I would never endorse cheating on your significant other or in some other unethical way, but I would definitely encourage you to cheat on your meals. It's good to cheat for a few reasons: one, when you designate a certain time of the week to eat whatever you want and however much of it you want, you'll be more likely to stick to your meal plan for the rest of the week. Maybe it's bar food on Friday or Saturday nights, or perhaps it's Sunday evening dessert, or it could be a giant pizza to accompany Monday night football. Whatever the food and whenever the time, eat whatever you want and as much of it as you can tolerate in one sitting. Secondly, when you parcel out your meals in individual portions and you're eating regularly (every few hours or so), your metabolism will burn more calories and become more efficient. Then when you incorporate a cheat meal at a random time during the week, one that's likely high in fat and caloric value, your metabolism will burn this even more quickly because you've trained it to continually utilize the nutrients you consume as energy. Finally, cheating on your meals is good for your psyche. Life, exercise, and your diet are all about balance. You can't be all work and no play in the same way that you can't only eat chicken and vegetables. You must eat foods that are what I like to call, "Good for the soul." It took me a long time to realize this.
After I had begun eating more healthily and exercising with greater regularity, I eventually swung so far toward the opposite end of the spectrum: I never ate anything unhealthy, I always had to pack my own meals wherever I went, and I had to to eat every two hours on the dot, no exception. But, eventually I discovered that adhering to healthy habits with such fervor, ironically, produced unhealthy psychological detriments. I allowed my food consumption to dominate the forefront of my mind, detracting my focus from other more important facets of my life, and the larger picture as a whole. One, or two, or even a few meals each week that are "good for the soul" are not going to negate your largely healthy lifestyle in the same way that one, or two, or just a few healthy meals each week are going to yield you positive results. You must incorporate balance in your diet, which is why cheating is good and also why I don't believe in counting calories.
There are so many different programs on offer today to help invoke healthy changes in one's lifestyle: Advocare, Nutrisystem, Jenny Craig, etc. If you're interested, I'd love to do one with you: we can call it "Cookin' with Keta" (corny as hell, I know, but what else could you expect from a hopeless English major?) Give me one month, regardless of your current physical condition or exercise prowess. We'll do some workouts, develop a personalized program, and you can take me grocery shopping with you. I don't want you to pay me, or compensate me in any way for that matter; just give me one month of honest effort. The benefit for me is that it will be as much of a learning process as it might be for you. If you're at all interested, shoot me a message.
"Start where you are...That's a very rich place to start--juicy...Just where you are--that's the place to start." -Pema Chodron
