Do you take cheat days?

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2

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  • arobed53
    arobed53 Posts: 2,004 Member
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    I may eat over my calories but it's not cheating. It's just eating over it. I log it and move on. I don't usually eat much under but it's just choices.
  • cwilson72180
    cwilson72180 Posts: 30 Member
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    I have cheat days every day, lol. The reason? I am not starting my diet until we get moved next week. We are moving, hopefully, by next Thursday. I will start my diet once we are moved because that is when I will also start my exercise plan. I have an exercise bike, a Pilates machine, and I am getting a treadmill. We have a room we are setting them up for me and I am going to rock it with my work out plan! Also my diet plan!
  • qstneverything
    qstneverything Posts: 125 Member
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    I have a cheat "meal" not a cheat "day"(Still call it my cheat day to make it easier to clarify haha) and usually it's okay as I have calories left over from the rest of the week to still stay under my goals.

    I think it's important to indulge once in a while, it stops you from binging on other days. You just remind yourself that it's two days to cheat day (as an eg) and you're more likely to not fail that way.

    A handy trick is to always see your calorie limit as a weekly rather than daily thing. If you're even 100 calories under every day you then have 600 extra calories per week for your cheat day :D
  • rlstover1714
    rlstover1714 Posts: 7
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    I have a cheat meal, not a cheat day. I need my weekly dose of chicken wings and fries :)
  • SuggaD
    SuggaD Posts: 1,369 Member
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    I hate the cheat meal/day concept. So no, I don't have a cheat day or cheat meal. But there are days that I consume substantially more than usual. It all balances out.
  • scorpiophoenix
    scorpiophoenix Posts: 222 Member
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    Nope. I eat what I want, when I want. Just moderately and within my calorie goals. I've been under all week and had almost 300cals left today so I'm gonna have ice-cream. Thinking of it as cheating would just be unfair to the ice-cream.
  • jhambright70
    jhambright70 Posts: 5 Member
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    I try to eat normally just either smaller portion sizes for less calories and yes I still have cheat days do not think I would be able to stay with it without them but I exercise all the time so I just burn it off thankfully.
  • thdmsulvt
    thdmsulvt Posts: 6 Member
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    I don't purposely schedule cheat days or cheat meals. I have to watch my blood sugar. I do have Friday night snack night every week with a tiny Glucerna bar ("candy") and a small amount of regular popcorn to feel like I can still eat junk food. It doesn't affect my blood sugar enough to be a concern and while I'm not anxiously awaiting the day I can eat these foods (I.E. I don't feel deprived during the week), I do enjoy my junky snack. It also isn't sinful enough to make me go off my diet and crave bad foods.
  • lauracups
    lauracups Posts: 533 Member
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    I had one today and I did log it and I feel gross. On occasion I allow pms get the best of me and go for sweets. Drinking a lot of water to feel better
  • SarahKhristan
    SarahKhristan Posts: 134 Member
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    I don't consider it cheating if I earned it. I don't eat poorly too often, but rather I plan ahead for them if I want it. Right now, I don't take too many meals like that though, because I'm really focused on getting to a certain goal.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,150 Member
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    Nope, because I'm not doing anything wrong. If I want something, I make it fit. If I happen to go over, I log it and move on.
  • polkadont
    polkadont Posts: 12 Member
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    My strategy for "cheating" is; don't plan it. I feel like if I plan a cheat day/meal for Saturdays, I have to cheat because when Saturday comes around, even if I don't feel like cheating I will..because I planned it. Sticking to my calorie tracking and leaving some wiggle room allows me to have cheats here and there without feeling guilty. I'm a slowly recovering binge eater :\ so it's very important to me to NOT feel that guilt after I cheat, IT'S TOTALLY OKAY&DELICIOUS TO CHEAT.
  • DaveyNH
    DaveyNH Posts: 23 Member
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    I don't cheat but I definitely have high calorie meals on occasion. When I do, I simply burn more calories to 'pay for them'. I jogged 6 miles yesterday so I could have pizza last night. 22 days in and haven't gone over my calorie allowance once, yet I had several bad meals.
  • 999tigger
    999tigger Posts: 5,235 Member
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    Not really, the whole notion of them is a bit bonkers. If I want extra I want it but take on board the calorie costs and do a bit extra to claw some of it back. I see people on here just starting and they award cheat meals without having made much progress. Id rather get to target faster.
  • kindrabbit
    kindrabbit Posts: 837 Member
    edited March 2015
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    I do. My problem is that I always over do it. I approach Friday with the attitude that I have worked hard all week, both on my diet and my training, and that I deserve an evening off to indulge all the treats that I choose not to indulge in during the week.

