Cheat day weight gain :(

Options
2»

Replies

  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
    Options
    Lots good advice here. I just add that the term "cheat day" implies you could be way overeating on that day. Your body can't recover from that easily, the next day is like starting your diet anew, and that is hard to do every week.

    Instead, pick times when you will eat a highly enjoyable and satisfying meal with friends. Prep for it by eating on plan for the rest of the day (and week) and get some extra exercise to put those calories to good use. Don't go way overboard: focus on eating what you like most. It will taste sweeter and won't hurt you at all.
  • izzienelsonn
    izzienelsonn Posts: 19 Member
    Options

    pinuplove wrote: »
    izzienelsonn wrote: »
    also over a month my weight probably averages about the same - a few loses and gains and I seem to end up the same weight i started. Time to start losing!

    Are you weighing daily and entering it into a weight trending tool? That takes the guesswork out of if you're really losing or not.

    If you're not losing, and if you are indeed logging accurately and eating in a deficit the other 6 days of the week, then your cheat day/meal that you aren't logging is large enough that it is wiping out that deficit.


    I weight myself daily (even after cheat meals/ days) and i also weigh my food as much as possible and scan packets etc except on cheat days. On cheat days my cheat food is pretty much all I eat besides a homemade smoothie I have for breakfast (Usually around 200 calls depending on the fruit and veg used) but then again I do eat until my stomach feels like it's going to burst so I may be completely undoing all my previous work.

    I usually start being healthy for a few days, my weight starts going down a bit, then I have a particularly unhealthy day and the next day is higher than it was before!

    Thanks for your help everyone!

  • Silentpadna
    Silentpadna Posts: 1,306 Member
    Options
    izzienelsonn wrote: »
    Every time I have a "cheat day" (usually once a week :-O) I gain 2-3lbs but then it takes me 3-5 to go back to what i weighed before the cheat day.

    In order to gain 2-3 pounds of fat on a cheat day, which I'm not even sure your body could do, you would have to eat 7000-10,500 calories above maintenance. I'm betting that's not what's really happening here. Right?
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
    Options
    TavistockToad wrote: »
    So in what way is your 'cheat day' helping you?

    Why not try everything in moderation instead?
    Agreed with this. Everything in moderation every day with an eye on nutrition. Yes, you can have a chocolate bar daily if it fits in your calories as long as you've met your nutritional needs. No cheat meals, no cheat days- no need to.
  • Chadxx
    Chadxx Posts: 1,199 Member
    edited April 2017
    Options
    Silentpadna wrote: »
    izzienelsonn wrote: »
    Every time I have a "cheat day" (usually once a week :-O) I gain 2-3lbs but then it takes me 3-5 to go back to what i weighed before the cheat day.

    In order to gain 2-3 pounds of fat on a cheat day, which I'm not even sure your body could do, you would have to eat 7000-10,500 calories above maintenance. I'm betting that's not what's really happening here. Right?

    If, for example, she has her goal set for 1 pound a week AND logs accurately, that is a 3000 calorie deficit over 6 days. Eating 3000 calories over on a cheat day would be very easy to do.
  • jessiferrrb
    jessiferrrb Posts: 1,758 Member
    Options
    Chadxx wrote: »
    Silentpadna wrote: »
    izzienelsonn wrote: »
    Every time I have a "cheat day" (usually once a week :-O) I gain 2-3lbs but then it takes me 3-5 to go back to what i weighed before the cheat day.

    In order to gain 2-3 pounds of fat on a cheat day, which I'm not even sure your body could do, you would have to eat 7000-10,500 calories above maintenance. I'm betting that's not what's really happening here. Right?

    If, for example, she has her goal set for 1 pound a week AND logs accurately, that is a 3000 calorie deficit over 6 days. Eating 3000 calories over on a cheat day would be very easy to do.

    eating 3,000 over on that day would put her at maintenance for the week. 0 loss. 0 gain. you have to exceed maintenance by 7,500 - 10,000 then for the 2-3 gain.
  • brb_2013
    brb_2013 Posts: 1,197 Member
    Options
    I practice healthful "cheating", no more than one item I consider cheating. If you let yourself eat off plan for every meal you could be wiping out your deficit and setting yourself back. One meal is my limit. This past weekend it was a dinner out for our anniversary, I had a burger and fries and one martini. I think you need to consider some rules for yourself, something that allows you the freedom you're needing but still with limitations. If you're wanting to make a lifetime of changes, going and undoing your new habits once a week may be counter productive
  • tress29
    tress29 Posts: 614 Member
    Options
    izzienelsonn wrote: »
    I haven't tracked calories on cheat days because i pick at things and nibble on so many things i can't remember what I ate or how much etc!
    I have to log everything! When I nibble or graze, it's way too easy to look back and realize I'm at double my calories!

