What do you consider cheating?

Rae6503

Having sex with another person.



Wait. What?

zaph0d

Cheating, to me, means straying from your plan or your rules.

MarineCodie

Last night I went to Red Lobster. I had 900 calories left... I know I went over and didn't log. I'm such a cheater! :ohwell:

Dcharnice

For me, there is no such thing as "cheating". It's all boils down to portion control. Where is it law that one can not partake in a sweet treat every now & then? Truth is (at least for me), when you try to completely ban something that you crave, you end up over indulging & then the guilt sets in.
If I crave it, I will eat it BUT in a controlled portion. Happy Fitness!!!

47Jacqueline

I don't cheat. I'm perfect. :bigsmile:

Actually, I may fall off the wagon, but I don't think of it as "cheating". It is more like sometimes life gets in the way and I don't eat the way I want to. But thinking that I'm "cheating" sets up the food I'm eating as something bad and therefore even more attractive for next time. Which is precisely what I don't need. I'm trying to get away from those kind of value judgments about the food I eat. It is healthier for me mentally.

I don't believe in cheating; only in making choices. Sometimes I make a choice to eat more than my weight loss plan and I live with that decision. As stated above, it is healthier for me to not put value judgments on my food intake.

Superskinnie36

I don't consider any of my weight loss journey cheating. Sure, there are better days than others but non of it is cheating. It is just another day, meal or bite of food in my life. There is nothing I can not have. There are only better choices to make.

Cheating myself would be not exercising,not tracking my food, or giving up.

I totally agree,

tragicpixie

A cheat day would be going over my cals with something that isn't healthy.

This for me. Sometimes I get stuck in situations and Taco Bell tacos are the best choice possible, while I try to avoid getting stuck in those situations I also don't want to not go out with friends, family, or avoid birthdays etc. I just go about my life making sure to make the best choices possible. If I eat something high in calories, I try to make it up the rest of the day. I'll either exercise extra or I'll have to try to limit my calories. For instance, thanks to a birthday yesterday where I spent the night with some friends, I have 300 something calories left fot he rest of the day. In the past I'd probably starve myself and make sure I absolutely do not go over calories, but I don't think that's healthy (feels to much like when I had a horrible ED). Instead, if I end up eating something reasonably healthy but end up over calories it will be a "cheat" day and that's okay.

I also don't usually eat my exercise calories so I figure I have a little room - and truthfully I'm often 100 or 200 calories under my daily calories on days when I'm super busy anyway. I'm pretty petite so I don't worry about that really (again, I'm sure I can make up for those calories in beer next time I got out anyway).

JesterMFP

I don't consider eating cheating. Maybe, like some others have said, if I altogether gave up trying to be healthier - I would think I was cheating myself then. That's about it though.

rudimae

Thanks for all the responses! I didn't mean for folks to get hung up on the term cheating. But it is something that I have struggled with. In the past I've had such an all or nothing attitude that "cheating" or making bad food choices or just going over my calories would have thrown me into a tailspin. Yesterday, I ate half a pizza. Today, I ate the other half. Yesterday, I remained within my calories because I exercised a lot. Today, I will not unless I manage to squeeze in some exercise before bed (not likely 'cause I have a ton of things to do).

I'm still fairly new to this site and still trying to change my mindset. The old me would have looked at eating the pizza as a failure. I am still having trouble looking at the net calories being red. But others have made good points...there have been many days that I have had excess calories at the end of the day. Even yesterday. And it's not like my overage is that big...less than 200 calories if I stop from shoving anything else in my mouth tonight.

I really understand this is not a great and healthy way to eat. But what I also need to learn is the world won't end because I went over. Nor will it totally derail my progress forever and ever. It's tough for me to find that balance and accept I won't always be perfect in my food choices.

bcattoes

I don't consider anything cheating. Some days I eat healthier than others. Some days I go over on calories, some days I'm under. I make sure there are not more overs than unders. None of it is cheating. It's just life.

JesterMFP

Thanks for all the responses! I didn't mean for folks to get hung up on the term cheating. But it is something that I have struggled with. In the past I've had such an all or nothing attitude that "cheating" or making bad food choices or just going over my calories would have thrown me into a tailspin. Yesterday, I ate half a pizza. Today, I ate the other half. Yesterday, I remained within my calories because I exercised a lot. Today, I will not unless I manage to squeeze in some exercise before bed (not likely 'cause I have a ton of things to do).

Whatever term you use, it's the attitude that bothers me. An attitude that so many people have towards food (myself included) that connects eating with wrongdoing, failure and guilt. Particular foods, or food groups get demonised, while others are deemed to be "good". All I can say is that it's not helped me get healthier (physically or mentally) in the past. Food is just food, and none of it is responsible for me becoming obese. No one day of overeating is going to make me obese again. It's about finding that balance and making sure that the choices I make most of the time are ones that support my health. I know that I'm not going to derail my weight-loss goals because I've learned to trust myself to stay within the (loose) boundaries I've set, and to not give up. That trust takes a little while to develop I think, especially if you've tried to lose weight before. I think that if you give it time, you'll find that it'll become less of a mental battle.

paulaviki

I only consider not logging food as cheating, because doing that means you are lying to yourself about how much you are eating. And that's what got md to be overweight in the first place! So as long asi track everything I eat, even if it's over at least I know why I didn't lose that week or gained.