Need help! Cheat day

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timsnider720
timsnider720 Posts: 4 Member
in Getting Started
So I’m currently stuck in a vicious cycle and need help and answers
The problem is this: I currently weigh 227, I have a cheat meal weekly on Sunday’s. I wake up the next day and I weigh 230-231 (has to be water weigh ) I’m always in a deficiet everyday. It takes me all week to get back down to 227, right in time for the next cheat meal. And it’s just a vicious cycle where I can’t seem to drop the water weight and fat before the next cheat meal in a week. Should I just skip cheat meals all together? Thanks
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  • Panini911
    Panini911 Posts: 2,325 Member
    edited March 2019
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    what do you consider a cheat meal? are you logging it?

    is your weight week over week moving in the right general direction (day to day numbers fluctuate due to water and many other things so look at trend week to week)

    are you under eating the rest of the week leading to a binge cycle?

    what does MFP recommend eating? what rate of loss did you select? do you eat all of that (plus exercise calories)?

    do you log your cheat meal to know how much over you are?

    I do my best to log cheat meals and i have one every 2-3 months and try to keep at at maintenance. For most things I can work it within my weekly calorie allowance.
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,138 Member
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    Why do you feel the need to have a cheat meal? Do you think the foods you have on these occasions can't fit into your normal calorie goal? Have you perhaps set too aggressive a rate of loss? At 227lbs you should quite easily be able to fit most foods you like into your day-to-day meals and still lose weight, you might just have to have slightly smaller portions of them.

    If you're not losing weight in the long term, i.e. you're just gaining and losing water weight but not seeing any loss at all over 4-6 weeks, then you're not in a deficit.

  • dauchsmom
    dauchsmom Posts: 75 Member
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    It kind of depends on what your cheat meal is all about. For me, if its something like fast food, where you really cannot control salt, I puff up like a balloon from the excess sodium and put on as much as 1-2 lbs in water weight! So I try not to have cheat days. Instead, once a month, our family opts for a nice sit-down dinner in a good restaurant where I can ask them to hold the salt when cooking.
  • dauchsmom
    dauchsmom Posts: 75 Member
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    Also, why a cheat day? When we do go out, we don't "cheat". We may go a little over calorie wise, however, we stick to healthier foods. Things I couldn't or wouldn't necessarily cook at home.
  • dauchsmom
    dauchsmom Posts: 75 Member
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    Maybe I should share with you the family rules for going out.

    1) Only one time a month. Whoever loses the most poundage that month selects the place from our researched list.

    2) It has to be dining OUT. No buffets. Full service "someone waits on you" stuff. It need not be four-star, just sit-down and not a buffet.

    3) We're allowed to go up to 500 calories over the limit. So, since I am on 1300, I can go up to 1800. That includes everything. The choice of where we eat is pre-planned, so I go online and research their menu and plan ahead for ordering. Also, because I am sodium restricted, I also make sure to tell the wait staff to inform the chefs not to add any extra salt while cooking.

    4) Included in the meal must be: 1 protein, 2 non-starchy vegetables and, if a starchy one is desired, a request to half it.

    5) Make it a relaxing time. Put away cellphones. Maybe even dress up a little! Prepare to sip water, or maybe even a little wine or some flavored lemonade. Take this outing as a time to talk!

    6) Desserts in restaurants are a temptation and, unfortunately, they also tend to be quite big! Want to give your sweet tooth something? Factor it into your meal calorie count and prepare to share it with someone else. A little satiation is better than going wild!

    Hope this helps!
  • timsnider720
    timsnider720 Posts: 4 Member
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    You guys are right, I don’t really need the cheat meal, I just need to plan it better in my caloric needs. A small piece of chocolate here or there should honestly do and keep me at bay
  • Dilvish
    Dilvish Posts: 398 Member
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    Your cheat meal likely contains a great deal of sodium if it is water weight. The more sodium you consume, the more water you retain. It is worse if you do weight training as the muscles will inflame after a hard workout and added salt makes it worse.

    You haven't said what you do to get it back down to 227. Is that exercise or diet or both?

    Remember, sustained weight loss takes a lot of time and effort because you are changing habits to incorporate for the rest of your life. Weight loss is just a side benefit.

