Cheat day versus cheat meal???

tnrunningnurse
tnrunningnurse Posts: 549 Member
edited November 10 in Health and Weight Loss
So some weight loss experts say you should have 1 cheat day a week, where others promote 1 cheat meal a week. Just wondering what everyones opinion on this is. My personal belief is if you have more that 50lbs to lose it should be a cheat meal. If you have less that 50lbs to lose than a cheat day is acceptable...having said that I find that if I do an actual cheat day it is harder to get back on track than if I just have a cheat meal.

Replies

  • tnrunningnurse
    tnrunningnurse Posts: 549 Member
    bump
  • rsidebo
    rsidebo Posts: 20
    I agree with "Cheat meal". Right now I don't want to cheat at all!
  • rsidebo
    rsidebo Posts: 20
    Okay, I am a 62 year old gramma. Just what does "bump" mean? Smile.
  • Dickersondiva
    Dickersondiva Posts: 97 Member
    So some weight loss experts say you should have 1 cheat day a week, where others promote 1 cheat meal a week. Just wondering what everyones opinion on this is. My personal belief is if you have more that 50lbs to lose it should be a cheat meal. If you have less that 50lbs to lose than a cheat day is acceptable...having said that I find that if I do an actual cheat day it is harder to get back on track than if I just have a cheat meal.

    I'm thinking just the opposite...usually if you have more to lose, you're allowed more to eat anyway, because the larger your are, the higher your net goal. So I could easily see a cheat day for a larger person with more to lose and a cheat meal with someone who has less to lose. I mean, if you HAVE to cheat. :) I just set my heart not to see it as cheating....because technically we are making long term changes, not dieting.
  • tnrunningnurse
    tnrunningnurse Posts: 549 Member
    Okay, I am a 62 year old gramma. Just what does "bump" mean? Smile.
    you bump when you want your topic to stay at the top of the message board.
  • roadworthy
    roadworthy Posts: 130
    Okay, I am a 62 year old gramma. Just what does "bump" mean? Smile.

    When you post a response on a topic it bumps it up to the top part of the forum list so that others can see it and give feedback. Sometimes if a thread is not responded to right away it moves down the list.
  • gregavila
    gregavila Posts: 723 Member
    I'm a believer in a cheat meal. If I had a cheat day, I could easily eat 4000-5000+ calories. And that qualifies as a train wreck.
  • Therdigh
    Therdigh Posts: 28 Member
    I did the slow carb diet which allowed you one day a week to cheat. I personally found it hard to get back on track, and found myself craving things that I normally do not crave. I do not drink alcohol and suddenly I wanted cocktails with my meal, go figure. I think it depends on the person on whether it works or not. It works for me as long as I get back on track the following day, but unfortunately my discipline is not always there.
  • Stefanie7125
    Stefanie7125 Posts: 462 Member
    I try to be very strict during the week and then more relaxed on the weekends. Please keep in mind this does NOT mean I go crazy at every meal all weekend. I still log everything and normally I stay within my calorie goal, but I personally do better when I look forward to the weekends. When I weigh I do it on Saturday morning, so I have all week to work off the weekend and I don't know how bad the scale probably looked on Monday. I am more into this to make healthier choices, yes I want to lose weight, but I want to be healthy more than I want to be skinny. So I am continually making better choices for me. (you may not agree looking at my diary, but it is probably an improvement from where I started).


    BUMP - bring up my post (this keeps the post in the "my topics" section of the community for you.
  • dg09
    dg09 Posts: 754
    I do a cheat day, have had a cheat day every Sunday for the past 6 months. Pretty much everything is fair game for me, besides soda, chocolates, and candy.
  • powahouse11
    powahouse11 Posts: 13
    I think it's an individual thing also. Depends - if you are likley to fall off the wagon when you have a cheat DAY then you should stick to a cheat MEAL. I plan my cheat meal at the start of the week so that I have something to look forward to and I don't get so tempted to eat the cheat meal until that day. Half the battle with food is planning.


