How often do you "indulge/cheat"??

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  • tinascar2015
    tinascar2015 Posts: 413 Member
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    I just don't. I know how I am. You know that Lay's potato chip tagline that says "You can't eat just one?" Well, I have been like that with pints of Ben & Jerry's, so...I have stopped all the indulgent high-fat-high-sugar foods and redefined "indulgent" as a plate of spaghetti twice a month.

    But today I am making a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting for my husband's birthday tomorrow. Full sugar, full fat, and I won't touch it because I know what will happen if I do.
  • sheltrk
    sheltrk Posts: 111 Member
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    I splurge pretty much every weekend, but in a controlled manner: I meet my calorie goal on a weekly basis instead of daily. I eat at a larger deficit during the week, saving up extra calories for the weekend. I log my weekend meals just as thoroughly as my weekday meals. I started doing it about a year ago. It's been a very successful strategy for me.

    During the week, I may pass on dessert, a second beer, whatever. But, during the weekend, I know if we go out to eat, I *can* have that dessert after sharing an appetizer, or a pint of IPA, or even a large popcorn at the movies, and not feel the slightest bit of guilt about it.
  • Lrdoflamancha
    Lrdoflamancha Posts: 1,280 Member
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    Every 10% that I lose.... I take a day off and have anything I want in any amount.
  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
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    No cheating... It is the "yummy-licious" meal or day... But it does fit in my daily calories or I may exercise a bit more to make me feel better about adding some additional calorie that day!

    It is a personal choice to call it cheat or bad.. It is neither for me... again it is all yummy and I want to eat this way forever!
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
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    tinascar2015 wrote: »
    I just don't. I know how I am. You know that Lay's potato chip tagline that says "You can't eat just one?" Well, I have been like that with pints of Ben & Jerry's, so...I have stopped all the indulgent high-fat-high-sugar foods and redefined "indulgent" as a plate of spaghetti twice a month.

    But today I am making a carrot cake with cream cheese frosting for my husband's birthday tomorrow. Full sugar, full fat, and I won't touch it because I know what will happen if I do.

    :(
  • urloved33
    urloved33 Posts: 3,323 Member
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    B)
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    I don't "cheat" per se because I eat whatever I feel like knowingly and taking into account the calories I utilized while doing so. Choices now are whether I do more physical exercise to increase my calorie allotment or eat less to not supercede my calorie for the day.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
    9285851.png

    this
  • nealsland
    nealsland Posts: 18 Member
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    I do the exact same thing. In fact last Saturday. I went big too. I so wish I would have stuck to my routine. Although I know there wasn't four pounds of fat in what I ate and drank, that's where I'm at. I worked hard to get to 199 and three days later 203! It's going to be awhile till I party like that again.
  • fireytiger
    fireytiger Posts: 236 Member
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    I've learned that in order to make this a lifestyle change, I need to learn to incorporate all foods into my diet in moderation, and not have "cheat days" or whatever. Cheat days makes things forbidden to me, and then I go into a binge. For most of my life I had an unhealthy relationship with food. It finally took me hitting my highest weight, going through deep depression, substance abuse and hitting rock bottom for me to finally get help and get control of it. So now, if I want a donut, I'll have a stupid donut. But I won't eat the whole box of donuts, and later I may choose to eat a lighter lunch, or bump the intensity at the gym slightly more than I might have otherwise. That's the difference for me.
  • kimberlydgarcia
    kimberlydgarcia Posts: 78 Member
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    I haven't "cheated". I had a restaurant meal & slice of cake in my birthday Saturday. I just made sure it fit into my calories & don't eat like that everyday.
  • cj94404
    cj94404 Posts: 154 Member
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    I guess it all depends if this is a temporary diet for you or a lifestyle change? I would be rigid on a diet. Lifestyle chance you need to incorporate all the foods you like and want. Unless of course there is some underlying health reason to permanently cut food.

