Are Cheat Days ok?

I consider it a "treat" instead of a "cheat." I try to stay within my calories every day. Sometimes I am a little over, and sometimes a little under. By doing it that way, I feel no guilt when I treat myself to a nice meal with friends or family. I think you have to allow yourself to eat things that don't necessarily fit in to your calorie count occasionally if you want to change your lifestyle. If you find yourself wanting the milkshake every day, it might become a problem for you, but don't feel guilty about an occasional indulgence. You are human, and milkshakes are delicious.

I think the words we use matter, and by calling something a "cheat" meal or day, you are setting yourself up to feel bad.

I have "maintenance" days or weeks. On a maintenance day, I indulge enough that I hit my maintenance calories for my current weight. It doesn't do anything bad; I don't gain (I occasionally retain water depending on the food choice, but that doesn't matter), and at worst, I've pushed off my hitting-my-goal date by one day. Most likely, I've brought it closer because allowing myself to indulge here and there means I'm more likely to not give up on my plan.

A maintenance week is usually still just one day during which I eat enough in one day (usually in one meal) to make it so that at the end of the week I'm at maintenance. I do these less often and save them for special occasions like an anniversary dinner with my husband at some fancy restaurant. Again, I might show a little increase on the scale the next day, but I know after seven days, if I stick to my goal on the other days, the week just ends up being a wash.

The important parts of the way I do it are these:
1. It's intentional. Maintenance days and occasional maintenance weeks are important to my ability to reach my goal. I have a small deficit, but that extra 250 calories in a day can be really satisfying. The extra 1750 I get when I give myself a maintenance week is awesome. And because I don't have to feel bad about it, I can enjoy it fully.
2. It's logged. I don't just throw logging out the window. If I'm eating out, I make my best guess. If I indulge more than I planned, I log it, accept it, and move on. Sometimes I do; it happens. If it bothers me, I'll try to stay 50 calories under my goal for seven days, but it usually doesn't bother me (probably because it usually doesn't happen. A rare over-indulgence is nothing to lose sleep over).
3. It's occasional. I probably have a maintenance day once every two weeks and a maintenance week no more than once a month. I try to make sure one of my maintenance days falls right about that time before my period that I want to eat everything. Also, because it's occasional, I choose to indulge in things I truly get satisfaction from. A meal at a favorite restaurant is going to bring me more satisfaction than eating a bag of chips while I watch a movie, even though they both might be the same number of calories. Because I think about it, I'm less likely to regret what I chose to indulge in.
4. It's guilt-free. I'm pretty close to my goal, so I could buckle down and lose the rest of it in exactly four weeks, or I could enjoy myself a bit and maybe lose it in six to eight. I'm in no rush (it took over a year for me to gain the weight, after all), so I choose the latter.

I don't know if this helps you, but it's what works for me.

Personally, I hate doing cheat days because they just break streaks and make me want to keep cheating. They're okay if you are able to recover from them easily, but if you don't need them I suggest not bothering with them.

I lost 61 pounds (First time around) doing cheat days once a week. Just make sure you don't go over what would be your maintenance calories for the day.

No such thing as a cheat day with me. If I decide I want something I will have it. I found that if I put it off for very long when I finally did have it I over indulged. This happened the other day. I went to the deli to get some ham and they had homemade S'mores Pie there for sale. I saw it and decided I would have a slice for desert after lunch. It is okay to have stuff like that the problem really comes when you have it all the time. I don't even budget for them in a day. If I go over for just one day I do. It wont hurt you.

jaywirth88 wrote: »

I have been eating very healthy and I have really enjoyed it, but I heard you should allow yourself one cheat day/meal a week. I had a cheat lunch last Sunday and I had a milkshake and burger today and I feel aweful about myself. Is cheating ok? and if so, what kinds of foods do you eat?

What? No! You're only cheating yourself. Eat what you want but fit. It. Into. Your. Macros.

As long as chest days don't turn into chest weeks or your don't go crazy I think they are okay. I think there is more harm in trying to deny yourself everything at all times cause it makes you want it all the more and that much harder to stop yourself when you do indulge just a little

I never call anything that I consciously do for myself "cheating." As long as you are on a path that leads you to your goal weight and maintenance and promotes good health and emotional well-being, your plan is working. Nearly all of the time I can make what I want to eat fit into my calorie goal. Occasionally, I make a conscious choice to eat over my maintenance for that that day. It is not "cheating."

jaywirth88 wrote: »

I really appreciate all of this feedback! It is good to see different perspectives. I guess i can try to be a little more lenient with myself, and i really like the idea of not using the word 'cheat' and just fit everything into my macros.

I learnt to 'ban' the word 'Cheat' in relation to food - it's implying that I shouldn't be eating it and why the hell not?! I'm a human just like everyone else and I said goodbye to the restrictive, self punishing ways of attempting weight loss a couple of years back. Moderation is key, of course - but deprivation is a massive NO (IMO!)

having a burger/pizza/icecream/chocolate is not cheating

food is food

in a balanced diet (hitting both macros and calorie allowance), "cheating meals, cheating foods" are a non sense

no one should deprive themselves of any food

SLLRunner wrote: »

jaywirth88 wrote: »

I have been eating very healthy and I have really enjoyed it, but I heard you should allow yourself one cheat day/meal a week. I had a cheat lunch last Sunday and I had a milkshake and burger today and I feel aweful about myself. Is cheating ok? and if so, what kinds of foods do you eat?

Nope, not for me. I sometimes eat over but it's not cheating, it's just eating over.

Cheating implies food type restriction and that I'm doing something wrong. I'm not a fan of either.

Even though I'm on the other end of this spectrum and restrict a whole macronutrient group, I also don't view it as cheating and also consider it simply eating over.

'Eating over' days need to be infrequent.