Question for those who have lost a lot of weight......

I agree with others about not really liking that term cheat day. When I had tried to lose weight in the past, Iallowed myself cheat days and that was my undoing. One round attempting to lose weight, I think I actually gained more than I lost before giving up once again for a while.

July of last year was when I finally started making lasting changes, and that is when my weight loss really started going. I think the biggest thing is to be honest with yourself, no matter what. Be aware of what you are putting into your body. I have changed my eating habits quite a bit, but that doesn't mean I don't eat not so healthy foods still sometimes. I am just aware of how many calories are going in and I control the amounts. I still eat pizza sometimes, but I only have one piece if the rest of my day is going good. Or maybe only halfa piece with some salad. Is really all about balance. I haven't denied myself anything, but as you change your habits, what you desire to eat does change. It is so strange, but it is true. If I have more than a small amount of junk food now, it actually makes me feel really sick. That didn't used to happen.

But I will tell you that I am definitely not perfect. I mess up once in a while. But I really believe that allowing cheat days set you up for sabotage. A whole day of eating whatever you want definitely can undo an entire week of being good. It is a better approach to let yourself have a small treat everyday that is built into your calories rather than to throw the diet out the window for a whole day.

That being said, today is a new day. Don't be too hard on yourself. You can't undo the mess ups, but you can do better in the future. Just take things one day at a time. and also, exercise is key. There is no way I ever would have gotten where I am without exercise.

I call them "FREE" days, and I'm a firm believer in them. It gives me a break from logging (I just log "free day" and click "Complete" in the morning.) and allows me to indulge in those things I've been craving that I don't typically allow myself (like candy and ice cream). They also motivate me because I usually feel like CRAP after having them (after eating healthy the rest of the week). They remind me that food is NOT the answer!

I factor my free days into my math. I counted the calories on my free days for a few weeks until I knew what my number was (about 1,800 calories over my TDEE!). If I have a free day once a week, that means I have to cut 300 calories the other 6 days to compensate for my free day. If I have a free day every two weeks, I have to cut about 140 calories from the other 13 days.

It all comes back to the simple math of weight-loss. You can eat anything you want as long as you take responsibility for it and realize that the numbers are what the numbers are - and you have to deal with them!