In defense of the cheat meal

alexveksler · September 2013

I think cheat days are fine if you are at your goal weight. If not, you just fooling yourself.

MuseofSong · September 2013

I know the cheat meal/cheat day is a hot button topic at times here at the wonderful world of MFP, but I am a firm believer of saving a few calories every day so I can have a treat at least once a week. It keeps me on track and curbs cravings before they're out of control. My cheat day is normally Saturday, and I am having cheesecake for dessert tonight. Love me some cheat day. :drinker:

ETA: I posted this in Maintaining Weight because I am in maintenance. I also lost the weight using the cheat meal strategy, FWIW.

I think the way you explained it makes sense. Save up some calories when you know you want to have something that is calorie dense. I do not believe in deprivation or removing foods you enjoy from your diet. I do believe in planning ahead and/or compensating for calorie dense food choices.

But, I would caveat and say 'free for all' days are kinda a bad idea because I know I can eat a seriously large amount of calories just by choosing calorie dense foods. I could undo a week's worth of effort in one day if I let myself have a regular 'cheat day' to eat as much as I want of anything I want.

I wouldn't sweat vacations though. Unless you treat every vacation day as a 'as much as I want of whatever I want day', you're not going to undo your progress, you'll probably just have bloat from restaurant made, sodium packed food. No big deal, bloat washes away with hydration and time.

brraanndi · September 2013

My goal is 1 lb a week but...I just set my weightloss to eat for losing 1.5 lbs and don't care how bad I do on Friday/Sat because I've got that buffer.

So, for me atleast, it should "In Defense of the Cheat Weekend" haha.

Unknown · September 2013

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Froody2 · September 2013

I eat chocolate or candy pretty much ever single day *shrug*

Me too. Two hundred of my fifteen hundred calories per day are eaten after dinner on sweeties - life's too short to go without Nutella :smokin:

mrsjobba2 · September 2013

I love this topic. This is what I do. I try and save calories during the week , not too much but I might not use the calories I earned during a walk. Then on the day I weigh in ( usually a Saturday ) after I've weighed I eat what ever I want. Anything I've been craving . I still log and am always in the red. But it's about balance . It means I can go out with my friends for a drink or meal and not worry. Come the next day I'm back on track. I've done this since I started and have lost my weight. I don't feel like I'm on a diet as nothing is restricted .

alisonlynn1976 · September 2013

I think being able to eat whatever you want in reasonable amounts instead of completely eliminating certain foods is good, it's just the term "cheat" that bugs me. It implies that eating certain foods is some kind of moral failing, and I don't think it's good to conceptualize food that way.

TheFitnessTutor · September 2013

Call it a cheat meal or a controlled refeed, but a high day of either calories/carbs/fat/ should be in the dietary intake at least every two weeks. It's a matter of some math and some "how much of a backwards step do you want to take" as to how big that refeed/cheat day is.

lesandjer · September 2013

I agree with you, If i were to cheat it would take forever to get back on track. A whole day, I might as well not be on a calorie counting diet.

NonnyMary · September 2013

When I know Im going to be out and have a special meal like today I am going to take my daughter out for dinner, I know Im going to probably overeat my calories.

Since I dont juggle my calories, nor do i exercise extra, nor play around with borrowing calories from Monday to pay back Sunday, I just eat the best I can today and even if its 1,000 calories more, do you know that i may lose 1/2 pound rather than 1 pound this week.

Thats how i will approach splurges.

ChrisS30V · September 2013

What's worked for me is having my "splurges" take place on my long run (10+miles) days. On those days, if I've had a craving for homemade ice cream, brownies, or whatever, I go ahead and treat myself. Yes, I still try to keep sane portion sizes, but I can eat it without an ounce of guilt afterwords. I think instead of labeling foods as good or bad or as a cheat, you look at in terms of foods that should be enjoyed daily for optimum health (fresh fruits and veggies, etc.) and foods that can be enjoyed, but on a less frequent basis (cake, ice cream, all that good stuff). No need to modify your diet the rest of the week, either. If you allow yourself to splurge you're far less likely to sit around and fantasize about "forbidden" foods. Life's too short to not to indulge every now and then. As long as it doesn't turn into something that gets you into bad habits, no harm done.

HeyGoRun · September 2013

To me is a no log day! I eat as I want, no counting, no timing, no measuring! Takes some stress out!
Today im going to Dennys for BF... French toast here I come!!!

melham · September 2013

I have to agree with the folks saying that it's probably the word "cheat" that riles some people up. I never thought of it that way, because I don't think of it as cheating in the true sense of that word. I'm staying at or under my calories for the week, I still log everything, and when in doubt, always over estimate food calories and under estimate exercise burn calories.

Honestly, I call it "cheat" because that's the term I heard the concept called when I was first introduced to it, so it just stuck. I didn't give the connotation of the word any thought at all. Until this post. Interesting!

