How much do you go over on your cheat day?

ajc1309
ajc1309 Posts: 255 Member
edited November 22 in Health and Weight Loss
How much over your calories do you go on your cheat day? Do you not log or think about it at all?
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Replies

  • mitchelsimps
    mitchelsimps Posts: 151 Member
    Why have a cheat day? Doesn't that just ruin everything you worked for in the week?
  • ajc1309
    ajc1309 Posts: 255 Member
    mitchelsimps wrote: »
    Why have a cheat day? Doesn't that just ruin everything you worked for in the week?

    Not at all, you'd have to eat loads and cancel out your deficit to ruin everything that week. I have cheat days and I lost 53lbs.
  • woodhouse_j2
    woodhouse_j2 Posts: 20 Member
    I have only been over my calories 2 days out of the 90 i have been logging on to MFP, those were a massive stag weekend blowout which i consumed about 8000 calories. I do however have treat days like Saturday when i went to pizza hut for my 1st pizza in months, half a thin crust meat feast. The sodium for the day was a huge 5000 over the suggested limit but i did manage to stay within my calories after burning 800 at the gym that morning. Im confident the scales will keep moving in the right direction on my weekly weigh in but as far as cheat days go i don't like the idea of that. How much and what are you consuming on your cheat days?
  • cupcakesplz
    cupcakesplz Posts: 237 Member
    I think you should not do a cheat "day" but maybe a cheat "meal"?
    Do it so you don't put on weight but don't lose it
    Or a cheat snack.

    I like to do a small amount of lollies once a week and within my daily cals
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,698 Member
    I don't have cheat days. I don't see the point of eating more than I need when I'm on a mission to lose weight.

    From mid-Feb to mid-June, I didn't go over my calories on any days, and I successfully lost the 15 kg I was aiming to lose ... with no plateaus.

    Then, having reached my goal, I took a planned break for about a month, then eased back into it for a couple weeks at a slightly higher max calories (and lost 1 more kg), and now I'm on a mission again to reach a new goal.


    If I want to eat more, I work for it. I exercise. Exercise allows me to eat cake, pizza, tacos, and other things I like. :)


    See the thing is, cheat days are a large part of why I'm here. It took me 4 years to put those 15 kg on. During the week I ate well, much like I am now, but on the weekends, I'd eat whatever I wanted. During the week, I would lose a little bit of weight, on the weekend, I'd gain it back ... plus a little tiny bit.
  • ajc1309
    ajc1309 Posts: 255 Member
    I'll usually just treat myself to a frozen pizza and maybe a couple of squares of chocolate. Or this week I had some BBQ food with my family but I didn't over eat. I don't think I go over 1500 and 1200 is my daily goal.
  • HardyGirl4Ever
    HardyGirl4Ever Posts: 1,017 Member
    When I had or have cheat days, I usually don't log. Most of the time when I do, I have stuff that I can't find on MFP anyway. I know it's bad, but if I'm sick (which is most often when it happens) I don't have the energy to log, and I'm sleeping most of the time anyway.
  • professionalHobbyist
    professionalHobbyist Posts: 1,316 Member
    I don't have cheat days.

    Why?

    Anyway

    If I want to eat more I exercise more.

    Different people make it work for them though.

    Your mileage may vary
  • ExRelaySprinter
    ExRelaySprinter Posts: 874 Member
    edited July 2015
    cupcakesplz wrote: »
    I think you should not do a cheat "day" but maybe a cheat "meal"?

