Cheat Day

The long awaited day of the week – Cheat day 

To have a cheat day or to not have a cheat day, that is the question. Overall, it’s your own, individual decision. Cheat Day is NOT short for Eat-Everything-And-Anything Day. I think of it more so as a day off from your normal dietary intake. Anything is excess can’t be good for you!

Here is a list of reasons why a cheat day could benefit you:

A cheat day gives a sense of freedom to a diet. Food is energy for the body, but your choices don’t have to feel like restrictions. Balance is essential for a healthy diet!

I look forward to having a day to eat what I normally wouldn’t. In turn, that helps me stick to my regular diet because I have something to look forward to at the end of the week.

Our body is a digestive machine and food is the fuel.  A ridiculous amount of calories and processed fat will undo a weeks worth of hard work, but an increase in calories will shake up your metabolism!

Cheat days keep your body guessing.

Leptin is a hormone that influences hunger, metabolism and body fat. Dieting causes leptin levels to drop, which causes hunger feelings. Implementing a cheat day lets the body know it isn’t hungry (or starving). The leptin levels spike and, in turn, increase your metabolic rate.

Choosing a day (or 2) to indulge a little more than usual can prevent you from falling off the wagon! When you actually satisfy your cravings, you stop yourself from going overboard. Face it, we’re human – we crave certain foods! Completely restricting yourself is, in my opinion, a self-destructive behavior and will literally drive you crazy!!

Today was my cheat day. Not only was I a little hungover from a night of drinking, but I was also really craving carbs! What I had today was:

ENJOY YOUR CHEAT DAY 🙂