Here's an idea: let's rebrand it as the "rainy day treat" day or meal, since at the core of it the concept is to save calories to spend them later, just like saving money for a rainy day.

louisegibbs85 · September 2013

I have a cheat day every week , I lose more than when I did without one, but each to their own and if my body feels like losing more after some chips and cake .... I ain't guna argue with it!

:drinker:

tomcornhole · September 2013

I thought this might be apropos for this thread:

http://impruvism.com/flexible-dieting-basics/

melham · September 2013

I thought this might be apropos for this thread:

http://impruvism.com/flexible-dieting-basics/

Thanks for the link! Good stuff!

keem88 · September 2013

bahhh cheat days. a misleading title. it's an i am going to eat whatever the hell i want day, because i can. nuff said.
today i had pancakes with pb, syrup and bananas. om nom nom CARBS :drinker:

kanuckkim74 · September 2013

Although I don't agree with the term cheat day lol as it implies I'm doing something wrong, I do agree with a higher calorie day once in awhile. Life happens and I roll with it, when pizza is involved especially lol as long as your committed to a healthy lifestyle then there is no problem with it ????

gamerkiwi · September 2013

I just incorporate the food I love into my diet.

If I want some cake, I'll fit it into my calories.

If someone gets me pizza, I can eat light tomorrow to compensate.

goodnamegone · September 2013

I am a firm believer of saving a few calories every day so I can have a treat at least once a week. It keeps me on track and curbs cravings before they're out of control. My cheat day is normally Saturday, and I am having cheesecake for dessert tonight. Love me some cheat day. :drinker:

ETA: I posted this in Maintaining Weight because I am in maintenance. I also lost the weight using the cheat meal strategy, FWIW.

Where is the cheating? You are SAVING a few calories every day. That's not a cheat meal. That's using up calories you saved. Why would anyone have a problem with you doing that?

rlp2891 · September 2013

I don't really see budgeting your calories so that you can eat a food you enjoy as "cheating." Many people I know will consider a cheat day to be not worrying at all about what they eat for the day, and often end up eating as much junk as possible because they "can," rather than just eating a larger meal or treat. I think that's the danger in cheat days that so many people are wary of.

padams2359 · September 2013

I have not seen anything on this plan that I/you cannot have. Count it and move on. If I have something that I use to eat a lot of, frequently, Chinese food, I don't eat nearly as much, and I don't like the way I feel after. Physically, not emotionally. If you are going to a party, or a wedding (is worse because of the time between when you leave home, and it is time to eat), eat something before you leave. That way you are not ravenous and willing to eat anything and everything in site. Have a slice of wedding cake. Not a plate of wedding cake.

katekross · September 2013

Slow claps, guys. Cheat meals maintain my sanity.

slim4health56 · September 2013

Lots of "cheaters" here eating ice cream, pizza, and sweets...AND...lots of weight loss evident (just look at those tickers!). I prefer to call it "splurging" but it's the same thing. Love it!

melham · September 2013

some days you just gotta have the extra slice of pizza, or cake, or icecream....damn it...where's the icecream......

I ate it :bigsmile:

ThinLizzie0802 · September 2013

Planning in advance and saving calories for a treat now and then doesn't seem like a 'cheat' to me at all.
Just sounds like a plan to keep yourself happy and on track.

This.

It can't be a "cheat" day if you've planned it and saved calories for it. Cheat day for me implies going over your calories and not balancing it out. Just straight indulging and being over your calories.

The other descriptions just sounds like calorie zig-zagging which seems logical to me. Cheat implies something bad for me.

seltzermint555 · September 2013

I think that if a person has a special occasion or a night out once in a while, fine. But people having a whole entire cheat day every week just because, you're sabotaging your good habits. It takes time to break bad eating habits and build new, healthy ones. Binge eating or planned overeating once a week just doesn't seem like a good idea. Just my opinion, take or leave. )

I agree with this. I have what some might call "cheat moments" several times per week. I usually call it dessert. Yesterday it was a Cadbury "screme" egg. A couple of times a month I have a "cheat meal" like a fish sandwich and fries at Culver's or pizza and custard on the same Saturday (within my calories and overshooting my fat, sodium, and/or sugar macros)

What other people eat is none of my business, and I don't give it a ton of time or thought. However, I've seen others here do a weekly cheat day where they go nuts on 4,000 or so calories of fried food, sweets, and/or alcohol. That kind of binge (and I use the term loosely, not to be confused with EDs) was never a part of my life pre-MFP and it won't be now. Some of these people are still losing, so obviously it's not a problem for them. But that is not my type of "cheat meal/day".

crazybookworm · September 2013

Portion Control and Moderation is key. If you follow this, you can pretty much eat what and when you want so you don't have to worry about have a designated day to eat your favourite food pleasures.