How far do you go on cheat days?

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  • Lrdoflamancha
    Lrdoflamancha Posts: 1,280 Member
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    Why bother being good all week if you're going to blow it all on a binge? Makes absolutely no sense to me and smacks of disordered eating. If you have a good relationship with food then you shouldn't feel the need to "cheat" especially not an all day binge.

    Going over your calorie allowance one day is NOT blowing your entire week. You're joking, right? Do your research, talk to a physician, nutritionist.. SOMETHING! It seems as if YOU have a more unhealthy relationship with food than the OP (if you can't even splurge once in awhile.) Sad.



    I agree with you to a point. Let's put it this way. If you're shooting for 1/2 pound of weight loss per week that works out to about 1750-1800 calories. Is it possible to exceed your calorie allowance by that much in 1 day? For me it is and it's way too easy to do so. So in effect I agree with you, but then again, I guess I feel that it's a bit healthier to indulge earlier, more often and in smaller portions rather than using a cheat day.

    I disagree with both of you. If a pound really is 3500 calories. It would be nothing for me to eat 3500 calories over in a single day. 5400 calories is just not that much. A standard old fashioned glazed donut is 450 alone. So yes a 1 day binge in my case can easily wipe out a weeks worth of being close to my calorie target.
  • geetarfitness
    geetarfitness Posts: 6 Member
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    Cheat Day once a month. 3000+ kcal
  • Synapze
    Synapze Posts: 499
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    I can easily hit 4000+ cals on a cheat day.

    1/2 Carton of Bourbon

    BBQ

    Dips and Desert.

    Done it before, and ill damn well do it again!....(in moderation)
  • Bubbl3s25
    Bubbl3s25 Posts: 210
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    I can easily hit 4000+ cals on a cheat day.

    1/2 Carton of Bourbon

    BBQ

    Dips and Desert.

    Done it before, and ill damn well do it again!....(in moderation)

    I'm in ;P
  • ouiouilezizi
    ouiouilezizi Posts: 36
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    As a Weight Watchers person, I have my weekly allowance of extra points to use...m 49 points, which is probably akin to 2000-3000 extra calories. You can use them all at once, or for extra on one special occasion. I try to track everyday, regardless of extra food. Tracking shouldn't be negotiable in my opinion.
  • kwedman488
    kwedman488 Posts: 132 Member
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    I can't do cheat days - if I plan a cheat day I will obsess on it, and then allow myself to cheat more and more. It's one thing once in a blue moon to have a piece of cake, and another to plan to have a piece of cake once a month. It drives me crazy. I just have to get that stuff out of my mental landscape, or I live with cravings.

    I do the exact same thing. The thing I came up with is that I have a jar next to my bed and for every day that I follow my food guide without straying, I can put a quarter in the jar. At the end of each month, I can buy 1 really tasty terrible for you thing, like chocolate cake for instance, with what I have in the jar. However to make sure I didn't buy an entire cake or something I made the rule that it has to be something I can finish at the time I start eating it; ie no leftovers. To furthermore keep myself from straying I made the rule that if I go off from my food plan for a day, I can't just not put a quarter in the jar that day but have to empty it out and start entirely from scratch. I only just started this about a week and a half ago, but it's worked wonders for me. The only exceptions I allow are days when I'm out of town and have to eat out, or holidays like the fourth of July; I had one exception for eating out last Saturday, but I was really good about only making the one meal the stray from what I usually eat. It made me feel really proud of myself, because I always have the problem that the moment I stray just a little bit I lose control for the entire rest of the day. So controlling myself and allowing just the one meal made me really proud. I'm going to do the same for the fourth of July; it will be really hard, but because I still have my workouts and insanity to stick to, it will make me want to stay on the path so I don't make those workouts good for nothing. Wish me luck!
  • Sylvitryinghard
    Sylvitryinghard Posts: 549 Member
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    I don't do cheat days or cheat meals. I usually eat out on Saturday and Sunday, but I don't think of it as "cheating" because then it would mean I'm dieting, which I'm not. I'm changing my lifestyle, so for me that means I can eat out when I choose, and then fit the food into my allotment for the day. If I allow myself to "diet" and "cheat", I set myself up for failure. That doesn't mean I don't occasionally go over, but I try not to.

    good point
  • shadus
    shadus Posts: 424 Member
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    ~always~ log everything. It helps keep you accountable.

