Believe me, it was. And if I had continued on keto, I would have just vomited more than I already was. I don’t think I even ate for 3 days. And then I only ate maybe 3 small pita pizzas a day. I probably stayed in ketosis the whole time.
And like you I feel so good on keto, that unless I have to, I won’t go off the diet.
Great post (and screen name BTW!) - I’m not a fan of the term either due to its negative connotations. It’s also the terminology one uses when dieting in the traditional sense and as we know, Keto is a way of eating (WOE), not a diet. It’s a choice; every meal, every day.
I’ve only been following this WOE for 8 weeks and it’s been wonderful. For the first time in 10 years it’s all finally starting to make sense and come together. For many, we’ve struggled with diet after diet to no avail, or worse, further gained weight over the longer term. The thought of another failure can be scary, particularly when the memories of uncontrolled eating are still so raw and often accompanied by intense feelings of shame, guilt and hopelessness.
So I suspect that those who use the term “cheating” are more often than not, still reasonably new to Keto and are seeking support and encouragement to, as everyone’s favourite 2 Dudes say, “keep calm and Keto on” (KCKO). Whether people have accidentally fallen off the wagon, or made a conscious decision to eat non-Keto, the end result is the same. Just like when you take up a new sport, hobby or job, there is a learning curve and we all need to learn to navigate our own “n=1”.
I’m hoping that this forum will be another means of encouraging people to adhere to the Keto WOE and view it for the marathon, not sprint, that it is. By doing so and discouraging both the use of the term and the action, cheating per se will be both consciously and subconsciously discouraged in the forums and, by extension, in our lives.
As for me? I’m taking the following approach: Own it, Learn from it, Relinquish it.
I’m not perfect, I’ll make mistakes and sometimes I may even choose to eat that bun with my burger, and then what will I do? I’ll acknowledge and accept that it was the result of a choice I made. I’ll ask myself why I made that choice and really drill down to find my truth so I can understand how to avoid future outcomes I will be unhappy with. Then lastly, and perhaps most importantly, I’ll take a deep breath, forgive myself and exhale. With the expulsion of breath is the expulsion of all negative thought and feeling associated with that choice.
OLR my Keto friends, O.L.R. 
I have used the Epley manuever with some success when experiencing vertigo/dizziness. It took a couple of tries and I learned it from googling ’ Epley maneuver’. I also saw another posture somewhere that was a kneeling posture somewhat like the Epley maneuver. I believe I’ve read that Vertigo can be caused by something out of position in your inner ear and these positions correct that. It worked for me at least twice that I can recall. It sure beat laying in bed for two days waiting for it to pass! Might be worth a try…
I am correctly suffering from vertigo. I went on a cruise over a week ago and wonder if it’s something from that. Today is the first sign of it; I had a slip up last night and ate poorly, so maybe it’s diet. Either way, I am getting back on track and filing this experience away as a “Do Not Slip Up Again” in my mind.
I gather vertigo post-cruise is a known condition. Did you know this? I didn’t but I do now. Hope you’re on the mend soon.
Heh. Sounds like a very technical explanation for what I’ve known as “land sickness”. It’s more or less the same as sea sickness, but happens after getting off of a boat. I got that after my last cruise to Sweden. Thanks for the technical definition.
Hubby and I lived aboard a boat for 14 years. We’d get a mild feeling of movement once in a blue moon after rough seas and then sitting in a booth at a restaurant after coming ashore.
I think my definition is falling off the keto wagon. I had to have a small op last week and I’ve not been very well controlled over the festivities. I think I’ve used it as an excuse and I feel physically more tired, bloated and not very shiny any more. So tomorrow I am jumping back on and will keto on again.
Sometimes life stuff happens but feeling guilty about it won’t change the fact that it did.
It’s not the end of the world x
Yes! Getting back into Keto ASAP was key for me. I got so hooked into feeling better, I stopped going OP.
