There is nothing fun about eating in a caloric deficit. No matter how you look at it and try to sugar coat the approach… even if you include some of your favorite treats here and there… it’s a form of deprivation… which can be mentally and physically exhausting at times.
One of the more popular methods for maintaining your sanity while on a calorie restrictive diet is to include a ‘re-feed’ day or ‘cheat day’… where you bump up your calories while enjoying some of your favorite foods.
Approaching your ‘cheat day’ intelligently will allow you to release fat rapidly, while setting yourself up for long-term success.
Taking the wrong approach will cause slower than expected fat loss, while creating bad habits in the process.
Cheat Days: The Bad
I’ve followed diet plans, where the ‘guru’ recommended you go all out on a cheat day. Raving fans of the diet plan would brag about their EPIC cheat day exceeding 4000-5000 calories.
…They’d talk about how they stuffed themselves silly on junk food and wore it as a badge of honor.
The next day you can find them in the forums and on Facebook talking about how they look more ripped than ever after their all out binge the day before.
In many cases, these are pimple faced teenage boys with raging testosterone and lightning fast metabolisms… who also happen to worship the ‘guru’.
The trouble I see in this… is that the EPIC proportion in which they overindulge is simply not practical for most of us.
…a 4000-5000 calorie day would wipe out most, if not all of the deficit I created throughout the week.
If I get aggressive with my deficit and consume 700 calories below my maintenance level for six days… and follow it up with a big binge… I may lose a tiny bit of fat… but that would drag out my diet forever.
I’ve followed a plan like this before and ended up very disappointed in the end. But, after making the modification of taming down the cheat day, I experienced much better results at a much faster rate.
The more important question… is it really worth it to eat in a large deficit for most days, just to binge one day… and still experience slow progress? Why not just eat in a small deficit consistently every day of the week? Wouldn’t that be more manageable?
Being a male also gives me the advantage of easily creating a large deficit. Females on the other hand… especially those of smaller stature will find it VERY challenging to create an aggressive deficit, simply because their maintenance calories are already low.
…So if women can only create a small deficit each day… throwing in a binge day has the potential to actually put them in a surplus for the week.
The bad news… and the BIG problem… binging on junk is usually what gets people into trouble in the first place. It’s simply not a healthy habit to encourage.
There is truth however in what the proponents of cheat days are saying. My body always looks better after a cheat day, which was preceded with multiple days in an aggressive deficit.
…but I don’t need a massive surplus for this to occur. In fact… I’ve experienced this phenomenon while still staying in a slight deficit.
Cheat Days: The Good
There are many benefits from a cheat day. It satisfies your cravings, replenishes your energy, let’s your body know that you aren’t actually starving (keeping your hormones in check), and it provides you with a stress free day from sticking to a rigid plan.
The thing is… you don’t need an all out binge in order to satisfy your cravings. You can satisfy your taste buds and replenish your energy stores without going overboard.
My Typical Cheat Day
Saturday starts off like every other day with 8 egg whites, 2 whole eggs, 1 tablespoon of coconut oil, and salsa… for a total of 410 calories.
Then after I train my 93 year old client, I treat myself to a tall Red Eye (coffee with a shot of espresso) and an oat fudge bar from Starbucks… for a total of 440 calories.
In the afternoon I’ll enjoy a large bowl of boxed cereal. (Today was Captain Crunch… I haven’t had that in ages. mmmm) This usually tallies up to 500 calories.
In most cases we’ll have a normal, healthy, sensible dinner, which is usually around 500 calories for me.
Occasionally we may have pizza or sushi… in which case the calories would be higher… but I would be more than satisfied that I wouldn’t need to eat anything else for the rest of the night.
If it’s a normal healthy meal I still have room for 650 calories to enjoy some other treats or eat as I wish and still stay within my maintenance level calories.
At 2500 calories I am MORE than satisfied physically and emotionally. I’ve eliminated all my cravings without feeling guilty about overindulging.
Plus… I am mentally charged up for the week ahead.
Even more important… I’ll reach my goal faster.
Don’t get me wrong though… every once in a while I’ll go overboard. But in the big picture it’s so infrequent that there is no way in hell I’m going to feel guilty about it. Plus, I usually end up feeling crappy afterward and not very hungry for the next couple days… so it sort of balances out.
…but that’s not a normal weekly routine… it’s just life. It’s not something I would enjoy repeating on a regular basis.
In Conclusion
In my most humble of opinions, I believe it’s best to use your ‘cheat days’ as a way to empower yourself. To prove that you do have control… that you don’t need to go ‘all-out’ in order to satisfy your cravings… to feed off it in a way that fires you up for the rest of the week, not make you feel tired, sluggish, and crappy the next day.
…and most important… to set you up for long-term success.
…If your cheat day is capped off at maintenance level calories… it’s a way to prove to yourself that once you achieve your transformation goal you will be able to maintain your weight/body fat percentage, and sanity while still enjoying some treats.
Your cheat day could in fact be very similar to how you can eat as a lifestyle once you achieve your goal (if you are approaching your cheat day intelligently, with some treats sprinkled between healthy meals).
This is exactly how my wife Angie has been able to maintain six pack abs for the past decade after our children were born. She allows herself a small treat every day in addition to our healthy meals.
Maintaining six pack abs is much easier than people think it is… and it’s certainly easier to maintain them, then it is to get them.
I hope this had shed some light on the subject. Now, I’d love to hear your thoughts, feedback, and opinions on the subject…
Do you include cheat days into your caloric deficit? If so… how often?
Do you overindulge or just treat yourself enough to satisfy your cravings?
I can’t wait to hear what you have to say.
Sculpt a Masterpiece,
Scott Tousignant
About The Author
Scott Tousignant is a Certified Fitness Consultant and Elite Natural Bodybuilder with the UFE.
Scott specializes in helping regular guys get ripped abs insanely fast. With his careful attention to the finer details, you'll carve out a rock hard and jacked physique in no time flat!
When Scott needs to urgently strip away stubborn sacks of fat for a photo shoot or bodybuilding contest, he turns to his time-tested proven system… Elite Physique.
Now you too, can follow his easy-to-follow system to finally uncover your ripped abs and chiseled body! Get the full details by visiting Elite Physique today!