    As to how far I go... till I'm full. If that's my norm but other foods than I normally eat, so be it, if its something stupid high calorie and ends up 2000 over my norm... so be it. Most times I've found it's just a few hundred, maybe a thousand more than my normal amount... and it keeps the weird cravings to a minimum. I don't know that I count it as a cheat day, maybe more of a 'fix your weird cravings day' and I do it about once a month give or take.
  • silmarilliane
    silmarilliane Posts: 133 Member
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    i don't call them cheat days, just 'having a break' days. i only have 'break days' when i know i'm going out for a meal or someone's birthday rather than once a week. i've found though that i get full a lot quicker now than when i started, and i sometimes go back and log everything i ate to see how much over i was. often i find i wasn't over by that much, as i'm used to eating only 1200 cals a day. generally these days are anywhere from 1800 - 2500 cals.

    i know what you mean though, if i know i'm going for a meal or something it makes me give up for the whole day and binge :(
    the iphone app has a useful 'average' calories for the week. unfortunately i don't have an iphone though!
  • Nicolee_2014
    Nicolee_2014 Posts: 1,572 Member
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    I can easily hit 4000+ cals on a cheat day.

    1/2 Carton of Bourbon

    BBQ

    Dips and Desert.

    Done it before, and ill damn well do it again!....(in moderation)

    I'm in ;P

    Don't forget me guys, but you can both have the bourbon
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
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    Okay, I am still confused on the whole cheat day thing. Some people say it is great to have a cheat day where you eat a lot of whatever you want. Some people say cheat days are good in maintenance. Some people say cheat meals are better. Others say no cheat meals at all is best. What is really best???

    Whatever works for you is what's best. Some people do well with cheat days. Some do better without. Try it one way and see how it goes. Consider how you feel both mentally and physically, as well as what happens in terms of progress. Adjust as needed.
  • oldandhealthier
    oldandhealthier Posts: 449 Member
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    To me cheat days when trying to lose weight makes as much sense as having a cheat day a week when I quit smoking. :noway:
  • ken_hogan
    ken_hogan Posts: 854 Member
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    Why bother being good all week if you're going to blow it all on a binge? Makes absolutely no sense to me and smacks of disordered eating. If you have a good relationship with food then you shouldn't feel the need to "cheat" especially not an all day binge.

    I am along this thinking also but that is just my personal feeling....
  • Jerseyjohn1997
    Jerseyjohn1997 Posts: 3
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    lol, i eat way to much and i eat somtimes just to taste the food i wasn't able to eat before.If i log my cheat day i also usualy stay between 2,000 and 3,000 but when i don't log it i could go way over. Do you exercise on your cheat day?
  • mcibty
    mcibty Posts: 1,252 Member
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    I don't do designated treat days, but sometimes life happens. Feel free to check my diary over the last 5 days to see! It's usually around 2,500 - 3,000 calories, depending if alcohol is a factor.
  • Achrya
    Achrya Posts: 16,913 Member
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    All the way.


    ...I actually don't have cheat days. I eat what I want when I want to and while I do have days where I go over it's no more a cheat day then the days I'm under are 'bonus' days, or whatever. So basically I don't believe in cheat days or naughty days or whatever silly term we're using.
  • Chadomaniac
    Chadomaniac Posts: 1,785 Member
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    I put down around 4000-6000cals every sunday :laugh:
  • Bromard6
    Bromard6 Posts: 44 Member
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    I try to avoid cheat days but sometimes I'll go over 300-500 cals especially if I don't get a workout in. Today however is a "fly across the country" day with multiple stops. Impossible to exercise and calorie-bomb airport food and drinks at every stop. Today is lost...but tomorrow is a new day.
  • petechiae
    petechiae Posts: 147 Member
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    All the way.


    ...I actually don't have cheat days. I eat what I want when I want to and while I do have days where I go over it's no more a cheat day then the days I'm under are 'bonus' days, or whatever. So basically I don't believe in cheat days or naughty days or whatever silly term we're using.

    Word, ladybro!
    Using a term such as "cheat/naughty" gives it a negative connotation and automatically implants guilt.

    I usually eat whatever I want as long as I can fit it in my macros. You will totally see me enjoying ice cream or potato chips, no stress. Otherwise, during the weekend, I tend to be more forgiving. That is when I relax, so I have a tendency to have 200-300 calories extra Saturday and Sunday. I don't call them cheat days, they are just the weekend.

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