Cheat meals?

clafairy1984
clafairy1984 Posts: 253 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Do you have cheat meals? How often and are there any rules ? Hear mixed reviews about whether it aids or hinders fat loss.

Replies

  • sahalbur
    sahalbur Posts: 18 Member
    It's better to eat what you want, when you want, as long as you can fit it in your calorie goal.
  • Afura
    Afura Posts: 2,054 Member
    edited March 2017
    There are a lot of threads on this subject, take a search on the forums for more thoughts than you may net here.

    I may have a cheat high calorie meal (I can't cheat on a calorie deficit, it is what it is - I make it or blow it) but it's few and far between, otherwise I'll bank calories either for the day, or the week, and have a slightly higher calorie meal than normal at some point. It will only hinder weight loss if you're eating more than your deficit can handle, or you find it continues to make you reason that 'it's only 1 cheat day' repeatedly.
    For some people it can aid if they're restricting their foods and can have a meal where they eat some foods they've put on the 'bad' list (no food is bad, food you want shouldn't be restricted just for weight loss). Reasons why I eat what I want within my deficit, I have less desire to 'go nuts' for a meal.
  • not_a_runner
    not_a_runner Posts: 1,343 Member
    edited March 2017
    For a while I tried to purposely plan "cheat days/meals" and found it would wipe out most of my weekly deficit. It was also really bad for me mentally, I would think about what "cheat foods" I was going to binge on several days in advance, all day long.
    If I want a day to eat more now I do a maintenence day and track it. I encorporte whatever treat I want whenever it fits my daily goals. This has been working well for me. I want to learn how to eat all the foods I enjoy in moderation, not as much as possible on the one day I decide it's ok to eat them.
    ETA - I also bank calories. Eat a bit less some days and a little more on others. And there are some days that I will decide not to track. I just try not to go into it with the "cheating" mindset.
  • Stella3838
    Stella3838 Posts: 439 Member
    angelawrence11 wrote: »
    I have "maintenance days" every now and then. On those days, I let myself eat my maintenance level of calories, knowing I won't lose any weight for that day. It's a good system for me, because I know I'm not going backwards but I don't feel so restricted. :smile:

    ^^^This. I CRUSHED some homemade nachos on Sunday, but I made them fit into my day. No regrets. No apologies. Well, maybe to the nachos. It wasn't pretty.
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
    If you "cheat" then it will take you longer to reach your goal because your calorie deficit is smaller. But you're the one setting the goal. It is up to you to decide whether you want to get there more slowly or not.
  • Afura
    Afura Posts: 2,054 Member
    Stella3838 wrote: »
    angelawrence11 wrote: »
    I have "maintenance days" every now and then. On those days, I let myself eat my maintenance level of calories, knowing I won't lose any weight for that day. It's a good system for me, because I know I'm not going backwards but I don't feel so restricted. :smile:

    ^^^This. I CRUSHED some homemade nachos on Sunday, but I made them fit into my day. No regrets. No apologies. Well, maybe to the nachos. It wasn't pretty.

    I did that on Saturday! They were my lunch and dinner, still fit into my calories.
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
    No, I do IIFYM so no need to cheat...
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    clafairy1984 wrote: »
    Do you have cheat meals? How often and are there any rules ? Hear mixed reviews about whether it aids or hinders fat loss.

    How are you defining a cheat meal?
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
    I do 6 weeks of deficit followed by 2 weeks at maintenance...I know this increases my fat loss because if I didn't have a break from deficit eating I would GIVE UP entirely.
  • deucemon69
    deucemon69 Posts: 647 Member
    I have done Tim Ferriss's slow carb diet where you eat strict 6 days as week and have one day to eat whatever you want. I dropped 11 pounds quick with that. another one that I am curious about is the cyclical Keto diet. Eat high fat, medium protein, low carb 6 days then high carb, medium protein, low fat one day. Not sure how well running will be on such a diet but might attempt it for a 6 week period to see how it does.
  • CattOfTheGarage
    CattOfTheGarage Posts: 2,745 Member
    "cheat meal" means different things to different people, you'll need to define what you mean if you want to get useful answers.

    I take several approaches to the urge to blow my budget:

    - I eat less during the week so I can eat more at weekends. This is helped by more activity at weekends so I can eat desserts, big portions etc.

    - I am not strict with my calorie goal, only with logging - I tell myself I can eat what I want as long as it is logged. So if I feel like throwing my hands up and eating something that doesn't fit the budget, sometimes I just do it. But it must be logged. No secret indiscretions - if I do this often enough that I stop losing weight, I need to be able to see why.

    - every few months I go into maintenance for a week or two, usually around celebrations or trips. But the logging does not stop.

    - occasionally (like once every 2 months at most) I will have a "4k day" where I take a day off logging and eat what I want. The price for this is that I must quick-add 4000 calories to my diary (as that is about how much I eat if I pull out all the stops). Again, no secret indiscretions. Transparency, honesty, being realistic about consequences - these things are crucial.
  • metalmeow1
    metalmeow1 Posts: 111 Member
    I don't look at them (treats or yummy foods) as "cheat meals." I'm not dieting, I'm making better choices for the rest of my life. If you have an unhealthy meal 3x a week, but eat healthy the other 18 meals/6 days, you're still making progress.
    Option 1.) Feel terrible because you had a bowl of chips.
    Option 2.) Eat a bowl or the entire bag and know that the bag isn't going to impact you say 3 months down the road. Just make more healthy choices than not and you'll still progress.
    What's better for you?

    I did option 1 the first time I lost weight. Now I'm doing option 2 and much happier. I'm losing 1-2lbs a week and I'm having Chinese food later this week (for the first time guilt free!)
  • dalem12
    dalem12 Posts: 13 Member
    malibu927 wrote: »
    No, because I'm not cheating on anything. If I want something, I fit it into my calorie/macro goals.

    This.
  • FatPorkyChop
    FatPorkyChop Posts: 83 Member
    I have usually one cheat meal per week, usually when I have been training hard. It hasn't been a problem at all (I don't count calories) as I have almost reached my weight loss goal. Most importantly it keeps me happy and satisfied.

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