How often do you cheat?

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2

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  • WhatAgirl_
    WhatAgirl_ Posts: 151 Member
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    I don't really plan and cheat but usually during my period week I become a MONSTER and I murder a lot of chocolate. like for example this week. ( YOU DONT WANT TO SEE MY DIARY) ....but I have to say I have always been like this and I never gained weight. infact I see weight loss results at the end. you just have to make a healthy life choices in general. just because you cheat doesnt mean your whole weight loss wont work. you need to balance it with other stuff like exericse, drinking a lot of water, and not making it a habit or just eating excess every single dayy... watching your micro-nurtients and balancing every thing will help a lot too!
  • veganbaum
    veganbaum Posts: 1,865 Member
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    I don't "cheat." Yeah, I don't like that word, but I know for others it works well to call it "cheating." I do, however spike. Every Saturday I eat 3,000 cals. Works for me. I am not one of those for whom daily moderation works well. Spiking keeps me happily on track during the week and allows me to completely enjoy eating my entire plate of Thai food on Saturday if I want to.
  • Lizzym911
    Lizzym911 Posts: 301 Member
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    On Saturday my weigh in day i go to lunch with the family or to a party, i don't deprive my self on that day but i do portion control, maybe a bite or two of the things i like the most. There's no way I couldn't have one day to do this. this is my life and its not about depriving myself from living. losing weight and eating healthy doesnt have to be a punishment.
  • Spanaval
    Spanaval Posts: 1,200 Member
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    No food is off limits, and I eat everything I want, every day, as long as it fits my macros. So, either I'm cheating all the time, or never, depending on perspective.
  • Briantime
    Briantime Posts: 175 Member
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    Don't know if it counts as cheating, but I have days where I eat things I know I shouldn't be eating, but I log eerything and I always excercise enough to get the number back in the green. Does that count as cheating?
  • wftiger
    wftiger Posts: 1,283 Member
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    Once a month but never go over on calories. My "cheats" may be over on sodium or carbs for that day but calories is non-negotiable. That I stay at or under.
  • slim104
    slim104 Posts: 160
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    I don't call it a cheat, I call it a treat. I then view it as a reward for my good behaviour rather doing something naughty. Bit childish but it keeps me on track. My treat is a bag of maltesers every week.
  • insectseige
    insectseige Posts: 28
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    I don't "cheat." Yeah, I don't like that word, but I know for others it works well to call it "cheating." I do, however spike. Every Saturday I eat 3,000 cals. Works for me. I am not one of those for whom daily moderation works well. Spiking keeps me happily on track during the week and allows me to completely enjoy eating my entire plate of Thai food on Saturday if I want to.

    This would be me too i suppose - I'd never see it as 'cheating' as I may spike 1 day a week but will always end up within my weekly calorie goal. It usually involves a bottle of vodka too
  • Owlie45
    Owlie45 Posts: 810 Member
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    Wednesday is cheat night in my house. Ive done it a couple times now but I find that my will power is weaken for the next day. So now I don't do it. Plus I got my August 10lbs goal and I don't want any set backs no matter how minor.
  • cbevan1229
    cbevan1229 Posts: 326 Member
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    Never - my husband would leave me.





    Oh - you mean on my diet? I can't cheat on my diet, it's "MY" diet - I wouldn't be fooled.

    If I want to eat something high in calories, I just plan for it and/or accept the way it will affect my progress.
  • ravenchick
    ravenchick Posts: 345 Member
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    I just eat whatever I'm hungry for and fit it into my calories. It's all about portion control. That way I never have to cheat and feel guilty for doing so.
  • miss_ally08
    miss_ally08 Posts: 167 Member
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    I highly dislike the word cheat. It just comes with too many bad connotations, therefore - there are some days I eat more than others, but I make sure on those days I plan with exercise so I get to eat what I want without guilt, if that makes sense. Other days, if I'm too lazy and ate too much, I try to get back on track the following day. I've learned the hard way, there is a balance between having too many over eating days to reward yourself for weight loss and deprivation.

