OK.. I have only been doing this (again) for almost 3 weeks now... so far.. i dont have a need to cheat cause I found a muffin recipe that is SOO GOOD!!! (wow.. the bake mix makes something that doesnt taste like garbage!!),,,.... I treat myself to (well this weeks batch) a Vanilla Mac Nut muffin a day.. (VERY low carbs)

But as time goes on... we shall see.

What bake mix is this? I would love to have the recipe!


Cin

I am a confirmed chocoholic and when I don't have any for a long time, I go on a major binge and actually eat myself sick. So, I indulge in the very expensive (over $3.00/bar) 70% Cocoa bars by Lindt and have 1 square every night after dinner. The dark chocolate is very satisfying for me, and has way less sugar than anything else.

I am always able to tell myself whenever there is cake or cookies or whatever at work (which is often) that I will get my chocolate and I don't mind not having the junk at work.
I don't feel deprived because I know that my little square of chocolate is much tastier than whatever is tempting me in the lunchroom.

It works for me...

Well, I voted Never because there was no Almost Never category. Actually, I have cheated twice in the last year, both times with a caramel brownie at Starbucks (for shame!!). I buy espresso there for my machine and normally have no trouble ignoring the sweets they have. But those two times I couldn't stop staring at the brownies, so I decided to stop obsessing, have a damn brownie, then go back to eating properly. The brownies tasted great, I felt fine afterwards, and I did not go on a binge. The last time was maybe six months ago and I have been back to Starbucks at least four times since then and suffered no brownie temptation.

It is odd that those are the only things that have seriously tempted me. I am able to ignore other sweets, probably because I know I can make and eat lc desserts at home that are just as yummy as anything made with sugar.

I did eat bread and croissants last October on a trip to France, but that was only because you can't get anything else for breakfast there. So I don't count that as cheating because it was involuntary


Karla

Less than once a month.. I may have a ounce or two of wine about once every month and half... or so... other than that I make legal snacks and stay with my plan... Ive been told that Im to strick with my eating.. Im like naaaaa. I enjoy eating this way and I enjoy the benifits that come along with it... If i want chocolate i eat a home made chocolate moose.. legal and only 4 carbs.... or have a sf jello cup or berries...

Tammy

I know that the definition of "cheat" for this thread was probably "eating high carb foods," so I answered once a week. It's actually two or three times a week, but that wasn't an option.

However, to me, there's such thing as "cheating" with food. I eat whatever I want, whenever I want. I just remember that the consequences are attached to the food, so if I don't want heart palipitations or an involuntary afternoon nap, then I don't want that high carb food.

But if I really want a beer, I have a beer.

My mantra: "I eat what I want, when I want. I have the freedom to choose good food for myself - food that will help me feel my best."

Never ever ever.

Donald

That explains your great success! Down a few more this week I see.... WOW

Akiwican

Sometimes it's as often as 1x week but because I get so darn sick from the cheating, it's rarely more than that. I went on a BFL challenge which allows for a Free Day (eat whatever you want, and don't exercise). Those make me really sick for the next day or so.

I'd say on average, I have something high carb (cookie, ice cream, slice of pizza) maybe every other week and just 1 in a sitting. Any more than that, and I feel like puking, literally. I really have a low tolerance for "junk" food now. But if I have just 1 cookie and have 3-4 oz of half/half with it, I'm usually fine and I'm still in ketosis.

Annie G.

Once a week. I don't eat high-carb stuff (cookies, cakes ) but I cheat with nuts.
I tend to finish a whole bag of 100g (3.5oz) peanuts in a sitting, about once a week.
A few days ago, I bought a 11.5oz-can of mixed nuts. I finished it in less than 2 days, all by myself. That cannot be good......

Bebe

I can't start on nuts without finishing them. Same with pork rinds actually...

I've learned that at least for now I can't. period. When I cheat, I am so sensitive to the sugar cravings that I lose control, go off the diet for a week or two until I feel so crappy that I can't believe I ever got off the diet in the first place. Live and learn. Will give myself a little slack when on maintenance.

My 2 cents.

I was very strict with myself while I was in the OWL mode. Once I reached goal, the cheats started. You know... you look good, you feel good.... what harm could some candy or something do??!!

It started to happen one day a week.... with more carbs and sugar than I could EVER bring myself to calculate!!

Now I'm back on track but down the road I would like to have one treat day a month.

Find too that being over tired (which I am alot lately...working too much) makes me crave my quick-fix comfort foods.... which is anything with sugar

Ellie

It seems that a person has to define what cheating is for himself. We need "treats" and so the ideal thing is to find foods that taste and feel like treats without having to cheat. And yet if that treat is a trigger food, the person is just sitting himself up for on-going problems.

If I eat any kind of flour or sugar foods, I am in trouble. And I can not refrain from overeating until I get off those foods again.

There are treats I can eat which are not trigger foods and therefore, I do not consider it cheating when I eat them. One is avocado. Another is nuts or seeds. Some people have said that nuts are a trigger food for them, but they aren't for my DH or myself. I can also eat a serving of fruit, fresh or dried, but I'm finding I have to be careful when I eat it and how much of it I eat or I get an energy lag. I can eat a dried fig but have to be careful with banana. And I can eat olives. And even a large salad is a treat when it has olives and avocado on it.

But alot of those foods wouldn't have worked for me until after I got off the flour and sugar foods. And "sugar" there includes the non-nutrtive sweeteners. For some reason, they are trigger foods for me too. I didn't even do well with Stevia for some unknown reason. As long as I went around searching for that sweet bar or dessert, I stayed in trouble. Once I made up my mind that I am especially sensitive to certain foods and gave up the idea of having them, I began doing much better.

There's sure a lot to learn about oneself on the way to thinner health. A diary or journal helps because then one can monitor the effect on his/her health and weight of certain foods. If treats are planned into the WOE, then the person doesn't have to cheat.

Dandi

It's funny to me to read about people "cheating" with avocados, olives and nuts. I am on the Schwarzbein Principle and those are all wonderfully allowed foods for me. I could treat myself to an avocado a day if I wanted, and I did in the beginning because they had been cheat foods when I was following a low-fat diet, and I went kind of wild. The same with olives. I don't really care for nuts.

I think it's because of that allowance (olives, avocados, and artichokes are my 3 favorite foods and all allowed) that I don't need to cheat. I have never been addicted to sugars and starches (thankfully), I just liked them.

I did have a hamburger on Sunday, but that was because I had been hiking and needed the quick energy to get home. It didn't set off any cravings.

I guess the closest I come to "cheating" is that I have added back into my food list yogurt and buttermilk. TSP doesn't really approve of them. I'm waiting to see what she says in her new book. I make my own buttermilk out of extra-rich milk and I have found a wonderful whole milk organic yogurt at our local natural foods co-op.

I don't know what I'll do when I reach maintenance. I'm not missing anything now that I added in the yogurt and buttermilk.

;-Deb