cheat meals when dieting?

markomuscle

When is it ok to allow yourself a cheat meal or 2 a week? when you are happy with your current results and maintaining them or when you are still working towards them?

I'm 21 and weigh 170lbs, i'm trying to lose about 20 lbs. I'm trying to lose around 2lbs a week, should i forget about cheat meals and eat 100% healthy foods until i reach my goal of being a healthy weight?

muffinn

Depends what you mean by a cheat meal.

If you track your caloric intake and your macros you can eat those "cheat meals" everyday as long as you stay within your daily caloric limits, and as long as you make sure your macro and micro nutrient needs are fulfilled.

People don't tend to eat junk food every day, especially when cutting, because most of the time this kind of food is calorie dense and lacks in essential micro nutrients. It isn't as satiating as so called "healthy foods" which makes it harder to stick to your diet in long term.

Stench Blossoms

If you feel the need to cheat then you are doing it wrong.

Incorporate some of the foods you like in your diet regularly.

2xj3hplqgsbkym

Stench Blossoms wrote: »

If you feel the need to cheat then you are doing it wrong.

Incorporate some of the foods you like in your diet regularly.

I disagree, even though I am trying to loose weight and I have a healthy varied diet, with the occasional glass of wine or few squares of dark chocolate, I could still murder a bag of chips and a battered cod, homemade oven chips and grilled fish just don't cut it.

Personally I think once a week you should have a 'cheat meal' so that you can stick to your diet the rest of the week. (no evidence, just my opinion and experience)

Mr. Manager

I'd only allow myself to eat or drink something "cheat" worthy if I feel I've earned it. When I go to the gym 5 days in the week the guilty feeling of having a packets of crisps isn't there. But it also doesn't mean I'll gorge on shíte for the day.

Stench Blossoms

Laurel Rotten Pool wrote: »

Personally I think once a week you should have a 'cheat meal' so that you can stick to your diet the rest of the week. (no evidence, just my opinion and experience)

It really does depend on what the 'cheat' meal is though.

If you are going all out with chips, fish, ice cream + a 2litre coke then I think you are probably doing more harm that good. Depending on what the rest of your diet looks like though.

xgtdec

I love protein pancakes on saturday.....it feels like cheating, they taste like cheating....but since they are made from eggs, oats and protein powder..its all good!!!

doctorwhogirl

xgtdec wrote: »

I love protein pancakes on saturday.....it feels like cheating, they taste like cheating....but since they are made from eggs, oats and protein powder..its all good!!!

This is my DAILY treat.

Stench Blossoms

doctorwhogirl wrote: »

This is my DAILY treat.

+1

Before breakfast and after dinner 'cause I'm WILD!

xgtdec

well i dare not make it daily, i use waldon farms syrup on them...not the best i know but i just cant help it:P

btkm8unsl0w5r4

A lot of trainers and bodybuilders treat a cheat meal and an intergral part of your diet. It has been shown to improve compliance with your diet the rest of the week. However a cheat meal is just that a single meal, its not the whole day. Also probably not best to consume 7000 calories in one go. It also stops you from becoming a total protein bore who is incredibly unpleasant for others to be around as all you talk about is how a stick of celery dipped in whey protein is a really tasty snack. Its not a cheat cause its planned, I look forward to it and the uncomfortable feeling afterwards makes me redouble my efforts for the next week.

thegreatiam

the rock knows how to cheat meal.
http://www.lisajohnsonfitness.com/cheat-day-the-rock-style-kinda-amazing/

Rubber_Soul

I'd imagine it depends on whether you have self control issues or not. If your cheat meal is likely to trigger a gorge avoid them, if not go ahead. Just take account of whatever you eat into your caloric goals.

xgtdec

and in my case if the sugar's gonna get ya...leave it to last meal of the day....go to bed and sleep through the withdrawl...back to normal by morning;)

Mink

Jessie Aggressive Babe wrote: »

A lot of trainers and bodybuilders treat a cheat meal and an intergral part of your diet. It has been shown to improve compliance with your diet the rest of the week. However a cheat meal is just that a single meal, its not the whole day. Also probably not best to consume 7000 calories in one go. It also stops you from becoming a total protein bore who is incredibly unpleasant for others to be around as all you talk about is how a stick of celery dipped in whey protein is a really tasty snack. Its not a cheat cause its planned, I look forward to it and the uncomfortable feeling afterwards makes me redouble my efforts for the next week.

Definitely agree with this, it worked for me last time I lost weight & kept it off (pre-baby). I'd plan it for usually a weekend evening and I really would feel uncomfortable afterwards (but I loved that I could have this one decadent meal). Also it allows you to still be able to go out for a meal with friends etc and not fret over staying on a diet.

Jason Todd

Yeah, I'd have a cheat day once a week, or once a fortnight. I'm working off a 90/10 balance in terms of good foods/bad foods. It could be something as simple as having a bun and a handful of chips with a burger, or having a small diet coke and popcorn instead of water and nuts at the cinema.

Then when I feel I've really earned it, I'll have a small-medium pizza from Pizza Hut topped with almost every type of meat they have!! :P:pac:

And when the odd pang of guilt does strike after a meal like that, I just think of how bad my previous eating habits were, e.g. pizza + garlic bread + chips + coke, and then I don't feel so bad!

Mr. CooL ICE

Today I had a striploin steak, whole sweet potato worth of fries and broccoli cooked in butter. Felt like a big dirty cheat meal but really wasn't.

My housemates usually go for a friday evening pizza delivery, which I take part in. They have been doing it less and less lately, so instead I just get a bourneville the next day.

tHE vAGGABOND

When I was loosing weight I found the cheat meal brilliant and an essential part of things. Not only have studies shown it to be good for the body, not to go into starvation mode and all that side of things, but for me and many others, Diet fatigue is hard, and when your really struggling you can think about that restaurant your going to on Saturday or that amazing steak in the fridge and that keeps you honest...

People often talk on this forum of it being "simple" to eat healthy 100% of the time, [while ramping up exercise], but that is just not the same for everyone. You have to remember that, some people do struggle and fall off the wagon, so the cheat meal is a great way to keep that kind of thing from happening [in my experience anyway]

Of course that cheat meal should not be two 16 inch pizza's, you have to balance things and be sensible [and I always did more exercise in the days afterwards]- and make your cheats a treat, but somewhat healthy at the same time