CHEAT DAY??!!
SkimpyMrsCarter
Posts: 105 Member
I was wondering what do your cheat days consist of?? Is it eating whatever u desire staying within your calorie goal? or is it eating whatever u want and not counting calories at all???
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Replies
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First of all, I don't call them cheat days. I think we need to approach our diets in positive terms, and that makes it sound like we are doing something bad.
But, beyond that… I don't track anything from Friday dinner to Saturday night. I made up a "food" with my daily calorie count as its value, and I enter that for Saturday. Then, pretty much all bets are off. It's actually my Sabbath, which I prefer to celebrate with delight. Not calling it something pejorative actually helps me not over eat. Friday night, I have a nice Big meal, that usually includes A small homemade pie. My son and I eat a large serving with ice cream, and we eat the rest of it on Saturday with two other meals. LOL! Sometimes even breakfast. I don't track and I don't hugely over eat though sometimes it is pretty calorie intense food. And I don't beat myself up about what I do eat. Trust yourself.12 -
I don't do cheat days, meals, weeks. I eat whatever food I like, on any day, making it fit my goals.
I used to have them, when I had a terrible relationship with food and an awful body image. I used to feel guilty for eating food that was "bad", which eventually turned in to feeling guilty for even thinking about enjoying "bad" food. I stressed about what I was eating, where it came from, how it was made, what was in it etc. Not healthy in any way. IIFYM for the win.20 -
Nothing, because I don't do cheat days. If I want something, I fit it into my weekly calorie goal.13
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I was asking bc today i didnt eat as clean as i usually do however it all fit into my calorie goal so i guess this is not considered a cheat day, thanks everyone7
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booze, bbq and restaurant meals are my usual "cheats" (I know it's a controversial term to some but I know what you mean and I still call it that because its just a light hearted turn of phrase for me ;P) but I just try to make it fit into my weekly deficit and log the best I can. I still lose, but you just have to make sure you don't decimate your weekly deficit, there has been occasions when I first started that it shoved me into maintenance (mostly because I didn't log). So have a play around and see if you can fit in a maintenance day or go over.3
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Nothing, because I don't do cheat days. If I want something, I fit it into my weekly calorie goal.
This! I don't cheat on my wife. I don't cheat in business. I don't cheat on my taxes and I don't cheat on myself. Eating clean may (depending on what this means) have a bearing on overall health but it has no bearing on weight (fat) loss. If you hit your calorie goal, relax and move on. Tomorrow is a new day. You didn't ruin your diet or your health with one day of not eating "clean", whatever that may mean to you.16 -
I allow myself a "cheat meal" once a week. I never though of not calling it a cheat meal.. im with you, it's just a word.. however, i am open to changing that.. sooo.. I have a "not healthy meal" once a week. I have had success with it, however i do think it makes the cravings worse. I have had an unhealthy relationship with food for over 34 years now.4
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No cheats on a life.
I have been in maintenance for 15.5 years. My approach always has been: LIFE includes indulgences. Some planned, some unplanned. No need to go out of my way to plan eating off pattern. It will just happen in a happy, balanced life.11 -
I eat treats in moderation but for me they are treats not cheats. It is positive and enjoyable without the guilt of cheat or negative impact. I do they based on celebrations or events not weekly and do eat at up to maintenance if indulging in a treat.5
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IIFYM - I make what I want, fit my macros. Clean eating to me is washing my salad7
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If you dont have "cheat days", and if the things i wrote dont apply to you then why even bother commenting.11
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I don't log on special days (ie mine or my fiancé's birthdays, Christmas, Thanksgiving, vacations, Superbowl Sunday, etc.). Any normal day though? I make my treats fit.2
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SkimpyMrsCarter wrote: »I was asking bc today i didnt eat as clean as i usually do however it all fit into my calorie goal so i guess this is not considered a cheat day, thanks everyone
If you fit it into your calorie goal, you did great. The ability to do this so that you don't feel deprived is a big key to being successful. Weight loss is entirely about calories.2 -
SkimpyMrsCarter wrote: »If you dont have "cheat days", and if the things i wrote dont apply to you then why even bother commenting.
I thought my different framing might be helpful. But, whatever.
Best of luck on your journey.7 -
Usually AYCE sushi or American Chinese food... I can't make that "fit" and still hit macros but I can go over periodically and still move towards my goals.2
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Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »SkimpyMrsCarter wrote: »If you dont have "cheat days", and if the things i wrote dont apply to you then why even bother commenting.
I thought my different framing might be helpful. But, whatever.
Best of luck on your journey.
Exactly why I made MY post on cheat days. Naysayers be darned. I feel in upswell, a movement of positivity coming on!
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If I'm in my calorie goal, then it's a win, regardless of whether I ate the most nutritional food possible.
Occasionally I'll let myself have a 'cheat' or 'splurge' day where I either don't track calories or don't work to stay under calorie goal.
But you know what? Even on splurge days, I eat less and better than I did before I started tracking my food. That's growth!
As for people who dislike your choice of words, OP, don't worry about it. If you don't find the word 'cheat' to be negative or harmful, then use it! No harm done!6 -
Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »SkimpyMrsCarter wrote: »If you dont have "cheat days", and if the things i wrote dont apply to you then why even bother commenting.
I thought my different framing might be helpful. But, whatever.