    The result is that I allow all my old demons out for the night! I drink too much, then I eat too much, then I eat some more. I wake up the next day feeling shaky and bloated and with no energy at all. Every Saturday morning I say I'm not going to do it again, and every Friday morning I promise myself my Friday night off and so the cycle beings again.

    My natural state is a binge eater and a binge drinker and I suppress it very well during the week. On a Friday night my binge monster raises its ugly head. I know what I have to do about it. I know the solution - I should allow myself small indulgences over the course of the week so I don't have 1 big blowout at the weekend. Will I follow my own advise? I imagine I will one day, but probably not this week.....
  • earlnabby
    earlnabby Posts: 8,171 Member
    edited March 2015
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    I do not. The idea of planning to overeat seems very wrong to me.

    Having said that, yes there have been days that I overate for no reason. I also plan as best as I can for special occasions and holidays and don't always stay strictly to the plan. Either way, I log whatever I ate and go on to the next day. They are not cheat days because overeating is not cheating, it is a time when I overeat. Period.
  • cmmull67
    cmmull67 Posts: 170 Member
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    I guess I have cheat days or meals, if looked at that way. I don't get the whole guilt thing, though. Seriously. It's your weight, your journey, not anyone else's. If you backslide, so be it. Beating yourself up over it (i.e. feeling guilty) only leads to this being "work" and not a valid change. We're human, we have cravings, and we act on them. Don't consider it cheating or feel guilty. Just get back up, dust off, and go forward, even if you took two steps back one day.

    I support the local VFW, and sometimes that means buying a bbq plate or steak dinner. Not the healthiest foods, but as long as my diet in general and exercise plan are in good shape, I enjoy them..not as cheats, not guiltily, just plain enjoyment. Do that on occasion, instead of everyday, and you can do so smartly without gaining back weight.

    Just my 2 cents, though.
  • Lisa_0527
    Lisa_0527 Posts: 90 Member
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    I try not to think of it as cheating, but more as a treat because this is now my lifestyle so I don't need to feel like I am breaking some cardinal rule. Also I don't make a whole day of it but pick one thing for the day that I will allow my self to have that isn't a part of my normal plan.
  • BL3SS3DFITN3SS
    BL3SS3DFITN3SS Posts: 40 Member
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    I don't call it cheating... But I don't log my weekends and I'm more lenient on my food choices those days as well. I'm still aware of what I'm eating and Im not binging but I just like the break from calorie counting. Sometimes that means I'll be up on the scale on Monday and Tuesday but it evens itself out and I still manage to lose. It's all about balance, it's not a all or nothing thing and it's not meant to feel like a punishment but a lifestyle. I love wine, I love chocolates and ordering in... so on the weekdays I buckle down and on the weekends I enjoy myself a little bit. Making sure things aren't "off limits" keeps me from crazy cravings. But that's just me... Everyone just have to do what works best for them.
  • VicTitch
    VicTitch Posts: 2
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    @rbiss, congrats on loosing weight, however please consider bumping up your calorie intake to 1200 at a very minimum. Anything less is actually putting your body into starvation mode, you can break down muscle & end up gaining fat because your body is trying not to starve. Good luck!

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