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Sometimes It’s Okay to Have a Cheat Day

by Jamie » on Feb 12, 2018 0

The holidays really screwed up my fitness plan. It’s now the middle February and I still haven’t fully recovered. My New Year’s Resolution of running three or more times a week sounded so good in theory, but it’s so hard to do in reality. Spring is (slowly) on its way and I still feel weighed down by holiday food. Although I’m long past actually having a spring break, my body is definitely not spring break-ready.

During the holidays, like many others, I indulged in too many sweets and too much food which is definitely bad for you. One of those was pizza. I went on a binge at the end of 2017. It got a little ugly. When a single slice of cheese pizza is over 270 calories, you know you’re in trouble if you’re trying to keep the weight off, especially if you’re eating three or four slices in a sitting. Oops.

On a quick side note, my family actually tried something a little different this year. Instead of cooking a big fancy Christmas dinner, we decided to do delivery. No mess, no fuss, and nothing for us to clean up — no looming sink full of dirty pots and pans. As it turns out, lots of other people do this as well, according to a new study from Versus Reviews. It was great and even with the negative side health effects, I would recommend it if you want a more easy-going Christmas.

I guess that leads into my main point: It’s ok to have a cheat day every so often when you’re trying to lose weight. Sure, I went overboard during the holidays and I’m paying the price for it, but that’s hindsight. Thinking ahead, it’s ok to have a slice of pizza every so often. Or it’s ok to have desert here and there. It’s important to reward yourself for your hard work. Now, don’t reward yourself so much that your hard work goes to waste, but a treat here and there will keep you motivated.

I’ve always thought that life is worth living when you’re enjoying it. Sure, it’s important to keep improving yourself and keeping your body healthy, but you have to have some sort of balance, especially when it comes to eating. So, when I head out for a run this evening, I’ll be thinking about that slice of pizza. I won’t indulge quite yet — I have a long way to go before I can cheat — but the thought of it will keep me going when I want to stop.

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