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Cheat Day, once a week...Can it be done?
No...I am not the one doing it. I am way too scared to do that...LOL.
My hubbie would like to try this. Has anyone ? He thinks this might be the only way he can stick to this. He has been on VLCDs for only a week and has cheated twice. He is super supportive with me and I think this might be why he wants to stick to HCG...but if this is going to do more harm than good, I would rather him just not be THAT supportive, ya know? He thinks having a cheat day to look forward to will help him stick to it...IDK. Tiff |
it might be okay, but it's not a great idea. Part of the plan is to get some discipline going, change your thinking about food and self-control, and sort out the differences between 'head hunger' and real, empty stomached gnawing hunger. In my opinion, unless you do that part of the plan, your chances for long term success in both the weight loss and maintenance phases of the plan are slim to none and Slim is outta town. The weight loss can only be a permanent change in your body if there is a parallel permanent change in your thinking. If you just deprive yourself of calories and drop some weight, but don't modify the thinking that motivates your behavior, then when you go "off the diet", you are seriously doomed to return to earlier behaviors and regain most, all, or even more weight.
Inside of the weight loss plan...for every cheat you're supposed to be putting yourself behind by 3 days. Once a week? That's doubling the amount of time it would take to get the weight off. Ick. What cheat could possibly be worth that?? |
A man can probably get away with it, IMO -- most men lose ridiculously, unfairly well on this protocol compared to women.... though if he has metabolic issues, it may be a different story. Tell him to try it and see....
I agree it isn't the best idea, but if it is what works, so be it.... plus, at least you will have him suffering alongside you for 6 days a week, lol. |
A man probably *can* get away with it. My DH is on VLCD day 7 and has lost over 20 lbs already. He is tall and will lose twice as fast as I did, and I lost well. I'm pleased that he's 'serious' about it. He's taking the initiative to learn to make stuff that is on plan for himself (which is great because I'm at goal and in P4 and need to eat, not lose more, and cooking for him as well as myself would take all day). I know he'll lose it and will have better luck keeping it off if he has developed some skills along the way. This isn't a long plan...a person ought to be able to do just about anything for the number of days most folks do in a "round". But as you say, mini...he probably could get away with it alright because men are men.
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All good posts...:goodpost:
I was thinking the same thing, Mini and Deb...Men!!:annoyed::D |
Well, my DH does it and still loses very well. He doesn't go crazy but when he gets into a situation where he doesn't have food with him and he's hungry, he will eat. He still lost 15# in week 1 and did 2 cheat meals. Oy!
I agree it is a fine balance of changing habits etc... but I also believe that each individual must do what works for them and YMMV. :) |
I can only speak to my experiences and that is that if I cheat (even just a tiny bit), it usually takes me 3-4 days to get that cheat weight back off again. For me, it's just not worth it to cheat when I'm aiming to only do a 23 day round. But if he knows that gaining or having a stall is possibly part of the cheating, and he's ok with that, then I say it's up to him :)
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I think if we were talking about a woman here, we'd have to say, flat out, "No, yer nuts, do another diet if you can't do this one without cheating."... A guy can probably do this (within limits...what exactly does "cheat day" mean? having a beer? en extra protein serving? a package of Twinkies?) and still lose, but I would still wonder if it's the best approach for someone who is serious about life-long maintenance and changing their eating habits for the good of their health long term. Most of you are a lot (A LOT) younger than I am. I want the weight off forever, for me, and for my man. I do not EVER want to be heavy again, and I do not EVER want to diet again. I would have gone to a convent to ensure that my eating was clean during P2. You may be looking at a much longer life ahead of you to play around with ups and downs, and frankly, men rarely see past the immediate goal of tightening their belts. It's frequently up to the women around them to steer them toward the 'greater good' of a healthier lifestyle. I just think they'd have better long term success 'manning up' and rewarding themselves with something besides a day of bad food choices.
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UHGGG Men and diets...don't get me started. I just get very .... idk, not angry...just feeling a bit flustered about it. LOL. I, honestly wish he would just find another diet and stick to it...because it feels so mocking. I take this diet very serious and when someone comes and half-bottom (you know the word I really mean, right?) tries it...esp in my own home...LOL. He is so supportive that I just hope he is not doing this just for me.
Thank you all for your comments. Tiff |
ah...it is clearer now! Tiff...just let him do whatever he wants as long as you stay right on the plan. If he is 'half-bottoming" (heh...I *LOVE* that!) it, then if/when he doesn't lose as well as he could or regains the weight when he stops dosing then...whatever. It's his 'journey' to decide to do something "whole bottomed" when he's ready :)
Just stay the course yourself. WE GOT YOU!!!! |
There is another thing to consider. Cheats may upset the hypothalmus rest and reset function of this protocol. We don't know what will cause the hypothalmus to come out of "rest" and therefore not "reset." Dr. S talked about it but not too plainly. What is it that causes it to come out of rest? Sugar? too much of something? IDK. Maybe more of the same P2 food would be just fine, maybe going a little astray would be ok. But I don't know. And other support groups and clinicians who are militant about it say that if you cheat, in order to get a rest and reset you must "start the count over" and do another 23 cheat-free days. I know that's not the consensus here, and we certainly encourage each other to not cheat, for practical reasons - I mean, who wants to spend the money and the time to do this protocol and then not do it all the way (not talking about little flub-ups or emergency situations here).
Honestly, to someone who is on the fence about that part of it, I guess maybe a cheat wouldn't matter too much in the scheme of things. Me, I NEED that part of it, otherwise this is just another stupid diet and my chances of keeping the weight off would be nil. |
yup yup, C'Marie...I am totally with you. I'm telling you now that I'm starting my 5th month at goal in P4, there is *no doubt* in my mind that the 'reset' is real. I eat like a horse and have settled easily, with no corrections, 4 pounds under LDW. I ate everything I was offered during the holidays (not all at once, and not every day) and did not gain. No 'sensitivities'...it's all good, dairy, grains, even refined sugar, I can handle without blowing up like a balloon. It's miraculous. My body works like it is supposed to for the first time in at least 30 years. I have been thin during that time...but not without extreme deprivation and extreme exercise. Now I'm relaxed, eating well and exercising moderately...and I can't buy a gain...even on Christmas Eve when I ate a bunch of different desserts and drank a Peppermint Martini.
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Thanks Brenda for this ;) |
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