I don't have a "cheat" day, but I do try to let myself just relax once a week and have a dinner where I can remind myself that it's ok if it's a little more than normal. An example would be a meal out a restaurant or a bbq, etc. If I plan ahead, I'll be extra extra careful of my calorie intake that day, so I save up even extra for the evening if I know I'm going to be eating a bit more than I would normally. I am also a regular at the gym, so it helps to know that I'll be active in order to work it off.

This Friday I have a wedding at a place that has absolutely the BEST wedding food (well, party food in general) I've ever eaten and I couldn't be more excited! It's making me even more disciplined than normal this week because I don't want to have to worry/feel too guilty when I'm there and I want just enjoy myself. It's worth it because it IS a special occasion and I know that I've worked hard to enjoy it.

Funny you should mention this! This thread seems to have arrived right on time for me. Today (the 5th) is my birthday, and ever since I started trying to lose weight about 2 weeks ago, it's sort of been hanging over my head because I don't know whether I should "cheat" or not... It IS my birthday, and I can't imagine celebrating without a little cake or something, but then I think about how much progress I've made - and that so far I've had such iron-clad willpower - and it doesn't seem worth it to stop (even just once!) when I've only been going for such a short time... I want to keep the momentum going, you know?

I think the best solution for me will be that I will allow myself to go a little over my usual calories, since it's a special occasion, but I'm not going to waste them on something that I'm not 150% craving. In other words, if I do "cheat," I'll make sure it's with something that I reeeally really want. For example, I'd usually get an ice cream cake to celebrate my birthday, but what I'm really craving right now is a slice of peanut butter cup pie from Baker's Square (my all-time FAVORITE dessert!), so why shouldn't I get that instead? And I'll probably allow myself to have a little chips and salsa, since that is my all-time favorite snack, hehe. But those will probably be my only splurges for the day; other than that I'm planning to stay OP (including getting in some exercise!).

I think "cheat" days can be a good thing for some people, but for myself I really want to limit it to major holidays, i.e. my birthday and Christmas... Maybe Thanksgiving/Easter. For me, it feels good not to have treats like that because I feel really empowered by turning down all of the things that I would have thought nothing of scarfing down before. Since I haven't really told anyone that I'm trying to lose weight, it's like a little mini-victory for me each time I see someone else eating something unhealthy that I'm not eating. I like to think about all the things I resisted on any given day--not in an obsessive way, but in a "d***, I have amazing willpower!" kind of way.

I'm too scared to have a "cheat" day, I think that with my dieting history something like this would lead to me restricting through the week and feeling deprived and then binging like crazy. however, I hadn't thought really about having a calorie-controlled "treat" day, say 400 cals more than normal.. that could be good and would be easy to compensate for.. mayeb it would do my metabolism good too! but honestly, at the moment I don't feel that I'm too deprived from anything I want.

enjoy your day, and i agree that you should be able to have your cake without feeling too guilty. Maybe it can be a part of celebrating your progress thus far too ^_^