So when I had my most successful weight loss I was dieting 6 days a week and eating what I want without reserve on the 7th day. Exercising 4 days a week and... that's it...

What do you think about "days without reserve"?

I personally think it's a slippery slope. For me, I can sometimes do one treat item that is pre-planned or a treat meal but an entire day is too much. If I do a treat meal, it has to be dinner because then I stop and am done whereas a treat in the day might trigger me to binge the entire day. Everyone is different of course and some people can do an entire day.

I think whether they will work for you is determined by your ability to get right back on plan the next day.

I've found also that as time progresses and my weight loss has slowed down, those freebee days have a much bigger impact on my weight loss than they used to. I can maybe only do 1 or 2 a month now.

I couldn't do that. I would end up at Chipotle eating my 890 calorie bowl

I see your point and think that you may be right. As the weight comes off it gets harder. So once or twice a month sounds more like a deal

Maybe every two weeks if i hit my goal I can have a no reserves day

I'm with owlsteazombies! Freebie day would turn into "Aussie cheese fries and a Thunder Down Under sundae from Outback Steakhouse" day. So that definitely wouldn't work for me.

If it's something that makes the dieting process easier for you, and it doesn't have too many negative effects, go right ahead. Just make sure to get back on the straight and narrow afterwards!

I agree with the planned cheat meal. A whole cheat day can undo a lot of progress for me. Most times, I even manage to fit my cheat meal into my calorie goal with a little extra exercise.

It works out great, it always gets me out of a stall. I see it like calorie cycling so I have a scheduled cheat day every month. This time it's Thanksgiving and my husband's birthday so I get 2 cheat days this month. I don't go overboard, I just do regular eating. I really need a cheat day now since I am in a stall but I am going to wait.

@ Penmage:
That a good point, going from no hold bard eating back to disciplined eating. I might just increase my caloric intake once a week or once every two weeks.

@ Woodsy:
So you believe in subtracting calories burned from calories eaten and using the calorie deficit to eat more?

@Stars:
You know you bring up a good point. "Eat Regularly". Do you think that after all this dieting and calorie counting is over, that you can stop counting calories and not gain weight or have to count calories for the rest of your life?

I tried it, it seemed to make a lot of sense but I eventually gained everything back plus some. It is as Vex suggested, can you get back on track ? Just didn't work for me.

I think it depends on what "without reserve" means to each individual. Left to my own devices I could easily eat 5,000+ calories in a day, especially if I knew it was my day to let loose, so I don't think the system would work well for me.

That said, I do believe in letting loose on occasion -- just not as often as once a week, in my case. I have no-holds-barred meals (3,000+ cals) at least once a month. I also have mini-indulgences (perhaps 600 to 1,000 extra cals) a few times per month. I consider these breaks from caloric routine a key factor in my current success maintaining a 55-pound weight loss.

F.

I am planning a controlled cheat meal once a week. In the past I tried cheat days and I couldn't get back after the day of no holds barred. It usually included having a few drinks with friends etc, and when I wake up feeling a bit worse for the partying its so difficult not to give into junk food cravings. My "cheat" meal isn't going uncounted. I still count calories for that meal, and I try to eat lighter before and after the meal. Last week my cheat meal resulted in going 350 calories over my daily goal. I am totally fine with that. But I know me and it cant be uncontrolled or unaccounted or I could eat 1000's of extra calories that day. And since I am not doing a big calorie deficit in general, that could negate my whole week!

I do think that eating higher once in awhile is good to keep your body from ever thinking food is scarce and wanting to hold onto fat for dear life. Plus it works well for me so far because we often get together with friends and do dinner at eachothers houses. So no matter what I a served at someone else's home I dont have to worry about seeming rude and not eating it. I just save up calories, and then take a sensible portion.

This is jus the end of my second week at this, but so far so good.

Freelancemomma- I noticed we are the same height! I also noticed your a tiny 140! Well done, you are especially inspiring to me since you are tall as well. Was your goal always 145? In your avatar you look healthy and great. I secretly want to lose to 145 but was worried people would tell me that is too low at 5' 11". How did you come to that goal? Is it simply where you ended up? I know height isn't the only factor for ideal weight. But I would love input from a fellow tall lady.

Thanks for the nice words. I know 140 lbs seems low for my height, but by no means am I skinny -- just slender. My original goal was 155 lbs. I lost the extra 15 pounds over a few months while trying to figure out my maintenance calories. I really liked the way I looked at 140 (oh, the clothes I can now wear!) so decided to try maintaining at that weight. So far so good. If I exercise moderately 4 times per week I'm able to eat about 2,000 cals per day. I still have lots of off-plan days, some more damaging than others, but I've become good at getting right back on the wagon.

Feel free to pm me anytime.

F.

Thanks so much! Eating 2000 a day and working out 4 times a week sounds very managable and very healthy. I hate how much other people try to weigh in on it when they are not the ones losing weight! I used to weigh between 150-155(this was like 19-21 years though ) and while I was by no means fat I still had problem areas and styles I couldn't wear, and never felt good in a bikini. I didn't workout back then though. But when I was that light no one told me I was "too skinny". After gaining and then losing weight years later I had people telling me that I was "trying to lose too much" and "am I eating properly?" at like 165 lbs! And they would lecture me when I stated I wanted to lose 10 more. Here it feels safer to delare one's goal weight, even if I get negative feedback there is still annonimity here. But in the world of face to face interactions and friends I am so afraid to tell people I want to lose 30, maybe even 35 or 40 lbs from my high weight. I think people dont understand sometimes how when you are tall the weight is more distributed. 10 lbs weightloss on me looks like 5 lbs weightloss on someone 5'3" or shorter. Of course this is a great advantage when you gain weight. I was telling a friend that during the holidays last year I gained 15 lbs. She said she could see maybe 5-8 lbs, but didn't believe I could have gained 15.

Just remember that even if you take a "day off", your body doesn't. The calories you eat on off day still count.