Cheat Days are NOT an Option!
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Think about what cheating means. It means you are ready to set yourself back, after a lot of hard work. Who are you cheating? You are cheating yourself, no one else.
Don't cheat, find a way of eating that doesn't require you to cheat.2 -
Actually, having carbs occasionally helps to trigger fat mobilization by releasing hormones if done in a planned way as opposed to a triggered event. The body naturally uses carbs for energy (if you are not fat adapted), and we can cause the body to adapt in weird ways if you don't occasionally feed it some carbs, whichever ones you like--it doesn't matter which--on specific days of your of your low carb diet. I am a low carber and I don't have cheat days but I will give my body carbs on occasion, like recently Mother's Day I had pasta and a dessert. The next day, right back to my regular low carbing. I still watch calories and I think the key is to not binge. If you want to call eating carbs cheating, I guess that's ok, it's just a word. For me, it's helping my body's metabolism along so that it doesn't try to make unwanted changes or adaptations so results in low carbing not having the intended result. Once I realized my body wants to be low carb, I made the decision to please it and there are tons of wonderful things to eat and I don't really crave carbs as I'm fat adapted now. If you find that you have a tendency to binge on carbs, that's a wholly different problem and it might require that you make your carb eating days a more well-thought out menu, perhaps staying away from trigger foods, if you are the type who feels that having a carb eating day may get you completely off track. Carbs can change your mood, make you feel bloated and it's best to listen to your body and see how they affect you. Especially after being on low carbs for a while you can get a fresh impression of your body's reaction to carbs. I know now I can't wait to get back to low carb eating after a day of eating carbs. I find I enjoy it more. But don't feel restricted from eating carbs occasionally on special days or just for a night out. You're just giving you body a little switch to keep it working the way YOU want it to.5
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I have cheated off and on for last couple of months. Bread here or there. A few chips, pho, pizza crust. I have only gained four pounds. But I feel worse, I look more bloated, blood pressure is up to. Some. I gotta get back on track. I like the once a month treat. My cheats went from one day to the next, then treats from work, then pho when I had sinus infection. You get the idea.1
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Actually, having carbs occasionally helps to trigger fat mobilization by releasing hormones if done in a planned way as opposed to a triggered event. The body naturally uses carbs for energy (if you are not fat adapted), and we can cause the body to adapt in weird ways if you don't occasionally feed it some carbs, whichever ones you like--it doesn't matter which--on specific days of your of your low carb diet. I am a low carber and I don't have cheat days but I will give my body carbs on occasion, like recently Mother's Day I had pasta and a dessert. The next day, right back to my regular low carbing. I still watch calories and I think the key is to not binge. If you want to call eating carbs cheating, I guess that's ok, it's just a word. For me, it's helping my body's metabolism along so that it doesn't try to make unwanted changes or adaptations so results in low carbing not having the intended result. Once I realized my body wants to be low carb, I made the decision to please it and there are tons of wonderful things to eat and I don't really crave carbs as I'm fat adapted now. If you find that you have a tendency to binge on carbs, that's a wholly different problem and it might require that you make your carb eating days a more well-thought out menu, perhaps staying away from trigger foods, if you are the type who feels that having a carb eating day may get you completely off track. Carbs can change your mood, make you feel bloated and it's best to listen to your body and see how they affect you. Especially after being on low carbs for a while you can get a fresh impression of your body's reaction to carbs. I know now I can't wait to get back to low carb eating after a day of eating carbs. I find I enjoy it more. But don't feel restricted from eating carbs occasionally on special days or just for a night out. You're just giving you body a little switch to keep it working the way YOU want it to.
This certainly sounds interesting.. .. Any references or sources you can recommend that lay out the details about it all works?
