I was just wondering if anybody has NOT cheated. Or maybe not cheated in a really long time? I see those lil cheat free things...So what do you all exactly consider a cheat? I havent had anything that isnt legal my entire time on Atkins. Maybe had a lil too much of something that IS legal (coughchocolatemouseecough). But never really bad. Maybe Im just lucky! I live in a house with 9 other people who arent LCing, so the temptations are always there...Skinny feels so much better than any high carb food could ever taste though. My mom is now wanting me to eat more *normal* on the weekends, and not be so strict. I dunno though....The other day I made some Ketogenic Bread and did it wrong so 1/2 was cooked and 1/2 wasnt. Really doughy, the way I used to eat bread...And I took a lil bite...and another lil bite...and I felt myself losing it. That out of control feeling like, I NEED to have this NOW. Am I insane or has anyone else felt this way? I put the bread away though and didnt have anymore.

I am of mixed mind about the whole concept of a "cheat". On the one hand, in the beginning I needed a level of discipline that I had not previously had, in order to change my habits and eventually my lifestyle. The LC WOE is now "normal" for me, so I don't need to be quite as vigilant at every meal.

However, I tend to take a more "big-picture" approach to LC'ing. If I have one meal which is not completely LC, or if I go over a reasonable limit of carbs in a day, I don't punish myself for it. I look at it in terms of weeks and months, not days, or meals, or bites.

With that in mind, the idea that a slip-up is a "cheat" is a difficult one for me to accept. In my opinion, a cheat implies that there are rigid rules which must be followed inflexibly, as if this were a game and I would lose points. Just as I don't think in terms of "diet" (as in something temporary that I will one day fall off from), I don't think that a small amount of flexibility is "cheating".

Besides, if I were keeping score, all that airline food would be costing me big time.

thats a good way to look at things. the entire time ive been coming to this site i couldnt quite figure out what a *cheat* really was. i guess it just depends on the person and what they consider to be a cheat.

I have not "cheated" for 199 days. But my loss has slowed down for the last 8 weeks. So I am thinking of doing a big refeed/carb load, etc. Whatever you want to call it. I am not sure what will happen. But, after most of my 34 years doing the SAD, a couple of more days won't hurt me now...If I can go back to low carb after my little pit stop...
I Don't know yet if I will go off the LC WOL after tommorrow, But I will definatly reach 200 days of no cheating first...then maybe take a couple of days hiatus and start over.

This is a very clear cheat IMO: potato chips. I had some (exactly 1 oz) a few months back. I felt guilty as I ate them. (another sign of a cheat IMO). also, I think that if the item is known to throw many people or especially you out of ketosis, it's a cheat. my opinion.

There was a time a few weeks ago that I went out of town with a close friend whose father paid for everything (it was 'the family vacation') - including ALL my meals. And they eat at fancy places -- thankfully we were out west, so there was lots of meat choices). One night towards the end of the trip, we went out for dinner, and I couldn't find anything on the menu under $25 that was LC friendly, and I didn't want to stick it to them. Plus wine. So I ordered appetizers of lamb empanadas, thinking they would be ok. Well they were like a dumpling. What was I going to do? Not eat it? I could have, but there were 4 and I ate them. My friend knew how upset I was, though I don't think it would be visible to anyone else. It was obviously not enought to eat for dinner, so they also gave me a slice of the kid's pizza. So that was a cheat, but I don't personally count it that way, because it was a social issue. If it were my own family, I would give them to someone or take them home for someone and eat later on, or if my own dad were paying, I'd get the $25 entree. Anyway, I nipped it in the bud and didn't say I've blown it, I'm going to have XYZ. I ate that meal and didn't slip up again. It's just one of those "life goes on, have to make this a way of a lifetime" deals and these things happen. I didn't beat myself up too much, though I was worried I'd go out of ketosis.
Anyway, that was ~Aug 8, and since then I've lost about 5+ pounds, so I guess it was ok.

Sorry for such a long essay. Other than those 2 times, I've been cheat free. I also don't consider booze a cheat because although it slows down weight loss it doesn't stop ketosis, just suspends it. Though I am trying (so far unsuccessfully) to cut way back on that.

Good luck!

the guilty feeling WOULD be a good way to measure but there have been times when eating LC food has made me feel guilty. it started to become a problem...maybe almost an eating disorder, but im not ready to say, yea i had an eating disorder, food makes me feel guilty. kinda recent. i stick to what i like....and have been adding things i would have NEVER had before because of the guilt. LC candy, i let myself eat 1 or 2 pieces a day...im slowly easing away from fitday. before i would plan out my meals the day ahead of time and NEVER stray, and if i did i would feel guilty, or i would have to go back and rearrange things so that everything measured out right. now i have what i consider my *free* foods that i can have in moderation and that i dont track on fitday...like my sf candy, sf jello, mt olive pickles...and i keep adding. i suppose a cheat is really indulging and over eating something..whether it be LC or not.

