Rest day every week?

I workout 6 days a week and i chose Sunday as my off day for exercise(super busy cause of church..plus its good to rest)...well i was thinking of having Sundays as my "cheat/eat normal" day...Of course i dont wanna go hog wild...just eat some of the things i deprive myself of throughout the week...does anyone else do this?...i wanna know what others think and do?

Replies

  • 86_Ohms
    86_Ohms Posts: 253 Member
    I try not to have an entire day dedicated to it, but twice a week or so I'll eat something out of the norm in some of my meals.

    I'm also not one to avoid going out with friends just because I know I'll have enough beers and wings to go well over my calorie goal, but that's just one meal. Too many like that and I'll just go back to being lazy and going towards the quick meals.
  • dlcarroll13
    dlcarroll13 Posts: 65 Member
    I workout 6 days a week and i chose Sunday as my off day for exercise(super busy cause of church..plus its good to rest)...well i was thinking of having Sundays as my "cheat/eat normal" day...Of course i dont wanna go hog wild...just eat some of the things i deprive myself of throughout the week...does anyone else do this?...i wanna know what others think and do?

    Yep I do it too...on Sundays :) It's my weekly weigh in day, rest day from exercise, and I allow myself a cheat meal as my family goes out to eat every Sunday for lunch or dinner. I have been pretty pleased with my progress so far, and this allows me to not feel deprived. Knowing that I have a treat coming on Sunday helps me to stay focused for the entire week.
  • FindingMyself24
    FindingMyself24 Posts: 613 Member

    Yep I do it too...on Sundays :) It's my weekly weigh in day, rest day from exercise, and I allow myself a cheat meal as my family goes out to eat every Sunday for lunch or dinner. I have been pretty pleased with my progress so far, and this allows me to not feel deprived. Knowing that I have a treat coming on Sunday helps me to stay focused for the entire week.

    I was thinking that if I did this to i would be able to focus more during the week and not cheat on my diet...thanks! =)
  • caitlinm924
    caitlinm924 Posts: 17 Member
    I work-out 7 days a week with 1 light day. For example, on my "light" day, I will just take a 30 minute 3.5-4.5mph walk. I'm in the beginning stages of my weight loss (2 weeks in / 10 lbs. lost), so I don't feel I've 'earned' a break day or junk food day yet.

    However, a few years ago when I was on WW and had lost 50+ pounds, I would take 1 day off a week from working out, and on a separate day have one cheat meal -- not a cheat day. It worked for me, but your best bet is to find what works best for you and your body! If you do a whole cheat day on the same day you are taking off from working out and you notice a weight gain, just switch it up :)
  • bethedney
    bethedney Posts: 2 Member
    While calorie cycling is great to keep your metabolism revved up...I would not recommend it to be the same day you don't work out!
  • zillah73
    zillah73 Posts: 505 Member
    I do four days on/one day off for workouts and my rest days are usually active rest days. As for "cheat" days/meals – I do have times when I will meet friends for a meal out and stray from my meal plan (just did brunch yesterday, actually) but it's not every week. I may go out to eat once every two to three weeks. It is just what I have determined works best for me.
  • FindingMyself24
    FindingMyself24 Posts: 613 Member
    I work-out 7 days a week with 1 light day. For example, on my "light" day, I will just take a 30 minute 3.5-4.5mph walk. I'm in the beginning stages of my weight loss (2 weeks in / 10 lbs. lost), so I don't feel I've 'earned' a break day or junk food day yet.

    However, a few years ago when I was on WW and had lost 50+ pounds, I would take 1 day off a week from working out, and on a separate day have one cheat meal -- not a cheat day. It worked for me, but your best bet is to find what works best for you and your body! If you do a whole cheat day on the same day you are taking off from working out and you notice a weight gain, just switch it up :)

    I was thinking that i should make my "cheat" on a day that i workout...just in case my cals are high..but i only plan on eating maintenance calories..hmmm def something to think about..i might keep it on Sunday and do a light workout..What do yall think?? light workout on cheat day??
  • laele75
    laele75 Posts: 283 Member
    I was wondering this myself. I don't have a rest day either. I have fibromyalgia and the first time I tried not working out, my body threw a flare tantrum. So on bad days I do a lot less, but my workout isn't superintensive anyway.

    I am trying to have a treat day today, and even after a trip to McDonald's with the kidlet, I'm not looking like I will go over. (It doesn't hurt he ate half my chicken nuggets and I have to watch my sodium even on my cheat day. But my son needs to gain weight, so he can eat my food any time he wants.) Maybe I'll be massively hungry later on, but I have more than earned it after going 55 days counting calories and exercising every day and having my special needs child home for the last week on spring break.

    I did my normal exercise today, if that helps.
  • fluffykitsune
    fluffykitsune Posts: 236 Member
    If you're ever going to eat in a surplus, do it on a day that you work out, to help your muscles.

    I personally do 3 days on, 2 days off but I'm still fairly active on rest days.
  • HereWeGoAgain7
    HereWeGoAgain7 Posts: 163 Member
    I am a lazy bum on Sunday's. Additionally, it is the one day a week I get to eat all three meals with my husband so I tend to go over on calories. I don't consider any days a "cheat" day since I view this as a lifestyle change, but Sunday's I cut myself more slack on the calories. The rest of the week I don't eat back all of my exercise calories. It seems to be evening out so far, but everyone is different.
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    I go by IIFYM so I never feel deprived. I go to the gym every day but I'm on a five day body part split so each muscle group has four days of rest and one day of training.
  • underwater77
    underwater77 Posts: 331 Member
    I am with what 86 Ohms said. I don't do cheat days, but I will indulge when I go out with friends for beers and burgers once every few weeks - and not feel the slightest bit guilty about it. For me, dedicating a day to "cheat" would end up disastrous.

    But if I was to have a cheat day, I would probably do it on a day that I go to the gym for sure.
  • caitlinm924
    caitlinm924 Posts: 17 Member
    I work-out 7 days a week with 1 light day. For example, on my "light" day, I will just take a 30 minute 3.5-4.5mph walk. I'm in the beginning stages of my weight loss (2 weeks in / 10 lbs. lost), so I don't feel I've 'earned' a break day or junk food day yet.

    However, a few years ago when I was on WW and had lost 50+ pounds, I would take 1 day off a week from working out, and on a separate day have one cheat meal -- not a cheat day. It worked for me, but your best bet is to find what works best for you and your body! If you do a whole cheat day on the same day you are taking off from working out and you notice a weight gain, just switch it up :)

    I was thinking that i should make my "cheat" on a day that i workout...just in case my cals are high..but i only plan on eating maintenance calories..hmmm def something to think about..i might keep it on Sunday and do a light workout..What do yall think?? light workout on cheat day??

    This is a great idea :) The other good thing about having your cheat day/meal on a workout day is if you feel bloated or "weighed down" after the cheat day/meal, you can get out there and sweat some of it out!
  • squatsandlipgloss
    squatsandlipgloss Posts: 595 Member
    While calorie cycling is great to keep your metabolism revved up...I would not recommend it to be the same day you don't work out!

    :drinker: