Does anyone else NOT do a "cheat" day?

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  • luvmypwds
    luvmypwds Posts: 81
    I have days where I don't eat as well, for sure, but I don't refer to those at "cheat days." That is such a negative way of putting it. I eat out regularly with my friends and husband, about once or twice a week, and I regularly have girls' nights out where I drink a lot. I suppose you can call those cheat days, but to me, they're just a part of my lifestyle, and I don't like to call it cheating. I try to eat well most of the time, recognizing that there will always be days where I eat beyond what I "should" be eating. But I do not beat myself up over them.
  • Spokez70
    Spokez70 Posts: 548 Member
    I don't do any kind of planned cheat days- sometimes I screw up from either (a) lack of will power or more commonly (b) misjudging the calories of something (this is why I just try to avoid restaurants most of the time) But even if a or b occurs I'm not going to give up on the whole day and just eat like crap until tomorrow.
  • DianeSwartzs
    DianeSwartzs Posts: 18 Member
    I don't have a cheat day either. I AM DETERMINED to lose more weight and I don't want anything to slow me down. I haven't had a candy bar in three months! That's my little victory today! :)
  • tabethamturner
    tabethamturner Posts: 6
    My problem once I have it I want more so I try my best just to stay away. But I do normally allow my self every day to have a little something that is naughty as long someone is around that I know is going to say to me enough. Like most people Im a carbaholic.
  • creative1981
    creative1981 Posts: 182 Member
    I don't have a cheat day. I do cheat but make sure I work my butt off to allow for it.
  • TrailRunner61
    TrailRunner61 Posts: 2,505 Member
    I do the same thing you do, if I want something that's not so 'healthy', I make room for it, usually with exercise. When I have a treat it's something small like a small choc. soft serve ice cream cone or a bit of cake at a bday party or whatever floats my boat. I call that 'eating within my means'. lol
    If I told myself I was having a 'cheat DAY', I'd overdo it and totally blow the roof, for every meal, on my calorie count. Hmmm, what would I have? French toast with maple syrup, bacon and a tall glass of OJ for breakfast, a Wendy's spicy chicken sandwich and fries with ketchup for lunch & for dinner, probably a big bowl of homemade tater tot casserole. I'd guess that would be close to 3,000 calories. I cannot be trusted! I'd also feel like crap the next day!
    You CAN have treats now and then but a whole cheat day? That's an excuse, IMO, for people who don't fit in a treat with exercise and are having cravings.
  • TrailRunner61
    TrailRunner61 Posts: 2,505 Member
    I don't have a cheat day either. I AM DETERMINED to lose more weight and I don't want anything to slow me down. I haven't had a candy bar in three months! That's my little victory today! :)
    ^^^This is me! I haven't had any candy since Christmas and I don't even want it anymore. For one thing, I don't want to walk 3 miles just to burn ONE candybar! It's no longer worth it. Some foods are but most aren't.
  • hthrld
    hthrld Posts: 125 Member
    No I don't have a diet I have a lifestyle- and I don't want to cheat myself out of my goals.



    THIS. Absolutely this. If I cheat for one day, it would all be over. lol
  • davidlbass
    davidlbass Posts: 159 Member
    I'm not real sure what the definition of cheat is. I very seldom go over my calorie allowance. I eat one I want, some of it in moderation and I burn it off. Like a lot of people if I cheat or binge once, it will lead to another and so on. I will get into the 'I'll start tomorrow' routine. Except for Thanksgiving and Christmas I haven't binged. I do occasionally go over my calorie count but I am under a lot more than I am over. Now I am on maintenance and I am having a hard time eating enough calories to maintain. Wife tells me I need to exercise less or eat more. Can't seem to do either one now.
  • BettyIW
    BettyIW Posts: 103
    Like others, I have my once upon a time favorite 'treats'. And like most others, I exercise those calories off. Moreover, I am telling myself I am in charge of my body and my body is not in charge of me. Therefore, I've taught myself this lesson: Girl, sure you want that D.Q. Blizzard-that delicious turtle pecan cluster blizzard--go ahead---but after I logged it into 'snacks' I learned it had some 700 calories for a stupid small blizzard!! I made myself exercise those 700 calories off AND guess what??? Suddenly that blizzard doesn't appeal to me anymore. My husband and I went to the D.Q. last night and we both settled for a dilly bar. LOL :laugh:
  • Hotrodhoodlum
    Hotrodhoodlum Posts: 148
    A cheat day or cheat week is ok once you have lost 75% of your goal weight . Cheat day - week with moderation .Once you have lost 75% of your goal weight you will need a plan to trick (shock) your body into thinking you are getting more food then before for aboout a week or two . You will eventually be at a Plato where it will be very very hard to take off the last 25% of your goal weight. Expect it to happen at the last 15 lbs of weight loss
  • jhungate
    jhungate Posts: 95 Member
    Never, I build it in to my routine.
  • kmfl1
    kmfl1 Posts: 15 Member
    I don't necessarily "Cheat". Fridays are really long for me as I work the night shift and then come home and wait for the wife. I always try to leave 400 calories on the table if I've exercised, but after staying up 20 hours, it's pure punishment, so I use everything on the board if I have to.
    A word of caution from experience here...don't be too, too rigid. I have fallen off of the wagon more times than I can count and most of the time it was because I never deviated and then started telling myself "I deserve this". What I didn't deserve was the mental torture that went along with everything.
    If you go over every once in a while...say once a month, plus minus either way....I have found that I now have enough conviction to stay on a healthy path. It's much less of a strain and I have been improving physically and mentally on a steady pace.
    Don't be afraid to be flexible.
  • Elle408
    Elle408 Posts: 500 Member
    I have chocolate every single day and am still healthy and fit etc.

