interesting info on "cheat days/meals"
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newyorkmo
Posts: 32 Member
from a study I was reading today:
participants who reported a consistent diet across the week were 1.5 times more likely to maintain their weight within 5 lb over the subsequent year than participants who dieted more strictly on weekdays. A similar relationship emerged between dieting consistency across the year and subsequent weight regain; individuals who allowed themselves more flexibility on holidays had greater risk of weight regain. Allowing for flexibility in the diet may increase exposure to high-risk situations, creating more opportunity for loss of control. In contrast, individuals who maintain a consistent diet regimen across the week and year appear more likely to maintain their weight loss over time.
From: Long-term weight loss maintenance, american journal of nutrition, 2005.
I am very consistent during the week but allow myself more latitude on weekends, holidays, and vacations. This makes me re-think my strategy a bit, as I definitely want to successfully maintain my weight loss!
participants who reported a consistent diet across the week were 1.5 times more likely to maintain their weight within 5 lb over the subsequent year than participants who dieted more strictly on weekdays. A similar relationship emerged between dieting consistency across the year and subsequent weight regain; individuals who allowed themselves more flexibility on holidays had greater risk of weight regain. Allowing for flexibility in the diet may increase exposure to high-risk situations, creating more opportunity for loss of control. In contrast, individuals who maintain a consistent diet regimen across the week and year appear more likely to maintain their weight loss over time.
From: Long-term weight loss maintenance, american journal of nutrition, 2005.
I am very consistent during the week but allow myself more latitude on weekends, holidays, and vacations. This makes me re-think my strategy a bit, as I definitely want to successfully maintain my weight loss!
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Replies
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That makes a lot of sense, and thinking back on my history of trying to lose weight, seem to be what i've experienced. If you allow "bad" snacks on a regular basis, but stay within your macros, you're probably less likely to have your diet get out of hand than if you were super strict all the time, but let yourself go one a week.0
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We all get craving for crap food. Mine is very minimal but still there. depends on what a cheat day is. I cycle my calories anyways so I don't have a suppose cheat day.0
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Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.0
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SInce I do not have cheat meals/days and eat whatever I want consistently, I guess I am on the right path!!0
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Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.0 -
Curious as to whether or not the participants were counting calories, or tracking their food intake in any way.0
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IMHO Consistency is a good thing to get yourself rooted in your new habits.0
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Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.
Nah, if you're still in a deficit it can hardly be called cheating. At that point it's just IIFYM, which I do anyway.0 -
Curious as to whether or not the participants were counting calories, or tracking their food intake in any way.
This. Plus I'm guessing the ones who eat more on the week end did not necessarily eat less than the other group during the week too... so they might be eating more overall.
Would need to know more about the study.0 -
JesterMFP: good question - I think they were...study participants were from the National Weight Control Registry...so perhaps not all of them monitoring, but I'm betting a lot of them were tracking intake to some extent at least.0
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Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.
Nah, if you're still in a deficit it can hardly be called cheating. At that point it's just IIFYM, which I do anyway.
oh yes it can. If you eat something with lots of fat but still in calorie limit I would call that a cheat meal.0 -
Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.
I agree with this.. but rewarding yourself with food seems counterproductive IMHO.0 -
Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.
I agree with this.. but rewarding yourself with food seems counterproductive IMHO.
So you are going to lose 50 pounds I a strict diet the entire time. Your better than me. I could do that but then craving slowly come back. I know how to handle a craving and help a setback if it happens. I reward myself every week, but my goals are different from the majority of people on here.0 -
Exactly.Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.
I do a fasting program 4:3. My weigh in day I fast until that eveing and have a great meal, dessert, pretty much whatever I want and still come in at, and even BELOW, my TDEE of 2200-2500. It is like a win-win!
I hate the term people use as a cheat meal or even worse....day. People can still eat what they want if they do it moderation.0 -
Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.
I agree with this.. but rewarding yourself with food seems counterproductive IMHO.
So you are going to lose 50 pounds I a strict diet the entire time. Your better than me. I could do that but then craving slowly come back. I know how to handle a craving and help a setback if it happens. I reward myself every week, but my goals are different from the majority of people on here.
No... I meant using food as a reward for losing 5lbs. It seems like it could potentially lead to emotional eating... but those are just my thoughts. What works for one person does not work for all.0 -
Why not?Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.
I agree with this.. but rewarding yourself with food seems counterproductive IMHO.
So you are going to lose 50 pounds I a strict diet the entire time. Your better than me. I could do that but then craving slowly come back. I know how to handle a craving and help a setback if it happens. I reward myself every week, but my goals are different from the majority of people on here.
No... I meant using food as a reward for losing 5lbs. It seems like it could potentially lead to emotional eating... but those are just my thoughts. What works for one person does not work for all.
If pizza is your favorite food, and you lost XX weight, there is no reason why the person cannot indulge and have some pizza.
I just suggest people to make it a win win though and eat your fav stuff and stay at your maintenance cals0 -
Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.
Nah, if you're still in a deficit it can hardly be called cheating. At that point it's just IIFYM, which I do anyway.
oh yes it can. If you eat something with lots of fat but still in calorie limit I would call that a cheat meal.
Nope. That is not a cheat meal! If it fits eat it. Nothing wrong with that.0 -
We all get craving for crap food. Mine is very minimal but still there. depends on what a cheat day is. I cycle my calories anyways so I don't have a suppose cheat day.
This is what I was wondering about. As reported, it sounds as if it's saying cycling is worse than consistent calories per day, but to believe it supports that claim I'd have to see more details about what was looked at, how it was defined, etc.
Personally I sometimes focus on the week rather than the day and also often eat differently depending on whether I've exercised or not, but I never have days where I just go wild. However, I do tend to fit in restaurant meals on Friday or Saturday specifically and fully intend to allow for more indulgent meals on Thanksgiving and Christmas, etc. It's hard to imagine why that would be a problem for maintenance, but I'm curious about the methodology.0 -
We all get craving for crap food. Mine is very minimal but still there. depends on what a cheat day is. I cycle my calories anyways so I don't have a suppose cheat day.
This is what I was wondering about. As reported, it sounds as if it's saying cycling is worse than consistent calories per day, but to believe it supports that claim I'd have to see more details about what was looked at, how it was defined, etc.
When I go strict I get craving. sometimes they lend to overeating in the past earlier this year.0 -
Crap. I was just getting ready to re-institute a cheat meal for every 5 pounds I lose for my remaining 20 pounds.
A cheat meal can still be in your calorie deficit.
I agree with this.. but rewarding yourself with food seems counterproductive IMHO.
So you are going to lose 50 pounds I a strict diet the entire time. Your better than me. I could do that but then craving slowly come back. I know how to handle a craving and help a setback if it happens. I reward myself every week, but my goals are different from the majority of people on here.
No... I meant using food as a reward for losing 5lbs. It seems like it could potentially lead to emotional eating... but those are just my thoughts. What works for one person does not work for all.
You got to celebrate the mini goals somehow.0
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