Cheat Meals

[mcgee1516]

To cheat or not to cheat? I've been trying to decide whether I want to give in and have a big cheat meal every once and while (preferably a fast food value meal). The problem is that I feel guilty and physically feel like garbage after eating anything fried or saturated fat filled so I stopped eating the stuff a while ago. It's not like I'm on a super strict diet plan or anything, but I always like to eat healthy and I'm not quite as lean as I'd like (6'0, 185 w/ very slight water retention, fat). My main question is how unhealthy can one splurge meal every 1-2 weeks really be? I mean, I have people tell me all the time to splurge but I guess maybe I'm getting "too" into healthy eating and I just worry about all those fat cals and trans fats...

 

[Rhyno]

As along as you don't go overboard: too much or too often, a cheat meal can actually help you with your long term dieting efforts. Granted, if you are trying to get cut up for a bodybuilding comp, this may not be the best advice. But for the casual dieter trying to improve his/her body composition, I think they are quite useful.

Firstly, if you feel guilty about eating a cheat meal, then you either: shouldn't have it or you simply have the wrong mindset. A cheat meal is a reward to yourself for staying on the path of healthy eating. For me, it is the proverbial carrot on a stick that leads me through my toughest cravings.

Secondly, I don't recommend listening to what others are saying regarding YOUR diet. People are used to mediocrity and anyone who pushes themself above this level is often ostracized. If you are going to have a cheat meal, do it for YOU and not anyone else.

As a side note, if you have a problem with water retention, first try drinking a least a gallon of water a day. Second, you can try a mild (and preferably herbal) anti-estrogen.

 

[jumpshot903]

Then you may be having the wrong cheat meals cheat meals dont have to be that bad for you, its good to have cheat meals now and then but make it something you really want really crave not just to have a cheat meal.

 

[CrazyChemist]

cheat meals should not be binge eating meals - keep it to ~800-1000 calories maximum. Make sure you get the requisite amount of protein for the day also.

 

[Ricky5145]

cheat meals are great to have once a week, just dont go over board. however for those of us who have great metabolisms, its easy to do so.

shoot, when im on the go i dont care what day it is ill grab two mcdoubles from Mcdonalds for 44 grams of protien. i dont care about the fat if im on a bulk. but thats me and i have a disgustingly fast metabolims

IFFB pro cedric mcmillian used to ead three fast food combos a day. and when hes deployed for the army, he says hes only limited to spam so he bulks up on spam. do you know how much fat is in spam?? ALOT. and some ANIMAL guy, i forget who but its posted on their page said he goes to a chinese buffet every friday night when hes on a bulk. dont be affraid to cheat, just know your limitations.

 

[jaydollars]

Lots of times strict dieting will slow the metabolism, a cheat meal can jump start your metabolism again, just don't eat a whole cake or something crazy

 

[CJSalcedo]

Have a cheat meal, but try to make sure it's not complete garbage. Fast food is OK just don't overdo it. One cheat meal once or twice every 2 weeks is great for keeping me on track, it just depends on how you feel.

 

[SamuraiSid]

To cheat or not to cheat? I've been trying to decide whether I want to give in and have a big cheat meal every once and while (preferably a fast food value meal). The problem is that I feel guilty and physically feel like garbage after eating anything fried or saturated fat filled so I stopped eating the stuff a while ago. It's not like I'm on a super strict diet plan or anything, but I always like to eat healthy and I'm not quite as lean as I'd like (6'0, 185 w/ very slight water retention, fat). My main question is how unhealthy can one splurge meal every 1-2 weeks really be? I mean, I have people tell me all the time to splurge but I guess maybe I'm getting "too" into healthy eating and I just worry about all those fat cals and trans fats...

Its fine every once in a while. But if it makes you feel like **** from head to toe, then why would you want to???

 

[zodiiac523]

Its fine every once in a while. But if it makes you feel like **** from head to toe, then why would you want to???

because they taste sooo good.. I cheat once every 3 weeks or so, always go all out though, a whole pizza, some kind of desert oreos, moose tracks ice cream, maybe a nice pie... always something im craving... i try not to feel too guilty about it since its not often that i do it. but i always do.

 

[GeekPoop]

i go ballls to the wall, more than I should

 

[DeFos3]

For myself, I have found I handle "cheat meals" best almost immediatly following a very grueling workout. I like to make myself earn the right to eat that meal. I also find that by doing so I actually end up eating alot less "cheat" foods during the course of the meal. By that I mean I mentally get my fix quicker and thus eat less and then move on to better choices.

 

[CrazyChemist]

Have a cheat meal, but try to make sure it's not complete garbage. Fast food is OK just don't overdo it. One cheat meal once or twice every 2 weeks is great for keeping me on track, it just depends on how you feel.

Cheating by eating a cheeseburger is fine. To me, fries aren't THAT delicious that they are worth the detrimental nutrition. And rather than McDonalds I'd rather get a steakburger from this place down the street.

 

[Ricky5145]

cheat but be smart when you cheat. instead of getting a cheesburger and fries, ditch the fries and get the two meatiest burgers you can.

 

[zodiiac523]

damn, i know im craving me some oreos rite now... ****ing peanut butter cream kind...

 

[Ricky5145]

all i can say is five guys

 

[Quest]

omg FIVE GUYS!!

or White Castle burgers. On UFC ppv nights I'll get two 6 packs of them down no problem.

 

[Ricky5145]

i wish, let me repeat, I WISH there was a white castle around here. ill we have is frozen white castle burgers....not the same.

