Has anyone lost weight with 'cheat days'?

I eat what ever the HELL I want to as long as it fits into my calorie budget. There may be weeks when I have really maintained a smaller deficit than normal, I will allow myself a "re-feed day" just so my old metabolism doesnt get out of whack!! And plus I like me some foooooood!!!!!!! I will do this every month or two!! The more I have learned to try not to obsess over the numbers, the better I have done!! So no it wont kill you or hinder your progress, just dont make a habit out of it and you will be totes magoats fine!!!

Yup. I frequently have days where I can hit 3,000 calories or more. As long as I stay active (walking and hiking) I can eat well over 2,000 calories per day and still lose.

Ok, based on your info, and about 4 days of exercise.....
Your TDEE is ~2150 - 2180 / day
So if weight loss is the goal, and you are doing -20%, your intake would be about 1700 - 1740

So if you were to do 1700 7 days / week == 11,900 calories
So if you are doing 1200 / 6 days == 7200 calories
You technically still have about 4700 calories you can play with to still be in deficit of 20% for the week....

Something to consider....
Me personally, I would not pound down 4700 calories in one day if I were losing weight....

I would opt to bring up my daily caloric intake to maybe 1500 or something, and fit my desired foods into those calories...

I've had 1900 calories today, on the days I do overeat I wont go over 2200 calories. Also thanks for working that out for me I may increase my calories in the future :-)

Give it a shot and track things.
Very important to track things, and see which way you are going.....

I am only a month in and have lost 4 lbs...1 lb per week which is exactly my goal. If you check my logs...I am all over the place. One day I eat real well...the next I don't...one day I work out like a mad woman and the next I sit on the couch. I don't worry about it. I pay attention to what is going into my mouth and shoot for my calorie goal every day. Some days I make it some days I don't. I make sure that I work out at least 3 times a week and when I do...I work out HARD. What I try to keep in mind is ....will my net calories average out under my goal?...if so...I'm good. If not...time to hit the treadmill or throw in a P90X work out. It is ok to eat what you want as long as you work it off. I don't believe in denying myself...I get myself into trouble that way cause then instead of having 1 meal that is over my goal, I have a DAY or a WEEK where I gorge myself.

Give yourself grace and mercy...small changes over time is what is going to make a sustaining weight loss. Or at least that is what I am banking everything on.

Good luck! I wish you well on your journey. Try not to be hard on yourself. We are all in this together.

The honest answer is that losing weight is a math exercise.

If say 1500 would maintain your weight...and you eat 1400 for six days and 3000 on day 7, you'll gain weight (i.e. you are 900 calories over on the week)...if you eat 1200 a day for six days and have 2500 calories, you'll lose weight (down 800 calories/week).

If you want to look at the week as a whole 1200X7 = 8400 calories, then that's fine as long as you aren't literally starving yourself or aiming for something absurd like 500 calories a day so you have 4900 on day 7.

i.e. Cheat days aren't meant to be binges, they are meant to be a chance to indulge but within reason and with reflection on what your weekly calorie budget is. If a binge is 5000 calories then, no, you won't lose weight.

I "cheat" every day. When I want chocolate, I eat it, when I want a shake, I eat it, when I want 3 shots of whiskey, I drink 'em ... they're all logged, and I try not to go over under 1500 cals or over 2,000 cals on any given day.

Just make sure to track everything on MFP and you'll be fine eating things you might think are "unhealthy"

As long as you remain in a calorie deficit, over the long term, cheat days don't matter.

If you "undo" your week long deficit with one cheat day, then you will remain the same.


I'd much rather take my cheat day and divide it into my other days, than to put myself through a a caloric rollercoaster, but everyones different. And there are studies showing benefits of cheat days, just like there are studies showing benefits of everything.

So to be clear (this is my theory) as long as you work out that day... and stay within your calories that day then your "treats" are ok...?

Thanks L