Cheat day strategies?

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AshFace22
AshFace22 Posts: 25 Member
in Food and Nutrition
What are some good meals for cheat days? Do you guys track? I'd like to enjoy life now and again and after dropping 130 pounds of weight myself, I'm absolutely 100% encouraged to stay on track and exercise for most of my lifestyle. But there comes times when I just need a snack or a treat to myself without feeling guilty. Some days (I call them hungry days) where I want to do nothing but just eat and eat and eat. I'm not a binge eater and I don't restrict, but it takes me 2 weeks of mental preparation just to eat a burger from Hardees. Sure, i can fit it into my macros, but at the same time...I just want reassurance that everything's okay I guess. Maybe some advice as well. I don't want to slip back into my old habits, but at the same time we only live once, no?

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  • Belleghetti
    Belleghetti Posts: 9 Member
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    That is very mature! Honestly you have to cheat once in a while or it can be hard not to fall of the wagon.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    I don't do cheat meals, I eat the stuff I like all the time I just make it fit. I have Wendy's or Taco Bell for lunch once or twice a week, 2 slices of pizza and a beer for dinner on fridays, ice cream or oreos for dessert after dinner most nights, etc

    On holidays or other special occasions, it is really hard to log accurately since my whole day is either restaurant food or at someone else's house, so I guess you could consider them cheat days? I just make an effort to not go overboard and I guesstimate my diary to get an idea.

    My personal opinion is that you should log everything, that's how you learn. So if you are going to eat a restrictive diet and do cheat days where you eat different foods, I would still log. Eventually you want to be able to eat appropriately without effort, and learning how to approach different foods and how they will affect your calorie balance is easier when you are logging everything, even if you have to estimate.

    2-4 unlogged no control cheat days per month can easily negate most of the deficit you achieve the rest of the time. Especially if you are feeling deprived!
  • hollypink96
    hollypink96 Posts: 7 Member
    edited May 2017
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    I have a cheat day every single week, on a saturday. I could never ever do what i am doing and stay on track if not! On this day i eat what i want, eg mcdonalds for lunch, chinese for dinner and icecream, crisps etc if i fancy them. This means as soon as sunday comes around i honestly dont want to eat any more crap! I feel ready to get back on track and ready for the week. Also when i fancy something during the week i wont go as far as saying im not allowed anything, but for example if i fancy a chippy or someone has a pizza, instead of having a slice, i will say to myself that i can have it at the weekend! And knowing that i can have it guilt free helps me stay 100% on track and i never have any problems. Only lost 1 stone so far but consistently 2lbs a week and im very happy with it. I suppose i might be losing more if i didnt have my cheat day, but its what helps me keep going!
    I also dont track on cheat days and just have what i want so i dont feel guilty
    Hope this helped !
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,464 Member
    edited May 2017
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    I don't choose to equate "enjoying life" with"Hardee's hamburger" or any other food. I have treats, but I do so because I like them & can fit them within my plan. It's kind of sad that yoh feel like you can't enjoy life because you manage your eating. I actually enjoy life more since losing weight!
  • cbtebb
    cbtebb Posts: 34 Member
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    I generally eat what I want and keep it within my macros, but nearly always healthy. Then once nearly every week I'll have a single meal that I don't count and don't restrict (most likely a huge KFC or takeaway pizza) which really brings the edge off of having cravings. But tbf depending how you plan your diet you can still get loads of tasty, healthy-ish food and never need to cheat.

    It's more of if you feel the need for a cheat meal than forcing yourself to have one, if one week you don't feel the need then carry on as normal. And I would definitely recommend a cheat day being only a cheat meal, it's too easy to go all in and regret it the next day (speaking from experience).
  • celestestar
    celestestar Posts: 41 Member
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    I don't do cheat days as everyday i will eat what i want
  • Pam_Shebamm
    Pam_Shebamm Posts: 167 Member
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    On Fridays (and sometimes Saturdays) I eat at maintenance. It allows me to go out to a restaurant with my fiance or friends and enjoy a margarita or a dinner that I wouldn't be able to eat during the week.

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