    I don't schedule in a 'cheat' day, knowing full well that life throws enough inconsistent days at you. Like when I go to my sisters on the weekend, we usually always have a take out. I try to choose better options and have a smaller portion, and I always add it to my diary as opposed to not logging it and calling it a cheat day. My aim isn't to keep my diary numbers all pretty and green, it's to keep a realistic check on what i'm eating and then being able to see what the consequences are to my body and state of mind (for instance, I logged the two consecutive 5000 calorie binge days and they're still there in my diaries history, along with the memories of how ill I felt afterwards.)
    I'm also fine with going over every now and again, it's not the end of the world, and if you take all the pressure off, I find it stops me going completely crazy and into binge mode and I can get right back on track the next meal or the next day.

    I'm not going to deny myself my little indulgences, and i'm not going to feel bad for them either. I'm just going to fit them into the bigger picture of a healthy lifestyle and not even entertain the idea that i'm cheating.
  • piebird79
    piebird79 Posts: 201 Member
    I do not have a cheat day. If I am craving something I work it into my calories and/or exercise my butt of that day. I am just curious, does anyone else not do a cheat day?
    I eat whatever I want and comp the calories with exercise.

    Yep, this is what I do too.
  • jonnyman41
    jonnyman41 Posts: 1,032 Member
    I don't plan one as such but there may be a day or two at the weekend when I go over but then I do a lot more walking at the weekend to counter that. Really my birthday was the only day I really went over and I was not bothered about doing extra exercsie. Having said that if I want something then I will have it but usually find ways to fit it in, like wine at the weekend, or chocolate. (I eat curley whirleys as they only have 115 cals lol)
  • dr_tina
    dr_tina Posts: 225 Member
    There is a difference between "cheating" and planned spikes in calories that are actually for a specific purpose. If you eat low calories everyday for weeks and weeks, most people hit a stopping point because your body is going to get used to anything and accommodate for that by lowering your metabolism. Therefore, every Saturday I eat double my calories, which is when we go out to eat and I get what I want. This is not just to have the food you want, it is also to keep your metabolism high rather than establishing a homeostasis from lower calories all the time. It has been extremely effective for me and a lot of people. Another option is zig zagging your calories where you have higher and lower days throughout the week, which is very common as well for the same reason.

    It highly depends on your personality if you can do this though because you need to have self-control to not keep going. I personally don't have a problem with it because I usually want to go back to lower calories and healthier foods after the spike. There are those who cannot do that though and it turns it into a downward spiral. The concept of eating less calories consistently to lose weight can really set you up for failure, especially if your calories are pretty low, focusing more on a weekly rather than daily deficit allows you to have more flexibility on higher calories on some days.
  • dhakiyya
    dhakiyya Posts: 481 Member
    I do not have a cheat day. If I am craving something I work it into my calories and/or exercise my butt of that day. I am just curious, does anyone else not do a cheat day?

    I do this too, although sometimes I have a cheat meal, e.g. a restaurant meal with my husband, where I don't count/log calories, and make sensible choices, e.g choosing something with lots of protein, substituting fries for salad and drinking tea or water with it rather than a drink with calories in.

