The day after you have fudged up your whole diet.

Today, was a bad day. Last night my car broke down on me(hence looking for exercises at home) and today I found out it's gonna cost $300 just to get it running again. Also yesterday, I put my last $30 into my gas tank. Big bummer right?

I am an emotional eater. Being sad led to a pint of Twix ice cream, 2 cupcakes, and 3 donut sticks. Totally not what I have been eating for the past 2 weeks and totally ruined my goals of eating healthier.

My question to you all is: When you have messed up a whole day of your diet, do you start from scratch the next day? Or are you like me, and now that you've messed up, you kind of feel like "What's the point?".
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Replies

  • stormsusmc
    stormsusmc Posts: 228 Member
    well thats an epic cheat day...

    one day isnt going to kill all your progress...getting fat, along with losing weight takes time...its not overnight....have a cheat day now and again...go to find heavy things to pick up and put back down if you have a bad day instead of eating...be constructive and stay motivated
  • AZKristi
    AZKristi Posts: 1,801 Member
    Get right back into eating clean the next day. One day won't set you back too far, even a really bad day. Just try to be active, eat nutritious foods and drink plenty of water the next few days. You might not lose as much as you had wanted this week, but chances are you won't have a big gain either (unless the binge involved lots of salt which can cause water retention).

    If you say screw it, next thing you know it will be a month or two later and you will have undone some hard work.
  • I try to start over the next time I eat anything and just do something to get moving...every choice you make is a chance to start over!
  • besaro
    besaro Posts: 1,858 Member
    ya it was a good day for bad things and I can understand the whole "what's the point" but that's just BS and you know it. Walk it off. :)
  • zachatta
    zachatta Posts: 1,340 Member
    Gotta treat tomorrow as if nothing happened.

    I have cleaned out half gallons of ice cream/whole bags of potato chips before so trust me I know that feeling.

    Just can't let it keep you down.

    Good news is, those cravings you were having probably died down a bit for a few days!
  • acstansell
    acstansell Posts: 567 Member
    I too had an EPIC binge day. Wasn't in the mood for anything at lunch and was craving a piece of cake and a turkey bacon panini. So what did I do - I ate it - all 1000 calorie of it. Left work with 74 calories, went to physical therapy for my hip which is jacked from running while fat and came home and what did I do? Ate 2/3 of a donato's pepperoni and sausage pizza because my appitite has been out of control today.

    Sometimes you do it because you're stressed or emotional. Sometimes it's because you crave something. Sometimes it's because you just want a day to say "Screw it"....

    It doesn't matter. That was today - what will you do to tomorrow?

    Tomorrow I will eat my normal breakfast, my normal lunch, make a healthy dinner, walk my dog, do my PT at-home exercises and go to bed... and I wii get up and do it again the next day.

    Willpower is hard to maintain but keep in mind - you didn't to where you are now quickly, it happened over time. Changing your life is a learning experience and the weight will come of - one day and one piece of education at at time.

    As the song says, "Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again."
  • daisiecpa
    daisiecpa Posts: 103 Member
    get right back on. everyone has bad days. it is only 1 day in a life time.
  • Ledgehanger
    Ledgehanger Posts: 125 Member
    I have to agree with Storms here. It is not possible to foul up you "whole" diet in a single day. Good grief - looking at your progress bar, you're doing outstanding. Unless you somehow managed to eat enough food today to somehow gain back every single ounce you've lost (hint - you didn't), then all it was was a bad day. We all have bad days at times. The trick isn't to not have a bad day.

    The trick is to not let the bad day defeat you.
  • AngelTwin27
    AngelTwin27 Posts: 33 Member
    I have had days where I've thought "ahh, what's the point?" after a bad day or two, but then I feel like crap and eat really healthy again...

    Once you've learned how to eat better, it doesn't seem to take much to bring you back in to line - your body gets used to the good stuff and craves it when you fall off the wagon. This is my experience anyway...