Thx!0 -
Extremes never worked...personally I aim for 100% but settle for 80%...also the "all or nothing"-mentality usually dont work long term...5
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The 'all or nothing' mentality is what saved me from yo-yo dieting....2
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What surprises me on this thread is the lack of consideration for others. Yes, what works for one person clearly works for that person and thats wonderful but the amount of convincing and blanket statements is frankly disturbing.6
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@mmultanen, I was honestly speaking from a purely personal PoV... I'm just saying what did and didn't work for me. I know that if I give in to temptation, I'm doomed to failure... I'm sorry for my part if I came across as 'boorish'...2
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AlexandraCarlyle wrote: »@mmultanen, I was honestly speaking from a purely personal PoV... I'm just saying what did and didn't work for me. I know that if I give in to temptation, I'm doomed to failure... I'm sorry for my part if I came across as 'boorish'...
It didn't hit me that way (especially in comparison to some FB groups and other sites).
Expressing differing needs and perspectives in non-dysfunctional extended families is not a bad thing, and I think most folks in our unusually-supportive clan tend to see beyond the choice of words and refrain from inferring bad intent.
(And of course, should that one third cousin happen to hit a nerve more often than not, there is the trusty <Ignore> button.)1 -
I actually thought this was a well rounded and totally supportive thread no matter what a persons cheat choice is...
it's just personal experiences with both perspectives being represented and accepted based on individuality...
Not sure how much more could've been done...2 -
If I do slip up, i.e. eating the dough instead just the pizza toppings, I usually feel like crap instantly. It sorta takes care of itself. My buddy will let himself slide for a week or two before he gets control again. Everyone is built a little differently.2
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Whatever works for ya. I don't have any food "addictions". I can eat 1 cookie without feeling the need to go back for more or go on a donut binge...same with salty snacks. I can measure out an ounce of Cheeto Puffs or Doritos and be totally satisfied. It probably helps that I don't have any health issues that even requires me to be low carb. I was a lot stricter in my losing phase but now that I am in maintenance, I can get away with a lot more calories and carbs and so far it hasn't caused any problems and I have never felt bad after eating them. My losing phase helped me get a handle on portion control/moderation and it works for me. I am still usually at or under 50-75 carbs a day but have had a couple much higher days sprinkled in without any set backs. I am just happy to have the occasional small baked redskin with my steak.4
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Whatever works for ya. I don't have any food "addictions". I can eat 1 cookie without feeling the need to go back for more or go on a donut binge...same with salty snacks. I can measure out an ounce of Cheeto Puffs or Doritos and be totally satisfied. It probably helps that I don't have any health issues that even requires me to be low carb. I was a lot stricter in my losing phase but now that I am in maintenance, I can get away with a lot more calories and carbs and so far it hasn't caused any problems and I have never felt bad after eating them. My losing phase helped me get a handle on portion control/moderation and it works for me. I am still usually at or under 50-75 carbs a day but have had a couple much higher days sprinkled in without any set backs. I am just happy to have the occasional small baked redskin with my steak.
Which is why I posted ...those on weight loss diets. You and many others are on "maintenance diets" two different things in my opinion. Great job by the way!1 -
Sunny_Bunny_ wrote: »I actually thought this was a well rounded and totally supportive thread no matter what a persons cheat choice is...
it's just personal experiences with both perspectives being represented and accepted based on individuality...
Not sure how much more could've been done...
Totally agree! Everyone is in different stages of their journeys and on different journeys. We are all trying to make sure we don't become part of the 80% that lose weight only to gain it back and more. This idea should be a tool to remember for many. Others can simply say that's nice but I don't need this and put it away.1 -
I actually just reached my goal weight a few weeks ago so all this is pretty new to me.2
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You have to find what works for you. Also that can change from month to month or year to year.
I used to be convinced under 20 carbs was best. My daughter is convinced of that still and shakes her head every time I eat a Truvia sweetened dessert or a low carb whole wheat wrap with its 6 carbs (but WHEAT MOM!!!). Here's my take: forty carbs does make me lose slower - but it also keeps me sane. I very seldom go off diet. When I do, I cheat in a small way and get right back on. When I was eating twenty carbs, I'd lose whole weeks to cheats. And so does she.
Forty carbs gives me enough room to stretch my elbows a bit. If your level is 10, or 60 - good for you. I'm way to old to sweat what I think others should be doing. Want to IF? Great for you. My daughter does and if you talked to her, it practically cures cancer. I'm not interested in IF. Not even one little bit. Not even to try it.