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  • AFitJamie
    AFitJamie Posts: 172 Member
    I do the "cheat meal\snack\whatever" it depends on what is happening, but sometimes it is a beer in the evening with company over that I know is off my plan (like tonight for instance). Other times it is a snack I like. For me it is trying to adapt lifestyle. If I try to say I'm never going to eat ice cream again, or never eat a bag of chips, I'm doomed to fail... That isn't realistic. So I recognize that I can, once a week, have something a bit extra... Having said that, it is a *bit*. I'm not going to sabotage my week's work by eating the whole bucket of ice cream... For me it is recognizing the realities of living, but still understanding that I can't go so off the rails that I'm undoing all I've done in the past week...
  • needtolose50lbs
    needtolose50lbs Posts: 68
    Okay, I am a 62 year old gramma. Just what does "bump" mean? Smile.

    Don't feel bad I'm 37 and I dont know what it means either! LOL
  • Captain_Tightpants
    Captain_Tightpants Posts: 2,215 Member
    I think sometimes it will be a cheat meal and sometimes it will be a cheat day... at least if your willpower works similar to mine. :ohwell:
  • needtolose50lbs
    needtolose50lbs Posts: 68
    It definitely depends on the person. I will fall off the wagon if I do a cheat day, with me it will turn into several days of cheating a week.
  • fatgirlslove
    fatgirlslove Posts: 614 Member
    I stick to one cheat meal 2x a month
  • chevy88grl
    chevy88grl Posts: 3,937 Member
    I don't do cheat meals or cheat days. I eat what I want, when I want it. I simply eat whatever it is I want in moderation. For me, a "cheat" meal or day is too diet-ish. If I want a Reese's, I want it NOW - not on a special day.
  • Kassieisproud
    Kassieisproud Posts: 149
    I would have to go with cheat meal I think its harder to get past a whole day than just one meal At least for me it is I Believe in everything i moderation but a lot of people have foods that make them forget about weight loss for me its potato chips i cant have them in the house but this saturday im having a bag of em :D
  • mom2mozart
    mom2mozart Posts: 307 Member
    it means Bring Up My Post (BUMP).
  • ktlynn447
    ktlynn447 Posts: 38 Member
    Sometimes Saturday is my cheat "day"... and sometimes its just a cheat "meal". I do try to make sure I work out so I don't have a complete blowout though..... I do allow myself a piece of chocolate a day... for my own sanity of course :)
  • tinkermommc
    tinkermommc Posts: 558 Member
    I don't do cheat meals or cheat days. I eat what I want, when I want it. I simply eat whatever it is I want in moderation. For me, a "cheat" meal or day is too diet-ish. If I want a Reese's, I want it NOW - not on a special day.

    I'm with you! I had a mini Reese's for a morning snack today ;-) still within goal so it's all good!!
  • pigwidgeon82
    pigwidgeon82 Posts: 79 Member
    I don't do cheat meals or cheat days. I eat what I want, when I want it. I simply eat whatever it is I want in moderation. For me, a "cheat" meal or day is too diet-ish. If I want a Reese's, I want it NOW - not on a special day.

    same with me. i eat what i want when i want it. i just make sure i have the right amount of calories left for the treats. and if i have a special event or outing that will involve me wanting to eat extra calories i just plan accordingly.

    i'm loving it so far because i don't feel deprived at all. i don't actually feel like i'm on a diet. i have plenty to eat, even the goodies.
  • jagwab
    jagwab Posts: 93
    Lately every day seems to be a cheat day for me. But tomorrow is a new day.

    Anyways, I do 2 cheat meals a week. This allows me the opportunity to hang out with some friends during the middle of the week or if I have a meeting or whatever and then I have one on the weekend after I weigh in. It helps to keep things in check if they are spread out. But sometimes it's all in one day.
  • finchase
    finchase Posts: 174
    I do a cheat meal or day if I notice that my weight loss seems to be slowing down, going with the idea that my body is becoming too accustomed to the amount I'm feeding it. Or when I have a party to go to, like last night. It was catered by Red Hot & Blue. How the heck do people who eat at places like that manage to stay thin? I had one sandwich, one spoonful of potato salad, and one spoonful of BBQ beans. No seconds. My calorie total was ridiculous. I spent a good chunk of today working that meal off.
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