This morning I was thinking...many of us do TO, lose a few pounds and then stall. It's like your body goes into starvation mode and holds on to those extra calories in the days following TO and then we start to lose again. Well, on that note, if you allow yourself to "cheat" now and then, wouldn't you think your body would have the opposite reaction? Suppose I eat off-plan foods today...not a binge or anything...then my body thinks, "Oh, good, more food. I can burn some extra calories today. Then tomorrow I go back on-plan and my body thinks extra calories are coming, but SURPRISE!!...they're not. So I just tricked my body into burning more calories than it should. Is anybody with me on this? I know on the "Body for Life" plan, you have one "free" day per week to eat what you want. Not saying that this should be a weekly thing, but maybe when we hit a plateau. Maybe I'm just thinking to much.

Emmysmom- lots of different weight loss plans advise shaking things up so your body doesn't get used to things. I think that on WW it was the wendy plan. One big calorie day and one low calorie day and the rest in between. I think on calorie counters they call it the zig zag plan. Our is sort of built in...when they tell you only red meat 2 or 3 times a week...sometimes they tell you to pick lighter starches and fruits...then eat them earlier in the day etc. I think on this plan in the old times they had weekends off plans, but my COD said they stopped that because to many people were going way way overboard on the weekends.

Beanie

I have read that you should alternate the amount of calories you do each day in order to get the effect you mentioned. For ex. Sunday-1800cal, Mon-1200, tues, 1500 Wed. 1800 etc. I think it helps keep your metabolism kicking in high gear!

That is what Jillian (trainer from the BL) suggests in her book as well. I believe it has merit.

That was exactly my theory this past weekend..Ill see this week if it helped. RIght now I am SLIGHTLY over what I was on Friday (.6) so this week should be interesting- Im happily a guinea pig on this one!

HI,

i do take off religously, but i have found that if im POP, and then do take off, i lose then stall, but if i have a big mac or something the night before TO i do much better. I usually hit a stall, about 10 days after TO, I will then shock my body by haveing something, not nessisary really bad for me, but even if its on PLan, but something grease like a cheeses burgure, it will kick start the lose again. Plus this also helps with the cravings.

angel