    A cheat day is what makes us human, so don't beat yourself up over it!
  • Every meal is a new meal. If I give in (Sunday night = 2 pkgs Japanese peanuts and 3 large cookies), I know it's okay and I'll eat better for the next meal. When you get upset, go for a walk, run, lift weights, call a friend, go to a movie - find something else to ease your pain. I don't keep my trigger foods in my house. Even my SO knows that ice cream is a no-go. If I see it, I will eventually (usually sooner than later) eat it. If it's not in the house, I have to REALLY want it to have to go to the store to get it. The walk over there makes me remember my ultimate goal is not going to be found in a pint of ice cream.

    Hope this helps. Good luck with your car and your journey!
  • kimosabe1
    kimosabe1 Posts: 2,467 Member
    You'll be fine....just start again!
  • jazzalea
    jazzalea Posts: 412 Member
    WOW you so deserved a cheat day......... problem is.... the little bit of comfort it gave you at the time is now coming back to haunt you......

    self control is a muscle just like any others.... and you need to start facing that..... when you are tempted recognise the temptation and just say no...... remind yourself that this IS something that you can control and every time you stay strong you will build that muscle...

    I'm not saying you aren't ever going to eat twix bars again..... .to be honest I just finished one lol.... but not because I was having a bad day, and not because I was having a good day and I wanted to reward myself...... but because I can......and so I did :)

    and then I put the other half in the freezer for the next time I feel like having one just because......
  • TheFinalThird
    TheFinalThird Posts: 315 Member
    ^^^^^^ this!
  • heroldkelly
    heroldkelly Posts: 30 Member
    They say that a pound is about 3500 calories depending on what the calories are made up of (fats/carbs/proteins). I figure even if I go 1,000-2,000 calories over my goal once every few weeks, it isn't going to kill me. I, too am a stress eater and a stressful day used to mean a bag of tortilla chips and a jar of salsa con queso downed in about two hours. I haven't done that lately but if I do, I just think the next day that I'm starting again. You can't change what you did yesterday but you can work on today right now! :) Good luck!

    Kelly
  • jacqui1612
    jacqui1612 Posts: 128 Member
    Get right back into it of course!!! The more you try something the easier it gets right? I am sure every single person on here has had something similar happen to them. They have a bad day and they eat something they probably shouldn't.
    I am not saying that you do, but if this happens a lot maybe try to keep most of the the bad foods out of the house. Try eat fruit and veggies. Or like others have said, move heavy stuff around, or workout. It will take some of the frustration out. And at the end of the day you will feel better cause you didn't binge and worked out.

    You do need to let yourself have a break sometimes though. Don't be too hard on yourself. Good luck :)
  • vodkoffee
    vodkoffee Posts: 160 Member
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  • emilie_modaff
    emilie_modaff Posts: 4 Member
    I LIVE by "Tomorrow is a new day."
    Right back on track, baby, that's the only way to go! You got this!
  • acstansell
    acstansell Posts: 567 Member
    WOW you so deserved a cheat day......... problem is.... the little bit of comfort it gave you at the time is now coming back to haunt you......

    self control is a muscle just like any others.... and you need to start facing that..... when you are tempted recognise the temptation and just say no...... remind yourself that this IS something that you can control and every time you stay strong you will build that muscle...

    I'm not saying you aren't ever going to eat twix bars again..... .to be honest I just finished one lol.... but not because I was having a bad day, and not because I was having a good day and I wanted to reward myself...... but because I can......and so I did :)

    and then I put the other half in the freezer for the next time I feel like having one just because......

    I like this attitude - I totally need to work on my self control muscle. We (that muscle and myself) have impulse issues... :)
  • saraphim41
    saraphim41 Posts: 205 Member
    One day didn't make me fat, and one day won't make me lean.

    Get back to work! You're worth it!
  • fitdiana21
    fitdiana21 Posts: 16 Member
    Don't let one bad day ruin everything you have worked for. Consider it a cheat day and move on..Life will always bring you ups and downs just don't let it keep you down. You are stronger than you know..I too am an emotional eater but i have learned how much i hate that guilty feeling after a binge so i tell myself this chocolate chip cookie or cupcake will not solve my problem and most of the time i can walk away it is hard but it can be done.
  • ahubbard134
    ahubbard134 Posts: 61 Member
    I just started the 7 day average idea. I screwed up real bad this Saturday. which ended up with me having only a 250 calorie deficit for the week. When you think of it like that, and it doesn't happen very often, it's not the end of the world. Still a deficit, at least!
  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    Yeah, that's why I'm not on a diet. I'm doing the "lifestyle change" thing.

