Cheating within your diet means letting yourself eat whatever you want without caring much about its calories.
In simple words, cheat meals are a reward-based strategy that allows a person to indulge in the meal of their own choice. It gives you permission to temporarily break out of diet rules. After cheat days you will find yourself more motivated towards your diet goals.
By implying the cheat strategy, people will either go for a cheat day or cheat meal for a weight loss strategy. As the name suggests, a cheat meal is a one-time meal that takes you away from your prescribed diet plan, whereas a cheat day means a whole day that takes you away from your prescribed diet.
So, Are cheat meals good for diet? Let’s find out in this article:
How many cheat meals in a week, is preferable?
Cheat diets are very flexible. How one person implements it will vary from how the other person implements it, based on their own personal diet preferences and goals.
The appetite you love to eat on your cheat days will also differ from one person to another due to individual preferences, although it consists of high-calorie foods that wouldn’t be allowed on a standard diet plan.
There is no rule of thumb on how or when you should plan to cheat meals for weight loss. Most people will add one cheat diet every week, but this will consider what your weight loss goals and how motivated you are towards it.
In this way, the answer to how many cheat meals in a week is preferable- depends on your own judgment.
Is Cheating Practical?
Weight management is a complex thing. Every individual’s body reacts in a different way to various strategies — the perfect diet plan is the one that works out for you the best.
It is a known fact that, if you consume fewer calories than burned, weight loss is ought to take place. Therefore, the answer to “Are cheat meals good for diet?” depends on how well you can execute a planned diet and keep overall calorie intake lesser than burned.
Cheating boosts Metabolism
Expert nutritionists claim that following cheat meals for weight loss will help you determine changes in body composition and enhances metabolism due to fluctuations in the hunger hormone called leptin.
Leptin performs the function of hiding feelings of hunger. Some studies show that when someone undergoes weight loss, leptin levels may decline in that individual.
A well-known weight management theory also demonstrates how with lower levels of leptin, you are more prone to overeating because the hormone sending you signals to stop is absent. This may, in turn, lead to weight gain.
It is still unknown how changes in leptin levels are linked with weight changes. How can it affect someone’s ability to control their eating patterns and stay fit?
Using Cheat diet as a Motivating tool
Another such weight management theory says that by sometimes letting yourself eat foods not permitted on the diet plan, you will have the motivation to keep up with your planned diet most of the time.
This is how the cheat meals for weight loss strategy is associated with the psychology of losing weight.
Some people are good at controlling their temptations, saving their hunger for the cheat day. Whereas not all can take charge of their eating habits in the same way. Thus, the same cannot be expected from everyone.
Also, if you are unable to resist the cravings within your cheat meals or days, you may contain the risk of putting on more weight than you have previously lost.
Even though cheat meals for weight loss, can be easily misunderstood as an open chance to overeating.
For most people, cheat days or meals might be a great way of maintaining overall health, following dietary habits and improving their physical appearance.
Promotes Unhealthy Behaviors
The question Are cheat meals good for a diet plan? , has gained attention in the Western diet and fitness culture, making its way to Indian culture as well.
Don’t be deceived by the fit personalities, who claim to follow the cheat meal dieting strategy. While they may have cheat days once a week they work twice as hard to cut that weight down and have full control over their diet.
While the answer to Are cheat meal good for diet remains that, it is very practical, it could counter-attack those people who have just started the diet plan and have less control over themselves. As they will end up giving up on weight loss and eat whatever they want.
Learnings
Cheat days or meals permits people following the prescribed diet plan to deviate their attention and indulge in their favorite food.
While there is a buzz around the question “Are cheat meals good for diet?”It can truly motivate some people to rigorously follow their diet but may cause opposite effects for people with emotional or binge eating tendencies.
The cheat diet strategy is highly successful when accompanied by other weight-loss strategies, such as mindful eating and portioning practices.