You just have to find what works for you. But more than that you have to be gracious enough to allow other ppl to find what works for them, and understand that it might not be at all what you think it should be. Not because they are a fluke, lying, don't know what's best for them, or they get don't get the science. Because we are all complex individuals. That's why there's no cookie cutter that works for everyone.
But if you can't do that (or if others can't do that), then you just have to grow a tough skin and realize you are here for you. You are getting healthy for you. I don't matter if anyone or everyone approves or agrees with you. I support low carbers who eat everything from sweet potatoes to oranges (come on!) not for their perfection or for their wisdom - but for their efforts in improving their health. Even if they still drink Diet Coke (I don't) or use SF Jell-o (I do).
It's a process.8 -
JohnnyLowCarb wrote: »Whatever works for ya. I don't have any food "addictions". I can eat 1 cookie without feeling the need to go back for more or go on a donut binge...same with salty snacks. I can measure out an ounce of Cheeto Puffs or Doritos and be totally satisfied. It probably helps that I don't have any health issues that even requires me to be low carb. I was a lot stricter in my losing phase but now that I am in maintenance, I can get away with a lot more calories and carbs and so far it hasn't caused any problems and I have never felt bad after eating them. My losing phase helped me get a handle on portion control/moderation and it works for me. I am still usually at or under 50-75 carbs a day but have had a couple much higher days sprinkled in without any set backs. I am just happy to have the occasional small baked redskin with my steak.
Which is why I posted ...those on weight loss diets. You and many others are on "maintenance diets" two different things in my opinion. Great job by the way!
Why are weight loss and weight maintenance diets different in your opinion (except perhaps the calorie deficit)? I think your original post is in regards to cheating so I am thinking perhaps you are saying one can "cheat" in maintenance and it will not have the same I'll effects you pointed out in the original post. Please explain what is different other than a few more calories. Thanks!0 -
JohnnyLowCarb wrote: »Whatever works for ya. I don't have any food "addictions". I can eat 1 cookie without feeling the need to go back for more or go on a donut binge...same with salty snacks. I can measure out an ounce of Cheeto Puffs or Doritos and be totally satisfied. It probably helps that I don't have any health issues that even requires me to be low carb. I was a lot stricter in my losing phase but now that I am in maintenance, I can get away with a lot more calories and carbs and so far it hasn't caused any problems and I have never felt bad after eating them. My losing phase helped me get a handle on portion control/moderation and it works for me. I am still usually at or under 50-75 carbs a day but have had a couple much higher days sprinkled in without any set backs. I am just happy to have the occasional small baked redskin with my steak.
Which is why I posted ...those on weight loss diets. You and many others are on "maintenance diets" two different things in my opinion. Great job by the way!
Why are weight loss and weight maintenance diets different in your opinion (except perhaps the calorie deficit)? I think your original post is in regards to cheating so I am thinking perhaps you are saying one can "cheat" in maintenance and it will not have the same I'll effects you pointed out in the original post. Please explain what is different other than a few more calories. Thanks!
Excellent, Excellent, Excellent Question! IMO there is a distinct difference in the phase of your diet (Loss Mode / Mtc Mode). A "cheat" is a deliberate deviation from your diet. So if you are a LCHF and in weight loss mode and you have your macros / caloric deficit set and you purposely deviate, its a cheat. You cheated yourself, sabotaged your diet on purpose, and need to get back on the wagon and recover from your set-back. Once your in Maintenance Mode, you most likely are going to reset your calories / macros (at least I am once I get to my desired weight). This new set of metrics will most likely look different; be it total calories, change in macros or a combination of both. So what was a "cheat" in loss mode, may be a new WOE in "maintenance" mode. Thus, there is a new definition of what a cheat will be.
It really depends on what YOUR strategy is and how you set it.