    I can't imagine having an entire day. Some days for practical reasons I don't end up tracking/counting calories but I still end up making the same food choices as if I was tracking, because it's about learning to make healthy choices. Some people might call that a cheat day because I'm not tracking. I prefer counting though because I have a tendency to undereat, then cycle between undereating and overeating if I don't. When I hear "cheat day" I think of eating all kinds of junk for a day, and I really don't fancy doing that! One meal once in a while maybe, but not a whole day.
  • SmartAlec03211988
    SmartAlec03211988 Posts: 1,896 Member
    I didn't when I was losing.

    In maintenance? Yes, I eat whatever I want on Saturday in any quantity.

    Last Saturday I ate 4700 calories. Don't feel an ounce of guilt. I would have if I were still trying to lose, though.
  • scythswife
    scythswife Posts: 1,100 Member
    I don't do cheat days either. I plan out my food in the morning and log it all to see where I stand before workouts. Then when a craving hits for something I see if it fits into what I have left or how much I will need to workout extra to cover it. since i am always under anyway almost anything can fit for me. I am extra careful on Sundays since I do a rest day and just spend time with my family.
  • marydee72
    marydee72 Posts: 51
    I do not have a cheat day. One cheat leads to a binge which leads to complete hell.

    Cheat days are not worth it.
  • donna_glasgow
    donna_glasgow Posts: 869 Member
    I do not have a cheat day. If I am craving something I work it into my calories and/or exercise my butt of that day. I am just curious, does anyone else not do a cheat day?

    thats what I do also .....if i fancy something I buy it and work the next days cals around having it :) ive recently upped my cals so treats can be more often due to the extra 300 cals Ive gained per day lol
  • Yes2HealthyAriel
    Yes2HealthyAriel Posts: 453 Member
    I dont have cheat days and I dont give in to cravings. Hard at times when friends or family have junk food but so far I have stayed away.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    No. To me it defeats the purpose of what I'm doing, mentally.

    When I want something (pot stickers), I eat them. I just try not to eat them very often.
  • EvieNieves
    EvieNieves Posts: 31 Member
    Sunday is my cheat day. Mainly because that seems to be the day that people I know like to plan BBQ, birthdays, mothers day, other holidays, special events.... I hate to have to turn down every little thing. I do control myself though....meaning I wont overeat or overindulge either, I will just allow myself to have a burger, have ribs, or pizza, but like 1 -2 servings. Not 6 slices of pizza! So for me cheat day is my casual eating day not my PIG out day lol. So far I have lost 10 lbs in 50 days on MFP with diet and exercise with having my casual Sundays and have done fine :)
  • EvieNieves
    EvieNieves Posts: 31 Member
    Oh forgot to mention I do eat small snacks, beverages etc that people may consider cheating but I make sure i am still within my goals. Just on Sundays I allow my self to go over my goals if I have to.
  • basschick
    basschick Posts: 3,502 Member
    I have a cheat day once a week where I go 400-600 calories over. It's called calorie spiking and it actually helps with weight loss. The next day I go right back to staying at or under my calorie goal.
  • EchoOfYourPast
    EchoOfYourPast Posts: 459 Member
    I do not....i try to eat the best i can .....but if it is something that i want that is not as good for me...i can eat it...i just try to stay in my calorie range :) Just trying to get myself where i am making better choices for a lifetime...
    San :)
  • Samstudent88
    Samstudent88 Posts: 135
    I don't do cheat days, and I feel very guilty when I don't exercise...or if I don't feel like I've done enough.
    I do however find healthier versions of a "cheat " food...like if I feel like having chocolate....I'll eat almonds coated in dark chocolate but in moderation.

    Lately, I find very unhealthy food repulsive...like I'll go get take out for my bf and i can't stand the smell of it.
  • imkegoal
    imkegoal Posts: 156 Member
    Having read a lot of logs, but not all, I am surprised one thing isn't mentioned.

    Having talked about it with my friend at the gym this morning (and burned 922 calories to make up for my cheat day yesterday! ;) ) one thing we agreed on is that a cheat day makes sence when you are part of a family, as not everyone has to 'obey' to your healthy lifestyle all of the time.

    I have had 3 chinese takeaways since December. each because my husband wanted to have a chinese take away with me, as I am not too bothered myself. I could have said: you have one dear', I will just sit here with my salad', but I don't think thats fair on him.

    It's give and take. yesterday we had an indian on my cheat day. We have enough left for another day, so rather than finishing it off today my hubbie was quite happy to have a salad in stead today, and freeze the rest for another Friday.

    When you live with a partner and or kids, It isn't just about YOU maintaining your new lifestyle, it is also about the your family. Mine have a lot more patience with my diet if I join in with their indulgences once in a while (last week it was a McDonalds meal with my daughter, however, this was after we'd been iceskating for 2 hours)
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