No More Cheat Days

For the newbies to the dieting game, a cheat day is a day (or days) when you are [technically ‘allowed to ditch your diet and eat whatever you want, eat however much you desire and basically let yourself go. Some people actually build ‘cheat days’ into their diet plan/regime. I was very guilty of this. I would eat so much you would have to call my walk a waddle! I would ditch my work out that entire day, and laze around…eating whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted.

My cheat days were excuses to binge and basically go off the reservation. But recently while reflecting on my healthy lifestyle (some call lifelong diet) and stumbles along the way, I could see a common thread appear (one of several, I assure you)…CHEAT DAYS.

This may not be everyone’s reality, but it is mine – so please think of this from that perspective as you read. Anyway, I realized that I invariably had difficulty bouncing back after cheating for one day – be it my work out, healthy eating, intentional eating…whatever, I kind of lost my mojo. And restarting was almost like jumpstarting a faulty car – difficult.

It’s my personal belief that when you engage in repetitive behavior, the action gets easier as you continue doing it. Yes? You move into what motivational speakers like Tony Robbins would refer to as ‘state’ or in my terms ‘the zone’! Does it make sense now how jumping back to ‘form’ after a cheat day(s) was so difficult and played a tune on my mind and body? I have come to believe that my ‘cheat days’ prevented me from getting to my ‘zone’ where waking up to work out is easier, upping my pace is not such an ordeal, where saying no to mega carbs or processed sugars isn’t an uphill task.

Don’t believe me? A wee question…how many of us took a little ‘holiday’ (aka cheat period) over Christmas and the New Year and found that bouncing back to their work out regimen was a nightmare? Or Returning to the healthy meal plan was almost like starting from scratch. Or the biggie: how many of us actually put on weight when we took our wee holiday?

I won’t put all of the blame on cheat days, but I know in my heart (chuckle) that they have played a role in my fumbles in the past. So, over the last month, I have had NO CHEAT DAYS WHATSOEVER! Yes you heard me! Where previously I would work out on alternate days, I now work out every day (except Sundays). Let me never say never... I plan for, and make every effort to workout everyday save Sunday. And those cheat days when I would stray and eat my ‘off limits’ foods some days of the week, I now follow my healthy eating plan everyday (including Sundays). But let’s balance this: remember I created a system to guide my eating? I shared it with you in ‘Before I eat’ – so I pretty much stick to this.

So this ban on cheat days stays unless I find reason to change my opinion!

What do you think about cheat days? Do they help you? Or have you found The Formula for cheat days that actually works? Pray do share…

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