cheat day effects

buffinlovin
buffinlovin Posts: 100 Member
edited November 15 in Motivation and Support
Hi everyone! Small introduction, I'm going to be 33 years old in a couple months. I am 5'2, current weight 214.1 lbs, which is 5 lbs lighter than when I started counting calories on 1/15/17, and 9 lbs lighter from Christmas. I'm very happy with my weight loss and how it's going so far :)

Back in 2013 I had counted calories and lost about 30 lbs (my lowest weight was 194 lbs) before starting a new desk job. Prior to my job I had been unemployed, and because of being sedentary I was comfortable eating about 1200 calories. I would be meticulous, and cheat days were never an option.

Fast forward to now, my desk job has given me a sit/stand work station and I'm using the heck out of it! I tend to get about 8-15k steps in a day just walking in place, 5 days a week. I also try to sneak in some squats and lunges. 1200 calories doesn't hold me over always, and I'm comfortable staying under 1700 most days.

I've juggled the concept of a cheat day, but I'm not sure what kind of effects it will have. I love to cook and bake, but I'll be honest, I look at the low-calorie desserts and recipes and I feel so depressed lol! If I'm going to make a dessert, I want a rich, decadent dessert, especially if it's something I'm not going to make/eat very often.

I considered making Saturday my "cheat day", not where I go all-out and eat whatever junk food I want, but give myself the opportunity to make the cheesecake, or make the creamy buttery shrimp n grits (if I make a rich dessert, it would be a lighter dinner, and vice versa). Things that tickle the taste-buds and let you enjoy eating.

For those that have a "cheat" day, what kind of effects do you find it has on you? Do you find the weight takes longer to come off? Do you find it harder to go back to the counting the next day, or is it easier (like getting back into a routine)?

Thanks for any and all input :)

Replies

  • Jules_farmgirl
    Jules_farmgirl Posts: 225 Member
    Not everyone on here believes in "cheat days". There are many ways you can handle indulging and still have it actually fit your goals.

    1. Fit that treat into your 1700cals that day
    2. eat maintenance the day you want that treat
    3. Bank your calories for that day
    4. Eat back 25% instead of 50% of exercise calories for 3 days so you can enjoy on Saturday

    I am sure there are a ton of other ideas that will come up here also.

    I have no issue with this effecting my weight loss as I always make my bigger calorie day still fit in my weekly calorie goal.
  • Lynzdee18
    Lynzdee18 Posts: 500 Member
    I found cheat, or treat days as I'd rather call them, didn't rejuvenate me. Instead, they brought back cravings and reminded me of what I was 'missing'. I know it was in my head. I was eating food that was 'better' for my health and just as tasty in a new way.

    BUT making a cheesecake would doom me to nibble at it. You know how those calories you eat standing up don't count? Well, that was my frame of mind. :/

    Some say it takes three days to break habits and cravings. For me it was like three weeks or even months on some foods and eating times.

    I really had to analyze myself. For instance ice cream in the evening had been a regular habits. Or wine at 4pm on the patio. Every darn night. Those calories add up. Quickly.

    I still need to be mindful, after losing 60 pounds over 2015 and maintaining for over a year..... I introduced my trigger foods cautiously but still won't go back to bread making and cheesecake baking because I would be doomed. I know how easily I lose my resolve and, if I don't start, I don't feel deprived.

    That said, this is me and you are you. You need to figure out for yourself what process works for you. B)

  • annacole94
    annacole94 Posts: 994 Member
    I don't do "cheat days", but I do "eat what I want meals". Rather than cutting loose for a full day - where you really can overeat a pretty big amount of calories - just decide on occasion that you're going to eat at maintenance that day and have a few hundred extra calories to enjoy. I generally save it for some time I know it will be hard to stick with the plan - a meal out with friends, a free lunch at a work event. Do your best to log it. And choose the things you truly enjoy and love.

    I also highly recommend aiming for no leftovers. Make a chocolate lava cake where you're meant to eat the whole thing as one serving. Cook only one meal of the special recipe. Don't have that stuff lying around, waiting to eat more of it.
  • Spliner1969
    Spliner1969 Posts: 3,233 Member
    However you decide to do it, just don't undo the previous week's hard work just by over indulging. I tend to save up calories, or pay for it afterward. So if I eat 100-200 calories a day less for a week, that following weekend I can easily blow through an excess of 1000 calories or more and not have to worry about it. If the day comes where I go out and did not have time to plan for it, I'll simply log it all, go over my goals for that day, and the next week I'll cut back 100-200 calories a day until I feel that meal was paid for in full. It's not a hard concept. It's also something all of us must learn to do instinctively if we want to ever stop logging and maintain our weight.
  • serindipte
    serindipte Posts: 1,557 Member
    I use a weekly average rather than daily. There are days I eat up to 400 under my daily goal (Not usually that much, but it happens) and that allows me to go over on days I want to eat something totally yummy without raising my weekly average over my goal.
  • plow54
    plow54 Posts: 34 Member
    What technically is considered a cheat day
  • buffinlovin
    buffinlovin Posts: 100 Member
    Hi everyone! thanks for the responses, they've definitely helped :)

    I like the idea of using an overall weekly count to allow for some flexibility. I also like the idea of making a single-serve dessert/meal so that I'm not tempted to nibble at it later (I am not sure I have the willpower yet to say no if there's almost a whole cheesecake sitting on my counter lol!)