One of my weight maintenance buddies always tells me it takes a long time to rewrite your last no standing neuro pathways
Speed back to your regular food is important-IMO. Glad you are going back to wellness @debbie.segouini
I like indulge better than cheat. Cheating connotates a lot of guilt and shame and secrecy and these aren’t emotions I want to tie to my eating; I did that for many years to no benefit. An indulgence sounds enjoyable, a treat. Because if you’re stepping off plan on purpose, it should be enjoyable, right?
Isn’t it funny how many things we think we like or miss from our pre-keto days that just aren’t good anymore? I tasted a part of a French fry the other day and I thought to myself “I don’t even think I LIKE potato anymore!”
There are a variety of ways of looking at this. For some, eating 1 morsel of a “bad food” is going off the rails. Other people have more flexibility, both metabolically and mentally.
Last month I was sick for a week. Spent much of it sleeping or lying around. Mostly didn’t feel hungry. Had some chicken chowder, locally made at an organic farm, frozen. Once a day I would thaw some out, 1 bowl was about the only thing I would eat all day. Now, it did have some potato, carrot and corn niblets, which are not keto foods, but did not have a ton. I added HWC and MTC oil and salt. It really suited me. Now was that keto or not? Cheating? On the one hand, yes it was. On the other hand, with such a small amount per serving and per day, and the fasting and the added MCT, I think I stayed in ketosis. I don’t really care what it was, it worked for me.
So, it isn’t something I would recommend to others, but I am not “oh no, I fell off the wagon”, either.
It seems that I can get by with eating a small amount of starches with a meal occasionally and be ok. That technically may be cheating but it is so different from having a bunch of sugar, cake, etc, which I know will make me feel lousy all day. So I feel like I have a “stretching it” or “pushing things” option which I am more prone to exercise without feeling bad, and then there is outright cheating aka going off the rails, which I am hesitant to do. But, I am an adult, I can make these decisions and I can get right back to keto afterwards.
In other words, I don’t know about the exact wording, but to me there may be 2 different words needed. 1 word for if you eat 1/2 cup of beans, and another if you eat a big bowl of pasta followed by ice cream and cake!
For me it has to do with consequences. As a sugar/carb addict, I think of it as “cheating,” because I have to worry about that slippery slope if I allow myself to have enough carbs to trigger an addictive response. Years of sobriety have shown me how to do it, and with alcohol I don’t really worry anymore that I might suddenly be “struck drunk.” In the early days, though, it was a different story, and with sugar it’s still early days for me. Someday down the road, perhaps, it will be different.
I remember some monumental sugar binges, during one of which I put on probably forty pounds or so. So there are consequences to be afraid of, and the words “cheat” and “slip” are perfectly appropriate in my situation, though it sounds from the other posts here that it’s different for most of the rest of you. I’m glad you can indulge, and I’m not sad that I can’t, because I’d be cheating myself if I did. Any negative implications of those words are far, far outweighed by the joy of being on the path of freedom.
Speaking from a “newbies” point of view I was so happy to come across this post since I had previously had this conversation with myself earlier today about using the word “cheating”. I really need to stay positive right now about every little thing involving keto in order to succeed. I don’t cheat but make conscious choices about what to eat. Some are good choices and some could be better but I’m in control of all of them which makes me feel better in some strange way. Saying that I “cheated” makes me feel like a victim with no self control. I do have a lot of self control, I just choose when to exercise it! 
I think there is a notable distinction with the word “cheating:”
Personally I would consider actual “cheating” the resorting to refined sugars and carbohydrates, starches, SAD stuff!
…v.s. Eating when you are hungry?
Over-eating your keto allowed foods in contrast to the 20 gram per meal standard or more (or what you or your method is considered the standard?) I would not call “cheating,” your just eating a little more because your body is telling you too, and I think that is a good thing that may help you burn the body fat you want gone if that is your goal?
I don’t particularly like the word “cheating” either. But it’s common enough in usage that we’re not likely to change it anytime soon.
I don’t tend to use it. I just eat food. Sometimes what I eat is higher in carbs or sugars than what typical keto fare is. Sometimes I eat more veggies that include a little sweet potato or carrots or beans. Sometimes I eat nearly carnivore. I just eat food. I try to stick with low-carb / keto most of the time and don’t sweat the small stuff when it’s not… it just has to stay “small”.
