Discouraged after cheat day
kprimaverab
Posts: 32 Member
So it's been about 25 days and I've lost 16 lbs. I had cheat day on saturday and gained a whole 3 lbs (i had some pizza and icecream). Is this just water weight? The past 3 weeks I have been eating low sodium , low sugar and non dairy in order to improve my general health as well as 1200-1500 calories daily. I felt so good but am feeling discouraged now. Will this weight drop off soon? Im drinking water a lot today and plan to do 70 mins of cardio.
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Replies
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16 pounds in 25 days is not healthy or sustainable2
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Okay... did you really think you could "cheat" and not have any consequences?
Take the experience and learn from it. Use what you learned to do better in the future.
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16 lbs in 25 days...Actually it is healthy considering I eat an average of 1300 calories per day of veggies, lean protein and fruits. I have 90 lbs to lose.0
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It is probably water. My advise is don't do cheat days. You can work Pizza and ice cream in on a regular basis. Maybe not on the same day (if you are at 1200) and maybe not as much as you are used to but if you watch your portion sizes then it is fine. I also agree that 16 pounds in 25 days is not healthy or sustainable. You need to make changes that you can stick with and completely cutting out your favorite foods backfires for a lot of people.
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Pizza and ice cream in and of itself is not "cheating" unless you went way over your calorie goal. Your 3 lbs is water weight that will likely come off in a few days. Although, why have a "cheat" day if it causes you to stress so much? Why not just fit the foods you want into your calorie goal?
Also, with 90 lbs to lose, 2 lbs/week is a healthy rate of loss. Anything more than that is too quick.1 -
kprimaverab wrote: »So it's been about 25 days and I've lost 16 lbs. I had cheat day on saturday and gained a whole 3 lbs (i had some pizza and icecream). Is this just water weight? The past 3 weeks I have been eating low sodium , low sugar and non dairy in order to improve my general health as well as 1200-1500 calories daily. I felt so good but am feeling discouraged now. Will this weight drop off soon? Im drinking water a lot today and plan to do 70 mins of cardio.
When you put your stats into MFP and tell it you want to lose 2 pounds per week, how many daily calories does it give you? I bet it's way more that 1200.
Don't let shows like The Biggest Loser be your guide for healthy weight loss.5 -
For it to be fat gain, you would have needed to eat 10,500 calories over maintenance. So yes, it's water and food weight.
You do lose weight quickly at the beginning due to said water weight, so you should be starting to slow down. If not, then you'll need to up your calories.4 -
I wouldn't worry if you are generally losing weight well. I started on a low calorie regime and lost about 3lbs a week to begin with. If you have lots of fat to lose that's not a problem. But it will become a problem if you start to yo-yo between high and low calorie days. That's called binge eating.
Don't have cheat days. You are only cheating yourself and why would you want to defraud yourself of the chance to be slimmer and healthier?
If you fancy pizza and ice cream then just go for a smaller portion or eat less for breakfast and lunch to allow yourself a little room for more dinner. (You can leave stuff on your plate, even if you are in a restaurant).
The biggest pizza and ice cream portion won't cost you three lbs. 3500cals=2lbs.
Have you checked your scales? Most misread if they are knocked or jolted.
When you have lost half your target weight loss you might consider increasing your calorie limit by 100cals each week, so that your metabolism can catch up. It's not a good idea to jump straight from a low calorie diet right up to maintaining. (It plays havoc with your metabolism). As you increase calories consider increasing activity too. You need to get your metabolism buzzing by the time you are nice and slim.1 -
kshama2001 wrote: »kprimaverab wrote: »So it's been about 25 days and I've lost 16 lbs. I had cheat day on saturday and gained a whole 3 lbs (i had some pizza and icecream). Is this just water weight? The past 3 weeks I have been eating low sodium , low sugar and non dairy in order to improve my general health as well as 1200-1500 calories daily. I felt so good but am feeling discouraged now. Will this weight drop off soon? Im drinking water a lot today and plan to do 70 mins of cardio.
When you put your stats into MFP and tell it you want to lose 2 pounds per week, how many daily calories does it give you? I bet it's way more that 1200.
Don't let shows like The Biggest Loser be your guide for healthy weight loss.
Yup, this. Although depending how much refined sugars/carbs you cut out when you cut calories, a big chunk of that initial loss is probably water weight to begin with and not fat loss. I mean, I personally lost 5 lbs this weekend from my previous low weight, but I'd been gaining and losing the same 2 lbs over and over again for the past 3 weeks, so it averages out to about 1.5 lbs/week, and clearly water retention was masking my actual losses.
Oh, and while I've got 72 lbs left to lose I've lost 45ish already. I eat 1600-2000ish calories per day. There's no need to deprive yourself by eating 1200 when you can have a nice deficit and eat more. Over-restrictions lead to bingeing for many people (myself included).1 -
kprimaverab wrote: »16 lbs in 25 days...Actually it is healthy considering I eat an average of 1300 calories per day of veggies, lean protein and fruits. I have 90 lbs to lose.
