cheat days; how much do you cheat?

Saturday was my cheat day, I ate right all the way till dinner. It was date night so we got a babysitter and went for dinner and a movie. I got fajita's and pop, but no snack at the movie.. so i let myself cheat on meal a week.

Some might say it's best not the PLAN to cheat, and some might say it's good to have something to look forward to. Generally I don't make a plan to do it, but if I really feel deprived, it's one meal, once a week. I hope to keep it to about 500 cals over for that day. Having said that I did terribly this weekend...the cheat was a slippery slope and I ate both pizza and a piece of cake. :laugh:

I do a cheat meal (not day) once a week and it is anything goes in that one sitting.

I take a cheat day once a week, usually a weekend day. I really wanted pizza and I've been wanting it for a while. So I ate two slices of pizza for dinner. I'm not sure the best way to go about cheating but perhaps you just eat the one thing you reeeally want and follow the rest of the day regularly. I dont know but I need that day to eat a little something...it's hard

I cheat a little bit, once a day, making sure to not go over my target calories.I find that works better than waiting all week for just one day, because for me that means binging allllll day long. It has worked fabulously for me. I have lost 60 lbs so far, but the easiest and most enjoyable lbs lost have been the ones I lost when I wasn't depriving myself.

If I cheat, which I did a lot last week when I was on vacation, I just try to make sure that I don't go over my BMR so I am not gaining weight.

Agree with a previous poster. I don't do the cheat day so much as I still enjoy the things I want in moderation. A burger here and there, take out pizza once a month, a dessert once in a while... not going to do you harm, but the key is moderation. You can make healthier burgers at home as opposed to grabbing fast food, just as a small example.

I still enjoy the things I love and have managed to lose 38 lbs. ^_^

I was really strict for two months and dropped 35 lbs. Everyone kept telling me to give myself a cheat day. You know what happened? I did what you did. I ate EVERYTHING I wanted....and then I quit my healthy eating/exercising. I've gained 12 lbs since march. Cheating one day got me SO off track and now I'm full of dissapointment. I'm back on track now though, and trying hard. I would say if you feel like you REALLY need something you've been craving cheat one meal, but only eat half...and only once a week or every other week. Obviously I'm not a dietitian, this is just my opinion.. you'll do great as long as you remember why you're trying to lose weight.

I don't have cheat days honestly. I have days where there's something really special and worth it going on then I splurge. I almost only do it for one meal (there's no reason to binge all day IMO) and I still make smarter choices and choose smaller portion sizes.

When I started I could NOT allow myself a cheat day until I'd been doing the new life for awhile. Cheating every week is ridiculous if you ask me because it wouldn't work for me. I'd never stay on track because I'd spend 3 or 4 days working off something from ONE day. So I "cheat" maybe once a month or every 6 weeks.

Make smart choices when eating anywhere, smaller portions, baked options etc. This is your life not a diet. It has to last forever. So you have to find a balance that works for YOU and only you. Don't feel bad telling people you don't want a cookie etc even when they push it on you.

I cheat on the weekends. I don't log food in on Saturdays and I still watch what I eat, the "cheat" is not having to log everything in. I also cheat on Sundays where I don't always log everything in, but still watch what I eat. The only food "cheat" I do is one meal and one snack during the weekend that may not be so healthy. Yesterday, I had some pasta with butter and cheese that I did not measure out and it was yummy!

When I had cheat days (last year), I didn't lose. That wasn't the only reason why, but it was definately part of it.

THis year, I allow myself to eat at maintenance for 1 day a month, and to eat at maintenance for 1 week, every 3 months. I still have to log it. It works SO much better than having cheat days where you don't count anything and the calories are through the roof (enough to wipe out my week's friggin hard earned deficit!!).

Stormie- That's more what I do! I eat at maintenance calories even when I "cheat". I never thought of it that way though but that's about what they come out to be.

I don't "cheat" or have a full day, or meal. When I want something I have been craving, or something I gave up eating, I work it into my calories for that day. For example on Saturday I had a really yummy piece of cake at a babyshower. I worked in a work out and kept myself still under calories for that day. I usually stick to my normal low calorie foods and then once every two weeks or so I toss in something I normally would not eat, but still log it, and still do my best to be under calories.

I eat low calorie, sugar free pudding almost everyday to help avoid feeling deprived. I also snack on quacker low fat granola bars, which are pretty sweet to keep my sweet cravings in check

I don't do cheat days. If there is something I really want, I plan it into my day. There are no "never again" foods- that's a set up for failure. This works very well for me.