The real point of all this is simple: For so many they dont reach their goals, they start a diet, end up going off the rails and quit. Had they stuck with their plan, tweaked it to make it work for them, and kept at it, the success rate of diets (and specifically those looking to lose weight) would be so much higher. BUT so many post that they incorporate the so called Cheats, giving so many the false sense that this is a good idea. I dont think it is, I think it opens the door to, having more and more cheats, getting slopping on the calories and macros, seeing the scale go north and then eventually quitting.
There are a lot of people on these boards looking for advice, looking for help & motivation, looking for what may work for them. I hope that some see this and say "Yep, that seems like its for me" - incorporate it and are successful. Others may see this post and say "Nope, I will eat whatever I want to when I want to, cheat when I want too" - thats great too, I am not trying to convince you otherwise.
Success to all in your dieting journey.
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@kpk54 Plus you have to look at the context of the post I addressing from another member.0
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For me it is a WOE. It is not a "diet." I am in maintenance and have been for several months. This works for me right now. As I continue through life, I will continue various n=1 experiments, and I may find something I find better suits me.
I recently heard a good analogy that is related to this and will try not to butcher it.
If you walk into a restaurant and see a $20 bill sitting on the table that someone left as a tip, do you take it? Hopefully not. Why not? Because it is not part of your character (hopefully). Because it would go against who you are as a person, you do not even see taking that $20 bill as an option. Therefore there is no decision to make in this regard.
In the same way, eating crappy carbage is not in my character, therefore when it is available, it is not even seen as an option by me and therefore I do not have to make a decision to not eat it.
The reason I think it was important (for me) to make this about a change in character is that most who fail do so because of "decision fatigue." That is, they are making decisions all day - not just food related, but work, family, etc. - and the end of the day comes. They are tired and hungry and open to temptation more than at any other time. If the crappy carbage is still seen as an option, then not eating it all day added to the decisions you had to make all day and it is now a decision you have to make when you are at your most vulnerable to make the wrong decision.
If you are familiar with the Bible, you will know Satan went to tempt Jesus after Jesus had been in the desert fasting for 40 days. Why? Because, if you are going to try to get the Son of God to sin, wouldn't you do so when He is at is absolute weakest and most vulnerable - tired and hungry?2 -
I bet He didn't eat the pizza the devil offered. But some of us fall off the wagon and sin.cstehansen wrote: »If you are familiar with the Bible, you will know Satan went to tempt Jesus after Jesus had been in the desert fasting for 40 days. Why? Because, if you are going to try to get the Son of God to sin, wouldn't you do so when He is at is absolute weakest and most vulnerable - tired and hungry?
But there are other reasons for cheating, as I pointed out before, no matter how small the portion, if there is a family wedding cake, first birthday, etc I want a taste of the real thing.
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Lucille4444 wrote: »
I bet He didn't eat the pizza the devil offered. But some of us fall off the wagon and sin.cstehansen wrote: »If you are familiar with the Bible, you will know Satan went to tempt Jesus after Jesus had been in the desert fasting for 40 days. Why? Because, if you are going to try to get the Son of God to sin, wouldn't you do so when He is at is absolute weakest and most vulnerable - tired and hungry?
But there are other reasons for cheating, as I pointed out before, no matter how small the portion, if there is a family wedding cake, first birthday, etc I want a taste of the real thing.
Again this is great for you, I am not trying to convince you otherwise.0 -
cstehansen wrote: »For me it is a WOE. It is not a "diet." I am in maintenance and have been for several months. This works for me right now. As I continue through life, I will continue various n=1 experiments, and I may find something I find better suits me.
I recently heard a good analogy that is related to this and will try not to butcher it.
If you walk into a restaurant and see a $20 bill sitting on the table that someone left as a tip, do you take it? Hopefully not. Why not? Because it is not part of your character (hopefully). Because it would go against who you are as a person, you do not even see taking that $20 bill as an option. Therefore there is no decision to make in this regard.
In the same way, eating crappy carbage is not in my character, therefore when it is available, it is not even seen as an option by me and therefore I do not have to make a decision to not eat it.