No, actually it's not. Crash dieting is never healthy. There's a reason MFP will only allow up to 2 pounds per week when you set your goals. Losing faster than that is not good for your body nor your long term prospects for keeping the weight off once you get there. If you're losing more than 1% of your body weight per week you risk losing more muscle, rather than fat. Lose enough muscle and you slow your metabolism. Do enough of that and it'll be harder to keep the weight off once your reach your goal, if you ever do. When you gain the weight back, which is more likely because you didn't learn how to eat to maintain your weight loss, it'll be all fat and you'll have an even harder time trying to lose weight the next time around because your body fat percentage will be even higher than it was.
Take it from some of us who have been around that block a few times. Lose weight more slowly, start strength training now to maintain more of your muscle mass, learn how to eat to maintain the weight you want not just how to starve yourself into losing weight every time you decide you've gained too much.
Cheat days are something you should avoid as well. The term "cheat" has negative connotations and you really don't need to feel like you're doing something wrong or illegal. Instead, give yourself more calories, lose more slowly and incorporate some of the foods you like into your diet instead of feeling like you need a day to go hog wild to keep your sanity.4 -
kprimaverab wrote: »16 lbs in 25 days...Actually it is healthy considering I eat an average of 1300 calories per day of veggies, lean protein and fruits. I have 90 lbs to lose.
No, actually it's not. Crash dieting is never healthy. There's a reason MFP will only allow up to 2 pounds per week when you set your goals. Losing faster than that is not good for your body nor your long term prospects for keeping the weight off once you get there. If you're losing more than 1% of your body weight per week you risk losing more muscle, rather than fat. Lose enough muscle and you slow your metabolism. Do enough of that and it'll be harder to keep the weight off once your reach your goal, if you ever do. When you gain the weight back, which is more likely because you didn't learn how to eat to maintain your weight loss, it'll be all fat and you'll have an even harder time trying to lose weight the next time around because your body fat percentage will be even higher than it was.
Take it from some of us who have been around that block a few times. Lose weight more slowly, start strength training now to maintain more of your muscle mass, learn how to eat to maintain the weight you want not just how to starve yourself into losing weight every time you decide you've gained too much.
Cheat days are something you should avoid as well. The term "cheat" has negative connotations and you really don't need to feel like you're doing something wrong or illegal. Instead, give yourself more calories, lose more slowly and incorporate some of the foods you like into your diet instead of feeling like you need a day to go hog wild to keep your sanity.
All of this...0 -
Well, considering you don't put on fat overnight, of course it's water...the pizza had a crap ton of sodium and sugar in the ice cream replenishing glycogen...and if you're eating more than normal, it would be logical that you would have more inherent waste in your system.0
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Yes ! This is water weight! A lb of fat is roughly 3500 calories. Do you seriously think you ate over 10,500 MORE calories than what your body burns? No. You didn't. It will fall off, just get back on the wagon like usual and you will see it fall off quickly. Don't stop letting yourself have a cheat now and again, or you wont stick with it. I gain 5lbs or so after a cheat meal, and I don't like it either, but I do understand its water weight and the actual weight of the food I ate, and not fat storage. Hope this helps! Happy Eating!
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Don't get down. Depending on how you eat, a higher carb day (similar to what you get from Pizza/Ice Cream!) will result in water retention due to an increase in glycogen and the resulting water effect.
I would recommend that you avoid those types of "cheat" foods, and focus on compromising a bit with your "treats". I look at my "cheat day" instead as a moderate carb refeed day (sometimes only half a day), and I've always done them few and far between (maybe every 10-15 days). I don't do it to recharge my will, I do it for a very specific reason. And note: My diet is low carb in nature, so even when I refeed carbs, I'm still only at about 200g a day.
Saturday was my last carb refeed. I had: a serving of sweet potato fries (baked), 2 eggs, my favorite yogurt, an apple, too many blueberries, mandarin oranges (2), a mountain of veggies, chicken breast, and a piece of toast. And then a couple vodka/sodas at night. And a handful of gummi bears after the vodka!
When I refeed on carbs, I always feel like CRAP the next day or two, and get a little puffy. It goes away quickly, and I believe doing these every so often stimulates my metabolism (read up on leptin) and the net result is easier weight loss over time (maybe even faster). As time goes on and I thin out, it becomes harder and harder to lose weight, which is my body's way of saying "aight, boss, we're nearing your natural weight".
Note: if you're athletically capable, you may do better by performing some HIIT or sprints after a cheat day. This will help reduce your glycogen stores and get back your body back to fat burning. I'm assuming you don't eat high carb/suger in that suggestion.
