Splurge day.

[laurenmay]

So, I was thinking of assigning a 'splurge day' so to speak, once a month.. Just a day to enjoy the food I like without counting calories but at the same time not to go TOO crazy...

My weigh in day is a Saturday, & I wouldn't splurge during the middle of the week or the day before weigh in cause I wouldn't wanna risk hindering my loss! But I was contemplating having a day off once every 4 weeks, and on a Saturday after I've weighed in - so that way I'd have the rest of the week to crack back on with diet & exercise and hope for a good loss the following week.

The only rule is that if I gained or stayed the same on the 4th Saturday weigh in, then I wouldn't be permitted a splurge day cause it'd be counterproductive...

What does everyone think of this?

I know everyone should have treats in moderation, and I do incorporate things like hot chocolate and a small bar of dark chocolate into my calories to still enjoy the little luxuries.. but say things like a takeaway and a tub of Ben and Jerrys - there's just too many calories in those to be able to incorporate them into my calories! & I also prefer to eat as healthily as possible when calorie counting..

I think the one day a month where I know I'm entitled to a bit of a splurge on the luxury foods I like would help spur me on & keep me on track.

I only started calorie counting last Saturday, so have another 3 weeks till I'd be entitled to a splurge day!.. But was just wondering what everyone thinks of this?

 

[Plums]

I have a day like this every week after weigh in. I basically eat what I fancy and still log my calories. I eat up to 1000 calories over my allowance and then just carry on as normal the next day. My losses have been good so far so I'm going to keep on doing it

 

[Babana]

I think it's a great idea. It keeps me sane knowing that everyso often I will have a day where I eat guilt free. Funnily enough I often find myself not going too overboard but it's the knowing I can do if I like that I enjoy. Having said that I still log what I eat even on a splurge day. My last splurge day was Sat last week. I ate about 3000 cals in total. But then I was back to being strict from Sunday onwards. Funnily enough when I weighed in this morning I had lost 3lbs.

 

[tanya.b]

This sounds like a great idea and is working for some. I will try this the end of Sept that way iv had afew good weeks beforehand x

 

[oasis6918]

I do this every Friday after wi, and I've lost at least 2lb every week x

 

[TracyGWill]

I think this is a good idea in the long-term, to make a low cal diet sustainable for life, but you need to be confident you've got iron-clad willpower to do it in the early stages. Eating like that is addictive, and you really need to ensure you've broken the habit sufficiently before re-introducing it. Personally, I had no treat days for about the first six months, by which time the healthy eating was ingrained enough to be able to get straight back on it the next day. Now I've lost six stone I'm quite comfortable having the occasional "naughty" day, in the knowledge that I won't get derailed, but as I said, it may not be a good idea for everybody in the early days. xx

 

[littlemiss]

I think its a great idea but I also agree with TracyGWill - its ok to allow yourself a day like this & what you said is right, its best to do after WI & only if you've had a loss. And its good to do that as a reward, I cant imagine it effecting your WI (as long as you dont go crazy) BUT - it does take a lot of will-power to get back on track the next day & its also very difficult not to feel guilty - even tho its a designated day, there is still a feeling of guilt/worry attached - wondering if you'll lose the following week. I'd be tempted to suggest having a suprge meal, for example on the day you wana do this, have any meal you want for dinner. Mcdonalds, indian, chinese.

xxxxxxxxxx

 

[Playcrackthesky]

I think once a month is fine and won't do you any hard, once a week is maybe too much but it depends on your definition of a splurge. Tracy's advice about perhaps avoiding this in the early days if you're not 100% confident in your will power is a really good point.

Whatever you do I'd say make sure your splurge is some form of meal so at least you are full from up and can rub off a meal, rather than eating cake or something like that.

 

[tweekedgirl]

Definitely a good idea, and as some of the others have mentioned, you don't actually tend to go crazy like you might have done in the past. I think having a low calorie diet makes it difficult to binge too much on a treat day as you just get too full too quickly

 

[TracyGWill]

I think its a great idea but I also agree with TracyGWill - its ok to allow yourself a day like this & what you said is right, its best to do after WI & only if you've had a loss. And its good to do that as a reward, I cant imagine it effecting your WI (as long as you dont go crazy) BUT - it does take a lot of will-power to get back on track the next day & its also very difficult not to feel guilty - even tho its a designated day, there is still a feeling of guilt/worry attached - wondering if you'll lose the following week. I'd be tempted to suggest having a suprge meal, for example on the day you wana do this, have any meal you want for dinner. Mcdonalds, indian, chinese.

xxxxxxxxxx

I agree totally about the guilt thing! I always feel guilty even though, as you say, it's a "day off" that i've allowed myself. And I ALWAYS worry that I won't get back to it the next day, even though I always have - strange-minded creatures aren't we?! xx