Weight-Loss Cheat Days

Weight-Loss
I've had my share of cheat days. But once I've managed to stay away from bad days I lost the apetite and started to love my much more healthier diet =) In my early years I even tryed to eat so much bad food so I would never want to eat stuff like that again and it worked but I don't recomend it ;)
 
I am going to be a pain in the @$$ here.

Is it ok for a married man to have a "cheat day" (well, technically nite :p) with his wife?

I don't do cheat days (intentionally). Period.



EDIT: DO TO THE RECENT RESEARCH ON LEPTIN, I CAN NO LONGER SUPPORT THE CLAIM MY PREVIOUS STUPID SELF HAD MADE.
 
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I agree with you, when we're on an healthy diet and body gets used to it, when we make smt more crazy, body rejects it... You can see it on the stool and, at least for me, it's almost like it never happened... it's just one time! And it is really good for the control of desire in the other days, because we feel like we're doing "diet" cause we want to and not we MUST to... must is just a strong feeling to carry on the day...
 
i have a cheat meal or snacks from time to time. the secret is in my case at least is to enjoy them, and not feel guilty. i find if ive been on a bit of a plateau then upping my calories this way from time to time starts the scale moving downwards again. however i think you have to be really disciplined the next day not to carry on "cheating". i find i am more hungry the day after and crave more of the same. so far i have been pretty good.
also i find now i cant stomach the greasy type foods i ate before. take aways (apart from subway), cheese, butter/spreads and food like sausages either taste or smell foul or i end up on the loo after eating them :eek: slim
 
John_KY said:
I don't know. This approach may work well for lots of people, but I'm pretty sure it would be a bad idea for me. When I made the decision to be healthier I swore off many old favorites cold turkey. While I think it would be very appealing for me to allow myself to indulge in these foods every once in a while I think I might "open the floodgates" to the possibility of eating in an unhealthy fashion again.

Guess I'm destined to be a continuously recovering food addict from now on. I better "just say no".
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Me too ! I find, when Im serious about eating healthy I cut off my junkfood and fast food altogether and replace the things I once ate with healthier substitutions. You'll find that after a couple weeks WITHOUT your favorite foods, the cravings will subside and you'll be fine after that. Once the foods you're used to sutffing your body with are out of your system, its so much easier to keep away from them..

BUT, the second I introduce them to my body again (a.k.a- cheat day) My body flips out and remembers how great the food tastes, and then it justs takes me back to craving those foods everyday!

Your best bet would be to wait a few weeks till the cravings subside (and they WILL) and then you will find that you rarely crave the foods that you once thought you couldnt live without. To me it just seems REALLY silly to have a cheat day because then the cravings will never stop, because the foods will be in your body at least once a week, and so you will continuously want it, whereas if you just GIVE IT UP, you'll get over it and move on.

Maybe everyone is different, that's just what works for me.

Take care everyone.
xo
 
...

P.S- I forgot to mention that Im speaking from an experience I had. When I was 16 I lost 40 lbs after quitting junkfood and fastfood cold turkey. I hadnt had any for about 3 months when I lost the 40 lbs.

HOWEVER, Christmas and New Years rolled around. I made it through Christmas without junkfood and sticking to my healthy eating, but as soon as New Years Eve hit, I decided that "a few chips and chocolates wont hurt me." I thought it'd be fine since I hadnt had any in three months.. and I didn't even want it that much.. I just ate it cause everyone else was.

And you know what that lead to ?

I broke my New Years Resolution ON January 1st because I fell completely back into my old lifestyle because my body "remembered" the foods I used to eat, and all of a sudden I started to HATE the newer, healthier foods that I learned to really, really love. It's like my body completely rebelled against me and I lost my self-control. I gained most of that weight back in the past couple years. So Im starting over, im doing it the right way.

And Im not making the same mistake again. :)

Sorry for rambling, good luck to you all,
I hope you all find what works for you and your body.

xo
 
I'd like to agree, but I'm not getting the logic behind the junkfood day and balance. I'm just wondering if one splurges on pizza once a month, that's still an extra 1000 calories, lots of extra fat and simple carbs. Wouldn't your body be like "whoa, wtf?"? Then what happens when you go to your normal diet the next day? Do those extra calories disappear? Wouldnt you have to work harder or eat less to make up for it?
I'm not dissing anyone but I just want to know the science on how this would work.

