Cheat day..yes or no?

Does anybody else ever feel like cheat day undoes all of the hard work?? I know I do..

@zyxst Yes I think that is my problem lol

@saraht4392 You are right ... and lol chicken tikka masala and naan ... it's like you've been having the same cheat meals as me!!

I like having a maitenence day every two weeks. Nothing gained, nothing lost. And I get to recharge my will power battery.

Personally, when I'm asked about how I feel about cheat days, my answer is to ask : "Who are you cheating with this cheat day?"

But that's just the philosophical answer. From a mathematical standpoint, if your cheat day doesn't wipe away all the progress from the whole week then clearly you'll still lose weight over time, just more slowly. For example:

If you are trying to lose 2lbs per week with a 1000 calorie daily deficit, and you maintained a deficit of 6000 calories over 6 days, but then ate at a surplus of 1000 calories on day 7, your week's total was a 5000 calorie deficit. This means that you'll lose about 1.4 lbs that week, instead of 2 lbs. You'll slow down your progress by 30%. If you're going 6000 over on your cheat day then you've completely wiped out all the progress, but that is somewhat difficult to accomplish!

But of course, that assumes that you've tracked your cheat day, and you know just what the overage is. A number of people who want to have a cheat day want it because they don't want to track at all, and if that's you then you can't really know just how much damage you're doing to your efforts. These "cheat days" also can be a bit more dangerous if your goal is slower than 2lbs. If for example, you were trying to lose only 1 lbs per week and your cheat day was 1000 calories then you'd have a total deficit of 2000 by the end of the week... losing only .6 lbs.

Over time, these numbers add up. If you're comfortable with that, then it's perfectly fine, and you'll still more than likely reach your goals eventually... if you're 100% accountable and scrupulous on the other 6 days of the week. This then, leads to the next really important consideration: Are you capable of being scrupulously on-task on all non-cheat days? If not, then perhaps the best solution is to set a slower weight loss goal in the first place. Instead of going for 2lbs per week but sabotaging that goal by cheating yourself down to 1.4 lbs per week, it might be better to just set your goal at 1.5lbs per week and not worry too much if you go over by 100 calories here or there.

For me, I find accepting the idea that it is okay to once in a while have a small indulgent helps me succeed with my weight loss journey. Everything in moderation, though! I will admit - I am addicted to food. So sometimes, I get cravings so bad all I can think about is how to get my hands on what I want. And while I try to will it away, sometimes it gets the best of me. So I compromise - no, I will not get an entire meal from that fast food restaurant, but maybe I can have just a plain sandwich, or a simple burrito. I also made sure not to do it more than once or twice a week. To some, it may seem like a failure - but to me, it helped me stay on track.

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I run a refeed window every Friday, for three hours. Within that window I stuff everything into my grubhole that I can keep down. Amazingly, I really can't eat that much sushi in a three hour window. Usually 2200 kcals worth, tops, as I avoid fattier rolls, as it's the carbs I am after.

If you want results and constant results avoid cheat days... if you're on a -500/day deficit or 3500/week kcals (1lb of bodyweight* per week loss) you can undo that pretty quick by eating 1000-1500 extra cals on your cheat day or more... a real 'cheat' day should be taken as minimally as possible when dieting if you want to see results.


It's important to look at what you're planning on eating on your cheat day, eating a large bag of doritos 900-1000kcals over 3 extra chicken breasts 600/700kcals for dinner is a huge difference


bodyweight* (you lose lean body mass when dieting as well as fat.)

I have maintenance calorie days, which are usually enough to get me things I've been craving. We were recently away on vacation and I didn't log and I indulged in treat foods. I lost half a pound because I was incredibly active the whole week we were away.

"Cheating" to me implies that it's something forbidden, and to me, just having a bit more than I usually do is something that's going to happen a couple of times a year. Vacations, holidays, special occasions... the list goes on. I can't always plan ahead, but when I can, I bank calories ahead of time. If I haven't planned ahead, I just eat a little less and move a little more afterwards.

Rather than having cheat "days", I like having an overall healthy lifestyle and diet that enables me to say... yeah, maybe once a month or so I will pick up a Snickers bar walking through the check out line in the grocery store... without it having any impact whatsoever on my progress or long-term goals.

I used to have cheat days and it messed me up so bad! Now I allow myself 1-3 cheat meals a week and a treat everyday. By treat I mean a cookie, candy, a portion of chips..always fit it into my macros. I think we all have to remember that we are aiming for a lifestyle change and just not a quick fix.

Whenever I know that I'm going to have a cheat meal I have loads of protein and vegetables during the day to balance out my cheat meal.

bethmccrea wrote: »

It's interesting that so many people disagree with a cheat. I find that having a cheat meal (or two) every two to three weeks seems to really keep me on track the rest of the time.

Almost everyone who is saying they don't "cheat" is saying they work the foods they love in every day. Very few people are totally restrictive 100% of the time, and there's really no need to be.

I never did cheat days when I was losing. If I knew I was going to eat more or go out drinking, I exercised more to make up for it. The way I looked at it is all the hard work of dieting and exercising would just have been a waste.

Now that I'm maintaining, the only time I cheat is when I'm on vacation. I'm a runner though so long run day always earns me something yummy, but I'm burning the calories to be able to enjoy it.

You can do it. Mind over matter. Feeling good and looking good is worth more than a cheat day.

"cheat meal" is a relative term..so it depends what you truly do. To some it means binge for the day.. to others it is having one meal without counting calories.... However, for someone to always eat perfectly as many here claim they do? it is a recipe for disaster as well. With regaining stats to prove it.