Best of luck on your journey.5 -
Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »SkimpyMrsCarter wrote: »If you dont have "cheat days", and if the things i wrote dont apply to you then why even bother commenting.
I thought my different framing might be helpful. But, whatever.
Best of luck on your journey.
Exactly why I made MY post on cheat days. Naysayers be darned. I feel in upswell, a movement of positivity coming on!
Me calling it a cheat meal doesn't mean im being negative however your response was9 -
It's never a cheat if it's within a calorie budget. That's just a good day.
If it is something you'd call a cheat, it is at least 2x the calorie budget.
Anything less than 2x I can make up with exercise and convert into a good day.4 -
I think of it more as a free day. And I generally try to plan around them by excercising a little heavier in the couple days before and after, and maybe a treat a day less for a few days to make up.
But on those days I log if I can do it without being obvious and rude (usually these days are social ger togethers), mostly out of curiosity, but don't worry about actual calorie count, or being over ir under.
One thing I've discovered since MFP is that logging really helps me keep track of what will aggrivate my IBS. So even if I'm not counting calories that day or neal, I can see when I'm getting too close to too much grease or sugar and making myself queasy.2 -
Thanks0
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Taco Bell! Or a nice, decadent, homemade dessert.2
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I spent this past week having full fat ice cream (unusual for me) 5 nights in a row (saving about 500 calories so I could have a BIG bowl with a glass of milk) and getting Taco Bell (also unusual for me)... and much to my surprise, lost 1.8 lbs since my last "lowest" weight over the weekend.
On top of that we normally drink 0% fat milk and my significant other accidentally bought full fat and I didn't notice until I'd been using it for my cereal, coffee, and snack for days, while logging it as our normal milk. So my calories had to be wayyy off. I think I may have shocked my body or something with a "mostly ice cream & full fat milk" diet. Bodies are weird sometimes.2 -
Some people avoid calling it a cheat day of they go over their daily cals or are under on weekly. I look at annual deficit so as long as at the end of the year im under no big deal1
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so I have a really *kitten* realtionship with food - I went away for 8 days and ate nothing but clemetines and the occasional bit of salad, and lost a bunch of weight (unsurprisingly!), and since returning, I had 5 straight days of eating 3500ckal plus to make up for the defecit.
Anyway, I was feeling very bloated and guilty, so I didn't eat anything for around 36 hours, and then today I had a 'relapse' and had another cheat day which consisted of:
One mini gingerbread man,
One falafel,
one vietnamese veggie ricepaper roll
One large sugary Jam doughnut,
One freshly baked naan/flat bread,
One bowl of roast corn with chipotle yoghurt and cheese, with some nachos
3/4 darck chocoalte and cherry bar
several tasters of brownies
One mini egg and tomato roll
One cinnamon roll
Medium McDonalds fries
one Kitkat chunkie
one chocolate cookie
Im gonna be sooo puffy and bloated tomorrow morning2 -
My thoughts are that living life includes occasional indulgences. I don't worry about eating "clean"...I for the most part eat a pretty healthy diet, but I'm not going to get all fussy if I decide I want to go out for fish 'n chips...in the grand scheme of things, what I'm doing most of the time is what matters...not occasional indulgences...not holidays or other special occasions...not random poolside BBQs driven by booze and beer.
I eat healthy for the most part and I'm active...and I also enjoy just kicking back once in awhile and indulging in something I wouldn't have on a day to day basis.
By the by, a lot of the people you're getting snarky with here have had tremendous success not only losing weight, but keeping it off long term...1 -
I also don't have cheat days. It would wipe out all or most of my deficit anyway. I fit what I want into my calories for the day. I still eat chips and candy if I feel like it, but now I just only have one piece of candy or one serving of chips. I had to change my mindset about food. The only person you're cheating is yourself.
As long as you're under your calories, in my opinion, it's not a "cheat day."0 -
milsyafrochic wrote: »so I have a really *kitten* realtionship with food - I went away for 8 days and ate nothing but clemetines and the occasional bit of salad, and lost a bunch of weight (unsurprisingly!), and since returning, I had 5 straight days of eating 3500ckal plus to make up for the defecit.
Anyway, I was feeling very bloated and guilty, so I didn't eat anything for around 36 hours, and then today I had a 'relapse' and had another cheat day which consisted of:
One mini gingerbread man,
One falafel,
one vietnamese veggie ricepaper roll
One large sugary Jam doughnut,
One freshly baked naan/flat bread,
One bowl of roast corn with chipotle yoghurt and cheese, with some nachos
3/4 darck chocoalte and cherry bar
several tasters of brownies
One mini egg and tomato roll
One cinnamon roll
Medium McDonalds fries
one Kitkat chunkie
one chocolate cookie
Im gonna be sooo puffy and bloated tomorrow morning
I would speak with a professional about your relationship with food8 -
I designate Sundays as my cheat meal day. For me that means I will eat whatever I want for that meal, not worrying about calories. Some days I stay within my goal, others I go above by a couple hundred calories. I don't over indulge. It's usually Some thing with more carbs than I typically eat, but still a small portion. And I always have dessert on Sunday! During the week I try to eat pretty healthy and avoid carbs, but if for whatever reason I'm out and only have access to pizza, I will eat it. If it fits into my goals, then why not!1
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