Thanks
 
I like the idea of a cheat day though I had a cheat week on vacation! I now cannot seem to stop the cravings. I am one of those that needs to stay away from carbs because once I have them I want more (like some kind of addiction!).
 
I don't really think about cheat days. I am truly trying to balance my diet bewteen what I like and what should be eating. For instance, being with friends I completely avoided all kinds of junk food just because in my mind I had the following thinking:

1. What benefit do I have from eating this?
2. How many calroies am I putting in my mouth?
3. How does this fit into my goals?

After that the choices became easy. As I try to maintain my calorie intake I am always keeping a running account of what I approximate in my head. As something tempting comes into my view if the answer to the above doesn't satisfy me I don't eat it.

Like yesterday, I had some pappa johns pizza, but I had about half of what I usually would eat. I didn't go back for seconds and completely avoided that "garlic" sauce. On top of that I controlled other apects of my eating that day and it all worked out fine.

I think each person has their own way of "cheating" just think of it as a lifestyle and choices and what is important to you and you'll know what needs to be done.
 
patsfan said:
I have almost completely eliminated regular pasta from my diet. I have traded out for Barilla's PLUS pasta (yellow box).

One cup has 200 calories, 10g protein, 2 g fat, 38 g carbs and 4 g fiber. They added lentils and chickpeas to the ingredients, which add the fiber, and it has 360 mg of Omega 3s.

I like the taste and texture more than whole wheat pasta too.
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Yes! Barilla Plus is my favorite too. I like it better than whole wheat and better than white pasta, and it is very filling. I am totally satisfied by a cup of it.
 
i have always had a cheat day every once in a while when i was on my diet, and had no problems. in fact it pushed me to work harder after i ate it knowing it wasn't the best for me.
 
My cheat day is usually Sunday or Football day as I like to call it. That's when we gather around the TV eating Pigs in a blanket and 7 layer bean dip until we want to puke. Oh and beer can't forget the beer. Can't wait for tomorrow lol. Go G Men
 
BigAdrian said:
A good method I use is to go out for your cheat meal, it gives you a sense of accomplishment for the week (If you stuck to you new lifestyle), and well... It tastes good. Going out helps because the food is not in your place, its a lot more tempting if there is ice cream in the freezer, not if you have to go out to get it.
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Good point! I don't keep treats in my house, I get my special treats when I'm out. That way when I go home, there's not more of the decadent food there tempting me :)
 
Right now I'm torn on the idea of a "cheat day." My birthday is coming up and the husband wants to take my to Texas Roadhouse, which is my all-time favorite place to eat, EVER. I haven't been there in SO long, and it sounds SO good. But I know absolutely nothing there will fit into my calorie range.

So if we go, it'll be a MAJOR bad day for my diet. I'm debating on going to somewhere else, like Chili's or Applebee's or Olive Garden...places that either have a "light" menu or that will release their nutrition information to the public...
 
Its not like one meal -no matter how "bad" you are -is going to make you gain 20lbs back... you shouldn't be considering yourself on a diet but rather a lifestyle change and restaurants, birthdays, etc are part of real life.. as long as you don't take the attitude that some do - well i screwed up this one meal so i might as well go completely nuts for 2 weeks -then go - enjoy and ge back to your "plan" the very next meal.
 
Thank you so much, hon! I LOVE this post. It really does alleviate my guilt after a nice tasty cheeseburger. You've just granted me self-esteem points. LOL.
 
lally said:
So after about a month, you can have a 'cheat' once a week?
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Well, I think for the most part, it is personal preference, but I would think you should make sure you are following a healthy diet and lifestyle, knowing you can stick to it. Then it's generally up to you and what you feel comfortable with.

I know I can splurge once in a while now, but when I started, there is no chance I could do that - I would be off the wagon in a heartbeat. Now I am a little more forgiving, but simply because I know what my diet and exercise programs need to be, so even if I eat something I normally wouldn't once in a while, I know the next day, I still have my plan.

As long as you can keep a healthy lifestyle, I think everyone needs to do something crazy once in a while - we can't all be machines :D
 
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