To think most people don’t have huge ‘pig out’ days once a fortnight?

[Deeryme1]

Went for brunch with a friend earlier who, when we came to order, said she was still feeling full and bloated from her ‘pig out’ day yesterday. I asked what that was and she said ‘oh once a fortnight, DH and I have a complete pig out day, it’s great. We start off with bacon sarnies in the morning, followed by a McDonald’s for lunch and then loads of crisps/ chocolate/ sweets etc.

I was like oh right and she said ‘do you not ever have a day sometimes where you just eat anything and everything you want?!’ And I said no, not really. She rolled her eyes and said ‘no wonder you’re so skinny’

The thing is, I eat a bar of chocolate pretty much everyday and if I go out for a meal (once every 2-3 weeks) I’ll always get at least 2 courses, sometimes 3 and I don’t care what I eat on those occasions, so I’m hardly an Angel in terms of food. However, no, I don’t ever really let myself have a day at home where I just eat whatever the hell I want for a whole day. I WOULD put on weight.

She seemed shocked and like I was uptight for not doing so, but I don’t think a regular pig out day like that is the norm for most people, is it? Or am I just really uptight?

This bizarre attitude to food is why two thirds of adults in the UK are overweight or obese, and setting themselves up for dismal health failures in middle age and beyond.

There's so much disordered eating & so much moralising of food choices.

No, but I wouldn't describe a bacon roll for breakfast followed by mickey D's for lunch as "pigging out" either.

I don't think eating whatever you want as rarely as once a fortnight is going to make any difference at all to your weight. It's what you do in the meantime that's more relevant.

I think it's weird but quite probably a good thing to keep it to one day. I can eat like that quite often.

I think it's ridiculous to be shocked by what she's said. I eat like that more often than she does and I'm slap bang right in the middle of the healthy weight for my height. How do you imagine overweight people get that way? You're shocked there are some people that eat unhealthily?

Most of us eat too much and the majority of us ate overweight. I don’t think it’s bad that you go out and treat yourself to 3 course meals and I don’t think it’s bad she has pig out days.

I used to be able to eat whatever I wanted, since hitting about age 44 I can’t, sad times 😂

I eat what I want, when I want. “Pigging out” just sounds unpleasant.

I don't have a designated "pig out" day, but I also don't think I'd call a day of bacon sandwiches, fast food and some snacks especially pigging out. Not ideally healthy, sure, but not something I'd find remarkable

I don't think so because one is binge eating and one isn't.

No, I’m shocked they schedule it in and dedicate one day a fortnight to it!

Really? What on earth would be pigging out then if it’s not a fried breakfast, McDonald’s for lunch and loads of chocolates, crisps and sweets all afternoon in the same day? Genuine question as I’m genuinely starting to wonder if I am abnormally ‘good’ or ‘uptight’ around food?

I think 3 course is pigging out but there you go.

3 courses is absolutely pigging out, I leave feeling uncomfortably full and almost sick. Vow I’ll never do it again and then a few weeks later, I’m back!!

Honestly, no one cares.

So you often eat till you're "almost sick", op. 🙄. Why are you vilifying your friend for her eating habits?

A bacon sandwich is hardly on the pig out scale, McDonald’s isn’t great but less calories in a meal there than many other places and crisps and chocolate are variable. I wouldn’t want to do it once a fortnight, that combo would give me tummy ache… however I do know many ‘healthier’ options I have in artisan bakery places or restaurants have as many calories. Each to their own.

This ^

This is essentially a "cheat day" right? Personally I try to eat a balanced diet with snacks / sweet things incorporated into the day to day because otherwise I end up binging. Other people I know have their high calorie foods all in one day. I don't think either are "wrong" or more unhealthy than the other if it's part of an otherwise balanced diet, different things work for different people.

Overall comparing food habits rarely turns out well - everyone's different and I don't think it's helpful for anyone

I don’t schedule a ‘pig out’ day or call it as such, but there are days where I just think fuck it and eat whatever I want in large quantities, so lots of sweets/ crisps etc and probably would get takeaway and order way more food than I need. I don’t plan for it though, just sometimes get the urge to binge all day; usually works out as a day or two before I get my period.

Some people have bacon sarnies every day. And McDonalds is hardly unusual. And an evening eating what you want is not exactly weird!
I know plenty of people who have what they call cheat days (even if not on a diet, they do mind what they eat). It means different things to different people. For one it may be eating their weight in chocolate, another it may just mean having dessert! The frequency is variable.
If your friends are normal weight who cares whether they have a blowout every once in a while?

Your repeated conflating of eating x or y food with being 'bad' and the idea that restricting food as 'good' is very weird.

Food and eating don't have a moral value, and denying yourself something doesn't make you a better person. Similarly, an occasional day of eating as your friend describes isn't anything outside the 'ordinary' realm, as anybody who has endured a binge eating disorder will tell you.

Both very odd. Just eat what you want, when you want. Don't get why it's a big deal for either of you.

I guess I'd think of pigging out as eating a lot in one session, but it's not really something i think about. I don't like McDs but I'm sure I've had days with bacon for breakfast and something not the most healthy for lunch.

I'm just surprised it registers so much with you - people have all different kinds of eating habits, and unhealthy day every few weeks is unlikely to have a massive impact surely

But now you've posted surprise that people eat friend food, McDonald's, sweets and chocolates in one day. Some people eat like that literally every day

No - sadly I have them much more often!😀

Unless you eat 3500 cals ish on a pigput day then you won’t gain any discernible amount of weight. You seem to have an issue.

I have days were I graze almost all day but I don’t class it as a pig out day.