How often do you take a day/night "off"?

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-06-2004
How often do you take a day/night "off"?
11
Sat, 06-16-2007 - 8:48am

I know my situation is different from most because I am pregnant. I actually have gained only four pounds at 14 weeks, where I should be up by about 10, and last week I even lost one. I have planned one "off night" a week, since DH and I have this nice little fast food ritual every Saturday night.

Well, my off night moved up a day, since I was at a party last night. I did good at the beginning, and did fill up a lot on veggies & fruit. But after that there was no shortage of white flour and saturated fats.

I'm not bothered by it, I'll just be good today. I'll get that awesome southwest salad from McD's to stay "on".

But, I was wondering if others plan nights off, or just happen to take one every now and then, and how that works for you. :-)

-)

pregnancy week by week

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-09-2007
Sat, 06-16-2007 - 9:29am

I have been on the SBD for about 8 weeks so far and I have yet to take a day/night off. However, I have A LOT to lose, and I just figure if I let myself slide on stuff, it will become a habit.

However, my son's first birthday is coming up and when we have the party in August, and I am planning to have some cake for that (since I am making it from scratch).

That said, I think it's OK when you are pregnant. I know I ate everything in sight when I was pregnant! I lost that weight very quickly. Unfortunately, I was overweight going into my pregnancy.

Good luck to you!

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-06-2004
Sat, 06-16-2007 - 10:37am

Good point, I suppose it does matter what your goals are. I went into this pregnancy with only about 20 extra pounds, and obviously I'm not meant to lose any now. My main reason for being on SBD isn't to lose weight per se, but to eat right and have some structure for that.

Still, even if I wasn't pg, I thing (FOR ME) having a scheduled night off each week would be beneficial, so I could say "no" to that cookie now since I have a planned time to have it. Otherwise I start sliding from all the little tiny "this won't hurt" bites. Hee hee, it's interesting how people's reactions can be so different. ;-)

-)

pregnancy week by week

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-09-2007
Sat, 06-16-2007 - 11:32am

Yeah I think for you, a day/night off might work better -- especially while pregnant. And if it starts getting out of control, you can just cut it out. However, when I was pregnant, cookies were a major food group!

Good luck with South Beach and the pregnancy... and congratulations!

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-12-2003
Sat, 06-16-2007 - 6:45pm
I don't usually have a planned day/night off. I do allow myself to "slip" every once in awhile, but try to make it a minor slip, like a couple of bites of something not allowed surrounded by tons of good stuff. That being said, I do have "do the best I can days" every once in awhile, where it's just not possible to control my options, so I make the best out of what's available. It usually works out pretty well. Of course, that being said, I'm not pg. When I was pg I ate whatever sounded good, which wasn't usually much.
Avatar for domino1
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-30-2003
Sun, 06-17-2007 - 3:39pm

When I was doing phase 2 I took every saturday night off - we had a pizza ritual (much like you). I love my pizza and a movie. In the end, I lost 25 pounds in 3 months by combining SB and exercise. The last 5 took me an additional 3 months.

Best of luck!

Lisa.

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-04-2006
Sun, 06-17-2007 - 7:10pm

I've always had planned "treat meals" or nights off. When I was trying to lose, it was about every 3 weeks or so. Now that I am in maintenance, its about once a week.

But for me there are certain things I consider a "treat" and other things that I would never, ever touch again. Like - I may have one or two thin crust pizza slices w/veggie toppings with a huge salad (but not like 5 slices of pizza). Or grilled fish tacos on soft corn tortillas (not fried fish on fried tortillas). Or a grilled chicken sandwich even though its on a white bun (but its grilled chicken, not fried and with a side salad instead of fries) I might have a salad from Panera Bread, and go ahead and have the baguette. Or if we go to a steak house I may have a regular baked potato with my lean steak. Treats like that. I don't ever eat regular "junk" food - cake, cookies, ice cream, donuts, chips, etc. Mainly because those foods now make me so ill its not even worth it to treat on them!

I think for some people having a treat to look forward to really helps. I know I think about it and plan it all week. For me its always on my weekly "date night" with dh. Usually I am researching what new restaurant we're going to try all week. It makes it something really special.

















belizesig1
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iVillage Member
Registered: 09-02-2004
Mon, 06-18-2007 - 7:24am
I give myself the option to eat whatever I want on Saturday nights. I used to take all of Saturday but that got to be waaaaaay out of control.




Lilypie First Birthday tickers
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-14-2004
Mon, 06-18-2007 - 5:00pm

I don't take days or meals off, but I do allow occasional treats. I think that this is a good way to do SBD. For example, I rarely eat non-SBD foods at home, because I am shopping for SBD foods (although my fiance has non-allowed foods that I occasional have small "tastes" of). But when I go to a party I might tell myself ahead of time that if something non-SBD friendly looks great then I'll try it. Like last week I was at a party and I had one bacon-wrapped scallop that was delicious and a couple cheesecake bites. My main "meal" was veggies, fruit, and chicken, which was all SBD-friendly but I supplemented with a few treats. I'll do the same when I go out to eat occasionally.

I suggest trying to stick to the plan and then when something just irresistable comes up, allow yourself a little, but not piles of cookies or anything, and just savor it and enjoy that as a treat.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 05-04-2003
Mon, 06-18-2007 - 5:20pm

LOL Mine are at random... a bite here, a sip there... usually not more than one day out of the week. It's hard when the kids are eating PBJ and goldfish... I love PBJ and goldfish. I love ice cream, soda.... I love food. Yum.


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iVillage Member
Registered: 05-18-2007
Mon, 06-18-2007 - 5:45pm
I find that I am very 'tight' with myself all week. But come either Friday night or Saturday night (not both), I let loose - a bit. I can too easily slide down a non-stop slippery slope, so at least by giving myself the five days of excellent eating and working out, it's a bit of a safety net for me in case I 'crash and burn' on the weekend. So far, that hasn't happened! I think my emotional eating is coming into control as time passes on Phase 2 (yay!). I'll sometimes tell myself that I will 'allow' a treat come the weekend, which really helps me to battle any urgings for a particular 'off limits' food. Come the weekend, I usually am no longer wanting that 'off limit's item!! So it works for me in allowing myself the mental space of knowing I can eat anything. I must say there is usually a way to make things more SB friendly without too much effort. That's what I love about South Beach! And I think allowing yourself that bit of 'leniency' is a good thing. It certainly is teaching me greater self confidence in handling 'food' situations!
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