Weight Loss

Lately I will break my diet and call it my "cheat" day but I have a few questions about these cheat days.

1. Is it a cheat DAY or a cheat MEAL? I've heard people say both and it seems crazy that you could eat horribly for an entire day and have it not affect you.

2. Is it diet specific? I.e., do only certain diets allow a cheat or do they pretty much allow an indescretion across the board?

3. How damaging are the cheats?

 Thanks!!!!

For me a "cheat day" qualifies as a day where I hit my maintenance calories...thus doing no harm what-so-ever.

I don't throw all caution to the wind, I still eat well, but maybe for dinner I'll go with the creamy sauce, or I'll have a cup of icecream for dessert, or I'll add an extra snack or two throughout the day.  Depends how I feel

For me, if I were to go totally crazy, I'd probably end up craving that kind of food the next day (think of it as a sort of withdrawal type thing) so I just stick to my normal foods, and add in a few extras :) 

Of course, the exceptions are when I go out to dinner for a special occasion...then there may be some damage!

I have cheat DAYS. It starts off well enough, but lunch at Chili's turns into Pizza at night. An all the bad things in between. I don't think toooo many people have cheat days. They kinda just happen until you are better into your diet an can understand your food patterns. Personally this site is great for that.

Some diets tell you that it is ok. Like weight watchers. You get extra points you can save up an blow on fast food. however, diets like the no carb diet or the all protein diet are actually very restrictive until well into them. Honestly I don't think anyone should discredit eating anything on the food pyramid. As long as it benefits you in some way. My excuse....pizza has cheese an tomato's......taco has protein an bread ^^. However, it is how much you eat an  if the good stuff outweighs the bad.

Unless you are diabetic....totally different.

For me cheating is pretty damaging. If I do it well enough I gain at least a pound that day. One pound equals 500 calories.

No scientfic data to back this up, but just my experience...

Generally I find that cheat days don't affect me very much.  My "guess" is that your body can only absorb so much fat in a small time frame.  For example, on Friday I weighed in in the morning at 209.4.  I had a really bad "cheat meal" that night (party at a friends house lots of bad food and drink).  On saturday morning I weighed in at 213!  Yikes!  I didn't weigh in on Sunday and didn't do anything extra special for my diet, but on Monday I was 208.6.

So, My guess is that my body shed that extra weight (I'll let you picture how...) over the weekend simply because it couldn't absorb everything.  Also, I imagine that there was a lot of water retention due to alcohol.

I know I didn't answer all your questions, but hope that helps.

given2staci  -- a pound equals 3500 calories, not 500 -- to gain one pound of fat you have to eat 3500 calores ABOVE and BEYOND what your body burns

On my cheat day I eat around maintenance calories, but I also exercise. I eat the same healthy meals, but I allow myself something naughty. I LOVE brownies, so I make mine homemade from scratch and allow myself to eat a couple that day. I always count calories on cheat days and never eat out at fast food places. My cheat days have never caused me to gain weight. I may retain a little water if Im over my sodium but no real gain. I have a cheat day every 2 weeks, it keeps me in check.

I am definetly feeling the withdrawal from last nights cheat! Totally understand!

I tried a cheat "day" and hated it in more ways then one. I now have cheat "meals" and I do that 2 to 3 times a month and I prepare for it. I work out twice that day as opposed to once normally. I watch what I eat the rest of the days as well. So I do an hour and half cardio that morning, have a light breakfast then a small snack then I really let myself enjoy whatever cheat it is from pizza to a big hamburger or whatever. I don't eat a whole pizza and a six pack of soda like I used to, it's more like 3 to 4 pieces and a glass of milk or something but I still get to endulge Then I do an hour workout of some kind that evening and back to normal after that.

 

I can't stress enough how important cheat meals are to stay on a diet. The biggest reason for yo-yo dieting is your on a diet that is almost impossible to stay on then you relapse and start over. This to me eliminates that, I know that in a few days if I earn it then I can have something that I love, it's not like i'll never eat it again. Now I know I can have In-N-Out in a few weeks or a few days and I don't have to stress about never eating it ever again. I think it makes a big difference, not to mention it's a chance for us to go out as a family and I don't have to give the waiter crap about how I want my meal prepared. lol

True coach, but that number is purely theoretical. In fact others can experience quite different effects. Depending on age, sex, activity, and other factors. As I said. 500 over my daily amount *which is usually 2000 for about everyone* means I will be gaining a pound.  what goes in and comes out doesn't always calculate. Although to lose wieght I try to go by the 1200 ^^.

I've always heard it's approximately 1500 cals for one pound of fat?

nope, 3500, for sure

It's all over this site, and others, that one pound of fat equals 3,500 calories. I've found that to be pretty accurate in my weight loss tracking. Weight fluctuates up and down all the time. It's not a constant. I trust my weight in the mornings after I've seen the same number for 2-3 days. I WISH a pound only equaled 500, or even 1,500. I'd be zooooooooooming down the scale!

