Has anyone lost weight with 'cheat days'?

lol you dont want to look at my diary, I've lost 111 in 8 months and big macs, kebabs and chips are a weekly treat for me lol so yes I'd have to say I eat what I want and still loose weight because I burn it off!

I have a cheat day probably once a week. As long as your not wiping out your entire deficit for the week in one day you will still lose weight.

Look at your average for the week. I have a cheat day but still try and keep the average for the week around 1200. I also don't count my exercise as saved calories, only actual food.

How do I find my average?

I use the myfitnesspal app on my phone. I record everything I consume everyday, and check my weekly average by going to the menu and selecting 'nutrition' then 'weekly'.

My last "cheat" day i had 2lbs of wings and like 7000* pitchers of beer.

*number estimated using severity of hangover

Obviously I don't do that weekly - but you can go over on calories once in a while as long as you sustain a long term deficit.

:drinker: :drinker: love this.

If I know I'm going to be in a situation where I'll be tempted to eat food that normally doesn't fit into my calories (like, say, a superbowl party) for the day I'll trim a little here and there from other meals in the week so my weekly net is ok. It's working for me.

This is my second time around the weight loss carousel. The first time I lost 60 pounds in 7 months and always had a cheat day every week to keep my sanity. Just don't do what I did and let the cheat day become an every day thing once the weight is off or you will be back on the carousel as I am right now.

I was wondering whether anyone has lost any weight with a cheat day once a week?
My day goes like-

EXAMPLE:
Small breakfast
Mixed kebab with chips for lunch
Milkshake in the evening
1 crisp and 1 chocolate and some sweets

I eat 1200 calories 6 days of the week, so will a cheat day hinder my weight loss?

One other thing....
What is height, weight, activity level, and age??

right now, 1200 over 6 days is 7200 calories

I am wondering who you are "cheating". As long as there is sufficient deficit in your week or s time period, or you chose to have slightly less one day and more another, "banking" a few calories or may be carbs to use later you should be ok.

I have a regular "cheat day" all the time and I lost 110 pounds in a year.

I usually take Sat and Sun off every week but I also dont eat my exercise calories back. I went to Scoobys workshop found out my BMR eat that exercise M-F and take the weekend off so I can go out with hubby and not have to think about it. Ive been maintaining since Oct and havent gained at all. But you also cant go gorging on EVERYTHING! I still am reasonable. Except for last weekend when hubby craved chocolate cream pie. Yes I ate 2 slices one Sat and one Sun. And I also loved every bite of it.

This...same for me. Typically eat up to my calories and let exercise calories go where they will. Though recently transitioned into maintenance and have been maintaining app 170-175 at 5'10" for a couple months now no problems.

lost 25 pounds ! cheat every weekend.

Yes.

I have pizza and breadsticks with my sister every Friday night . I used to use all of Friday as my "cheat" day, but I try to stick with my Friday night cheat MEAL.I eat pretty light the rest of the day on Friday (Greek yogurt for breakfast, progresso soup for lunch, no afternoon snack) . I am still losing. In fact, I have done this since I started and I have lost every week. I find that looking forward to my weekly splurge makes it easier for me to stick to healthy eating the rest of the week. If I want something greasy on Thursday, I say "No. you get a treat tomorrow."

I don't believe in cheat days. But I also don't believe in denial of foods. I set a healthy deficit, refuse to go down to 1200, and eat within my calorie goals for the day. If I go over a bit, I either eat less the next day or workout a bit more. I make my food work for me -- it's fuel for my body, so I give it plenty, and if I'm craving a chocolate bar, I have one. If I want pizza, I have it. I just make it fit my calories and macros. For me, this is way more long-term sustainable than trying to figure out 'cheat days' which often turn into bigger binges than planned because the mentality becomes "I can do WHATEVER today!"

The way I approach cheat days is similar to my approach to counting calories: I earn them with exercise.

Think of it as a game: Every morning you are given a set of calories to spend on food. You only have so many calories, and you have to be sure to spend them wisely so that you'll get everything you need for the day. You need to make sure you invest in things like protein, omega 3s, etc.

Let's say you don't feel like you have enough calories to spend on all of the things you want to eat. That's where exercise comes in.

With every minute of exercise (cardiovascular exercise specifically) you earn that many more calories that you can spend. Now you can't just spend those extra calories on anything, as your body will need extra nutrients to compensate for the exercise, but you get where I'm going with this.

On average, I burn a minimum of 500 calories per workout. (Usually more). I may use those extra calories or I may not. I may just eat the same amount I was going to eat that day and leave it at that. If I do, then my excess fat burns those calories.

Over the period of a week, assuming I stay true to my goals, that tends to leave me with at least one days worth of calories that I've burned. Assuming I plan my cheat days well, I don't make too much of a dent in that "reserve" of calories that I've burned, and I have a successful week.

Every now and then, I do have a week that might not be as successful as I like, but that's why it's so important to stay with what I'm doing. If I maintain the rest of the time, then a cheat day or even a cheat weekend won't hobble me too much.