Cheat Days

LadyClaire86
LadyClaire86 Posts: 37 Member
edited December 2 in Food and Nutrition
Hi peeps do anyone have a cheat day? And what do you eat on the cheat day?

Replies

  • 2011rocket3touring
    2011rocket3touring Posts: 1,346 Member
    The weekends for me are "cheat days". With the "cheats" I do my best to stay within calories, but don't stress the macros.
  • gnarlykickflip
    gnarlykickflip Posts: 49 Member
    edited June 2016
    i prefer to call them "free" days because it makes me feel less guilty than having a "cheat" day. but yes i have them from time to time! up to once a week.

    what i do is i dont count my calories that day, but i do try to stop eating when i feel full. i also try to eat more filling vegetables to try to naturally want less junk. doesnt stop me from eating an entire pint of ice cream though.

    its up to you if you want to try them! they dont work for everyone. i find that im doing them less often as im becoming better about making room for sweets in my calories for a normal day
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    Nope. I work the foods I love into my weekly goals as I can.
  • MissusMoon
    MissusMoon Posts: 1,900 Member
    Nope. Every day is a treat day. I've been able to integrate everything into my daily goal. I've never had a gain or stall.
  • PaulaSchlotterbeck
    PaulaSchlotterbeck Posts: 34 Member
    I do not... honestly, I love the foods I eat (which are healthy), and I love the way they make me feel. I really don't have any desire to deviate from my plan. To each their own, though! =)
  • hollyrayburn
    hollyrayburn Posts: 905 Member
    I eat what I want when I want, because I plan it into calories goals.

    If I go over, I didn't cheat, because cheating is immoral and bad. I'm not those. Just means that I'll have to get in track the next day.
  • crystalmorrison378
    crystalmorrison378 Posts: 180 Member
    I have 1 cheat day a week when I will cheat on 1 meal only. Usually when my husband is off from work and we go out to eat. I still log everything for that day, and try not to go way overboard.
  • Asher_Ethan
    Asher_Ethan Posts: 2,430 Member
    Every once and awhile I'll give myself a day with unlimited calories. Other than that, I try to fit everything I eat in.
  • aloranger7708
    aloranger7708 Posts: 422 Member
    I used to cheat all weekend, every weekend and it would wipe out all my progress during the week. Now I typically have one cheat meal on the weekend, and try to be mindful of what it is. (I dislike the word "cheat" but don't know what else to call it).
  • LadyClaire86
    LadyClaire86 Posts: 37 Member
    aloranger7708 wrote: »
    I used to cheat all weekend, every weekend and it would wipe out all my progress during the week. Now I typically have one cheat meal on the weekend, and try to be mindful of what it is. (I dislike the word "cheat" but don't know what else to call it).

    Like gnarlykickflip said call it free day. My mother law calls it a star day. I call my pmt week my star week but I'm gonna try not to go off on my pmt week.
  • chewyxrage
    chewyxrage Posts: 56 Member
    "Cheat day" to me means eating out & booze. Track everything, if you aren't hitting your calorie goal for the week then you've done too much. I eat less during the week in order to have fun on the weekends.
  • Kdp2015
    Kdp2015 Posts: 519 Member
    Now that I am close to my goal weight I try to have some days set to maintenance, seems to work so far.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    Why would you want to cheat yourself?
  • dlkfox
    dlkfox Posts: 463 Member
    I like the data, so I don't cheat. If I go over, I go over (and I log it). If I want something high-calorie, I fit it in and/or balance it over a few days.

    Eating whatever/whenever got me where I am. No way am I going to lose or maintain once I hit goal if I go back to bad habits.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,692 Member
    No cheat days. If I want something extra, I exercise for it.

