How often do you have cheat meals?

lewiswinston22 · May 2018

I have one cheat meal Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Meaning if I use my cheat meal on Friday for lunch I’ll eat right for breakfast and dinner.

lewiswinston22 · May 2018

Is that to many cheat meals?

Leannep2201 · May 2018

Depends. What are your goals- if you’re wanting to lose, are you managing to lose consistently? If so, you’re probably still hitting your calorie target over a weekly period, even if you go over a day or two. If you’re not losing but trying to, then your calories are probably over and you may want to reevaluate those cheat meals.

kommodevaran · May 2018

Math wise, what matters is that you don't exceed your calorie limit for the week. If you track your intake every time you eat, you'll be fine. Mentally, it's more complicated. I used to sneak food and tell myself "tomorrow" and "I've already blown it, so why bother", "I've been so good, so I deserve this", and "this doesn't count" etc. I also struggled with my weight. Now I have chosen a different approach, which includes to not cheat on my diet, my diet is just what I eat. I don't eat "right", I eat a nutritious diet filled with all the various food I like.

amusedmonkey · May 2018

How do you define a cheat meal? This would get you better answers.

- Meals without logging, I don't do those often at all. Maybe a few times a year.
- Higher calories meals, I do them every now and then when I really want them, trying to strike a balance between hunger and having such meals, and a balance between being over and under my calories. I need to be within my calorie limit more often than not to lose weight, but it's okay to have days where I'm over if they don't happen often enough to cancel out my deficit.
- Meals that have ingredients that aren't usually associated with dieting, I have those as often as I want provided the calories are right for me. You'd be surprised that some of these foods are actually nutritious, or can be made more nutritious with simple tweaks and add-ons. 2-3 slices of pizza with a large side salad is a balanced nutritious meal.
- Meals that are less nutritious, I don't do those daily because of my food preferences and because I try to have a balanced diet, but there were times where I had cake for breakfast. These can happen anywhere from several times a week to once every few months, depending on what I feel like eating. It's just food, not good or bad. It can be less suitable for my goals sometimes so I make other delicious choices when I catch myself overdoing it, but other times they're just right for my goals.

Generally, my food choices are relaxed. I just eat the things I want while considering calories and hunger. I don't have a set schedule for things to eat or not eat, but if I notice my diet is getting too nutritionally limited at a certain point, I pull back and try to introduce more variety.

ETA: as for your question, only you can answer it. Are you happy dieting the way you're dieting? Are these meals interfering with your weekly deficit? If you're happy with this approach and achieving the results you want, then that's not too many cheat meals.

fr33sia12 · May 2018

I don't "cheat"
I don't go over my calories.
I eat what I want.

If you want a pizza on a Friday night have one, and count it into your daily calories. Exercise more that day so you can eat more calories.

h1udd · May 2018

likewise .... I dont have cheat meals, I just eat what I like and try to balance everything out so it hits my weekly calorie allowance.

this generally involves eating under on weekdays and eating over at weekends

Dee_D33 · May 2018

Never. If I want something, I eat it, but I make sure to fit it within my calorie goals.

ceiswyn · May 2018

I think I’ve had... two? Three? in the last nineteen months.

That’s meals where I’ve gone over my calorie budget. In all cases I was eating at a big event, or at someone else’s house. And I exercised and saved up some extra calories for it, so I didn’t go over too badly.

Otherwise, I just don’t feel the need. Almost anything I want can fit within my calories. Heck, I had a warm brownie and ice cream last night for 200 kcal. Why would I cheat my own weight loss?

callsitlikeiseeit · May 2018

i dont. i make what i want to eat fit, or eat at maintenance.

even when i have a day thats over maintenance, its not a big deal. a few days a year is not a big deal.

joeboo81 · May 2018

I eat one cheat meal (buffalo wings, pizza, fast food burgers) a week, and that's usually on Friday. I track my food closely the entire week and on cheat day I keep my intake lower than normal (without starving) on my other meals. Then for my cheat meal, I don't worry about the calories, but I'll still track them as best as I can, because I feel this helps keep me accountable (and help curb possible binge eating). I will probably go over for the day, but not by much and not enough to ruin the week. Also, I skip my daily morning weigh-in the next day. Probably won't like what it says.

But like everyone else is saying, each person is different. And as long as you hit your weekly calorie goal and are losing weight, have as many cheat meals as you want. However, if you start seeing a slow down or a stall, you may want to cut back on them.

malibu927 · May 2018

Dee_D33 wrote: »

Never. If I want something, I eat it, but I make sure to fit it within my calorie goals.