    What is clear is there isn't one approach other than less calories in means some weight loss. Good luck.
  • patrikc333
    patrikc333 Posts: 436 Member
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    never, cause it will be the first step to disaster for me. I know myself, and if I don't count or let it go once I will go back where I was.

    instead, I plan in advance and I eat in moderation, or exercise a lot and eat a lot, but up to my daily suggested intake

    In the end it's a simple decision, that must work on an individual base:

    for me, it's either

    - eat as much as I want, going back to be over weighted

    or

    - plan, log, control, enjoy what i can eat, and if i want more i exercise more, but never go over

  • Noelv1976
    Noelv1976 Posts: 18,948 Member
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    You shouldn't feel guilty if you go on the red at least once or twice a week. Like one of them said, should see somebody or reevaluate your eating habits. Having one cookie today, then another two days later won't kill you, nor will it destroy your goal. Unless you're competing in a Bodybuilding competition, you should be able to enjoy some sweets every now and then.
  • urloved33
    urloved33 Posts: 3,323 Member
    edited March 2015
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    sjadev1108 wrote: »
    I know what everyone says, one day/one meal won't hurt etc etc. However, I find it very shaming and feel very guilty if I'm in the red. I feel like I am starting over after one bad day or one bad meal. I wish I could throw down a cookie, or a couple pieces of pizza once a week, or once a month, but I just CAN'T. I'm terrified the scale will go up....I'm terrified I'll have to get the fat girl pants back out.....I'm terrified it will start a huge downward spiral. So, I guess my question is, how often do you that are having success indulge? And how did you get past this feeling of shame and guilt when you do?

    Well I am not terrified but just don;'t want to lose all my gains. I have cut out fast food almost completely...soda is gone too....I do eat in a nice restaurant every other week with my daughter but stay within my allowed calorie intake for the most part. I know people say...there is no good or bad food and you can eat whatever but I want the result of my fitness efforts to be 'FITNESS' not skinny as the result of eating less but still poorly. I am very disciplined with my gym time too. So to the question...how often do I cheat.indulge...not very often at all.

  • mulecanter
    mulecanter Posts: 1,792 Member
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    I think of it as tension release. Diet control is stressful, sometimes you need relief. Get the relief and get back on the wagon immediately. I also try to experiment with smaller "binges" to see if I can minimize the damage while still relieving the stress.
  • mandychowx
    mandychowx Posts: 179 Member
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    I don't call my cheat meal "cheat meal" and often women go overboard with what they eat and it turns into a cheat DAY!

    I call mine a refeed. Where I increase my calories by about 300 calories and increasing my carbs by 80%.

    The purpose of a re-feed day his is to help boost your metabolism and help restore your Leptin hormone levels. (Leptin is the king of all fat burning hormones!) When dieting and on a low calorie diet, your metabolism will drop (meaning you will be burning less calories) plus your leptin hormone levels will drop in attempt by the body to spare body fat. (safety mechanism for the human body).

    The body does not want to lose fat, the body just wants to survive, and when you change your calorie intake to less calories than your TDEE your body is going to adjust, your metabolic rate and metabolism will slow down and soon your TDEE will be a lot lower than what it originally was, resulting in you needing a lower calorie intake to continue to burn body fat.

    With a slow metabolism and low leptin levels it becomes much harder to burn body fat. So including a re-feed day into your cutting diet will be really beneficial and allow you to continue to burn body fat at an optimal rate. A re-feed is basically taking 1 step back, but 2 steps forward.
  • 00figg
    00figg Posts: 111 Member
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    i dont "cheat" but i do "indulge." i prelog and as a result i eat what i want and have dessert every day. if i am going out to eat, i will try to fit the meal into my daily calories, if i go over, then i will exercise a bit more. i just started maintenance so this seems to work for me. i will say that my eating habits have changed. i still eat high fat/calorie items like pizza and pasta, but i watch portion sizes and balance with fruit and veggies.
  • johnsonGA15
    johnsonGA15 Posts: 20
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    Once in awhile, I'll do so. Then I get back up and exercise and eat far less.

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