Post cut cheating
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DannehBoyy
Posts: 546 Member
Just finished my cut dropped down to around 10-12 % body fat. Took about 5 months.
Would like to have a "cheat evening" where I just eat what I want. (I've got a big appetite)
Should I have this cheat and then carry on cutting for a couple of days to drop water weight? And then start upping my calories?
The reason I did this cut was to improve nutrient partitioning as I have always tended to gain fat easily when bulking (probably because I've never gotten lean enough to start a proper clean bulk). So I'm a bit weary as I don't want to risk ruining hard work.
I guess I just feel bad for cheating and need some reassurance or another person's advice.
Really appreciate any advice, thanks.
Would like to have a "cheat evening" where I just eat what I want. (I've got a big appetite)
Should I have this cheat and then carry on cutting for a couple of days to drop water weight? And then start upping my calories?
The reason I did this cut was to improve nutrient partitioning as I have always tended to gain fat easily when bulking (probably because I've never gotten lean enough to start a proper clean bulk). So I'm a bit weary as I don't want to risk ruining hard work.
I guess I just feel bad for cheating and need some reassurance or another person's advice.
Really appreciate any advice, thanks.
1
Replies
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I don't believe in cheat meals or days. You want to eat something? Eat it. If there's a price to pay, pay it.5
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You could work on your weekly cal goals, instead of daily, a lot of us do that.
Eat at 50-200 cals under your daily goal 5-6 days a week and donate them to a higher cal day. You still get in your weekly cals, you have just moved them around a little to suit your needs. Do log your high cal day though.
Decide how many calories you need day to day to be satisfied, perform well, and meet your nutritional goals per day for those lower cal days.
Cheers, h.3 -
You have my permission to eat what you want without feeling guilt.
That help?
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quiksylver296 wrote: »You have my permission to eat what you want without feeling guilt.
That help?
Not at all to be honest lol2 -
You can do whatever you want. Obviously it depends on what that cheat day consists of and how it could potentially affect your ability to continue on. If it is going to help be a mental break for you and you will get back to normal, sure. However if it is going to open a can of worms for you and you won't be able to get back on track maybe you should rethink how you go about it.
If you want a high calorie day but don't want to blow your calories, have a cheat meal vs day where you eat less during the day and enjoy one big meal, or you can try calorie banking to save up for that day. I typically do this while I am cutting, I eat very light a few days during the week then allow myself to eat at maintenance or above on weekends. I don't feel bad, it actually helps with my adherence and workout performance. If you are coming out of the cut to maintenance I don't see why you can't fit way more food into your day. Unless you just want to eat everything and not track for one day, that is fine too but just be prepared for some extra food and water weight. Then you can get back to whatever you normally eat during the week.
In order not to gain too much fat when bulking, just make sure you keep calories just above maintenance and not gain too fast (so less than 1lb per week gain), follow a proper progressive workout program, get adequate protein and start off lean (which it sounds like you are). You will gain some fat, but if you take it slow and steady it should be minimal.5 -
DannehBoyy wrote: »quiksylver296 wrote: »You have my permission to eat what you want without feeling guilt.
That help?
Not at all to be honest lol
In that case, do what makes you feel comfortable. Only you are going to be able to know what that is.3 -
Nothing wrong with an occasional cheat day. I've gone on vacation a couple of times on this cut and I said screw it with the tracking. Of course I have to pay the price when I return, but I was prepared for that. Also, I like to think of those days as "refeed" days. That's a buzz word that makes it sound like I know what the F I'm talking about, but really don't.
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I swear someone is following me post by post and hitting disagree. 😁2
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As you are probably aware the "cheat" night will not amount to much fat gain. The only thing about worrying about water weight gain if you are ready to exit your cut your scale may go back up again when you enter maintenance. You might stabilize a few pounds heavier than your lightest weight.
My advice is not to get too hung up on water weight. That might not have been what you are looking for but your "cheat" night is fairly insignificant in the grand scheme of things. I prefer to have limits and rules but you do you.3 -
Thanks, this is exactly the answer I was looking for. What you said about the water weight is very true.
Oh yeah I'm the same, I'm super strict with my diet. Had just one cheat meal this whole 5 month cut because I had no choice 😅.