    Which means, I know that I will have bad days here and there. And I know I'm gonna eat some crap food now and then. All of that is ok. Because, that's life. It doesn't work out the way we plan/want it to sometimes.

    So, you can either be defeated, or you can suck it up and make better choices tomorrow. Hopefully, you know what choice would be more sensible.
  • I heard this recently (Jillian Michaels) : If you get a flat tire, do you change it and move on or do you slash the other three tires?
  • EccentricDad
    EccentricDad Posts: 875 Member
    Today, was a bad day. Last night my car broke down on me(hence looking for exercises at home) and today I found out it's gonna cost $300 just to get it running again. Also yesterday, I put my last $30 into my gas tank. Big bummer right?

    I am an emotional eater. Being sad led to a pint of Twix ice cream, 2 cupcakes, and 3 donut sticks. Totally not what I have been eating for the past 2 weeks and totally ruined my goals of eating healthier.

    My question to you all is: When you have messed up a whole day of your diet, do you start from scratch the next day? Or are you like me, and now that you've messed up, you kind of feel like "What's the point?".

    "Every day is a new day, I'm thankful for every breath I take."
    When you eat over your calories one day, or even a whole week, you're not fudging your entire diet. You're just not going to lose weight that week (or as much).

    Don't be so hard on yourself. You had a really crappy day. Yes, you do need to find new soothing hobbies that you can do that isn't so self harmful, but you did it and that is something you just have to throw out the window and say "next time, I'll call someone and talk about my feelings" which works wonders by the way.

    So track what you ate and eat like you normally would. Don't eat less to "make it up", life has no second chances and you just have to keep moving forward. I wish you luck and I hope that your week gets better. :flowerforyou:
  • needamulligan
    needamulligan Posts: 558 Member
    It's one day out of 14 or so good ones, right? No worries. Log it and move on.
  • ghostpixie
    ghostpixie Posts: 148 Member
    I heard this recently (Jillian Michaels) : If you get a flat tire, do you change it and move on or do you slash the other three tires?

    I like that!
  • Tomorrow is a "do over" day. Fix it!
  • Elzecat
    Elzecat Posts: 2,916 Member
    I too had an EPIC binge day. Wasn't in the mood for anything at lunch and was craving a piece of cake and a turkey bacon panini. So what did I do - I ate it - all 1000 calorie of it. Left work with 74 calories, went to physical therapy for my hip which is jacked from running while fat and came home and what did I do? Ate 2/3 of a donato's pepperoni and sausage pizza because my appitite has been out of control today.

    Sometimes you do it because you're stressed or emotional. Sometimes it's because you crave something. Sometimes it's because you just want a day to say "Screw it"....

    It doesn't matter. That was today - what will you do to tomorrow?

    Tomorrow I will eat my normal breakfast, my normal lunch, make a healthy dinner, walk my dog, do my PT at-home exercises and go to bed... and I wii get up and do it again the next day.

    Willpower is hard to maintain but keep in mind - you didn't to where you are now quickly, it happened over time. Changing your life is a learning experience and the weight will come of - one day and one piece of education at at time.

    As the song says, "Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again."

    This!
  • CaseRat
    CaseRat Posts: 377 Member
    Well if that was me, I'd be aiming to try and eat solely lean meats and vegetables + egg whites, protein shakes etc. for the entire day, at around 800-1000 calories.
  • Melolicious
    Melolicious Posts: 71 Member
    ”Hope is a renewable option: If you run out of it at the end of the day, you get to start over in the morning.”

    Good thing each sunrise wipes the slate clean. Tomorrow, plan to eat the healthiest meals you can. I had a meltdown last weekend and dove off the wagon headfirst into the deepfryer and the next day had a green smoothie where I tried dandelion greens. If you can swing hard to the bad side, swing just as far back to the good :)