Cheat Days

For most people the definition of a diet is to reduce calories in order to lose weight. Most of the calories that are cut come from the foods that many of us find delicious such as chips, sweets and fast food. Its a bad idea to eat these on a daily basis even if you're not on a diet. Another bad idea is to never eat the foods you love again for the sake of your health.

While diet and nutrition have a huge impact on your overall health, eating foods you enjoy can have as big of an impact on your psychological health. Eating foods that you enjoy can bring you happiness. Food is a part of everyone's culture and should be enjoyed.

Healthy diets are about moderation. Have a piece of cake but don't eat the whole thing and don't have it everyday. Diets were never about completely cutting out parts of your life that you enjoy. Cheat days can help you get through the hard times of a diet.

Once you have a stable diet that you are used to, a good idea is to institute a cheat day about once a week. This day isn't about reversing the progress you've made by eating everything you see. Its about relaxing and not worrying about the amount calories to consume or foods that are off limits.

On your cheat day you can forget about counting calories. You can use this day to go to your favorite restaurant and eat your favorite dessert. Keep in mind that even though you've worked hard the rest of the week, it doesn't take much to derail your weight loss efforts. Enjoy yourself but don't go overboard.

Don't start your cheat day until you're sure that your diet is on solid ground. Its pretty easy to enjoy yourself a bit too much and have another cheat day and another. Don't have them back to back and remember that once tomorrow comes the rules of your diet are back in effect.

Advanced Guide to Dieting