Final word: lose as fast as you feel healthy doing - don't listen to what people declare is or isn't healthy. You're your own person. But at the same time: eat like a normal person (eatlikeanormalperson.com) and look at your weightloss experience in windows of at least 3 months or you may just end up failing. Best of luck.
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I don't understand why you would have cheat days if you're going to be upset about the inevitable water weight?3
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Don't ever weigh yourself immediately following cheat days.2
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kshama2001 wrote: »kprimaverab wrote: »So it's been about 25 days and I've lost 16 lbs. I had cheat day on saturday and gained a whole 3 lbs (i had some pizza and icecream). Is this just water weight? The past 3 weeks I have been eating low sodium , low sugar and non dairy in order to improve my general health as well as 1200-1500 calories daily. I felt so good but am feeling discouraged now. Will this weight drop off soon? Im drinking water a lot today and plan to do 70 mins of cardio.
When you put your stats into MFP and tell it you want to lose 2 pounds per week, how many daily calories does it give you? I bet it's way more that 1200.
Don't let shows like The Biggest Loser be your guide for healthy weight loss.
It gives me 1450 .... And i eat around 1300... More if i work out0 -
kprimaverab wrote: »So it's been about 25 days and I've lost 16 lbs. I had cheat day on saturday and gained a whole 3 lbs (i had some pizza and icecream). Is this just water weight? The past 3 weeks I have been eating low sodium , low sugar and non dairy in order to improve my general health as well as 1200-1500 calories daily. I felt so good but am feeling discouraged now. Will this weight drop off soon? Im drinking water a lot today and plan to do 70 mins of cardio.
Don't let 'some pizza and icecream' break 25 days. Stay/get back on track, you'll be golden.
I guess one thing is.. you can go about "being good", improving health and such, but there isn't really a reward that comes back at you, at least not how you think. In this game, the rewards show themselves when you stay in a calorie deficit, and that's it. You take it or leave it.1 -
kprimaverab wrote: »
It gives me 1450 .... And i eat around 1300... More if i work out
If it gives you 1450, eat 1450. I'm also a huge advocate against cheat "days", because one cheat day tends to snowball into a cheat weekend then a cheat week and before long you end up falling off the wagon entirely. It's better to enjoy a meal that is a bit indulgent for special occasions rather than have an entire day dedicated to making unhealthy food choices. My other advice would be work out the morning you know you're going to splurge on a meal and don't weigh the following day. Immediately keep your water intake steady and get back on track.
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kprimaverab wrote: »I had cheat day on saturday and gained a whole 3 lbs
Who were you cheating?0 -
Okay so for all of you saying I am starving myself .. Can you please tell me what I am lacking?
This is my average food diary
Breakfast: 2 eggs, english muffin, orange or apple
Lunch: protein shake (almond milk, whey protein, strawberries, spinach, banana) with a side of veggies or fish
Dinner: 1/2 cup of quinoa, chicken breast, veggies.
I usually have 1 snack in between of 2 rice cakes with some peanut butter.
I always feel full... I don't feel deprived and if i work out I usually eat 1500 calories by adding a low sugar protein bar, toast or a bigger lunch.0 -
For it to be fat gain, you would have needed to eat 10,500 calories over maintenance. So yes, it's water and food weight.
You do lose weight quickly at the beginning due to said water weight, so you should be starting to slow down. If not, then you'll need to up your calories.
This!!0 -
BusyRaeNOTBusty wrote: »Don't ever weigh yourself immediately following cheat days.
Basically.
Anyway, you would actually have to eat more than 3500 to gain one pound because you would have to eat 3500 over your maintenance for that day. For me to gain a pound in one day, I would have to eat 5700 calories. Probably more like 6000, just because of the amount of energy it would take to digest that. I have trouble thinking if I have ever ate that many calories in one day, even at the height of my obesity. I have my doubts I could do it even if I wanted to. I tend to hit a serious wall at around 3k and my desire to eat more drops to zero. Like no food sounds good anymore at all and I am done, done, done. Too bad I can't hit that wall on something like 1500-2000. Oh well.
FTR, I eat like an idiot every Friday night, but I never gain any weight from this because my weekly deficit is so great. The only thing that matters is the long term pattern of behavior.1 -
Cheat days can actually be a good thing. Though, I hate the word cheat. I did it, and still steadily lost weight. What you have to watch is your calorie intake on that day. So, say you are at a 3,000 calorie defecit by the end of Saturday. You go over your goal by 1,000 calories on Sunday. You are still at a 2,000 calorie defecit for the week. Don't think you have to be miserable to lose weight. You can try to fit such foods into your daily calorie allowance. When eating at such a low caloric intake, that means a heavy caloric meal is taking a lot from your daily allowance.1
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BusyRaeNOTBusty wrote: »Don't ever weigh yourself immediately following cheat days.
