Cheat Days
ellen1980
Posts: 23
Do you have them?
I often hear people talking about having 1 full on cheat day per week and that it helps them to stay focused for the remainder of the week. And often times it's actually good for their weight loss progress.....Is there any truth to this? Is it worth having a cheat day once a week? I am so affraid to slow down my already slow progress, but wanted to see if these cheat days actually work.
I often hear people talking about having 1 full on cheat day per week and that it helps them to stay focused for the remainder of the week. And often times it's actually good for their weight loss progress.....Is there any truth to this? Is it worth having a cheat day once a week? I am so affraid to slow down my already slow progress, but wanted to see if these cheat days actually work.
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Replies
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Maybe other people don't have this problem, but I find that if I do a full-on 'cheat day' -- "Oh, gonna eat whatever I want today" -- I struggle for days afterward with hunger and cravings. So if I want a treat, I try to work it into the calorie count for the day, and if I do "cheat," I try not to go over my maintenance calories (500 calories over my daily allowance).
But there do seem to be folks here who find it useful to do this.0 -
I fully believe in "cheat days".
Don't take that the wrong way though. I do NOT go completely overboard and eat like a 1/2 a pizza or anything, but typically I would have a slice and a couple wings, I feel it keeps me motivated to eat better through out the week knowing that at least one day I can have foods that i like, but may not be the healthiest of options. You can't be good all the time
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I have heard/seen people talk about that, but I try not to do it like that. There might be a random day every month or so that I knowingly/willingly go over my calories, but thats for big events. Even those days that I know I will blow my calories through the roof I still try to get in a ton of exercise.... Also, when you allow yourself to consistently cheat it makes it easier and easier each time....
good luck!0 -
I have not yet tried the "cheat day" theory. I am afraid that I will lose all self-control and forget the diet altogether. My sister does have a cheat day, however, and she says it does help her to stay focused because she does not feel so deprived. I believe that it is a very personal issue and may or may not work for each individual. Maybe you should try a toned down version of a full-on cheat day and just allow yourself to go over your allotted calories for the day.... Maybe just have one meal where you eat what you want while maintaining your calorie counting habit. This will allow you to have your treats as well as see how it affects your diet.
:-)
Melissa0 -
I have a cheat day every Saturday. While I dont go crazy, this is when I have foods that are difficult to track at restaurants (buffet, mexican food with nachos of course).
It does help keep me on track and gives me something to look forward to. If I completely deprive myself, I wont suceed.
With calorie counting, the cheat day, and 3 days at the gym, i am losing 1 pound a week.0 -
For me, it's okay to have a cheat meal (I go out to eat with my fiancé once a month), but not a whole day. It means I can have a break from eating well, but not from everything. I still have to log everything I eat (even the bad stuff). I still have to try to exercise in the morning. I still have to go my by "everything in moderation" rules. I have a nice meal, but I don't go crazy. That would make me sick..0
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Do this every Saturday following the spike diet. I eat 5,000 calories of whatever I want. Its about average caloric intake for the week, and I eat low enough the other days my spike day helps me to lose weight.
Definitely going to eat a whole pizza and box of girl scout cookies this Saturday.0 -
I think that cheat days often work for people due to calorie cycling. I know I hadn't heard the term the first time i tried to lose weight, but I found that I plateaued actually ten pounds from where I wanted to be and my cheat-weekends were the only time I actually lost weight after that. So, yeah, I believe in them, and am giving myself the same cheats again. : )0
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Hubby and I have a "Weekly cheat" not a whole day. Last week it was potato chips, I'm not sure what it will be this week. Just one thing or one thing at one meal that we shouldn't be eating. We did the cheat day on Superbowl Sunday and it was a digestive disaster for both of us. We decided not to do that again. Nothing wrong with a deliberate cheat but I'd find it too hard to get back where I belong after a whole day of eating whatever I wanted in whatever quantities. And there would be leftovers to deal with. Nope. One cheat a week.0
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I think it really depends on the person... It's good to not deprive yourself but for some people giving them a whole cheat DAY can send them right back off track. I would shoot for a cheat MEAL, that way your not undoing a whole day.0
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The over-arching theme is here is that yes, an Off Day can be beneficial if you understand why you're doing it. It's not for you to eat as much *kitten* food as you can...it's to keep you sane. If someone told me today that I could never have slice of pizza, or a medium rare NY strip, or one of my choclolate chip cookies ever again there is zero percent chance of staying with it. So, once you did have one of those, you have essentially failed, opening the door to old habits and ways (i.e. fat and lazy).
So, the Off Day gives me sanity. During my Off Day...I much prefer that over "cheat"...considering I'm not cheating, I'm doing as I planned - so no cheating involved, just a scheduled diet change. I typically take Saturday evening through Sunday lunch off. During this time, there is no way I want to ruin my progress by over indulging, but I do want to satisfy any cravings. I'll have a couple glasses of wine and a gorgeous prime NY strip...but I'll skip the bread and butter. In the morning, I'll eat some serious bacon and a bloody mary, but no waffles for me.