I have not cheated yet. I don't intend to cheat until I reach my goal.

Brian and Red, thats great!! You can do it!! (think Waterboy haha)

I have eaten on plan for over a year now. Since July 28th, 2002. Eating sugar and highly processed carbs is just not something I am going to do anymore. Period. I can indulge in perfectly legal and satisfying foods - and have no need to poison my body anymore.

When I first started I was extreamly strict, no cheats or even questionables at all. After a couple of months I let the success go to my head and I decided to allow myself an off meal. I at LC for the meal, but had a high carb alcoholic drink and a dessert. The drink was good and I may have another for my birthday celebration (after I reach goal) but the dessert wasn't as good tasting.

I've also learned there is a difference between cheat and a comprimise. There is a chocolate cheesecake torte that I have been dying to try. For months I had to resist the urge to buy a whole one. Well one day they had little bits of it as a free sample. I picked one up and had two small bites. It was overly sweet and left a nasty aftertaste. I threw the rest away and had absolutly no guilt. Two very small bites probably didn't throw me too far off and it saved me from buying a full one and possibly eating a whole piece or more. Yersterday I ordered the Zuppa at olive garden and just had a few bites of broth and the sausage. It satisfied my urge for some, without throwing me too far off. The broth may of had a few carbs, but not getting the soup at all would of made me overly grumpy and possibly would of had me over indulge on something else.

Yes these small things may of slowed my weight loss down. I see them as better alternatives then going way off plan, and I fully knew they would slow me down or stop me. As long as people are willing to accept the concequences of food choices, and they know what triggers craving or binges, then I don't think there are cheats. There are just good choices, ok choices, and poor choices. If someone continually makes poor choices, then they shouldn't get upset when the scale no longer moves.

I don't want food to make me feel guilty anymore (usually eating too much food is what would cause guilt in the past). I guess that's why I prefer Protein Power. I just try to stay within my carb limit and continue to eat veggies and not only eat less nutritious carbs. I do sometimes have potato or lite bread, but not more than 10g of it at a time. I just stay within my carb count. I like being able to be free to eat what I want within carb count because I think it will keep me from "cheating" even when I do reach my goal weight. Having the permission to have a little sugar or white flour keeps me from feeling deprived from it and going out and having something more than I would really want when in a rebelious mood or when I reach goal weight. I also would rather have 5c worth of a dove promise than of sugar free chocolate that is full of sugar alcohol which is discounted in net carbs but does affect blood sugar and causes discomfort. And since I give myself permission for this - there is no cheat and no guilt.

A happy, guilt-free me.

I did not cheat at all for my first 10 weeks. I needed the discipline (and I needed to throw out pasta, etc. from my kitchen). Then I made a conscious decision to have a piece of chocolate cake at a party. (This was not as scary as it may sound because sweets are not my downfall -- I love salty grease, i.e. potato chips, Cheetos, etc.) Then I paid attention to what happened.

Well I felt terrific for about two hours. Then I crashed ... I mean felt like I couldn't walk 20 feet without falling over. That lasted about 6 hours. The next day on the scale I had gained 4 pounds that I then had to work to remove.

All in all it was a good experience. I know the exact cost of the cheat and in future have totally clear data on which to base a decision. Is a piece of cake worth feeling wretched for half a day and having to lose four pounts for? Well it would have to be one truly terrific piece of cake

real sugar, even im really small amounts gives me a drunk feeling. makes my feet feel really heavy and stuff. just something ive noticed recently in dressings that have sugar, or whatever...if i dont check the ingredients first and i feel funny after, its cuz of the sugar. hmm!

I didn't have any sugar at all for the first 10 weeks. I had my first "planned" Menu Variation (PC for cheat, lol) eating a DQ Blizzard with my partner last week. I'm allowing myself one meal per week (starting this week) where I can eat off-plan. The weight is coming off so slowly that my mental state has been wavering. I've lost 12 lbs in 11 weeks, none in the last 3. Since I've now been doing this almost 3 months, I've come to the realization that I won't be able to stay on this unless I can have one meal a week that I don't worry about. I did this the first time I lost weight and it worked very well for me. And made the rest of the week very doable. My experience is that it's one meal...not a downward spiral of cravings and slips. I don't allow myself more than that one meal. Now, the challenge is just to keep on keepin' on, regardless of that friggin' scale. At least it's not moving up.

badgoat