I do. It alerts one to the extent of 'the damage', just like logging your cheat days. Knowledge is power. Really.0 -
BusyRaeNOTBusty wrote: »Don't ever weigh yourself immediately following cheat days.
I do. It alerts one to the extent of 'the damage', just like logging your cheat days. Knowledge is power. Really.
It's water weight, though, so it isn't really "damage", per se.3 -
dragon_girl26 wrote: »BusyRaeNOTBusty wrote: »Don't ever weigh yourself immediately following cheat days.
I do. It alerts one to the extent of 'the damage', just like logging your cheat days. Knowledge is power. Really.
It's water weight, though, so it isn't really "damage", per se.
Sure. Water weight is fine, it's what most have come to expect, but..the fun begins when one has more than their weekly calorie allowance either through one of these cheat days, or those 'cheat days to make up for the boring scheduled cheat days one may get into', meaning your weight bounces back and forth week to week, month to month. It really can happen with these days. -- I guess the point I'm making here is that weighing myself after these days has alerted me to the fact I've 'put more/less away' food/drink-wise. It does warn me, if you will, of any new changes I may want to re-think, or carry on if all is well. Hope you get what I mean0 -
kprimaverab wrote: »Okay so for all of you saying I am starving myself .. Can you please tell me what I am lacking?
This is my average food diary
Breakfast: 2 eggs, english muffin, orange or apple
Lunch: protein shake (almond milk, whey protein, strawberries, spinach, banana) with a side of veggies or fish
Dinner: 1/2 cup of quinoa, chicken breast, veggies.
I usually have 1 snack in between of 2 rice cakes with some peanut butter.
I always feel full... I don't feel deprived and if i work out I usually eat 1500 calories by adding a low sugar protein bar, toast or a bigger lunch.
We have a similar amount to lose and I'm losing nicely (1.5-3lbs/week...hormones are rude) eating 1600 on average per day. My job is fairly active (retail...Lots of walking). Your daily meal plan would have me binging. Not in the early days when motivation was through the roof, but by 4-6 weeks I'd be shoving fries and reeses in my mouth like I'd just been released from starvation camp.
Cheat meals, even days, are fine. Really. Just make them mindful. A few weeks ago I had been dying for a steak dinner from a local place. My husband had the day off so we went for a date night. I ate and enjoyed every crispy fry and bite of tender steak. And that roll, with plenty of butter. Zero guilt. Up 2lbs the next morning, but so what? I knew it was 95% water weight to deal with the sodium and extra food. It was gone in a few days. I can't and don't eat like that every day. But I also know I'll crave that steak again. That's living to me. Mindfully choosing to blow my daily goal is fine on occasion.
I incorporate treats most days. A single fun size candy bar, an ice cream, chips, trail mix type snacks, etc. I do this so I don't go nutty and because I know I like those things. I'm not willing to give up treats forever so I need to learn to control my portions with them as much, or more, than I do chicken and salad. Use the extra 150 calories mfp gives you. You can use them daily or save some of them up for some weekend indulgence. You don't have to be a diet martyr. It's not fun, and not accurate for lifelong habits.2 -
Pizza and ice cream are going to affect the scale. But you can't expect to have it on Saturday night and to show up on the scale on Sunday. That part's called water weight from the sodium from the pizza, etc. etc. etc. Like someone else said, you can't expect to have pizza and ice cream and for there not to be consequences.
It might take a week or two between all the salt, calories, and fat for everything to "get back to normal".
You're human, and you stumbled. Everybody does at some point. Shake it off and move on.0 -
(OP) If you went high calorie on Saturday, like this past Saturday, I'd totally expect to be up a few pounds. Did you eat 10,500 calories over what you expended? Probably not.
In truth a high calorie day is the best thing you could have done for yourself since you've lost a lot of weight in a short period of time.
As far as the weight goes, I will typically be up 4-8lbs the day after my Spike Day and still up 1-3 the following day. The reason why is water weight and glycogen. When you are in a caloric deficit your body burns through glycogen very quickly. Then you you have a refeed day your body stores extra calories as glycogen. Glycogen is a good thing but for every gram of glycogen your body stores 3-4 grams of water with it. So lets say you stored 300 grams of glycogen in your "cheat day". You would have an extra 900-1200 grams of water weight or about 3 pounds. As you cut calories this week, glycogen will deplete once again and the water goes with it.
FYI: Glycogen is a big reason why so many can lose 3-5 pounds the first week of dieting and more if you go low to no carb.
Losing weight for the long-term is also a long journey. Don't worry about the little bumps in the road. The stress caused from guilt and worry are far worse than eating a donut.
cgvet37 - I call them Spike Days because I choose to spike my calories for a day and that spikes my leptin, metabolism and mindset. In a way I'm "cheating" the evolutionary system that kept me overweight but it's a negative word and Spike Days are all good.0
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