I am wondering what you guys think about having one cheat day a week. That day you can pretty much eat waht you want as long as you adhere to a lcwoe the rest of hte week.

Aa friend of mine does it that way and it seems to work well for him. What do you think? A good way to prevent feelings of depravations, binging etc or would it make you "fall off the wagon" so to speak

Thanks

tanya

I personally can't do it because I get to out of control. I will eat everything I have wanted that entire week and gain more weight then I can possibly loose in a week time. If you want something you may just want to count it into your carbs if possible or find a healthier version. They make low carb nearly everything now. Just a thought - good luck with this!

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No way! I'd gain back all I'd lost that week, and probably more! Low carb helps us to control our cravings, and I personally never feel deprived. There are just too many wonderful foods available to us - why would we want a day to eat stuff that makes us feel so lousy and makes us gain weight? It's not a very sound way to follow a lc lifestyle. We're supposed to be educating ourselves in a healthy way of eating. So, unless you plan to cheat with whole grains and legumes, and some of the fruits with a higher glycemic index, then it's not a good idea to cheat at all. Most people who think cheat think sugar and starch. Not a good idea at all.

Now, if you want to plan one cheat once in a blue moon, like maybe having a slice of pizza, or a piece of cake for a special occasion, it won't throw you off course so bad, if you get right back to low carbing right away. But a regular weekly day of cheating......no, not a good idea.

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Nita

I agree....very bad idea. Many of us have realized that we have an addiction to carbs so binging on carbs once a week would be like a drug addict trying to do drugs one day a week. It just wouldn't work. Plus, as Nita said, there is no reason to feel deprived with this WOE. There are so many choices of good, satisfying foods to enjoy. I would suggest getting a good book on the LC lifestyle and educating yourself on the whys and hows of LC'ing. Many of us use Dr. Atkin's book...but there are others on the market as well. Good luck to you

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Vickie

tanya-

i've known a couple of people in real life who've tried that. what they tended to do on their "cheat day" was consume as many carbs, sugar and overall junk as humanly possible. rather than prevent binging, it provided a specified planned binge, essentially.

the people that i know who did that are still overweight, and they don't "low carb" any more.

the thing is, when you consistently low carb, you get a lot of benefits. you hit the magic of ketosis, which is where you get your energy surges, your appetite is reduced and cravings go away. and your tastes change! if you do this long enough, you actually won't like the sugary junk anymore.

on the other hand, regular "cheat days" can throw you out of ketosis, giving you another 3-4 days to get back in...right in time for another "cheat day." add the fact that for many, the kinds of stuff you would eat on a cheat day is enough to start up cravings and the tempation to binge, and you've got a recipe for disaster.

the trick to avoid feeling deprived isn't to schedule a weekly cheat day (although i do believe off-plan eating should be planned in advance, so you can remain in control). while you may choose to eat off-plan once in a while or for special occassions, you don't want to make it a regular part of your lifestyle.

instead, you learn to adapt acceptable food to what you're craving. most of us do this using recipies of one kind or another. sometimes people do buy special products or sweetners to help recreate what you're wanting in an low carb version. it does take some know-how, practice and imagination, but the payoff is that you get to eat like you're "cheating" while maintaining the benefits of your lc lifestyle.

as long as people are seeing low-carbing as a diet, as something that deprives somehow, as something to endure, then they are not going to be able to maintain losses. what do you do when you lose weight from dieting? why, you stop dieting, right? but....as soon as you go back to your old habits, you go back to your old size. no passing go, no collecting $200. you know?

so the secret to permanent weight management is avoiding feelings of deprivation by finding ways to adapt your wants to a low-carb lifestyle, instead of trying to adapt the lifestyle to your old set of wants.

sorry-i know you were hoping people would say that's a great idea!

peace out.

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EatSmart Nutritional Scale Review

ditto what everyone else said....

yanno -- in the Body-for-LIFE program, they do this, one reason it's allowed is so the folks dont feel deprived of the foods they want/crave, etc.... but from what i've read on many of their message boards, is that once what was a binge day, went to a binge meal, to totally cutting it out all together because most felt like crap after eating "said foods"

for some folks this sort of eating may work OK, but for most, who literally have "additcions" to said foods, can not have these "cheat days" for all the reasons stated above.

Good luck on your journey

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My LC web site
LCE Member since 2000

Thanks you guys, i kind of knew that anyway and I dont actually take the cheat day....but I do socialize at least once a week and then there are foten all sorts of temptations...like hard cider ( myam!) How do you handle that? I have read several LC books ( paleo diet, atkinds, neanderthin) and I am very familiar with the science of lc-ing (I am a clinical herbalist and nutritionist) but I have noticed that sometimes in practice things might work out different...Thank for all the feedback!

Tanya

I have to admit, since i've been back on the LC wagon, almost 2 weeks now, I have NOT put myself in situations that i know i can't handle.

I have not been eating out, which we normally do; 'specially now that it's so hot (I dont cook when it's hot)

yesterday we went to the movies, i said NO to popcorn
I ate dinner before hubby and I went to our local "fest" (carnival/food fair)

some days are just more difficult than others, but knowing i need to take this weight off is what is keeping me strong.

One night we did go out, to a sports bar -- i nursed a glass of red wine (I glass over a 4hr period) and had a large salad.... I'm just doing what i know i have to do.

hang in there... the longer you do it, stay true to your "diet", the easier it will get.

HTH

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My LC web site
LCE Member since 2000