The reason I think it was important (for me) to make this about a change in character is that most who fail do so because of "decision fatigue." That is, they are making decisions all day - not just food related, but work, family, etc. - and the end of the day comes. They are tired and hungry and open to temptation more than at any other time. If the crappy carbage is still seen as an option, then not eating it all day added to the decisions you had to make all day and it is now a decision you have to make when you are at your most vulnerable to make the wrong decision.
If you are familiar with the Bible, you will know Satan went to tempt Jesus after Jesus had been in the desert fasting for 40 days. Why? Because, if you are going to try to get the Son of God to sin, wouldn't you do so when He is at is absolute weakest and most vulnerable - tired and hungry?
@cstehansen, that's a great way to look at it.
I wish I had a good-character explanation for how I turned off the Carb Monster.
I used a plain old self-interest sleight of hand - - It dawned on me one day that I can walk by shoe polish, Goo Gone, Drano, roofing tar... without feeling compelled to empty the containers down my gullet, (even if I store them in my fridge);
therefore, if I put OJ, chocolate milk, and BBQ sauce in the same category of common poisons and toxins, the temptation dialog doesn't even start.
(As for Satan, I've since become accustomed to skipping meals
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I think the word "cheating" is charged and triggers some ppl.
Cheating to me doesn't mean some awful failure. It just means eating something with more carbs than I normally would. It's not a big deal to me to "cheat" occasionally. The bigger deal is to conform back to my self-set goals.
I had a small mint ice cream sometime last week at a family celebration. Everyone else was having huge cones or deep fried Oreo sundaes. My ice cream and cone had about 45 carbs.
Granted that's more than I had all day - but it was a special treat. I didn't beat myself up. I enjoyed it. The next day, I went back to my normal plan.
If you can't do that than that's up to you. There's no wrong or right way to eat that's forced on you by others. It's up to you what you choose to do. I was happy with my choice. I don't sweat the small stuff. I'm striving for improvement not perfection.
Now, I'm here for stable blood sugars more than a quick weight loss, so my goals may be different than yours. But when I'm eating LCHF, a "cheat meal" a month is about my norm. And usually centers around family celebrations. I have found that, again, for me, a cheat meal is a lot easier to come back from than a cheat day. I've often even stayed in ketosis the whole time. I put a one hour limit on myself.2 -
I say "different strokes, for different folks" lol. I think first and foremost people will need to have some self-awareness and honesty in regards to their eating patterns. I totally went off the rails this month but I learned that having 1. too much time on my hands, 2. Junk food in my house, and 3. the mentality of "just one bite" was not very good for me in regards to sticking to my WOE. Also, if I restrict myself TOO much that also messes with my head and well I prefer to have a little leeway. When I am most successful is when I address these issues head on and don't make excuses for myself. This is the main reason I stay LCHF instead of KETO, I know that I can succeed at 50-60 carbs a day. NOW, for weight loss, I have to make sure I eat at a deficit so that means to move more and watch my portions. I recently purchased a food scale and portioning spoons to help with making sure I'm logging the correct amount of food I'm eating. Lastly, I'm learning to tell myself NO, you do not need to eat that when I am not hungry. I've learned all this about my eating habits over this past year and will probably learn more as I keep on this woe.4
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I will be beginning my 4th year of maintenance on Thursday May 25, 2017. Except for the year I ate a self prescribed Medically Therapeutic Ketogenic Diet for a reason other than weight management, I suppose "cheating" as some call it has been my mode of operation throughout my 1 year of loss and 3 years of maintenance.
I would call myself a strong advocate of low carb/high fat in general. It is due to my 1 year of MTKD, I discovered adherence to "maintenance calories" is significantly easier with more fat/fewer carbs (for me). Thus, I'm an advocate.
I've never once had the thought of "destroying ketosis" pertaining to weight loss or weight management. Ketosis is not required for weight loss/weight maintenance (for the masses). It does make adherence easier for some.
I find it best to discover the macro balance and food selections that provide long term adherence to calories, nutrition, health and desired eating habits. That can be quite different for different people. Ketogenic levels of macro balance is not my current way of eating. Low carb, yes. Higher fat, yes.2
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