 

[R1balla]

i havent read any of the AM users replies, only the original post so if i say what u said my bad.

At 6ft, 185, u can afford some fat. my 15yr old cousin is 6ft, 197 and he isnt big. i am like u also, i like to stay healthy but bulk at the same time. my thought for you is to let yourself cheat only once a day. its always good to get an easy 1k calories in at a fast food place. this works for me cause i have a fast metabolism. others, they can only cheat every few days or so. sure its some fat, but u wont need to cut till u hit around 225 or so. as long as the rest of ur diet is somewhat clean, and ur training is in order your good to go

 

[crazyfool405]

cheat meals are great to have once a week, just dont go over board. however for those of us who have great metabolisms, its easy to do so.

shoot, when im on the go i dont care what day it is ill grab two mcdoubles from Mcdonalds for 44 grams of protien. i dont care about the fat if im on a bulk. but thats me and i have a disgustingly fast metabolims

IFFB pro cedric mcmillian used to ead three fast food combos a day. and when hes deployed for the army, he says hes only limited to spam so he bulks up on spam. do you know how much fat is in spam?? ALOT. and some ANIMAL guy, i forget who but its posted on their page said he goes to a chinese buffet every friday night when hes on a bulk. dont be affraid to cheat, just know your limitations.

This is very true,

Cheat meals help your metabolism by increasing the conversion of t4-t3 and keeping you body fast paced. commonly known as refeed.

however depending on your specific diet itself, as well as workout, that would determine intake. Keto type diets you can refeed with a lot of carbs, little fat (as you want that insulin responce), and moderate protein.

but traditional diets, one that has a reduction of overall calories and not necessarily the ones that drastically cut one macronutrient, shoot for 1 meal of your choice once a week of what you crave, no matter what bulk or cut.

its hard to determine your specific weight lose goals and when you should refeed. refeed frequency depends on how fast your losing, if you are losing toooo fast have it 2x a week, if weight loss slows after 7-9 days, have it every 10 days, after you get to 10-12% or lower, once a week would be best as fat loss is slow, and steady, yet harder to come off and its the most detrimental time where the slower you lose the better for retaining muscle mass.

usually the first 2 weeks of most cuts should not have a cheat/ refeed.

hope this helps

 

[R1balla]

my bad man, i thought u wanted to bulk, not get even more leaner than u already are. if u wanna cut, id put the cheat meals to a minimum

 

[Ricky5145]

snap, i thought you were trying to bulk too my bad.

i personally only do one cheat meal a week when cutting. once i get where i want to be though ill have a cheat day. maintaining is easy for me. its all about genetics and metabolism in a sense

 

[brownstown89]

snap, i thought you were trying to bulk too my bad.

i personally only do one cheat meal a week when cutting. once i get where i want to be though ill have a cheat day. maintaining is easy for me. its all about genetics and metabolism in a sense

yup i have a cheat meal a day... lately its been 2 kfc bbq chicken snackers and 3 choclate chip cookies.... the snackers are 7 grams of fat total with 30g protien 64 grams carbs soo idk if thats even bad? esp for a powerlifter who just wants to be lean.

 

[Ricky5145]

yup i have a cheat meal a day... lately its been 2 kfc bbq chicken snackers and 3 choclate chip cookies.... the snackers are 7 grams of fat total with 30g protien 64 grams carbs soo idk if thats even bad? esp for a powerlifter who just wants to be lean.

nah thats not bad at all

 

[mcgee1516]

my bad man, i thought u wanted to bulk, not get even more leaner than u already are. if u wanna cut, id put the cheat meals to a minimum

No you were right, I am currently bulking but I guess I'll call it an attempt at "clean bulking". I'm trying to pack on as much lean mass as possible, but the thing is that I have weird genetics/metabolism. I tend to retain water and fat fairly easy even at my weight and height. Like I have ok definition for most of my body but for some reason my thorax, specifically my pec and abdominal area, holds a noticable amount of fat and water. Thanks for all the feedback btw guys...

 

[brownstown89]

nah thats not bad at all

hell yea sometimes when i wanna keep the carbs down, ill just ask em for a fork and eat the chicken out the bread.. haha

 

[CrazyChemist]

yup i have a cheat meal a day... lately its been 2 kfc bbq chicken snackers and 3 choclate chip cookies.... the snackers are 7 grams of fat total with 30g protien 64 grams carbs soo idk if thats even bad? esp for a powerlifter who just wants to be lean.

i didnt know those were the stats on the snacker. interesting......

 

[Jordinator]

To cheat or not to cheat? I've been trying to decide whether I want to give in and have a big cheat meal every once and while (preferably a fast food value meal). The problem is that I feel guilty and physically feel like garbage after eating anything fried or saturated fat filled so I stopped eating the stuff a while ago. It's not like I'm on a super strict diet plan or anything, but I always like to eat healthy and I'm not quite as lean as I'd like (6'0, 185 w/ very slight water retention, fat). My main question is how unhealthy can one splurge meal every 1-2 weeks really be? I mean, I have people tell me all the time to splurge but I guess maybe I'm getting "too" into healthy eating and I just worry about all those fat cals and trans fats...

I know exactly what you mean by feeling like crap afterward. Instead now whenever I get the urge for a cheat meal like that I remember what the feeling is shortly after consumption and opt not to go that route. Instead I stick to something clean and healthy but I allow myself to eat til I'm full.