This, but my weekly calories

RoxieDawn · May 2018

Do your 'cheat' meals fit in your calorie goals? Are they causing you to not remain in a deficit and derail your goals? Are you choosing to eat at maintenance and jut choose to lose slower?

If they fit your calories or you choose to eat at maintenance its not cheating and since its Friday, Sat and Sunday it sounds like you have created a 'diet' that is sustainable and allowing allowing variance in your weekly diet. The negative label you have given it is not necessary.

LivingtheLeanDream · May 2018

I never think of a meal as a cheat. I plan for occasions where we eat out and bank calories for that. Tonight I'm going out for Italian, I have done extra exercise this morning plus I eat at slight deficit on weekdays even in maintenance to have extra cals to work with at the weekend.

Villypierr · May 2018

I don't cheat with fat food. If you have to lose weight you have to have food with quality. Try to stay focused. Cheat only with healthy snacks. Its only you my friend on this journey, and all the hard work you do, goes backwards if you do that. Loose the weight first and then do that on the maintenance.

Stockholm_Andy · May 2018

I eat more calories at the weekend than I do during the week. That's just personal preference. It doesn't matter if my current goal is to lose, maintain or grow I like to be able to do that.

However, you need to be careful that it's not just an excuse to blow out every weekend. My training buddy starves himself Monday to Thursday then completely blows out Friday to Sunday and then *kitten* every morning that he can't shift his belly fat.......

sardelsa · May 2018

I do two high calorie days on the weekends, I don't consider them cheat days but refeed days and they are built into my deficit for the week.

Jadub729 · May 2018

I usually have a "cheat meal" for lunch on Friday and we almost always order take out once during the weekend...I do allow those two meals to put me over my calorie goal for the week. The rest of my meals are what I want to eat but portioned so that it fits my goals.

Jadub729 · May 2018

Villypierr wrote: »

I don't cheat with fat food. If you have to lose weight you have to have food with quality. Try to stay focused. Cheat only with healthy snacks. Its only you my friend on this journey, and all the hard work you do, goes backwards if you do that. Loose the weight first and then do that on the maintenance.

That is not true. I've lost 60lbs while still enjoying Burger King, chicken fingers and mudslides.

malibu927 · May 2018

Villypierr wrote: »

I don't cheat with fat food. If you have to lose weight you have to have food with quality. Try to stay focused. Cheat only with healthy snacks. Its only you my friend on this journey, and all the hard work you do, goes backwards if you do that. Loose the weight first and then do that on the maintenance.

What is “fat food”?

bradman1231992 · May 2018

I’m actually quite surprised at how many people do have cheat meals. I’ve yet to have a cheat meal, let alone a cheat day, since I began 4 months ago. I personally never advocate for one, but I think so long as you’re not absolutely destroying your day, you should be fine.

sardelsa · May 2018

Villypierr wrote: »

I don't cheat with fat food. If you have to lose weight you have to have food with quality. Try to stay focused. Cheat only with healthy snacks. Its only you my friend on this journey, and all the hard work you do, goes backwards if you do that. Loose the weight first and then do that on the maintenance.

It really depends on the person and how long they are remaining in a deficit. If that works for you, great, but it doesn't work for everyone.

Personally I find if I cut everything out I am less successful and more likely to blow out when I am faced with those foods.

Lounmoun · May 2018

I don't know what you mean by cheat meal. I don't call anything I eat cheating.
If you want to have a higher calorie day it won't damage you but you might be better off fitting things you want into your daily or weekly calorie goal.

I try to log every day as best I can and stick to my goal. I did not drastically change my diet and eat food I like every day.
Sometimes I have a maintenance calorie day.
I eat out for lunch on Sunday usually. I plan what I am going to get in advance.

amusedmonkey · May 2018

bradman1231992 wrote: »

I’m actually quite surprised at how many people do have cheat meals. I’ve yet to have a cheat meal, let alone a cheat day, since I began 4 months ago. I personally never advocate for one, but I think so long as you’re not absolutely destroying your day, you should be fine.

Depending on what you mean by a cheat meal (in fact, no matter what you mean by a cheat meal), having them is entirely normal, although I wouldn't call it cheating. It's what most normal weight people do. They eat less sometimes, more sometimes. They have feasts sometimes. They eat higher calorie foods sometimes. Sometimes they're hungry, other times they're overfull. Striving for sustainability and normalcy is at the core of any successful diet.