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DannehBoyy wrote: »quiksylver296 wrote: »You have my permission to eat what you want without feeling guilt.
That help?
Not at all to be honest lol
In that case, do what makes you feel comfortable. Only you are going to be able to know what that is.
That's not what I was asking though lol. I know that cheat meals can affect your progress, but I also know that there are ways around it doing so.
I'd love to have a cheat meal, if Its not a good idea to though then I won't bother just yet. It may not sound like such a big deal to some people, but I plan on competing. So to me, I need to learn as much as I can, and put it into practice whether I am comfortable with it or not.
Thanks for taking time to answer0 -
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Limit your amout, still keep everything within your normal calorie range and get right back to it. 🙌👍0
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DannehBoyy wrote: »DannehBoyy wrote: »quiksylver296 wrote: »You have my permission to eat what you want without feeling guilt.
That help?
Not at all to be honest lol
In that case, do what makes you feel comfortable. Only you are going to be able to know what that is.
That's not what I was asking though lol. I know that cheat meals can affect your progress, but I also know that there are ways around it doing so.
I'd love to have a cheat meal, if Its not a good idea to though then I won't bother just yet. It may not sound like such a big deal to some people, but I plan on competing. So to me, I need to learn as much as I can, and put it into practice whether I am comfortable with it or not.
Thanks for taking time to answer
You plan on competing or you have something upcoming? If you have one in the works that will change the answers.2 -
Post cut hunger is the worst! Your body is primed for gaining and is trying to get you to eat to bring things back to the way they were (layman’s terms here.. ) .. if you can stick it out (the hunger I mean) it will be worth it but I’m right here with you. Just finished up and I’m so hungry and want to eat everything but .. mind over matter.. (also writing this to take my own advice). If you do slip up, consistency is key - one day over the course of a month or two is no big deal.1
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If I cheat I know me, and it would be twice as hard not to go on the decline from there. If you think it won't affect your motivation to get right back to it, I don't think 1 cheat day is going to make or break your journey.0
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I appreciate all of the replies. Thanks for taking time to offer advice.
It's been a hard 5 months of dieting. Especially the last couple, being at such an extreme deficit. My goal was to see if I had the mindset to complete a 'tester' competition prep. Which I did, so I feel I deserve a cheat.
Anyway, I managed to come up with an answer to my question and heres what I'm gonna do for anyone that's interested...
My plan is to have the cheat meal and then increase my calories by 500 afterwards for the week. I will still be in a slight deficit, but a not so agressive one, as my maintinence is different now from when I started the cut due to metabolic changes. Doing this will allow for me to drop the water weight gained from the big cheat meal, but will also give my body a chance to adapt to the increase in calories instead of jumping straight into a surplus. Therefore I'll be at a great starting point
to rebound into a muscle gaining phase. It'll also give me time to get my head straight and focus on the new training program I'll be doing.
Just thought I'd let you know anyway, incase you were losing sleep, worrying about me and the cheat meal 😄😉
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DannehBoyy wrote: »I appreciate all of the replies. Thanks for taking time to offer advice.
It's been a hard 5 months of dieting. Especially the last couple, being at such an extreme deficit. My goal was to see if I had the mindset to complete a 'tester' competition prep. Which I did, so I feel I deserve a cheat.
Anyway, I managed to come up with an answer to my question and heres what I'm gonna do for anyone that's interested...
My plan is to have the cheat meal and then increase my calories by 500 afterwards for the week. I will still be in a slight deficit, but a not so agressive one, as my maintinence is different now from when I started the cut due to metabolic changes. Doing this will allow for me to drop the water weight gained from the big cheat meal, but will also give my body a chance to adapt to the increase in calories instead of jumping straight into a surplus. Therefore I'll be at a great starting point
to rebound into a muscle gaining phase. It'll also give me time to get my head straight and focus on the new training program I'll be doing.
Just thought I'd let you know anyway, incase you were losing sleep, worrying about me and the cheat meal 😄😉
If you have cut to competition levels of leanness then there are some really useful resources on the 3D muscle journey website. There’s a podcast called the recovery diet. Also there’s a series of free videos on off season diets in their video vault.0
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