How Cheat Days Affect Your Body

When you want to lose weight, working out at least three days a week and going on a diet is mandatory. However, eating chicken and vegetables can become very boring, very quickly. It is completely normal that you want to eat a slice of pizza every now and then and treat yourself to a piece of cake after a hard workout. No matter how disciplined you are, you are only human and there will be times when the call of the craving will be just too hard to ignore.  This is why people invented cheat days. After all, all protein and no sugar makes Jack a stressed-out boy, or at least something like that. Some experts believe that cheat days are a great way to keep your sanity when you are on a diet, while others think this is an awful strategy. So, what really happens when you don’t stick to your strict diet?

What exactly is a cheat day?

The concept of the cheat day is rather simple. For six days you should follow a strict diet, and that means no fast food, no dessert, and no processed food. On the seventh day you are allowed to go nuts and eat everything your heart desires, from burgers and fried wings to ice cream and chocolate cake. This system is supposed to help you boost your metabolism and give you the motivation to keep going. But does it really?

Cheat meals, not days

After eating only protein and vegetables for six days, what do you think will happen to your body when you stuff your stomach with all the junk food in the world? One thing is for sure, you will feel bloated and experience more gas than usual. Although some people believe that cheat days improve metabolism, this is unfortunately not true. In fact, overeating can lead to other bad habits, such as skipping your workouts because you feel too full to move a muscle. On the other hand, cheat meals can be helpful. They will give you a boost in overall calorie consumption, and by shocking your body you will be able to regulate leptin and ghrelin, hormones that are responsible for feeling hungry and full. When you stick to a low-calorie diet, levels of ghrelin (the one in charge of hunger) increase over time, while on the other hand levels of leptin decrease.  A cheat meal shocks your system and regulates these hormones. 

Therefore, it is much better to indulge in smaller portions of your favorite foods every now and then, than to spend one whole day binge-eating. This way you won’t feel sick from all the food, you won’t sabotage your results but you will get a break from dieting you deserve.

Make wise choices

We all know that shopping when you are hungry is a recipe for a disaster and you always end up with a bunch of snacks you don’t really need. Well, when you know you are having lunch with your friends and it is time for your cheat meal, eat something beforehand or otherwise you will order everything on the menu and end up feeling sick from all the food. Munching on a banana or eating a bowl of berries will help you feel less hungry and you will be able to make smarter choices. 

Listen to your cravings

If you would die for a chocolate cake, eat once small piece; if you are craving pizza, have a slice. When you deny your body what it truly wants, you end up eating a bunch of other foods that do not ever satisfy you. In the end, that one piece of cake has fewer calories than everything you’ve eaten instead. However, it is important to remember that this should not be an everyday rule. While it is perfectly fine to treat yourself to a small donut every now and then, doing that on a daily basis will ruin your diet completely. 

Like with everything in life, moderation is the key here. Instead of cheat days opt for cheat meals, indulge yourself every now and then and you will be able to stay on the right track.