WinoGelato · May 2018

Villypierr wrote: »

I don't cheat with fat food. If you have to lose weight you have to have food with quality. Try to stay focused. Cheat only with healthy snacks. Its only you my friend on this journey, and all the hard work you do, goes backwards if you do that. Loose the weight first and then do that on the maintenance.

To the bolded, the only thing required to lose weight is a calorie deficit. You can achieve that eating any sorts of foods you enjoy. Eating a variety of nutrient dense, satiating foods is important for a lot of reasons but the weight loss comes from a calorie deficit, and “fat foods” (whatever those are) can definitely be incorporated while losing weight.

To your last point, people who cut out all the foods they love during weight loss then go back to eating them in maintenance are usually the ones unsuccessful at keeping the weight off. Finding a way to eat during weight loss that you can sustain for the long run is what leads to lasting success.

kshama2001 · May 2018

Villypierr wrote: »

I don't cheat with fat food. If you have to lose weight you have to have food with quality. Try to stay focused. Cheat only with healthy snacks. Its only you my friend on this journey, and all the hard work you do, goes backwards if you do that. Loose the weight first and then do that on the maintenance.

I grow vegetables organically and am all for "quality" foods, which for me means no artificial flavors or colors, and a very long additional list that I won't go into as it is not germane.

Quality foods are needed for optimal nutrition. But all you need to lose weight is a calorie deficit.

Now, for me it would be hard to maintain a calorie deficit on low quality foods, as they tend to not satiate me. But if I were locked in a lab and could only eat 1200 calories of low quality food per day, there is no question that I'd lose weight.

You've already gotten some pushback on your claim, and you may get more. I want to point out that nobody is advocating a diet of all, mainly, or mostly low quality foods. We are just disagreeing that "bad" foods make you fat. It's excess calories that make you fat.

livingleanlivingclean · May 2018

bradman1231992 wrote: »

I’m actually quite surprised at how many people do have cheat meals. I’ve yet to have a cheat meal, let alone a cheat day, since I began 4 months ago. I personally never advocate for one, but I think so long as you’re not absolutely destroying your day, you should be fine.

Whether people have cheat meals or not is more related to their mindset around food and less about the type of foods they enjoy.

kshama2001 · May 2018

lewiswinston22 wrote: »

I have one cheat meal Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Meaning if I use my cheat meal on Friday for lunch I’ll eat right for breakfast and dinner.

lewiswinston22 wrote: »

Is that to many cheat meals?

Well, if over a month you haven't lost weight as expected, then yes, it is too many cheat meals.

I could easily blow a weekly calorie deficit with three cheat meals. Heck, if I put some effort into it, I could probably blow a weekly deficit with one cheat meal.

People define cheat meals differentlys - are you logging the calories of these meals?

paperpudding · May 2018

Villypierr wrote: »

I don't cheat with fat food. If you have to lose weight you have to have food with quality. Try to stay focused. Cheat only with healthy snacks. Its only you my friend on this journey, and all the hard work you do, goes backwards if you do that. Loose the weight first and then do that on the maintenance.

Bit confused as to how anyone would consider a healthy snack a cheat meal under any definition of the word.

I think sustainable maitenance happens when people basically continue eating the way they did to lose - but obviously bit more of it.

Loosing wright first and then changing your diet when you reach maitenance seems recipe for disaster to me - so easy to regain that way.

I didn't regard treats, higher calorie days,take away meals or anything else as cheating and I ate plenty of ' fat foods' - by which I assume you mean higher calorie less nutritious foods like chocolate cake.
I did not go backwards doing that within my weekly calorie allowance.

busyPK · May 2018

I typically fit what I want to eat within my weekly calories. This includes weekly pizza (atleast 3 slices) and eating out 2-3 times a week. With eating out I try and estimate my calories the best I can and log it. I exercise often and plan out my calories for the week and this hasn't hindered me steadily losing 1lb/wk. If you aren't reaching your weight loss goals then that is a time to reevaluate what you're doing and make adjustments.

Bry_Fitness70 · May 2018

I try to get it right about 75-80% of the time - so over the course of 30+ meals & snacks per week, that is roughly 6-7 meals/snacks where I end up eating more calories and/or an unfavorable mix of macros.

How often do you have cheat meals?

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