If you need to lose weight, you're probably trying to work out more. And it is a near certainty that you're following some kind of weight-loss eating plan. While you know that this diet is good for you, I bet the thought of eating less and going without your favorite foods from now on is not a pleasant one. Luckily, there's hope. It turns out that occasionally cheating on your diet isn't a problem. In fact, cheating may be a key to succeeding on your diet. That probably sounds strange, but it's true. Keep reading to find out why cheating is good when you're trying to get fit.
When you're want to lose significant weight, you need to work out more, but you also need to control the amount of food you eat. To get really lean, you will have to consume fewer calories than you need to keep your weight were it is now. This is where things get tricky.
One of the reasons that any kind of diet doesn't work well over the long term is because your body adapts. If you regularly consume fewer calories than you need to maintain your current weight, your body may take this as a signal that there isn't enough food. In other words, your body can start to behave as if you are in danger of starving.
If your body is in starvation mode, it adapts in a variety of ways. First, it tries to store as much energy as it can, in the form of fat, in case the "food shortage" lasts. Second, it reduces your metabolic rate to conserve energy. In this low energy state, you become listless and cranky as your metabolism goes down. Even worse, your body puts less energy into internal maintenance and repairs in order to keep you alive. Your joints start to get creaky and injuries take longer to heal. In extreme cases, your body will use your muscle tissue as fuel, as it tries to retain every bit of fat it can for later. The goal of your body is to survive until there's more food.
As you can imagine, the outcome of this adaptation isn't pleasant. You end up listless, with little energy to work out. If you do get up the energy to exercise, your workout will be low quality. You are more likely to get injured, and it takes a long time to recover. Any food you do eat gets stored as blubber around your waist. Your muscles might actually start to fade away. Not the best conditions for working out and getting fit. This is where cheating helps you succeed.
Your body doesn't switch into starvation mode quickly. You need to be short on food for several days straight before it switches over. If you don't experience that significant shortage of calories for that number of days, your body won't start running in starvation mode. You'll get the positive aspects of your low-calorie diet, without suffering through starvation mode.
So, to get the best results if you go on a strict diet, you need to break it once in a while. At regular intervals, you need to consume many more calories than the plan calls for, to prevent your body from thinking you are starving. That makes life easier, and there's another benefit. If you eat your favorite junk food on thedays when you break the diet, it is much easier to stay on your diet the rest of the time. After all, there's a big difference between giving up your favorite foods altogether, and still having them, say, once a week on your cheating days.
A simple way to cheat is to eat anything you want about once a week. However, there are more efficient ways to do this. For the best results possible, without the negative effects of starvation mode, you should get expert advice on all aspects of the way you eat, including whether cheating is appropriate for your current diet and exercise program.
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