We are a huge believer in cheat meals, because, as you know, sometimes you just have to have a pizza or some of mom’s banana pudding!
Believe it or not, eating your “vice” foods once in a while can be beneficial. It will alleviate any desperate cravings you’re having; making it more likely you’ll stick to your diet over the long term. It will also throw your body a curve ball; just when your body is becoming more efficient at using the foods you’ve been eating consistently, you souse it with eggs Benedict or an ice cream sundae! Your body forgets all it had learned about your eating patterns and “resets” its gears. Many times, when people are stuck on a plateau, all they need to get themselves rolling again is a good cheat meal.
The trick with cheat meals, however, is control! It is a cheat MEAL! Not a cheat day or week! It is also planned! If you have a slice of birthday cake at the office one random afternoon, understand that it wasn’t conveniently your cheat meal! And that you must now plan your cheat meal next week! Limit your cheating to one single meal and don’t go completely overboard. For that meal, have whatever you’ve been craving, be it a cheeseburger with fries and a shake, or pasta Alfredo, a glass of wine, or pumpkin cheesecake for dessert. Eat your meal slowly, enjoy every bite, and shrug off any guilt lurking in the background. This meal is necessary to your mental and physical well-being, so savor it! Then get right back on it! Eat well before and after and you’ll be just fine!