    Yes, i have a cheat meal every weekend.
    I think i go over by about 800-1000 cals, especially if i go out to a Restaurant and alcohol's involved. ;)
    I just watch what i eat for the next few days and ensure to do some exercise for at least 4/5 days throughout the week.
    I'm maintaining, so it isn't too disasterous if i have a couple of cheat meals.
  • rachelbouc
    rachelbouc Posts: 65 Member
    I do cheat days....on days a load up on exercise. My 30 mile bike ride transformed into carrot cake.
  • thankyou4thevenom
    thankyou4thevenom Posts: 1,581 Member
    I don't have 'cheat' days. I have maintenance days. That way I don't do any harm and an able to eat a lot of food.
  • labohn91
    labohn91 Posts: 113 Member
    1-2k I plan on not cheating this cut. But if I do no big deal.
  • kirstens1984
    kirstens1984 Posts: 96 Member
    I have a cheat day once a week and I've lost 33lbs, lighter than I've ever been at 110-112lbs. I think it's good for me as it means I can stick with a healthy lifestyle without feeling too deprived. That said, I do not go mad on my cheat days - I eat approx 1500-1600 per day all week and exercise 3-4 times per week, allowing myself around 2000 per day at weekend so I can enjoy some chocolate and wine! I do try to log, but if I eat out I don't bother :)
  • tyediri
    tyediri Posts: 183 Member
    I have 'cheat' weekends because I know I tend to eat a bit more in the weekends. But I 'bank' my calories by eating a couple hundred calories less than my limit on week days and then use those calories on my 'cheat weekends', so end up pretty much within my weekly goal anyway (I was a total of 125kcals over my weekly goal last week).
    This weekend I went over by about 200kcals on Saturday (so netting 1700kcals) and on Sunday by over 500kcals (netting about 2000kcals).
  • shadowfax_c11
    shadowfax_c11 Posts: 1,942 Member
    I don't have cheat days. I do have days where I eat more than my daily goal but still keep it at or below maintenance.
  • arb037
    arb037 Posts: 203 Member
    No such thing as a "cheat day" either make a commitment or dont. Dont be weak and think you " need" a day of being careless. Make a goal then get to it.
  • kchartinc
    kchartinc Posts: 21 Member
    Well last week I had a cheat weekend and went over 1-2k calories per day and still lost 3lbs. I think it mainly depends on how the rest of your week looks. I'm doing the 5:2 thing right now so I think for me personally, my body likes that I go a little crazy once in a while for it and then I'm less likely to just eat poorly the rest of the week. Just give it a try and track your results and see what, if any cheat day/meal works for you!
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    i dont do cheat days.

    i make what i want, work with my calories. I work out for extra calories. I have days where i go over, sure, but its not common and never by terribly much, unless its a special occasion (gathering with friends, holiday, vacation, etc)
  • ajc1309
    ajc1309 Posts: 255 Member
    arb037 wrote: »
    No such thing as a "cheat day" either make a commitment or dont. Dont be weak and think you " need" a day of being careless. Make a goal then get to it.

    There's nothing "weak" about it. As you can see, people in this thread, including me, have "cheat days" and still lose. It's nice to have one day a week where you don't have to overthink what you're about to eat, especially when your daily calorie intake is 1200. And as long as you're not completely cancelling out your weekly deficit then I see no harm in it if you're still losing weight.
  • nvmomketo
    nvmomketo Posts: 12,019 Member
    I don't really have cheat days either, I just have days ahen I am hungrier and I accommodate that. It's not planned, some days are just like that.

    My usual calorie goal is 1400something. Some days I go as high as 1800 or 2000. Other days I go as low as 1100. Most days are 1300 to 1600. It works for me. I'm still losing too.

    My advice would be, if you are hungry, eat. And if you are going somewhere where you plan to eat a lot, eat less calories early in the day to help accommodate that.

    Best wishes.
  • JeffBrown3
    JeffBrown3 Posts: 161 Member
    I do the same as you do ajc1309... I lost weight without any issues following that plan. It's the way that works for me, so I do it.
  • tycho_mx
    tycho_mx Posts: 426 Member
    edited July 2015
    ajc1309 wrote: »
    How much over your calories do you go on your cheat day? Do you not log or think about it at all?

    If you're logging it (accurately) it's not a "cheat" day - it's a managed excess calorie day. Pop your reports open - on your daily calorie report you'd be in the red, but the weekly/monthly average could still be hitting your target if managed properly.

    If it's a real "cheat" day (as in you're not logging it), then how would you know how much you go over it? At any rate, 4 weeks from know you'll know if your weight management strategies are in the right direction or not.

    Even the whole notion of cheating is a bit silly. Who or what are you cheating? Yourself. Except you aren't - you can't hide from the results.

