I have been on this WOE now since May 1st. I have yet to cheat with food. But I have cheated twice with drinking (pineapple & malibu to be exact). Once was the end of May & again about 10 days ago. What would happen if every 3-4 weeks I splurge (just one meal...I wouldn't do more than that)? Would I totally blow it? I know that I have enough will-power to get right on it the next day, so that doesn't worry me. I'm not worried about a binge at all!

I would like to know how you all did after a cheat. & How often you allow yourself one "free meal"?

Thanks in advance!

~Amy

33 pounds GONE!!! 65 to go!!!!

You will find differing schools of thought on this topic. Some people who are opposed to the once in a while "cheat", will lash out so be prepared. Bottom line is that YOU are in charge of YOUR body. You seem to be losing, and hey, that is good. Listen to what your body tells you, if you mis step, and have a drink, or eat something high in carbs or sugar, fret about it, get angry, and then move on. No sense in feeling guilt over it, because in the long run, nobody here looks in the mirror to see YOUR reflection. Only you will know how certain foods or drinks react with your body.

Know this: There are plenty of folks here that are right where you are with this issue.

Exactly, if you can live with it and not feel guilty about it then by all means go ahead and do it. Just be prepared for your weight loss to slow down or even gain a little weight. The biggest problem is being knocked out of ketosis and taking several more days to get back in it. You may even find that after you do it the first time, it just isnt worth doing again. Good luck.


TennisBum

If you're interestedin not having to give up what you want, maybe the Carbohydrate Addicts Diet. It may be more to your liking, since it allows you a "reward meal" you can have any food you want in.

I say if you come this far without cheating why do it now. Cheating will have different affects on different people. I was in my 2nd week of induction when I decided to have a sliver of my son's b-day cake just to make him happy... well that was a big mistake b/c the cake led to pizza and bread sticks and on and on. For me the cake made me crave carbs like crazy. I gained 4 pounds of the 9 that I lost and it wasn't worth it to me at all. I went back on track and have been doing great with no cravings and no temptations. Good Luck

You have decided to eat this way for life, so you have to make it work for life.

If you plan your meals and have an occasional splurge, I think you will do fine as long as it doesn't set you off with a lot of cravings. And afterwards you may feel that old carb withdrawal for a day or two, so just be prepared with some tylenol and lot of water.

I just wouldn't plan on having a daily splurge, but special occasions, your birthday, anniversary and such -- I think you may even find you don't want as much of the old carb stuff as you used to and may even surprise yourself in not even indulging.

This is really individual to your own body and how it responds, so when you do plan a splurge you might watch how you react to it closely and kind of be prepared.

Hope this helps!

Debi

For me, a cheat with food doesn't normally lead to a binge, but I feel rotten afterward - my stomach gets upset. Not that I haven't done it!
I prefer to reward my non-cheating with new clothing or sometimes jewelry if I 've been really good.

I am eating good wholesome foods. Why would I want to sabatage myself by eating junk? It doesn't make sense to me.

I have been on for about 5 weeks, and have "cheated" twice, each time I had NO ill effects, and it actually boosted my weight loss........and I had no stomach upset or anything like that, it actually helped me get motivated.
This is something I want to do my whole life, but I am beginning to think about once a month (not planned, only when I see something I want) I go off of it for a day (I figure knocking myself out of ketosis for only a snack or a meal doesn't make me happy..........I make it a whole day!!!)
One thing that I certainly do when I go "off" I drink several glasses of OJ and several glasses of milk (two things I miss at meal times: OJ for breakfast, and milk for every other meal) and that also replenishes vitamins.
By the end of the ONE DAY I feel rejuvinated and WANT to go back on for several weeks.

This is your body, this choice is yours, good luck!!!
Heidi

Thanks for all the responses! I think that I will just take it as it comes. & Since I haven't had the need to "splurge", I won't. I'm not looking to cheat which is good & I'm happy with my success & I think I will stay right on track.

Thanks again!

