Do you ever allow yourself to cheat...now and again? Not that I should even be thinking of such a thing so early on, but, I'm seeing Dave Matthews Band on the 29th and would really like to enjoy with some wine. Not cheating on food, but I know wine is cheating too! If you do cheat now and again, are there lingering effects from doing so? Just wondering.

Unless you're in induction, wine isn't cheating if you count the carbs and don't overdo it.

That

And no, I don't allow myself real cheat days anymore - I can't handle them. That's how I regained all the weight I lost the last time - a cheat day that just didn't end.

Blondie,
It seems as though you are asking both specific and general questions. Teaser has done after the specific one (wine). Allow me to pontificate a bit on the more general question.

Like many people, I've been dieting of and on for the past 30 years. I've lost a lot of weight; I've gained a lot of weight back. On LC alone, I've probably had 5 real serious attempts, and probably another 5-10 not so serious attempts. The common thread in every attempt mentioned above has been the same: I've allowed myself an occasional cheat meal. I reasoned that it would help me stay on plan better, if I did so. And do you know what? I sometimes found that a cheat meal would help cause a "whoosh" in my weight loss! Win-Win.

But those were all "attempts" because I eventually went on to go off plan altogether and gain either some, a lot, or all of my weight back. It was discouraging and disappointing to say the least.

This time, however, I have been on plan for roughly 18 weeks. In that 18 weeks, I've lost 62 of the roughly 128 lbs that I'm seeking to lose. Initially, when I started, I had discovered intermittent fasting and thought that it would be my golden ticket to occasional cheats. Makes sense, right? After some scolding from MickiSue, and the very gentle "leading by example" by our friend Ken (krussva), I began to see a different light. I'll put the lesson bluntly. Some of us believe (and me only recently) that cheating is the gateway to going off plan. I have sustained this better than ever, and I know that I will actually reach goal weight because I am not cheating. I have total confidence that I will continue to stay on plan until I've lost all of my desired weight, and then, I will move into maintenance, which, I believe will look a LOT like what I'm doing now. In other words plan.

You see...I've shifted my mindset from "foods I eat now" and "foods I'll eat eventually" to "foods that are healthy for me" and "foods that should never again touch my lips." There's a difference.

I do not drink alcohol currently. Eventually, I will have a small glass of wine or Scotch; not because they are 'off plan' but because I'm pretty certain they will slow my weight loss and delay my arrival at goal.

So have a glass of wine if you feel it necessary. I still go "out" once in awhile and instead I have club soda and lime. Still feel like I'm "drinking" but I know that my success is safe.

Those are my thoughts about cheating....

Hi Sheila; I love all the answers you're getting on this thread. I recently went to see Rihanna and didn't miss not having any booze. But I may have some vodka/waters when I'm in Orlando next February. I go to summer BBQ'a all the time or sit on patios with friends and sip on bubbly water or diet coke (which is a sometimes treat).

The answer to your question is something only you can answer because you know yourself better than anyone. While crap food isn't a huge temptation as soon as nasty sugar is out of my system, booze certainly remains a temptation for me while on vacation. In my experience booze knocks me out of ketosis, I definitely gain a couple pounds, and it increases my cravings for the crap food I used to eat. I'm a carb addict. So I limit alcohol to only certain vacations. But that's me. If you know yourself well enough to get right back at it the next day, and not tailspin you off plan, a glass or two of wine is no big deal once in a while.

Thanks for this well described differentiation, and you phrase this very accurately. It's probably the most important mindset to achieve in approaching a sustainable, healthy way of eating. I did not allow cheat days in the beginning, because I knew I could easily increase their frequency by rationalizing that they were allowed, all the while I would be undermining my ultimate objective. Once you become fat/ low carb adapted, and it takes some time, cheat days no longer are an issue.

As for the occasional dry wine or no carb cocktail, have fun! We're not monks!

Hey, even monks drink, Rob.

(Husband is a big fan of Belgian beer.)

The one thing that I always try to remember for myself, if I'm having my whopping 1/2 glass of wine on a special occasion is that the wine will do me in if I'm not careful.

LC makes the alcohol in drinks more potent. LC, when you are NOT drinking, makes it more potent.

So, enjoy a glass of white wine, and be careful when you stand up!

I've been LC now for 16 months and have lost over 100 pounds. I don't cheat. I have totally changed the way I think about food. I eat food that makes me healthy and strong vs food that makes me sick, fat, and weak. Why would I feed myself poison? Even if it does taste delicious? That's crazy.