    Portion control is key - you have too many days of overeating and your body has a hard time getting back to understanding what an appropriate amount of food you should eat.
  • Suziq38
    Suziq38 Posts: 13 Member
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    I eat well 80% of the time. I may cheat a little 20% of the time.
    This may be a little cookie or a handful of mixed nuts.

    I may go to a party and eat some fettucine alfredo or eat a piece of pizza.

    Cheating is O.K. as long as you limit this.
    If you are truly into weight loss and becoming more healthy, cheating becomes less of a desire.

    You know that if you do that you have to exercise more to compensate for it, or you will gain weight.

    I have lost over 45 pounds during the last 13 months by only cheating occasionally, and trying to replace the calories enjoyed with the cheating by exercise.
  • amanda_ataraxia
    amanda_ataraxia Posts: 400 Member
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    I don't cheat. I give myself two higher calorie days per week, but I still use those calories to eat healthy food.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
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    I just don't believe in the concept of "cheatiing". This to me implies pulling a fast one or getting away with something. It's just not a concept that I use or appeals to me. I believe in setting a sustainable, managable plan and then staying with it. That plan may include a calorie cycling day or it may not. To me, if you have to feel like you need a cheat day, your plan is too agressive and not sustainable. If there is a food I like, I include it and stay within my overall calorie and macro goals. I also set those goals so that I can maintian them indefinitly.

    For me, it's not really about being on a "diet". It's about decisions for better nutrition and health. FTR, I also have trouble with the phrase "lifestyle change". II guess I am really being pedantic but conceptually, for me, it's just being intentional with my eating and fitness choices every day. No more or less complicated than that. YMMV
  • camisetgo
    camisetgo Posts: 27 Member
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    Absolutely!! If I didn't have my one cheat day I never would have stayed on my plan and lost almost 60lbs! Saturday night is mine and my husbands "date night" ...we go out and eat a meal that we are craving and usually have a a dessert as well. It has worked for me and is the only "diet" that ever has. I don't complete deprivation very well, and if I thought I couldn't enjoy a night out once in a while of eating anything I was craving, I would have never stayed on target. Saturdays, I take a break from working out and counting calories.
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
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    I just eat whatever I'm hungry for and fit it into my calories. It's all about portion control. That way I never have to cheat and feel guilty for doing so.

    How do you manage you macronutrients this way? Or is that not that important to you? FTR, I totally agree with you about portion control.
  • TravelDog14
    TravelDog14 Posts: 317 Member
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    Not a food cheater. I'm trying to change my eating habits because they suck big donkey balls.

    I wasn't a binger, just a person who consistently ate mega calories of cookies, pastries, candy, ice cream, etc. most days of the week. No fast food, just all high fat baked goods. I hate to think what my calories were on a daily basis. I've often thought I should enter those foods I would have eaten in a day here on MFP, I'm sure it would shock the hell out of me.

    My health (pre-diabetes diagnosis) forced me to stop all of that crap eating cold turkey. It's been a bit over 2 months for me, yet I've surprisingly not craved any of that stuff. When I walked by the fresh apple fritters in the bakery case the other day I didn't even need to look in that direction. It's almost like a switch flipped when I realized my poor eating habits really had caught up to me after all these years.

    So I don't cheat with what I eat, and so far I haven't suffered any cravings for any of the stuff I have stopped eating.
  • caraiselite
    caraiselite Posts: 2,631 Member
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    i'm cheating todaaay =D

    usually once a month though.

    i try to plan them but.. lately i'm just been eating emotionally.
  • rachael52
    rachael52 Posts: 86 Member
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    I've gotten a little lax about counting calories honestly. I had an incredibly boring day yesterday and ate stuff I usually don't (quite a lot of carbs) and would say "Well, that was about 125 calories," when I knew damned well it was a lot more than that. Underreporting, that's my cheating. Trying to get back on track today.

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