One cheat day a week?????????

Options
2»

Replies

  • TotalPackageLive
    TotalPackageLive Posts: 20 Member
    Options
    Cheating means you're on a diet. Diets fail. I do on occasion have a splurge where I'll knowingly go over calories, but it ultimately evens out over the week. That happened last night, a friend who was having a bad day, and just needed to say F it. Burgers, fries, and a chocolate shake. It was delicious, we had fun, it put me over calories, and I moved on. I refuse to let food make me feel guilty.
  • ChrisRS87
    ChrisRS87 Posts: 781 Member
    Options
    i have refeed days.

    and I LOVE rewarding myself with food. If such basic positive reinforcement puts you in the category with canines, what do you think your boss is doing every time he admires your work?
  • TotalPackageLive
    TotalPackageLive Posts: 20 Member
    Options
    :drinker:
    i have refeed days.

    and I LOVE rewarding myself with food. If such basic positive reinforcement puts you in the category with canines, what do you think your boss is doing every time he admires your work?
  • kmartinixx
    kmartinixx Posts: 197
    Options
    I allow myself one cheat MEAL a week. But look if you want an oreo, have an oreo. Just have ONE. Ya know? It's all about moderation and whether you're going to work it off in the gym later. On the days I have my cheat meal, I don't go all out. I just eat what I feel like having that day for dinner, but the rest of the day is my healthier routine.
  • Dharmafor1
    Dharmafor1 Posts: 32
    Options
    Sorry but I don't agree that cheating means your on a diet and you should by default just fit it in as you want it and if it fits your goals. If that is what works for you go for it, but I dont eat deprived, ever. By this I don't just mean adding a square of chocolate oif you want it but a high value meal that wouldn't normally be a dailly meal choice, but you may like to have. Somedays though, I allow an extra indulgance that for me I don't even want as a cornerstone of my diet, read lifestyle. Personally I don't think it's healthy to eat something like pizza or a Big Mac everyday so you don't have cravings. Those are not foods that I have ever eaten daily, but if I am having pizza, I am having a few slices. For me they have always been treat like items. Well not the big Mac but that's because I don't like fast food. I love chocolate cake, but I am not going to eat it everyday just because I can either. Also I cycle, so on those days I can eat loads of food just to break even on my base requirements. Balance is the key but please don't be judgmental on others approaches or your personal definition on what diet is.
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
    Options
    Cheat days work for some people. But you have to be completely honest with yourself. Are you likely to even subconsciously use the occasion as an excuse to eat well beyond what you should?

    I don't do cheat days. Which doesn't mean that I don't overeat some days, but I don't have sanctioned, weekly sessions. I also allow myself to eat whatever I want on my birthday, major holidays and very special events. Great food is part of life.

    For me, the "lifestyle change" is a continuing awareness of what I can eat at a particular stage of life. The days when I could eat anything without consequences are long gone.
  • mtnhiker1
    mtnhiker1 Posts: 114 Member
    Options
    I keep track of calories - if I am under for the week, I can cheat up to the amount I have left for the week. Don't always do it, but it is nice to have it there when I go out to eat or if I happen to want a little extra.
  • toutmonpossible
    toutmonpossible Posts: 1,580 Member
    Options
    I allow myself one cheat MEAL a week. But look if you want an oreo, have an oreo. Just have ONE. Ya know? It's all about moderation and whether you're going to work it off in the gym later.

    Some people can't have one cookie. Moderation is not the path for everyone. Exercise is important, but it should never be a quid-pro-quo for eating food you can't afford. For one thing, you probably don't have enough time to exercise off all the calories.
  • Happymelz
    Happymelz Posts: 536 Member
    Options
    If you continue with the mindset that food is a "reward" then you will continue to have problems. Why not eat what you like in moderation?? Learn to eat like a normal person. Look at your food differently.

    Lolol...all the "normal' people I know reward themselves with food. Unfortunalely it is a HUGE part of southern culture.

    I have always had food issues and used food as a reward. I am working towards healthy eating habits. BUT my brain rebels if i have too many restrictions.

    So, I have one meal a week that can be whatever I am craving, but then I try to keep the rest of the day within my calories if possible.

    Also, I've noticed that it is a great way to "shock" your metabolism if weight loss has slowed.

    *Currently I'm working on repairing metabolic damage so I'm using "maintanence" calories and I'm not having a cheat day.
  • beachlover317
    beachlover317 Posts: 2,848 Member
    Options
    If you continue with the mindset that food is a "reward" then you will continue to have problems. Why not eat what you like in moderation?? Learn to eat like a normal person. Look at your food differently.

    Lolol...all the "normal' people I know reward themselves with food. Unfortunalely it is a HUGE part of southern culture.

    I have always had food issues and used food as a reward. I am working towards healthy eating habits. BUT my brain rebels if i have too many restrictions.

    So, I have one meal a week that can be whatever I am craving, but then I try to keep the rest of the day within my calories if possible.

    Also, I've noticed that it is a great way to "shock" your metabolism if weight loss has slowed.

    *Currently I'm working on repairing metabolic damage so I'm using "maintanence" calories and I'm not having a cheat day.

    I am from the south, too. I've never known people that didn't reward themselves with food. I am 55 and have spent the majority of my life focusing on too much food, too little food, the right foods, the wrong foods, etc. Food doesn't need to be a reward to me and as long as I think of food that way, I'm gonna have trouble! Now, I eat what I want in moderation. I'm afraid that a 'cheat meal' would be too hard for me. That's the way I used to eat, all the time. Now, I eat more normally (probably used the wrong term when I said normal people). I eat what my body needs to run efficiently. I try and focus on things other than the food at family functions, parties, etc. This is really working. I've been doing it for over a year and it's not hard to do. I don't feel deprived & I feel I could do this for the rest of my life - which is my plan.

    That was all my comment was intended to relay. Everyone is free to follow their own path. :flowerforyou:
  • ilovedeadlifts
    ilovedeadlifts Posts: 2,923 Member
    Options
    If I'm going to cheat, i usually just do one meal. I'll make it after a hard training session and just pig out for the last meal of the day.


    My most recent one was a 1/3 pound burger with cheese and jalapenos, topped with an egg, with 2 grilled cheese sandwiches for the bun.
  • Roxanne_Hennessy
    Roxanne_Hennessy Posts: 130 Member
    Options
    I usually save them for family functions/special occasions. I still log them in though
  • emilycarr71404
    emilycarr71404 Posts: 176 Member
    Options
    I don't have a cheat day. I eat what I want when I want as long as it fits my numbers. I just watch portions and/or adjust my other meals accordingly.

    This.

    Plus, I don't do a cheat day at all. I do a cheat meal. The day I chose to eat an extra large meal, I plan what it will be and what I want to indulge in. I then exercise harder that day and enjoy my meal. I don't spaz out at all. I plan to eat more and count every calorie.
  • elkahallick
    elkahallick Posts: 1,138 Member
    Options
    What and when I eat is determined by my macros not by my cravings... Meal planning allows me to eat an occational burger or waffle with syrup
  • RhonndaJ
    RhonndaJ Posts: 1,615 Member
    Options
    Rewarding myself with food is part of what got me where I am, so it's something I'm trying to break myself of.

    You can do a whole cheat day, or one meal, or whatever you like, so long as what you eat doesn't completely overwrite, calorie-wise, what you did during the rest of the week.

    In other words, if six days of the week you had a deficit of 500 calories, and the seventh day you went over your usual number by 3500, then you'd be breaking even and it kind of misses the point of the rest of the week's work.

    But if you, instead, eat what would be your maintenance figure instead, you'd just have a slightly lower expected loss overall.

Categories