~Amy

I plan cheat days once a month, I never had a problem with gaining. This helps me stay with this WOE. I just got back from NY, and I cheated the whole weekend I was there. One good thing is we walked everywhere. I have not weighed myself yet due to TOM, I am concerned about gaining. Hopefully I didn't put on any lbs. Everyone is diffrent, I don't have a problem with a cheat day beacause I know I have to get back to 20 carbs for the next 2 weeks.

No "one diet fits all". We are all different and we need to learn what works for us. I have learned with Atkins that I am addicted to carbs. Now that I don't eat them, I have no problem leaving them alone. The desire for them is gone.

I was pleasantly suprised to find that even my very favorite carb foods no longer interest me. There is a great candy maker in Dayton, Ohio called Esther Price and the candy is really good. My sister is going to be in Dayton in September and then I am going to see her soon after. We had planned months ago that she was going to buy candy for me. This week I received a letter with her plans, including candy purchase; and I actually didn't want it. I wrote her back and told her not to buy me any.

I honestly cannot think of one high carb food that I want to cheat with. I do however have to watch carb creap with legal combination food. I love nuts and they are a great snack but I can get carried away. Ditto for cream.

But my husband is very different. He is not addicted to carbs and can eat them and then stop (I cannot). Also he has carbs that he really loves and doesn't want to give up forever (like pasta). Also when he is around carbs he likes (like pizza) he really wants to eat it. So he allows himself to have carbs on a reasonable basis. If he has a high carb item he just has the one thing that day--he doesn't go eat every high carb things he can think of. Normally he is very satisfied with the low carb meals and snacks I fix and he doesn't request any high carb foods or snacks (except pasta). I make him low carb muffins, pancakes, cookies, and candy and when I make pasta for him it is a low carb pasta. He isn't losing rapidly but he is down 5-6 pounds in about 6 weeks.

I really believe that to be successful we have to find a WOL early on. I worry when I read about people who stay on induction for months "until they lose all the weight they want to lose". I worry that when they get to goal they are going to go back to eating all the stuff they have denied themselves.

One other thing that I do is that I don't always count my carbs. I count and stay under 20 for a week or two and then I just eat what I want until I am ready to count again. When I say eat what I want, I don't eat any high carb foods, just all the veggies, nuts, cheese, cream, etc. that I want and occasionally very small servings of fruit.

Whatever you decide to do, not think in terms of cheat days. This is a WOL and your life is never a cheat. If you decide you want a high carb food, plan for it, enjoy it, and continue eating your healthy low carb way.

It's a matter of opinion, and a "your mileage may vary" type of thing. I have "cheated" or gone off plan for a day or two here and there and i didnt not regain anything except a temporary pound or two that fell off as soon as i got back on track.

I think it's important to consider whether or not you can stop once you start. For me, I had a brief cheat phase of a day or two, and found myself disinterested in carbs much faster than I would have been in the past. I was ready to go back to our WOE without regret.

I also think that the pound or two that you gain in that 24-48 hour "off plan" is strictly water weight, so if you do go off, don't fret that few pounds, because it's a matter of water.

Heidi

I drink the same thing you do Amy576! I usually drink it with the pinapple/oj combo --- yummy! I havent had one since I started, thats not to say I dont want one-- seems alcohol is what I have been craving... isnt that sick?!

On this subject we are supposed to think of this as a way of life. If I ate an extra piece of pizza before I made my life change with Atkins I wouldnt have concidered it 'cheating'. If you want a once in a while 'free meal' or a drink once a month --- then your on your plan, your way of eating, I dont think thats cheating. You (or I) wouldnt get the results of someone who is super strict about following Atikins but I personally have adapted a few things because I plan to make this my plan for life and if I feel deprived Im more likely to quit it all together. Ya know?

I feel that on a diet your looking for the end, your waiting to reach the weight you want so you can quit the diet, and I cant look at Atkins like that - quitting will bring me back up the scale. It has to be a way of eating for life.

Sorry about that ramble! I'll try not to do that again!!!!

Happy eating everyone!!
Shannon