Hey there reader,
Today I want to talk about "cheat days." You know, certain days when you eat whatever you want without tracking or caring about calories, points, etc.
It's supposed to be without guilt, but I have my doubts if that's true. Maybe for some, but if we're honest, I bet anyone who works hard all week and then gorges one day probably feels at least a slight twinge of guilt. Yes? No? Maybe?
Everyone's different, I guess but let me share an experience I recently had.
I never thought about how a cheat day affects our weight loss goals or overall a healthy lifestyle. I just figured we chalk it up as a bad day and move on.
I never looked too deep into it.
Over the last few weeks, I've been paying attention to how I feel after eating certain foods.
- Green smoothies make me feel amazing. This detox smoothie and blueberry smoothie are my favorites! I feel hydrated, focused and my belly bloat is under control.
- This pasta-loving girl feels much better following a lower-carb lifestyle. I also found out earlier this year that I'm celiac, so no gluten for me. But I still try to keep even gluten-free pasta to a minimum. See all my gluten-free recipes here.
- Keeping wine and sugary alcoholic drinks to a minimum makes a huge difference in my belly bloat and just feeling good overall. I'm not a huge drinker, but even having a few glasses of wine on the weekend was causing issues with my waistline. How do I know? Because once I removed alcohol, I noticed a difference within a week or so.
Okay, back to "cheat days."
I haven't ordered a pizza in about two months.
- I'm trying to save money
- See the low-carb/gluten-free lifestyle I mentioned above.
Anyway, a few weekends ago, I did not feel like cooking at all. I spent the morning staring at my computer and the afternoon running around with my kids. I was tired, and by 6:00 pm, I decided to order pizza. My local pizza joint has a fantastic gluten-free pizza.
I didn't think it was a big deal because I worked out four days last week, including Friday morning. Not to mention, I drank a smoothie every morning and did great sticking to my eating plan.
So I thought, "what the heck"? Let's order a pizza.
Well, not only did I GORGE on pizza Friday night, but I also ate my fair share of leftovers on Saturday.
It was hard to get back on track, and I made one bad decision after another. I ate a ton of popcorn I bought for movie night that night, "enjoyed" some ice cream, AND I bought a Starbucks Cafe Mocha the next day.
I figured the Friday night pizza "cheat meal" cost me over 2000+ in extra calories that weekend.
I felt disappointed because I've been so disciplined and felt good about it.
Instead of feeling sorry for myself, I decided to think about the concept of a "cheat day" and what I could learn from it.
Here are my thoughts.
Some people are okay with cheat days, fit them into their plan, and bounce back quickly. Well, I'm not one of those people. Looking back over my latest "cheat day" and others that came to mind, I don't just bounce back.
Foods like pizza, fries, and high-carb meals mess with my body and brain. They are my trigger foods, and once I have a taste, I want more. It took a lot of effort and intention for me to get back on track.
Do I think a cheat day (or weekend) is going to make a big difference in the grand scheme of things?
I guess it depends on how often it happens.
If I have a cheat day every week and then need a couple of days to recover, then yes, it's going to be a problem.
If it happens once every two months, then probably not.
You need to pay attention to the way foods affect you.
Can you handle a cheat meal? Does it knock you off track, or do you keep moving forward without missing a beat?
My overall lesson learned from my "cheat meal" weekend is that I work hard to establish habits and routines to keep me feeling great, focused, healthy, and comfortable with my body. I need to remember that when faced with ordering a large greasy pizza.
| Here are my best tips for staying on track over the weekend |
I need to remember that one "cheat meal" might carry over for the rest of the weekend and undo everything I work for that week. That needs to be a part of my thought process when ordering food.
Now I'm by no means saying I'll never order pizza again, or you shouldn't. That would be cruel!
All I'm saying is I (we) need to think before ordering a pizza or gorging on a cheat meal or snack. I need to have the discipline to ensure that one meal doesn't undo my week of exercise and smoothies.
I hope my experience helps you when deciding whether or not to indulge in that cheat meal.
Talk to you soon!
Tammy Overhoff
Ps. If you don't already have it, check out the Organize Yourself Skinny eBook & 30-Day Workbook Bundle. You'll find 4-weeks of habit challenges, exercise challenges, and meal plans.
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