I've heard that you should, because it throws your body off a little bit so that it doesn't get to used to things, but to me it sounds kind of iffy...like taking a big risk.
So I thought I'd ask if any of you have one day a week that you stray away from your diet. Purposely, I might add lol.
I don't have a day that I specifically plan for but if I'm doing well and the opportunity to 'splurge' arises I'll usually "cheat" a bit. Like yesterday: I have been doing great all week and when the girls from work went out I allowed myself a glass of sangria, a beer and some mozzarella sticks. This morning I weighed in .6 pounds more than yesterday, I think I can pee that out in a few hours, lol.
I don't like to think I am denying myself anything because that's not a lifestyle switch for me. I do the best I can and when I want to have fun or drink a beer I do it and just try and incorporate that into my life.
Hmmm....I do but don't. I allow myself to eat what I want but i tailor the quantities so I'm not overdoing it. Like yesterday, the bf and I went out to this "college food" type place where I got a blt and tater tots. To balance myself, I only ate half and took the rest home for later. This way, I can eat normally and not feel deprived while not blowing my calories way out of whack. I don't plan specific splurge days because I know, personally, that if I give myself an inch, I'll take a mile. Meaning: binge,binge,binge. I have heard a slightly higher calorie day works well though because it keeps your body guessing. I guess it just depends on if you can handle it. I know I can't.lol.
Once or so a week I'll let myself go into the higher end of my range (1,200-1,500). It is usually the day of or the day after my weigh-in, so that by the time I weigh-in again, the water weight (and hopefully more) is long gone. Some people zig-zag their calories in order to keep their body from settling on one number, and so I guess having a higher day is sort of like a toned down version of that. However, when I have higher calorie days, it is not because I ate lots of cake to get the number up, but I just let myself eat more healthy food in general. I don't like to tempt myself with "bad" foods (trigger foods, whatever you want to call them), so I don't even bother. I don't want my splurge day to turn into a splurge week or something!
Setting semantics aside, I think some people do very well with a strictly planned splurge once a week or once a month (or whatever), and some best with none at all; indeed, some do terrible otherwise. I do well with unplanned splurges. I eat well as a matter of course, and life gives me occasional splurge-worthy opportunities without having to plan them. Same thing with rest days.
No splurge day for me. It just messes up a week of hard work. For me, it would be just an all-day affair and I just can't do it. I take it meal-by-meal. I always have a good breakfast, but might add some bacon with my eggs. I'll have a normal lunch, but will have some wine with a heavier dinner, but I just can't handle all day splurge fests.
I think the idea of a cheat day is a bad one... because my cheat days use to consist of everything I could possibly eat that day... I now go the route of a splurge meal every now and then when I allow myself something higher in calories than I would normally eat but I also taylor the rest of my day to accomadate for it... weightloss really is a numbers game...if you eat 3,000 calories on a cheat day you're probably not going to lose much weight even if you stay within your range the rest of the week
I really can't allow myself a splurge day, because I know that I will go way overboard. So, if I think I can handle a splurge snack or something, then I will do it. It depends of the day that I've had. I am an emotional eater, so if I've had a stressful day, then I know that I have to stay on plan or it goes way down hill. If I'm having a really good day, low stress, good mood, then I will allow one small treat, and arrange the rest of my day around that.
I find that a whole cheat day can throw my calorie deficit completely out the window. Sometimes I allow myself a cheat meal or snack- so if i go out to dinner I might allow myself a small dessert after my salad or something like that. I dont know about you guys, btu i could eat a ton of stuff in one cheat day so i stay away from that
I have a 200 calorie range that I like to stick to throughout the week. Normally I am on the low side. Sundays I normally give myself a little more slack if I have stayed under my overall weekly calorie target. So Sunday's are 200-400 more calories than the rest of the week. It is working for me now, but I will readjust my needs in the future if needed.
I have splurge meals. I had my splurge meal today, in fact...600+ calories in a deli sandwich on a croissant and a chocolate chip cookie. But I added all the calories in for the day, and had a light breakfast and will have a light dinner. All in all, around 1400 calories. It sure felt like a treat, and I'm stuffed, but it's most likely not going to set me back.
I too fall into the "splurge meal" (or snack) category. I'm not a calorie counter, but if I have a meal that was particularly decadent, I'll try to keep it light for the rest of the day. These meals aren't set per time period, like once a week, or anything, but really just whenever I feel like it's been a while since the last one.
Splurge Day?
so i stay away from that