Does that make sense? Kill the urges with a reward not ruin your progress with gluttony. Also, this is a REWARD for me. If I have not hit the majority of my goals for the week in terms of fitness, I consider my Off Day was already used, and I bust my butt and eat clean through the weekend as well.0 -
I think that when you are in the diet zone even on cheat days / meals you make way better healthy choices and you tend to exercise more to compensate :bigsmile:0
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I think it depends on the person,I dont have a day I consider a cheat day but if I feel like a cookie I have one.Or if I know were going out to dinner I usally get what I want withen reason0
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Yes I do this every thursday for datenight.just one meal and it keeps me very motivated for the week.:bigsmile:0
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My "cheat day" is a friday night. I buy a very small bottle of wine (250mls - just one glass) and have that with my dinner on a Friday night, after my daughter has gone to bed. I have given up drinking pretty much at all, so restraining myself to one glass is a week is a big thing for me!0
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Maybe it’s just me, but I have found that when I eat foods that I know I shouldn’t, it makes me even hungrier. I have tried the cheat days and they are just not worth it. I had to get into the mind set that just because we go to one of my favorite restaurants doesn’t mean I have to eat badly. Yes, I want the whole basket of rolls, but I know I can live with just one. Cheating and going crazy for the day is just not a good, at least for me. Eating those " Cheat " foods just leaves me bloated and feeling guilty. I don’t really care for that feeling anymore.
Just my two cents ;-)0 -
I have a cheat meal. But more so its for me to enjoy something and not go crazy but not worry about logging it in.
I fully believe in this, because even though they say not to use food as a reward, I truly look forward to my cheat meal. That encourages me to do good the days of the week leading up to my cheat meal. This weekend for dinner one night I am going to have pizza and wings. =]
However, I believe that if you cannot control how much you eat, then cheat meals are not the best idea until you gain self control. I know this from experience. I had a cheat meal in the begining of January that turned into a cheat weekend because I ate so much at my cheat meal that for the rest of the day I thought "What the hell??" The next day I did the same thing. It was pathetic. I felt disgusted. I promised myself no more cheat meals for a month. Friday was when I had my first cheat meal and I did not go overboard. Actually it was at a birthday party and I ate till I felt full, and my friend and I before hand agreed to eat half a slice of cake and to tell you the truth we couldnt even finish that one slice between ourselves. It wasnt a big slice either. I surprised myself =] Because honestly and truthfully no food could ever make you feel the way that someone complimenting you on your weight lost feels. All the hard work would just go out the window if I lose self control.
So my advice: Learn self control and then have a cheat day or a cheat meal. You'll feel so much better by the end of your meal knowing that you controlled yourself and ate something delicious.
Good luck!0 -
I dont really like cheating at the moment because it's too easy for me to think "sod it, i'll start again on Monday" and it just makes it sooooo much harder to get back on track!
Like i said in my earlier post, just the one tiny treat which i allow for in my calories is all that i need to keep on track.0 -
Awesome responses guys! Thanks so much!! I think one meal/snack would be enough for me. I am always so conscious of what I eat so that I probably wouldn't be able to go full force for a full day anyways. I don't really crave much as I've been able to find pretty healthy options for the foods I typically love (pizza, pasta, etc). But one night of chips & dip or a few glasses of wine would be enough. I just don't want to hinder things too much, then I guess I would also need to ramp up theH2o intake after the cheat to get rid of all the water rentention from the saltiness/alcohol!!
I just may give this a go!
And I think my self control is pretty good....I've been at this weight loss thing far too long to fall off completely, but sometimes I feel as though I should just be able to eat one thing and not feel guilty! 0 -
If I want it I can work off the calories before I have it. Its worked well so far. Managed to work off a whole pizza before I ate it recently.0
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I wouldn't blow an entire day but I have done cheat meals on weekends. I still make sure I log EVERYTHING, that way I have an accurate assessment when I look back in my food diary. My goal is to stay under 2,000 calories on the cheat meal days. Not a number I aim for daily but a needed sanity break allowing me to keep things low cal all week. This also allows me to go out to eat once in a while without being stuck eating dry salads with only a touch of dressing. I still make smart(er) choices but will allow a little indulgence. I don't think I could eat this way forever if I didn't allow some junky things in there once in a while, like sweet potato fries! :devil:0
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I agree it us a personal choice it also depends on your will power to get back on track. I've been tossing around the idea if a cheat day for awhile but I think it will be just a meal to see how that test my will power. I think my first planned cheat meal will be on my husbands birthday we go to Monterey Bay restaurant every year it is a very elegant place. So I will see how that goes on march 17th.0
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I suppose I cheat on weekends, if you want to call it that. That's when we eat out, if we do. For example, I like the veggie sub at Quiznos. It's got cheese, and advacado, not to mention a lot of bread. I don't do low carb but I do monitor my carbs and choose the healthy ones. Same goes with fat, so advacado is good thing for me. But that sandwich would put me over the top for the day.
My husband and I both love sushi. For some reason it's not as "healthy" as one would think LOL. BUT, heart attacks and obesity in Japan are a rarity so I'm not sweating it.