  • ncfitbit
    ncfitbit Posts: 1,058 Member
    thankyou4thevenom wrote: »
    I don't have 'cheat' days. I have maintenance days. That way I don't do any harm and an able to eat a lot of food.

    Me too. Also, I figure out what I want my deficit to be over a week's time. Its relatively easy to undo a small daily deficit with too big a surplus day or too many surplus days, but I prefer to have a small deficit most days and incorporate almost anything I want to eat on a daily basis than to be hungry most of the week and then have the occasional blowout. People are different though.
  • karlschaeffer
    karlschaeffer Posts: 1,507 Member
    A healthy life style is a personal journey. One size does not fit all. You have to figure out what works for you. I consider myself on "maintenance". What works for me: I try to eat healthy Monday thru Friday, stay under my calorie goal, exercise; and on the weekend eat whatever I want and log 3000 cals for those two days. I call those two days "Free days". A few times I logged my "Free days" and I didn't go over 3000cals. So, it seems rational/rational to me. Again, whatever works for you. It's good to see how other people approach it.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    I don't have Cheat Days. I do have Eat More days, which correspond to Exercise More days.

    If Cheat Days work for you, great. I experimented with Cheat Meals and Cheat Days, found this counterproductive to my weight loss, and stopped.
  • 311snowwhite
    311snowwhite Posts: 30 Member
    mitchelsimps wrote: »
    Why have a cheat day? Doesn't that just ruin everything you worked for in the week?

    I actually totally ree with this statement! After years of yo-yo'ing with my weight because of "cheat meals" or "cheat days" that would turn in to "cheat months" I found that I no longer wanted to have them. if I want a small treat during the week I have it. I don't tell myself no I just force myself to moderate how much I eat. I fill the majority of my day with veggies, water and healthy food so that way if I have just one cookie or something like that it's still all balanced out and wihin my caloric goals.

    I practice what's called IIFYM (if it fits your macors) or flexible eating. I have found that is what works best for me. It helps me not want to go all out on a "cheat meal" or even "cheat" at all. It has helped me maintain my weight for over a year and a half.
  • Iron_Feline
    Iron_Feline Posts: 10,750 Member
    I have a cheat day once a week where I aim to eat to my maintenance calories. That's about 2000 cals.

    This lets me go out for meals or to the pub with friends without either starving all day or not drinking and sipping water.

    It keeps my life more normal which I think is a key to success.

    The comment about being weak and making a commitment is hysterical. I have made a commitment - it just happens to include an eat to maintenance day. Yes it means I'll get to my goal slightly slower - but I'll get there feeling happier and hopefully without having an all out binge because I've not allowed myself an indulgent night out along the way.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    ajc1309 wrote: »
    arb037 wrote: »
    No such thing as a "cheat day" either make a commitment or dont. Dont be weak and think you " need" a day of being careless. Make a goal then get to it.

    There's nothing "weak" about it. As you can see, people in this thread, including me, have "cheat days" and still lose. It's nice to have one day a week where you don't have to overthink what you're about to eat, especially when your daily calorie intake is 1200. And as long as you're not completely cancelling out your weekly deficit then I see no harm in it if you're still losing weight.

    How would you know if you didn't log?

  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    HardyGirl4Ever wrote: »
    When I had or have cheat days, I usually don't log. Most of the time when I do, I have stuff that I can't find on MFP anyway. I know it's bad, but if I'm sick (which is most often when it happens) I don't have the energy to log, and I'm sleeping most of the time anyway.

    When I'm sick I eat a lot of Thai noodle soup, find something that seems close enough in the data base, and hope for the best.

  • Debbjones
    Debbjones Posts: 278 Member
    If and I mean "if" I have a cheat day, I never go over my calorie limit. I just "eat this, not that!"... Eating right and maintaining weight loss is not a diet with cheat days... it is a life style change. Why go through the struggle to loose weight and fall back to old ways with cheat days?

    Everyone makes life choices and finds what makes them happy... this is my "happy", it might not be everyone's "cup of tea", and that is okay too!
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