    A cheat day for me wouldn't necessarily be a day, per se, more like a meal. I like to occasionally indulge in a rich decadent dish. Whether that be shrimp and grits (I've been craving this for weeks now), or a cheesecake, or thick fudgy brownies. I would still follow my plan the rest of the day, make good decisions. Do a salad for dinner and cheesecake for dessert, or do pasta for dinner and a piece of fruit for dessert, etc.

    I love good food, and I doubt that will ever change. I don't want to deny myself completely because that's what had me falling off the wagon a few years ago. I got tired of eating the same thing every day. Now, I eat the same thing for lunches (with some slight modifications every week), and dinners are healthier choices, but I do find myself craving a particular dish, and instead of continuing to say 'no' to myself, I'm trying to see how the occasional 'yes' will work :)

    Thanks everyone!
  • annacole94
    annacole94 Posts: 994 Member
    plow54 wrote: »
    What technically is considered a cheat day
    It's not really a technical term, so I don't know that there can be a technical answer. Most people just mean "a day where I eat what I feel like and exceed my normal calorie targets".

    And as for cheesecake, I've made good cheesecake in muffin tins, or you can buy a 7" springform. I'm also working on portion size for rich foods - trying to savour and enjoy less of it, rather than having ALL THE FOOD and feeling like junk afterward (not emotionally, actually physically feeling yucky from overeating).
  • buffinlovin
    buffinlovin Posts: 100 Member
    annacole94 wrote: »
    And as for cheesecake, I've made good cheesecake in muffin tins, or you can buy a 7" springform. I'm also working on portion size for rich foods - trying to savour and enjoy less of it, rather than having ALL THE FOOD and feeling like junk afterward (not emotionally, actually physically feeling yucky from overeating).
    I was thinking about this too, making muffin size cheesecakes :) that would be perfect for portion control!
  • annacole94
    annacole94 Posts: 994 Member
    You can cut this recipe in 1/3 and get 6 servings:
    http://allrecipes.com/recipe/14977/cheesecake-cupcakes/

    Adjust to your preferred flavours with add-ins. They're only 265cal/cupcake, and it's *real* cheesecake. :)
  • buffinlovin
    buffinlovin Posts: 100 Member
    annacole94 wrote: »
    You can cut this recipe in 1/3 and get 6 servings:
    http://allrecipes.com/recipe/14977/cheesecake-cupcakes/

    Adjust to your preferred flavours with add-ins. They're only 265cal/cupcake, and it's *real* cheesecake. :)

    Thank you!! I'll have to give it a try =D
  • happysherri
    happysherri Posts: 1,360 Member
    Tonight is my "SPLURGE" meal. I eat at a deficit and follow my macros through the week and allow myself 1 "splurge" meal a week. I look forward to it and kills my craving. Yes, the weight loss is a bit slower but still losing. It's almost like a 'reset' button for me because my body quickly adapts to eating at a deficit all week and quickly adapts, a refeed. Everyone is different, this is what works for me. I also only have about 10 to 15 lbs to lose and have my weekly weight loss goal set at less than half a pound a week.
  • mom2tris2013
    mom2tris2013 Posts: 7 Member
    My cheat day I don't think of them as that. I go to redlobster and eat coconut shrimp with there dipping sauce and salad and a side of veggies. I might get a mudslide which has ice cream and then I'll get dessert none gluten cheese cake. Now I'm no twig and I don't have a fast metabolism but I've lost 115 starting April of 2016 and think I deserve it every once in a while and it doesn't affect my loss I might gain a pound I water weight and lose it the next day. I have less then 50 lbs to lose and I still treat myself. Just have to make sure it don't consume me bc more then anything it's hurting my wallet. Hope the best to you on your weight loss journey.
  • Aless328
    Aless328 Posts: 3 Member
    I don't really desire a "cheat day" sweets were my problem and I no longer crave them at all.. what they did to me was pick me up and then I dropped.. my mood is so much better now as well. I haven't had any sugar (other than natural) in a month. I will use Raw Honey on a grapefruit or a teaspoon in strawberries. I think you can cheat slightly on the weekend once you have lost at least 15 lbs. but to "Indulge" no I wouldn't , you may find you don't desire it as much as you thought. My personal thought is if you have that cheesecake left over you may get tempted on days ur watching ur intake.. Best wishes to you, let us know how you make out ;)
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    I have a strawberry pecan cake from Collin Street Bakery in my refrigerator. That is one rich and decadent piece of food. I got it before Christmas. I'm working my way through it one once at a time, for 105 calories. I don't need a cheat day to do it. It fits my 1600-1700 calorie budget.

    As to the idea of cheat days, I just wonder who I'm cheating if I have a cheat day. I'm cheating me if I don't log my food accurately, because I still want to be able to look at what I did to myself and understand how it happened. That's why I call them "over maintenance days". I eat above my maintenance about once each month and by about 1000 calories. It takes about 3 days for the excess sodium to work out and those 3 days of my regular deficit also take away the fat gained from the over-day.
  • DarkSinestra
    DarkSinestra Posts: 45 Member
    I eat whatever I want except for my trigger foods. Trigger foods for me are foods that make my appetite surge and awaken unwelcome cravings. When it comes to more indulgent foods such as cheesecake or shrimp and grits, I just watch my portions and the calorie counts. I haven't really wanted cheesecake lately, but if I did, I'd eat it. I'd just fit it into my calorie count and try my best to balance the macros. If I couldn't on that day, then the next couple of days would be lighter on the fat and sugar. One day doesn't make a difference, really, not if your week is balanced out.
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