    And I take planned diet breaks when I've reached certain weight goals.
  • kiariv
    kiariv Posts: 25 Member
    I have carefully planned out cheat days from time to time. I don't like the word cheat as I am NOT a cheater! I have a low tolerance for carbs so I keep them in check on a regular basis. From time to time I go off plan but the key is to jump right back on. Like now I am fasting after celebrating my grandmothers 88th birthday with family. I will be completely back on track monday
  • rsleighty
    rsleighty Posts: 214 Member
    Usually only holidays or special occasions. Today is Fathers Day in the US. I am lucky enough to still have my Dad and my hubby both to celebrate with so it has pretty much turned into a cheat weekend. I log everything but don't stress over the numbers ( well, I try not to stress). So far I've had bbq ribs and ravioli both. Today I am making strip steaks. Thats more meat than I ordinarily eat in a week!
  • louisepaul16
    louisepaul16 Posts: 261 Member
    I call mine a green card day. I have one per month, and save it for something I really want to do. Last month my mum got remarried and I ate all the food at the wedding, dessert, cake, wine etc. :) yesterday I went to a chocolate factory in Switzerland then for a high tea, with sandwiches, cakes, scones with cream and jam, and champagne. A lot of champagne. And it was amazing. You can have a break occasionally, as long as it doesn't derail you in the long run. :)
  • CattOfTheGarage
    CattOfTheGarage Posts: 2,745 Member
    I call it a 4k day and just quick add 4000 calories and then eat whatever I want. These are pretty infrequent, like less than once a month.

    Other times I'll go over goal but I'll log it. I go by weekly average anyway, so one day over is no big deal. I eat cake etc. regularly, nothing is off limits. I'm another one that doesn't like the word "cheat" - I prefer "treat".
  • cross2bear
    cross2bear Posts: 1,106 Member
    No cheat days but lots of planning - Fathers Day was a big dinner at my house and I was serving burgers and ribs, and an ice cream cake etc. I figured out all the calories (that MFP database and the barcode reader are amazing) and fit it all in. I knew ahead of time what I was going to eat and made it happen within my calorie budget.
  • AmazonMayan
    AmazonMayan Posts: 1,168 Member
    edited June 2016
    You're only cheating yourself by doing a cheat day. An occasional holiday or special occasion is no big deal because that's part of a normal healthy diet (as in overall food eaten and not diet to lose weight). Keep it as an occasional day and don't make every celebration a reason to gorge.

    Plan ahead. Shave off a 100 or 200 calories off other meals or days and then you have more calories to have something decadent for one meal...not an entire day. Plan.

    Not cheating when you do it that way and you don't get trapped in the mindset of having a list of all these things you can't wait to eat (possibly binge on) for one day. The bad cycle of rewarding yourself with food for doing so well all week long can be vicious and slow down your weight loss.
  • alysontennant
    alysontennant Posts: 1 Member
    I feel like my weekends are becoming cheat days and when i step on the scales come monday im back to square one i find it so hard to stay on it at weekends though?
  • jahillegas_51
    jahillegas_51 Posts: 143 Member
    I am totally against cheat days. When I first got into fitness, I did them too...because well everyone I saw did them. Over time though, this constant restriction of food leads to some unhealthy lifestyle choices and eating habits. What if you have two social events in one week? Do you restrict for both, have a cheat day at one or both?

    In my experience, I started eating clean with (1) cheat meal a week. Over time this cheat meals, turned to days, which turned to every couple, until it was basically everyday. I developed an eating disorder with binging on all the "bad" foods.

    There is no such thing as good food, bad food. Placing labels on food, leads us to ban them from our intake. We say, “No, No, No, No, No…” We push for the perfect diet, once we eat this food that does not fall into this neat diet box; we throw our hands up, saying we failed so now is the time to eat everything we can. This leads to punishment. Which leads to more restrictions. This is the vicious cycle we as binge eaters face. I used to believe it myself, that there was clean food and bad food. It simply is this manifested idea. If you ask a vegan, he/she will say animal based foods are not clean. Someone who is a vegetarian will disagree, and say it is just animal products that are not clean. Then a paleo guy runs in screaming about how meat is clean, but grains aren’t. So someone has to be right? They are all wrong. Instead, adopt my grandmother’s wise old adage of “everything in moderation.”

    Cheat days make life much to rigid and inflexible. Chances are if you are asking this question you probably know what your intake is for the day, I highly suggest IIFYM. Its a much more healthy, flexible, and sustainable eating lifestyle.
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