  • Russellb97
    Russellb97 Posts: 1,057 Member
    Options
    A full cheat day was key to me losing 130lbs over the past 13 years. It allowed me to stick to a plan since I never felt deprived. gave a boost to my workouts, kept my metabolism from slipping, and put me in control over food.

    It's extremely difficult to ruin your progress with one bad day. I mean, could you offset 6 high-calorie days with one low-cal day? The logic is flawed.
    The immediate weight gain is mostly water. Besides sodium and water retention you will re-store glycogen on a cheat day. For every gram of glycogen, you retain 3 grams of water. Glycogen is then quickly depleted when you go back into a caloric deficit.

    Also, OP is not having a cheat day if she's having her regular smoothie breakfast, skipping lunch and then eating "unhealthy around dinner time".
  • Chadxx
    Chadxx Posts: 1,199 Member
    Options
    jessiferrrb wrote: »
    Chadxx wrote: »
    Silentpadna wrote: »
    izzienelsonn wrote: »
    Every time I have a "cheat day" (usually once a week :-O) I gain 2-3lbs but then it takes me 3-5 to go back to what i weighed before the cheat day.

    In order to gain 2-3 pounds of fat on a cheat day, which I'm not even sure your body could do, you would have to eat 7000-10,500 calories above maintenance. I'm betting that's not what's really happening here. Right?

    If, for example, she has her goal set for 1 pound a week AND logs accurately, that is a 3000 calorie deficit over 6 days. Eating 3000 calories over on a cheat day would be very easy to do.

    eating 3,000 over on that day would put her at maintenance for the week. 0 loss. 0 gain. you have to exceed maintenance by 7,500 - 10,000 then for the 2-3 gain.

    She isn't gaining, though. She is fluctuating but maintaining.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Options
    Russellb97 wrote: »
    A full cheat day was key to me losing 130lbs over the past 13 years. It allowed me to stick to a plan since I never felt deprived. gave a boost to my workouts, kept my metabolism from slipping, and put me in control over food.

    It's extremely difficult to ruin your progress with one bad day. I mean, could you offset 6 high-calorie days with one low-cal day? The logic is flawed.
    The immediate weight gain is mostly water. Besides sodium and water retention you will re-store glycogen on a cheat day. For every gram of glycogen, you retain 3 grams of water. Glycogen is then quickly depleted when you go back into a caloric deficit.

    Also, OP is not having a cheat day if she's having her regular smoothie breakfast, skipping lunch and then eating "unhealthy around dinner time".

    For me to lose weight, I would shoot for a deficit of about 250 calories a day. I can easily imagine many "cheat day" scenarios where I could consume 1,750 calories above what I need to maintain. For me, a day at 3,210 would wipe out my progress for the week (assuming I'm sedentary).

    I assure you, I could easily eat 3,210 calories.
  • Chadxx
    Chadxx Posts: 1,199 Member
    Options
    janejellyroll wrote: »
    Russellb97 wrote: »
    A full cheat day was key to me losing 130lbs over the past 13 years. It allowed me to stick to a plan since I never felt deprived. gave a boost to my workouts, kept my metabolism from slipping, and put me in control over food.

    It's extremely difficult to ruin your progress with one bad day. I mean, could you offset 6 high-calorie days with one low-cal day? The logic is flawed.
    The immediate weight gain is mostly water. Besides sodium and water retention you will re-store glycogen on a cheat day. For every gram of glycogen, you retain 3 grams of water. Glycogen is then quickly depleted when you go back into a caloric deficit.

    Also, OP is not having a cheat day if she's having her regular smoothie breakfast, skipping lunch and then eating "unhealthy around dinner time".

    For me to lose weight, I would shoot for a deficit of about 250 calories a day. I can easily imagine many "cheat day" scenarios where I could consume 1,750 calories above what I need to maintain. For me, a day at 3,210 would wipe out my progress for the week (assuming I'm sedentary).

    I assure you, I could easily eat 3,210 calories.

    Heck, I ate that much in one meal on Valentine's with no fried foods, gravy, dressings, cheese, or liquid calories. I if had a real cheat day with all the chicken fried steak, gravy, butter, sausage, cheese, sweet tea, sweets, etc. That I wanted, the number of calories would be insane.
  • NycoleML
    NycoleML Posts: 15 Member
    Options
    Maybe cut back on weighing yourself every day, maybe try weekly to give your body a chance to even out. I'm only weighing monthly because I can easily get discouraged at the slightest gain. Just an idea - good luck!

Categories