A cheat day is a day you set aside to eat the things you’ve been excluding from your diet. It’s a day that is enjoyed by people who have been on a strict diet in which they haven’t cheated and they set aside one day a week to enjoy deep fried goodness and decadent sweet things.
Just because you’ve earned a cheat day doesn’t mean you have to eat the whole buffet or stuff yourself until you’re a miserable couch potato.
Although one day of binge eating won’t set you back from your weight loss progress, it can cause adverse reactions to your body, and your body might react in a negative way because it’s not used to being filled with those foods that you used to fuel yourself with.
The idea is to eat what you want, but within your caloric limits. Don’t eat so many calories on your cheat day that you feel bad the whole week. You earned a day of treating yourself with foods you like, but don’t go crazy and eat bad stuff, all day.
It’s not a requirement that you eat the whole pizza or two double cheeseburgers on your cheat day. If at all possible, plan your meal ahead of time. Think about what cheat foods you’d like to eat and set limits.
If you like pizza, eat a couple slices of thin crust cheese pizza and a small salad. If you like double cheeseburgers, eat a regular burger without cheese. There are a few ways you can have your cheat day and eat to.
What I do is up my volume and cardio intensity the day before and after my cheat meal. Then I don’t feel so bad, and I actually need the excess calories because I went hard the day before and the day after.
When I get on the scale, my progress is still there and I don’t feel bad about eating barbecue ribs, baked beans and potato salad.
If you have trouble waiting for a week to cheat on your diet, try doing a cheat meal once a day or every two days. But, when you do have your cheat meal, don’t gorge on just bad foods. Eat some healthy varieties of foods along with some not so healthy choices.
Cheat days and cheat meals aren’t for everyone and it’s not a way of life. The key to losing weight, keeping it off and living a healthy lifestyle is to eat in moderation all of the time. Don’t deny or deprive yourself of a piece of pie if that’s what you want. Just don’t eat it everyday.
If I eat spaghetti and meatballs and garlic bread for dinner Monday night, I’ll more than likely eat egg whites and cantaloupe for breakfast, Tuesday. It’s all a matter of balance, moderation and watching your calories.
Everyday could be a cheat day if you balance things.