Cheat days... Your experience

kailyw05 · July 2015

Yeah I don't call them cheats really because I still try to log everything, regardless if it puts me over or not. If I know there's a social event coming up that will revolve around food and alcohol, I try to plan ahead. I keep a bit more of a deficit the days leading up, and usually can "bank" a good 500-700 calories. I'll usually squeeze in some extra activity on these days as well if I can. I'm usually still a bit over in the end, but over the next couple of days I can usually make up for it. As long as you didn't exceed maintenance in the end you know you won't gain.

I will enjoy myself at these events, but I will usually pre-log my alcohol before I go and stick to that. Then the next day I will sit down and attempt to log what I ate at the event. If it was a lot of chip bowls, dips, finger foods, cheese & crackers, etc and I find it too annoying/hard to remember every bite I ate and try to find entries for them all, I will usually just "quick-add" a guesstimate. Sometimes it could be as much as 1000 calories. But I do try and keep a mental note of the munchies and try not to over-do it. I could pack away soo many snacks at a party in the past. Now I try to stick to the veggie tray if there is one, and limit myself to the chips. If you can engage in conversations away from the food table it helps.

As others said, this is real life. Whether you log it or not the calories were still consumed. The last time I didn't log was my weekend away at a cottage during an outdoor music festival where it was just too chaotic to log everyday. You can still stay on track while indulging a little with friends!

PinkDeerBoy · July 2015

Unless I am hungry and need it, I usually do not eat my exercise calories the day I get them, instead I save them. That way I don't have to worry about once a week or so having a meal that normally would not fit into my goals. Most weekends my family likes to eat out, ordering something, get a special meal, and such, so since I know that, I can plan ahead of time.

brandyosu · July 2015

I have cheat days. My expectation is that I will retain 2 - 3 pounds of water weight after a cheat day and it is generally gone within three days. Honestly, it helps make my weeks feel shorter, keeps me focused on the here and now and how far I've come and not so much on the big picture and how far I still have to go.

tiffanycompton33 · July 2015

I feel like for months I was doing something like that... I would eat well during the week and the weekend anything would go but I was only eating a 1/2 a pound deficit and then I would gain that 1/2 pound back on the weekend (even though it looked like more due to the whole water weight thing the above poster mentioned). I was stuck. I've shortened that window. I'll eat extremely well Friday during the day and budget any drinking/dining for that night. Saturday is a day I let myself eat and drink and be merry but I make sure that I do a leisure activity. Sunday I can eat a great brunch but by mid-afternoon its back to business and a solid workout and the calories should balance. But once again I was doing this every weekend so if this is a special weekend then I say do it up

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krdews · July 2015

I do not plan a cheat day, I just don't get the concept of pre-planning a day to cheat. My journey has been a lifestyle change - healthy eating habits <CICO> something physical everyday; if there is a breakdown in there for whatever reason - I keep it moving and get back on track. If I planned for it -I would spiral out of control quickly. I feel I would start looking forward to cheating too much and become less focused on what really needs to be done.

ibamosaserreinas · July 2015

Katzedernacht wrote: »

I have a cheat meal once a week, a whole cheat day seems a bit too much for me .

Yep. I do meals once in awhile. A whole day is too long.

I really do just try to eat foods I like all the time so that it really does become a lifestyle. I have become ok most days with moderation.

betuel75 · July 2015

a cheat meal should be fine. A cheat day of "letting loose a little bit" can result in eating more calories and undo an entire week of deficit/progress if not more. Just something to think about when wanting to do it. Im going out to dinner tonight and have no idea of calories at the place im eating so im keeping calories low today and know exactly what to order tonight. Its not the low cal foods items either, its the food i want...

bubaluboo · July 2015

I don't cheat, sometimes I lack self control and sometimes I consider the options and eat more/make up for it another day but whatever I decide to eat and for whatever reason I can't cheat my body into ignoring the calories so there is going to be a consequence and I may as well own it. By logging excess calorie intake I get a good idea of what would or would not fall within my maintenance level and start to understand what calories really are in those 'treats'. Sometimes it's surprisingly not as bad as expected and then other times it's way worse but I wouldn't know that if I didn't log everything.

z304 · July 2015

I've never been into cheat days. If I'm on a plan that makes me feel like I want one, at this point I know it's going to end in failure for me because I can't make that division of time & habits work for me personally.

I do think there are ways to not blow your diet entirely without shunning social events. When I have a thing coming up I plan ahead and figure out ways I can eat healthier while I'm there, and I try to eat a little cleaner than usual beforehand. At this point I can't ditch my healthier eating habits entirely though, I'm still ordering healthier foods and not cramming bar nuts and chips into my mouth when I'm out... and I've noticed that when I order say the hummus/pita/veggie appetizer instead of a fried appetizer, others will eat the healthier option more than the fried one too.
You say you're "eating whatever everyone brings" so I assume you're bringing stuff too- so there's no need to mentally give up power over your choices and health.
You can opt to bring healthier options... off the top of my head you could bring a big bag of popcorn instead of chips. Vodka or wine instead of regular beer (that also depends on how much you drink of the wine vs beer thing, and on mixers). Even vodka-soaked watermelon instead of jello shots if it's that type of weekend.

ShannonMpls · July 2015

Need2Exerc1se wrote: »

Whatever you choose to call them, days where I eat more than I burn are a part of life for me. Sometimes WAY more than I burn. They always have been and hopefully always will be. I can't imagine a life where I ate the same way every day.

This exactly.

I lost 130 pounds over 15 months, and I took a day or two "off" from logging every month. Sometimes, during a trip or vacation, it was more than a day or two. Sometimes I ate at maintenance on these days, sometimes way over. I usually had these days due to an event (wedding, girls weekend, etc) but sometimes just because I wanted to go out to dinner and cook without weighing and logging. When these days/trips were over, I went straight back to eating at a deficit, no exceptions.

This worked really well for me. It made it much easier to stick to my plan the rest of the time, knowing I had a no-logging day coming up at some point.

Bottom line: I do not think I would have been as successful as I was without no-logging days. They aren't "cheat" days, they were and continue to be part of my plan. Having the mental and physical break makes my massive weight change sustainable and enjoyable.

Now, I maintain generally by logging M-F at a deficit, and not logging on weekends. Lately, I've had a few too many trips and free days, so I'm tightening up the logging a bit. I've been maintaining my 130 pound loss for nearly three years.

Cheat days... Your experience

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