Assuming you have a flexible plan where you just need to work whatever you want to have into your calories/Points/carbs, etc. then how often do you still indulge your personal vice? Whether it's a burger, fries, chips, glass of wine, beer, chocolate, whatever it is that got you fat, how often do you still allow it within your plan?

I spend quite a lot of calories on treats at the moment. I was doing well getting down to only a few a week, then came Christmas and I went back to going hungry a lot and dedicating my calories for treat foods. It would be asking for disaster to not allow myself chocolate at all, but those calories could go a lot further.

Interested to know how often you plan in pre-arranged treats in your program. And if you can bear to confess if you go off-plan to indulge that would help too, cos no point thinking everyone else is only having theirs once a month if that means turning on a binge alert.

I don't have treats. That's not a boast, it's a confession. I find I'm pretty good at sticking to my calorie plan if I keep it rigid. If I have a treat, it sets me up for more treats on more days. This needs work.

Yeah, I ate a greasy restaurant burger New Year's day as a hangover cure and felt guilty for days. That's not a food I eat anymore.

I do have a Skinny Cow ice cream sandwich (140 calories) about 5 nights a week though.

The average calories/carbs between these two things probably aren't that far off.

So, I allow myself *pre-approved* treats only.

If I were to eat the same things that got me fat, I would still be growing fatter.

This is a surprisingly hard thing to consider. It makes me realize that most of the foods I loved best were "treat" foods for other, smaller people--only I ate them all the time. In a way, I have no concept of what a "treat" is as it relates to my food intake because for years, if I wanted something I simply had it.

I do leave room for things like dessert and crunchy/snacky stuff in my plan, I just choose better options--sort of an "eat this, not that" approach. Skinny Cow ice cream cones replace the big slab of brownie a la mode. Carrot sticks and crispbreads with hummus supplant cheetos and cheez-its. My hamburgers are now homemade, smaller, served on half a bun, and have different toppings.

It's a little shameful to admit, but I feel as though I'd panic or overreact somehow if I were to go off plan, so it's imperative for me to go with a plan that allows me some leeway. If I didn't budget in some sweets and crispy things, I'd feel tempted to wander.

So in one sense, I never have treats if treats are defined as something rare and special to look forward to. In another, I have treats virtually every day if treats are defined as inessential dietary frills eaten just because I like them.

I know your Christmas situation was particularly rough, though, as you were away from home and pretty much at the mercy of others' cooking. It would be easy, I should think, to let yourself allocate more and more calories for special things rather than basics when your basics weren't even available to you.

If you're already feeling as though your calories could go farther if you changed the balance of 'decorative' calories and nutritious items, you're probably taking steps in that direction already.

Saturday is my treat day. Last time I dieted I had one day off a week and still lost a lot. It stops me from feeling deprived and cramming.

I'm just starting out and I count calories, and I definitely have been eating a lot of the same foods, just smaller portions. I know it's not the best, but for me it's baby steps.

I don't know if this comment is comfort or not, as I have only been at this a few days, but I understand where you're coming from. What "got me fat" was big portions of the things I love most, namely cheese. The big portions are gone, but a no-cheese lifestyle just isnt an option! haha

Once or twice a month I get together with friends for dinner out. I used to be happy going out anywhere but now I want to go somewhere I know there will be food I really enjoy. Why waste my calories (and money) on poor quality restaurant food. Pretty much I allow myself to have anything from the menu I want but if I choose a bacon cheeseburger I probably won't order dessert. However, if I go for a lighter shrimp or fish item then if they have a dessert I really love (flan is my all time favorite dessert) I may order it.

I'm not just eating to lose weight, I'm eating like I expect to eat for the rest of my life. So I am trying to learn to balace things I dearly love, like a really good hamburger, with a healthy lifestyle.

I don't have treats at home though. I've no willpower to stop at just one. We do usually have some sort of baked goodie after church on Sunday and I allow myself a taste there. I've been told there are no calories if you eat it in church. I don't test that theory too heavily though....

Beer: daily. 1.

Bread & butter: should be never. Had some last week, got fuzzy with my point counting and didn't lose this week.

I'm not a huge fan of sweets. Maybe once a month or so I'll want a cupcake or something and I'll fit one into my plan.

a few times a week. Chips, or pizza (although that's about once a month, same with cheeseburgers), or (most often) Skinny Cow in some shape or form. It's all planned into my days, though, so it's not going off plan.

The reason I think I"ve been successful thus far with this attempt is that my goal is to make my plan livable, and I'm not depriving myself of anything.

I fit in treats pretty much daily - in the form of a 100 calorie chocolate bar or some kind of snack pack (usually some kind of chocolate). I also plan for pizza once a month or so, two slices vegetarian only, and it is accounted for so still a part of my "plan". That's particularly hard for me to stop at 2 slices, but good practice - so far I've been able to stop at 2 (pretty much, sometimes I sneak in an extra bite). Oh and a glass or two of wine once a month or less too. So I guess quite a few treats, but I don't consider them treats really, since I never go over my calories to indulge in them.

I have transitioned into a really easy diet that I think probably looks pretty similar to that of a "naturally thin" person. I was never a binge eater though, so I don't have problems with that. I watch myself, but I think all women do, even naturally thin ones. So yes, I treat myself, and frequently. But I watch how much I treat myself with. I do not have chips and ice cream in one day, for instance, but sure, ice cream fits in there. Chips fit in there too. However, I typically do not purchase these items to have in the house. I get them when out.

My problem has always been chocolate. Sometimes I keep some sugar free mini candies around, and if I really need something I'll factor one or two into my day. Right now I have Mini sugar free Reeses, but I haven't had one in 3 days. =)

Quite frequently but it all fits in my calorie allotment. I eat a No Sugar Added Ice cream snack which ranges from 100-140 calories (depending on the brand I buy) at least 4 times a week.

A totally off plan meal occurs probably once a month and I am still losing weight. I guess it helps that I am a very disciplined person by nature and fortunately never had a problem with binge eating.

I indulge in a reasonable portion (360 calories) of pizza for dinner every Sat. night. This is what has kept me feeling somewhat normal, rather than horribly tortured. Pizza Sat. has been a lifelong tradition in my family. I just need to limit my portion to keep it real.

DB sent a chocolate gift basket for the holiday. I marked the calorie count on every wrapper. Most pieces are 36 calories. I allow myself one now and then.

My vices, I think, were overeating normal foods and wine.

I've limited my wine drinking to special occasions only. Those happen maybe once or twice a year (for my birthday and for the Christmas holidays). I recently came of a couple of weeks where I had a lot of days that included wine, but I counted those calories and I knew it was okay to drink because I hadn't had any in months!

But other than that, "food treats" I don't see as treats, they are part of my diet, they are just simply maybe not as large or as often as I used to have them. If I make something "off limits" then I'm more likely to want to eat it! If I can allow it in my diet, but I simply don't have it every day or every week or every month (like pizza) then it's part of my diet, but it's just something I only do once in a while.