Eating healthy is easier said than done. And with that said, this article will reveal the secrets of when to diet cheat if you are having trouble sticking to your diet.
You may be all gung ho for a few days, maybe even for weeks, but at some point you are probably going to start craving something — chocolate, salty snacks, bacon, ice cream, pizza — whatever your temptation is, you will want it eventually.
First off, I do cheat. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be able to stick with any healthy eating plan.
The key is to let yourself have some treats, but don’t go crazy. Anything in moderation is okay, and in the long run you are doing yourself a favor.
How is that a favor do you ask? Well, by letting yourself have occasional treats prevents you from building up an unstoppable craving which could lead to completely pigging out and binging on those foods you denied yourself.
Best time to Diet Cheat
So here’s the trick – if you need to diet cheat, do it early in the day or after you have worked out.
By indulging in the morning or early afternoon, you have the rest of the day to work it off, opposed to eating a bowl of ice cream at night when you will be going to bed.
You burn less calories sleeping than you do going about your business during the day.
After a workout is also a good time. You may think this sounds counterproductive. The reason after a workout is a good time is because this is when your metabolism is the highest and you will burn more calories.
Combining the two, in the morning after a workout, is the best solution if it works out for you. This way you get the benefit of the higher metabolism working for you and won’t have to give into a craving later in the day to diet cheat with less time to work it off.
Don’t beat yourself up
Bottom line, don’t worry if you do find that you have a bad day once in awhile. It will not ruin what you have accomplished. Even if you ended up going beyond a small diet cheat, as long as you go back to your good eating habits and workout routine, your body will probably not even notice it.
The most important thing is not to fall into the mentality of “well, I’ve cheated so I might as well just keeping eating what I want”. Tomorrow is a new day and the perfect time to get back to your healthy eating habits.
Also, be sure you do eat after you have cheated. You do not want to starve yourself to “make up for it”. What you want to do is eat, but eat healthy, giving your body the fuel and nutrients it needs. Do not make it two bad days in a row by pigging out then starving yourself.