    Plus without knowing what your cheat day looks like we really can't offer up much advice...how many calories is it? What are you eating? A day full of donuts, fried chicken and beer?
  • timsnider720
    timsnider720 Posts: 4 Member
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    My cheat meal/day consists of Ben and Jerry’s, a burger with some bacon and fries, and all the condiments that go with that lol. That was my last cheat meal anyway
  • timsnider720
    timsnider720 Posts: 4 Member
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    I started at 244 a little less than a month ago, initially it was the water weight I dropped, probably about 10 pounds, and since then I’ve been eating low carbs and at a deficiet. About 1700-1900 calories a day
  • Panini911
    Panini911 Posts: 2,325 Member
    edited March 2019
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    timsnider720 wrote: »
    My cheat meal/day consists of Ben and Jerry’s, a burger with some bacon and fries, and all the condiments that go with that lol. That was my last cheat meal anyway

    depending on quantity this may well erase any deficit you made that week. hard to say for sure without the details of totals calories for the week (you don't need to show us that just saying). one option is not having both icecream AND burger and fries but one or the other (or just keep portions in check).

    not saying you can't have a cheat meal but you really DO need to know what your weekly calories looks like and decide what's worth it to you (and if it completely cuts out any deficit you created).

    ETA: 10lbs in a month is EXCELLENT progress. you are definitely on the right path.
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,138 Member
    edited March 2019
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    timsnider720 wrote: »
    I started at 244 a little less than a month ago, initially it was the water weight I dropped, probably about 10 pounds, and since then I’ve been eating low carbs and at a deficiet. About 1700-1900 calories a day

    So putting aside the 10 pounds you've attributed to water weight, you've lost 7lbs in a month, that's pretty normal going. A healthy rate of loss is around 1-2lbs per week. Just carry on and make sure you're logging accurately. Trust the process.



  • cheryldumais
    cheryldumais Posts: 1,907 Member
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    0x7qbb9osqb0.jpg

    Sometimes the "cheat day" kills the previous week's work. It all depends on how much you are ingesting on your cheat day.
  • csplatt
    csplatt Posts: 1,023 Member
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    sounds like your cheat day is consisting of so many calories that you are erasing your deficit for the week in 24 hours.
  • rosiorama
    rosiorama Posts: 300 Member
    edited March 2019
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    timsnider720 wrote: »
    My cheat meal/day consists of Ben and Jerry’s, a burger with some bacon and fries, and all the condiments that go with that lol. That was my last cheat meal anyway

    This sounds delicious. The husband and I always did burgers and fries at home... until I discovered the burger alone was 750 calories. I now budget my day so that I can fit the burger in and I’ve cut out the fries. I sort of miss the fries, but it’s really the burger I love. I’ve also reduced the condiments and use less cheese on the burger to bring it down a bit. Maybe you could compromise like that so it isn’t so much? You could also do the Ben and Jerry’s on another day (or multiple days in smaller portions so you can stay within your calorie budget) so you can still enjoy the stuff you want but break the cycle.

    I will not deprive myself of yummy food. I just pick my priorities and weigh things so I can adjust accordingly. Harder to do with restaurant food, but you can definitely make it work.
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,138 Member
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    csplatt wrote: »
    sounds like your cheat day is consisting of so many calories that you are erasing your deficit for the week in 24 hours.

    Except that OP has still lost 17 pounds so it's not wiping the deficit out at all, they are just seeing the water retention and then seeing it come off. Normal fluctuations.
  • sijomial
    sijomial Posts: 19,811 Member
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    A small serving of Ben & Jerry's or a bucket of Ben & Jerry's? ;)

    But I'm actually not seeing that what you are doing is a problem as regards weight loss if you are losing over the course of a month and what you are doing is sustainable.

    It is a problem that you aren't taking a long term view, not understanding that the number on the scales on any particular day of the week isn't relevant and appear to be feeling guilty about enjoying your food.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    tinkerbellang83 wrote: »
    csplatt wrote: »
    sounds like your cheat day is consisting of so many calories that you are erasing your deficit for the week in 24 hours.

    Except that OP has still lost 17 pounds so it's not wiping the deficit out at all, they are just seeing the water retention and then seeing it come off. Normal fluctuations.

    Add to that following a low carb diet, which makes water weight fluctuations more pronounced.
  • angelsja
    angelsja Posts: 860 Member
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    A tub of b&j is around 1200 cals just on its own :open_mouth:
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,138 Member
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    angelsja wrote: »
    A tub of b&j is around 1200 cals just on its own :open_mouth:

    Depending on the size of the tub, they have small tubs too and OP doesn't mention whether they are eating a whole tub.

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