That said I don't consider the occasional adult beverage a cheat. I do really limit them to special occasions like vacations and such, because I want to be burning all the fat I can. Drinking alcohol delays the fat burning progress as the body burns the alcohol first. I also skip sugary mixers and pick the drinks with the lowest carb counts.

I was about 3 months into my plan and going to Las Vegas. My doc (who oversees my diet) and I came up with a plan. I would limit my drinks to 1 per day. Be aware. LC makes the effects of alcohol, more potent. One tequila with lime had my holding onto my husband. I just came back from my 3rd Vegas trip. I had 2 per day. I do lowest carb possible and count it towards my day's total.

Everyone has to do what's right for them. I find that I can still enjoy the very occasional adult beverage.

You've gotten some really good answers and it's really all about knowing yourself.

A couple of times in my journey (this go round) I've had one higher-carb meal. Just one, and it did not make the scale jump upwards. I've also enjoyed cocktails in moderation, 1-2 per week.

I don't like to think of it as a cheat, because that makes it seem like I get to go hog-wild for a period of time, and that's not a productive mindset for me. That said, for some people the thought of a 'cheat day' keeps them on plan because they see it as a deserved reward. It's a slippery slope we can't answer for you.

As for drinks or a carb-laden meal, I just count them in my numbers and go along my way. It does not set up a binge or make me stay off-plan. But that's me, not some of the posters above. You have to see what works for you.

Wonderful advise everyone! I truly appreciate all of your inputs! I have zero intention of changing my food mindset...just to have a drink or two at the concert. More likely, I will pre-game something low-carb in the parking lot! ;-) I love this diet. I feel healthier. I feel happy. And I'm enjoying my food! Shoot. I went out last night for the bosses retirement dinner and stuck with the plan! Salad and filet mignon for this girl. Now, I have to admit, when they named off the desserts, I just wanted to cave...but I stuck to my guns and only ate what was allowed. Yeah, it's tough turning down the things I normally wouldn't have said yes to, but having already dropped almost 7lbs, I'm not about to look back. Even running is feeling better. I don't want to give that up! So, taking all into consideration, I'm off to Google low-carb cocktails and plan what I shall have! Thank-you all again so much!

I seem to be able to have 1/4 glass of red wine without a problem -- I've never been a serious drinker, but I really enjoy the taste. I don't consider it cheating, however, as I never go over that limit, and I remain in ketosis and under 20 carbs.

On the other hand, I will not even have one tortilla chip as "a cheat" as that is my serious downfall, and I'm pretty sure I'd wouldn't stop.

You just have to know yourself.

And where you live, Kat, the tortilla chips AND the salsa are completely superior to the ones I can get!

You don't even know. I am completely and totally addicted to New Mexican food, and chips are always freshly fried from homemade tortillas. So I've had to get really good at cooking my own versions.

To get a quick fix, I get the really good pork cracklins and put some grated cheese with salsa or Hatch green chile and put in the toaster oven until they're melty. Almost, almost, like eating fresh nachos. And then there's the guacamole with lime and fresh green chile (that's our thing around here). I also make a great pork green chile stew -- all winter long. Spicy food really helps me stay OP.

When I first started I was still learning what I could and couldn't eat. I recognised that I was therefore likely to make a few mistakes along the way until I had properly settled on a new WOE, and for that reason I decided that I simply couldn't afford to cheat if I was already likely to hit a few bumps in the road without even being aware of them.

That's paid off over the following months since I now know more about what I can and can't eat (having learned the hard way a couple of times, as I suspected I might), and in the meantime I've developed that habit of simply never cheating along the way.

Someone once said "it's only cheating if you can get away with it". As I discovered, I can't get away with it; whether I do it consciously or otherwise, the result is the same and it's not good. So that makes it simple for me.

While I agree in principle that drinking one glass of wine is not a deal breaker, there are a couple of things about alcohol that I've not seen discussed.

One, it lowers inhibitions. All of sudden partaking in Off Plan food doesn't seem like such a bad idea ("I'll be really good for the rest of the weekend"). Two, alcohol can lower blood sugar, resulting in hunger. Sometimes it's mild, sometimes it's intense. This can lead to The Munchies and bad choices.

Again, it comes down to knowing yourself. You may be just fine, but you may be playing with fire.