I'm not anal when we go to restuarants with friends either. I just try to order the most healthiest thing. And, no, not just a side salad and water.
I will say that I used to be a yo-yo dieter. Stress over what I was eating. Eat a side salad and than crash the next day and go to McDonalds.... I started being aware of what I ate and how I looked in highschool, so now at 35 it's all kind of a no brainer to me. You learn to love the healthy foods and be comfortable with the non-healthy stuff from time to time because you know that there is no frickin wagon to fall off of.0 -
See I think for me I actually think about 'cheating' way more then I do. If I stop for a cup of tea I think about the donut/cookie I could order and eat with it, but I don't. Or I cruise around the grocery store and think about the chips or ice cream I could pick up and eat but I don't bother. It's like my mind is always wandering to the "dark side" of food choices and although I almost always stay on track just once in a while I would like to give in, but without feeling guilty, kwim?!0
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You should not have a day where you dont care at all.
Think of it this way.
You want to lose 1 lb a week, so you need to comsume 3500 less calories than your body needs in a week.
Say you require 2000 calories a day to stay the same weight.
6 days in the week you eat 1400 calories.
on your cheat day you over indulge and eat 4000 calories.
You still net negative 1600 calories.
So theoretically a cheat day would not be bad if you did it once a week. But it will definitely slow your progress... A LOT
In this scenario you would lose weight half as fast as you would without a cheat day0 -
I admit, I have many cheat days, and they usually occur on the weekends that I go hangout with my family (i'm a college student). But I have still lost weight by just counting my calories throughout the week and staying at an equal balance of carbs/cals/sugars/and fats. I haven't been working out for a few weeks, just my usual walk to classes, and i've lost about 15 lbs so far. But I also feel like, if I hadn't had those cheat days, perhaps i'd have lost more weight.
Overall, it's your decision. I would say to have at least one or two cheat days a month. And also, try to see if you feel a difference when you eat bad vs. good foods. For me, I feel absolutely disgusted when I eat bad, and my stomach is too full and always grumbling, and i feel very lazy. So this feeling keeps me motivated to try and stay on track throughout the week. 0 -
The over-arching theme is here is that yes, an Off Day can be beneficial if you understand why you're doing it. It's not for you to eat as much *kitten* food as you can...it's to keep you sane. If someone told me today that I could never have slice of pizza, or a medium rare NY strip, or one of my choclolate chip cookies ever again there is zero percent chance of staying with it. So, once you did have one of those, you have essentially failed, opening the door to old habits and ways (i.e. fat and lazy).
So, the Off Day gives me sanity. During my Off Day...I much prefer that over "cheat"...considering I'm not cheating, I'm doing as I planned - so no cheating involved, just a scheduled diet change. I typically take Saturday evening through Sunday lunch off. During this time, there is no way I want to ruin my progress by over indulging, but I do want to satisfy any cravings. I'll have a couple glasses of wine and a gorgeous prime NY strip...but I'll skip the bread and butter. In the morning, I'll eat some serious bacon and a bloody mary, but no waffles for me.
Does that make sense? Kill the urges with a reward not ruin your progress with gluttony. Also, this is a REWARD for me. If I have not hit the majority of my goals for the week in terms of fitness, I consider my Off Day was already used, and I bust my butt and eat clean through the weekend as well.
this is perfect-- my friend and I were just discussing this! if you tell yourself you can never have something you love ever again, you will dwell on your craving for that item and you will lose sight of your fitness or whatnot... If I said I could never have a drink while I'm out with friends once in a while or never have another scoop of rocky road ice cream I'd cry!! I know that if once a month or so I have plans to go out with friends and do have a drink, so long as I stick to healthy options the rest of the week it's OK... I dont eat crap food all day on an "off day" but I will allow myself to enjoy something I have wanted. To me, it makes me stay on track better!0 -
cheat days can help prevent platues because it shocks your system...it's the same concept as muscle confusion, except it's variety in your food. i know i eat pretty much the same things everyday, but on my cheat day (which for me is just a meal) i'll eat something that i normally dont eat. sometimes if i weigh myself the next day i'll see a slight jump in the scale, sometimes it wont even show...but either way it never prevents me from losing that week. if you binge for a day then you might gain weight & have to work it off again, that could hinder your weight loss, but you'd have to eat A LOT more than usual....0
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Try a 'cheat meal' instead of a cheat day. I would be afraid of bingeing if I allowed myself an entire day.0
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I use the 95/5 methodology for my life - so no "cheats" here but regular life! 95% of my life I eat healthy, unprocessed, home cooked foods (because I like them and I like being healthy), the other 5% I drink wine, or liquor, or eat some junk.
FWIW, I will tell you I am 100% sure that if you're trying to lose weight and you have a "cheat day" you can completely and totally undo your progress for the week in one 3500 calorie meal (which is WAY easy to do - try a big meal at Outback) - 1 pound is 3500 calories...just remember that!!! But I will say if you want to treat yourself to A TREAT (of normal proportion) once a week it won't be a big deal.0
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