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How often should I take a cheat day? I was thinking every other week, but that might be too often
In “The Cheat to Lose Diet,” Joel Marion states that cheat days can actually help you lose more fat. Cheat days, when you often have higher levels of caloric consumption, help keep your body from thinking it has entered starvation mode. When you occasionally consume a higher calorie meal during a diet, your body’s leptin levels increase. As a hormone that keeps your body from thinking it is starving, higher leptin levels lead your body to thinking it is better fed and nourished, encouraging your body to release more fat and body weight as it since longer needs to hold onto those calorie stores.
Cheat days give you a break from a strict diet, but it can help you evaluate your relationship to food and eating. Cheat days can help you learn portion sizes and healthy eating habits as you learn to treat some foods as healthier than others. These days can also prevent your from overeating and give you the incentive and self-control to stay on track.
Now, When to Cheat! The type of cheat day you have can affect the success rate of your diet. You still must stick with certain cal. goals to lose weight in a healthy manner. To lose 1 pound, you need to reduce your total caloric intake by 3,500. This can be done through a combination of nutrition or exercise, but health professionals recommend that you not lose more than 2 pounds per week. Having full cheat days that's an entire day when you can eat whatever you like may not be very good in reaching your goals. But having a single food indulgence, like chocolate into your diet can help you stay within your goals. If you need to take a full cheat day such as special events plan in advance so that you can budget extra time for exercise or adjust your diet plan to accommodate the extra calories you will consume. My suggestion is 1 day per week! Just don't go crazy!!
Cheat days give you a break from a strict diet, but it can help you evaluate your relationship to food and eating. Cheat days can help you learn portion sizes and healthy eating habits as you learn to treat some foods as healthier than others. These days can also prevent your from overeating and give you the incentive and self-control to stay on track.
Now, When to Cheat! The type of cheat day you have can affect the success rate of your diet. You still must stick with certain cal. goals to lose weight in a healthy manner. To lose 1 pound, you need to reduce your total caloric intake by 3,500. This can be done through a combination of nutrition or exercise, but health professionals recommend that you not lose more than 2 pounds per week. Having full cheat days that's an entire day when you can eat whatever you like may not be very good in reaching your goals. But having a single food indulgence, like chocolate into your diet can help you stay within your goals. If you need to take a full cheat day such as special events plan in advance so that you can budget extra time for exercise or adjust your diet plan to accommodate the extra calories you will consume. My suggestion is 1 day per week! Just don't go crazy!!
I think it's different for everyone. Some people do well giving themselves a weekly cheat day. Some monthly. I haven't figured out what I'm going to do as I get back into weight loss, but I used to only give myself a cheat meal, because I would go crazy if I had an entire day to cheat. =P If you feel like once every other week is too much, then work out something else! It's about what feels right for you!
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