Calorie counters and cheat day - 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

VickieLou · 05-18-2009, 02:22 AM

I was wondering do people on calorie counters have a cheat day? I would like to know if that's a good idea or not?

Rosinante · 05-18-2009, 03:07 AM

I have one day a week when I eat more than the others, usually a Sunday, but I follow it with a lower day, and I never, ever, ever, ever, ever call it a cheat day. Maybe it's just semantics but to me 'cheat' = 'doing something wrong', I can't find anything postive in the word; but if you plan in one higher calorie day a week, or some people keep lower (but not too low) in the week and higher at the weekend, that's so not cheating but being gloriously on plan!

Well done on what you've lost already!!!!! And wow, you are getting really close to the Onederland border!

Rainbow · 05-18-2009, 04:31 AM

I have days where I eat more (normally twice a week when I eat at my parents' house) but I don't think of it as a cheat day as I still have less calories than I need to maintain my current weight. I don't deprive myself of chocolate etc. anyway either - I just have a small piece of it to make sure I stay within my calorie limit so also don't regard eating it as cheating (was very hard to learn to eat just a little chocolate!).

Couch · 05-18-2009, 05:46 AM

I have two higher calorie days - the weekend. But I make sure I do the maths on what I ate, so I know what my average over the week is, and I never consider it to be a "free for all", as they always end in tears and chocolate cake crumbs.

Delphi · 05-18-2009, 07:46 AM

Not a cheat day, but definitely a higher calorie day to keep my metabolism from readjusting to my lower calorie days.

chudge · 05-18-2009, 07:57 AM

I usually do this but i did one of those yesterday and now on my scales i've put on nearly 2 pounds i mean i ate alot of carbs yesterday but still nothing major n e one no how this happened?? yer sorry went off there urm i usually have a 'cheat' day about every 9 days i try not to exercise on that day eaither just to give me time to recooperate

lookingtobehealthy · 05-18-2009, 08:03 AM

I totally binged yesterday, went to the drive in and ate a ton of junk. (I knew better but somehow didn't care.)
No point in beating myself over it, as long as I lose 5 pounds a month I am happy.

rockinrobin · 05-18-2009, 08:13 AM

I am also not a fan of the word "cheat". It implies wrong doing and for me, it's just not a good word.

Phrasing aside, there's CHEAT days, and then there's CHEAT days. Just which are you talking about here??

An added in "spurge" as to not mess up with your overall calorie count is one matter, an all out "I'm going to eat whatever I want without tracking it", is another matter. That one day, or heck even one meal, can definitely wipe out any progress that's occurred in the previous 6 days of "dieting".

For me, the year I was losing, I just wasn't willing to have a stall. I also found that having an "off meal" brought out more cravings for "off" foods. I desperately needed to dry up my "wants and desires" for "off" foods, so again, for me, I needed to steer clear of those. But of course we are all different and different things work for different people.

Now that I'm in maintenance - looking to MAINTAIN my weight - not lose - I add in a weekly splurge meal. And I do indeed maintain - not lose.

barefootnikki · 05-18-2009, 08:19 AM

I'm with everyone here. I never view it as a cheat day. I do view how i eat as how i will eat for life so i make it VERY doable. If i want a treat on any day i log those calories. Yesterday i wanted fish & chips so we went out to lunch. It ended up being a high calorie day (1900 and i usually aim for 1800 but hang around 1600..lol)... the thing is, even when i'm eating snacks or having a BIG not-so-healthy meal i log it all. I enjoy it, log it, and move on.

time2lose · 05-18-2009, 08:52 AM

Quote:

Robin originally posted
I also found that having an "off meal" brought out more cravings for "off" foods. I desperately needed to dry up my "wants and desires" for "off" foods, so again, for me, I needed to steer clear of those. But of course we are all different and different things work for different people.

This describes me. I had to get my cravings under control to be able to lose weight. If I eat sweets, I am going to crave more sweets. It is a desire never satisfied so why take that first bite? Same thing if I eat large amounts of carbs.

I do have an occasional higher calorie day but I still have to avoid certain foods that will cause carvings. Most higher calorie days are planned and I account for the extra calories before the day. If I know that I want to have an 1800 calorie day, I would lower my calorie limit from 1500 for a few days so that my weekly average is still 1500 a day. I hate it when I have unplanned higher calorie days and feel the need to lower my calories for days afterward.

Windchime · 05-18-2009, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by time2lose

Most higher calorie days are planned and I account for the extra calories before the day. If I know that I want to have an 1800 calorie day, I would lower my calorie limit from 1500 for a few days so that my weekly average is still 1500 a day. I hate it when I have unplanned higher calorie days and feel the need to lower my calories for days afterward.

I don't have a planned "cheat day" but I have some days that are higher calorie than others. "Cheat day" is kind of like "going off my diet" in that it implies that a healthy eating lifestyle is something we will eventually be able to stop doing once we lose weight. Normally my higher calorie day would be the (planned) pizza lunch that I have with friends every Monday. I see some chicks talking about their "cheat day" and it distresses me because what they're talking about is a free-for-all binge, not simply a slice of pizza or a margarita.

Yesterday I went to an event at a friend's house. It was simple; a glass of wine while we were bottling it, then some hard cider tasting, then a potluck lunch. But I drank too much, ate too much, and ate several off-plan things. I counted my calories as best I could because a lot of it was home-made, but I was at least 6-700 calories over what I have been eating to lose. It was a fun day but I probably could have had just as much fun while skipping the cheesecake.

Going off plan to this degree means that I'm up 1.5 pounds this morning. I feel swollen from sodium and alcohol. It's a good reminder why I shouldn't do that, and it's possible that I could pay for this with no loss at all this week. So for me, a cheat day (that really means a "way, way over my limit day") isn't really as much fun as it sounds. I like my planned pizza lunch day, though.

nelie · 05-18-2009, 11:19 AM

I'm a fan of having a higher calorie meal versus having an entire day where you 'cheat'. An example would be this past weekend, I knew I was going to eat out for lunch so I had a very light breakfast, ate what I wanted but not stuffed and had a very light dinner.

Slashnl · 05-18-2009, 12:16 PM

I haven't been planning cheat days either. I've had a few slip ups and I've found that it isn't worth the aggravation. I feel too bad and then beat myself up (at least for awhile). I think that if I planned an off day, I would just go way off plan. That can't be good even if it is just for that day.

cfmama · 05-18-2009, 01:52 PM

I don't do cheat or splurge meals at this point. I find that the cravings that come with them are just too hard to handle. Once I get into maintenance mode I can see myself doing that though

Smiling_Sara · 05-18-2009, 01:59 PM

I'm learning very slowly to try and not have "cheat days" when i'm on plan it gets a little easier with every day. When i "cheat" i find that it's a bit of a set back. ( for me anyway ) If I can fit something into my daily calories, I will, if I can't, too bad.