almost every single day!). My opinion is that if you have everything you want in your diet then you wont need to cheat on yourself, this is my diet for life, not for a short while while I lose weight, and I do NOT plan on giving up chocolate or KFC or anything else I love, I just cut down how often I have it and how much when I do indulge.

I do swap things I like with lower calorie alternatives though, like 1 square of dark chocolate (instead of a treat size bag of malteasers haha) or homemade southern "fried"(baked!) chicken. Making your own can cut the calories (not to mention the sodium!) drastically. xx

myeca77

I tthink cheat days are a necessary evil. If I don't have a cheat day once a week, I obess about junk food all week. Knowing I have something to look forward to helps keep me focused on my diet and exercise. Of course the cheat day has to be in moderation. If i even look at junk food for too long I gain weight...lol...I think pre-planning your cheat meals is a good idea. Grazing can get you in BIG trouble on the scale.

Good luck to you!

Pixie_star1234

I think you've got the whole cheat days concept wrong. Cheat days are not about eating whatever you want in whatever quantities you want, but you can indulge a bit. And of course, the more sugar and carbs you load yourself with, the more you crave.
And the worst bit... is that you will still crave them a couple of days later. So don't over-do it when you have a cheat day is my advice.

anniesaad90

i believe in little indulgences and still keeping to your calorie limit - there should be no such thing as an entire cheat day and anyone who does this is ill informed. it is all about moderation rather than deprivation.

kgb6days

I'm finding that if I have a cheat day, it takes me a week to get it back under control. I don't even feel like exercising for that week either, so I'm double set back. I'm not sure they are worth it.

Anna800

Cheat days can ruin a whole week of exercising.