There's a huge range of variation in these cheat days.  Some people just do dinner.  Some do all day, meals and snacks.  I do a mixture of all of the above depending on my mood and how the cheating is going to be (eating in or out).  I feel best when it's just one meal...because it's the least amount of damage and I still get to enjoy whatever I want.  Some folks find if they start doing cheat DAYS they put on weight...some don't.  All I know is that if I have a cheat meal, even, I'm not touching the scale for at least a week or two.  Those of us who use cheat meals and days as a lifestyle change tool are typically very good at going back on the diet the next day.  If you have trouble "lapsing back", then it might not be the thing for you.  But see what your behavior is like.

Great advice Archer, thanks a lot!

Well, I plan on having one cheat day, where I will have some greasy, good, NJ pizza! I still eat pizza...like frozen pizza, which is 370-390 calories depending on the kind, so it's really not a big deal, as I am not really a snacker, and I don't tend to be very close to my calorie limit at the end of the day, when I will eat fruit or 100 calories of something just to add it up. But I also make the conscious effort to increase what I do, whether it be standing talking on the phone, cleaning, etc. My cheat days aren't really even cheat days. I think you can still cheat, have whatever you want, as long as you keep your calorie range in mind and don't go over your limit. I mean, if you want to go to McDonald's for breakfast and blow 600 calories, fine...or you could have MORE food for less calories and still be just as satisfied.

my cheats are for weekends....to what extent i cheat depends on what i am doing.

if i'm in the house, i try to stick to what i have in the house, the typical diet staples...apples, veggies, shrimp, chicken, veggie burgers, light popcorn, etc.

usually it goes like this...i eat my normal diet saturday during the day, then at night i might go out to dinner and i try to have what i want, but with some moderation.

for example, i ate sensibly this saturday all day, and went out to a japanese steakhouse. instead of having the spicy salmon roll and the dragon roll (delicious but always leaving me hungry) i had the vegetable tempura. yes it's breaded and fried, but it's veggies, i tell myself. I'm making a compromise, because I could be eating fried chicken.

Sundays I usually eat what I want. I try to have two big meals (500-700 calories, maybe) that I love. And a handful of little snacks here and there. This Sunday I had an egg and cheese on an english muffin from dunkin donuts (more out of convenience cause i was not at home) and then i had three slices of delicious pizza. my compromise? the pizza was very thin crust, had lots of sauce, and the toppings were spinach and garlic, not pepperoni and meatball, for example. Later in the day, I had a couple bags of 100 calorie light popcorn and a handful of dried fruit.

If I have pizza, I make sure to go out to a GOOD pizza place...one that people will travel for. Not just any rinky dink pizzeria that uses too much cheese...if I'm going to indulge, I want to LOVE it.

A pound of fat contains 3500 calories, period. given2staci, if you experience a one pound increase in one day, it's because you're retaining extra water. The average adult takes in 8-10 lbs of water per day (64-80 oz). Eat something that's a little saltier than you're used to, and it's no big trick for your body to keep an extra pint back. Check out "The Hacker's Diet" for more of an explanation.

mhenscheid, I'd wager this is what happened with you as well.

On topic, I stick to cheat meals. For me at least, a cheat day becomes a cheat week becomes a cheat month, and then I have to start all over again. But I'll have a big breakfast (especially if I'm going running at lunch), smart lunch, and then an extra pork chop at dinner and still be under my burn level. But if I do that, I give myself two days of "proper" eating.

Oh, i see some friends on this post.

I, er, have cheat moments.  Which sometimes last all day.  Or 3 days?  Heh?

I then remember I do not want belly jiggle, so I promptly snap out of it.  It's remembering that nasty image that helps me get on track.  I've been dreaming of washboard abs for so long...Year after year, I want to show them off, yet can't because they don't exist....or if they do, they're hidden under a thick layer of fat.

I say BOO to that.

I love Bueno bars (similar to Ferrero Rocher's hazelnut chocolates in taste, but BETTER, and without that huge hazelnut in the middle).   I love ice cream.  I love cereals.  Sugary sweetness mixed with dark chocolate is my weakness in this life.  I also like salty things which is a huge no-no for me because I instantly retain and gain water weight.

 Staci---maybe this is what happens to you?  Do your extra 500 cals have a lot of salt?

Other cheats: butter cookies, butter crackers, sad, I know.  I've dropped cheese from my diet, because I lose control.  That's why I try to stay away from these other easily accessible snacks wherever I go.  Maple cream is a new one.  Overloading on cereal is another.  Pizza, oh pizza.

And I'm done, because now I'm craving those delicious baddies.  (Notice: not goodies, because they are not GOOD for you!)  Moderation is difficult for me, it's usually all or nothing.

Just for the record, 64-80 ounces of water (US) is more like 4.17 to 5.21 pounds, not 8 to 10. Temperature causes some minute changes, but not that much.

love the frank honest answers.

honestly i have tried cheat days and they make me feel like crap. i cannot reach my maintenance calories and don't really want to because i feel like a bloated mess. so i opt for a cheat treat or meal. maybe i'll go for a real starbucks frap instead of a light or have a McD's cone.