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So yesterday I half-enjoyed my first-ever planned cheat day. After weeks of discipline, I let it all slide with a purpose, consuming 4000 calories and nearly 400 carbs. Quite a shock after averaging 1500 calories and 35 carbs a day (that's real carbs, not net) for weeks.
I was surprised that it wasn't more enjoyable. Don't get me wrong. I loved having my favorite food, mashed potatoes, again, and it was nice to have a few beers with friends. The DQ Blizzard was obviously tasty and yet... the flavors were all so big and pronounced that I wasn't in love with them.
Less surprising: by the time noon hit, I was feeling a little sick. Not bad, but a little. Honestly, it was a mixed bag. Fun food but as the day progressed, I felt worse, and I definitely felt less mentally with it. Way more distracted.
The good news is that this is that it wasn't greater. I think that I've reached a place where eating right is really a lifestyle versus a diet, and this whole experience makes me understand that I'm not really missing the junk. I certainly don't feel cheated by my discipline. That's cool.
As far as the effect of the cheat day goes, we'll see. I woke up this morning to three extra pounds. Again, not surprising. My guess is that they'll come off quickly. What I'm really curious to see is what happens then. Will I suddenly be able to lose weight again, having broken through my pre-splurge plateau? Or was this all an exercise in foolishness?
Whatever the case, if I decide experiment further with cheat days, I'm going to switch them to "chill days," and make them less of a big deal. Maybe a potato and a couple of beers. I just don't believe that that kind of carb / sugar swing can be good for me.
Thanks to those of you who weighed in on my pre-splurge post. Your voices were in my head throughout the day yesterday. Otherwise, I would've had a larger Blizzard and a full six pack of beer.
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193.0 lb
Lost so far: 22.0 lb.
Still to go: 15.0 lb.
Diet followed 100%.
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Diet Calendar Entries for 15 June 2015:
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1649 kcal
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Fat: 118.59g | Prot: 116.94g | Carb: 25.07g.
Breakfast: Jones Dairy Farm Fully Cooked Sausage Patties, Fried Egg. Lunch: Stir Fried Vegetables. Dinner: Cooked Chinese Cabbage (Fat Added in Cooking), Bubba Burger Sweet Onion Burger, Hellmann's Cholesterol Free Canola Mayonnaise, Poblano Pepper, Cooked Sauerkraut, Roasted Broiled or Baked Chicken Thigh, Ground Turkey (Cooked). more...
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3458 kcal
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Activities & Exercise:
Calisthenics (heavy, e.g. pushups) - 10 minutes, Boxing - 1 hour, Housework - 1 hour and 30 minutes, Resting - 13 hours and 20 minutes, Sleeping - 8 hours. more...
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gaining 10.5 lb a week
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 Comments
That's a great 'learning' post! Sometimes you've got to experience the insanity to understand the insanity.
15 Jun 15 by member: Frosty Heimdall
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That is exactly what happened to me... I used to enjoy all those things but then I felt sick to my stomach. Now that I am eating healthier I enjoy my time better. I track, I measure, I plan, I execute... just like second nature
15 Jun 15 by member: Anita Love
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I'm new on this site. Read your post a few minutes ago. I really know what you are saying. I've been dieting most of my life, age 72,and most of it has not been good. Up and down over and over again. Last year I started carb cycling. 3 days low carb, 4 days Hi carbs one of which is a cheat day. This is what works the best for me. you eat what you want one day a week. Chris Powell from "Extreme Weight Lost" wrote the book "Eat More Lose More". I try not to go crazy on my "reward day" but can't say i'm always successful. this is the most appliable to my lifestyle. You do have to eat 5 meals and snacks a day , that is what i thought i could not do. But i did and now it's part of me. You do get to where you don't want the foods you ate before and you really don't like them. Anyway stick with it and you will learn and and add to your knowledge. Frosty said in the post before "Sometimes you have to experience the insanity to understand the insanity." I learn something new everyday, and hope and pray with God's help I will continue for a while. Good eating Lokidixon.
15 Jun 15 by member: bettycater
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I am curious why you planned such a huge blowout of a cheat day? I suppose it served a purpose, if only by making you sick. Perhaps I could take a lessons--I tend to cheat in smaller doses but more frequently.
15 Jun 15 by member: izzypup68
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Wow - sorry you did not feel well. But you learned something important about yourself. Maybe cheat day means pick ONE of those treats.
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I think it works a lot better if we allow ourselves only a cheat meal" rather than a whole "cheat day." A lot of damage can be done that will undo all the week's hard work.
15 Jun 15 by member: soonsoonsoon
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Nahh, nothing wrong with a good (bad?) blowout every once in a while. If nothing else, it serves the purpose of showing that the way you usually eat now is your normal diet - which is brilliant. Judging by the way yesterday made you feel, it shows that the food choices you made were just one offs rather than the norm - and isn't that what we're all working towards? :-)
15 Jun 15 by member: JustineJones
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Thanks, everybody! I really appreciate the support, advice, and wisdom. Didn't really struggle with cravings yesterday -- due in part, I'm sure to the cheat day's lesson -- and I've already dropped one of the three pounds I gained, so it wasn't a total disaster. I'll see how my body reacts throughout the week, but if I do schedule future cheat days, I'll likely redefine it as many of you have intelligently suggested and go for a "cheat meal" or a single treat. Most likely... a few beers or some potatoes, my two favorites. Another lesson learned -- and this dovetails with what you said, Justine -- is that I'm not Humpty Dumpty. If I do have an occasional cheat or slip, it'll just be a blip on the screen, then back to normal. In the past, I would lose weight quickly and regain weight quickly, living by the quintessential yo-yo effect with which I am afraid many of you are all too familiar. For the last year and a half, I've been losing weight slowly, incrementally, and it feels good. I feel way more stable. This cheat day is an example of that baseline sturdiness. Finally, it was worth a couple of gained pounds just to interact with you guys. For the longest time, even after joining here, I fought alone. Now I feel like we're a weight loss team. That might sound corny, but it's true. Thanks!
16 Jun 15 by member: Lokidixon
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We ARE a team climbing that mountain together. It really does s help to feel less isolated and I have learned so much here and many tips!
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Yay - Go Team :-) And you're right...it does sound corny haha, but it is oh so true! Isolation, in any sense of the word is a terrible thing. Just knowing that you're not alone and having this virtual world of people to back you up and a way to communicate is, for me anyway, an integral part of keeping on track.
16 Jun 15 by member: JustineJones
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