There are a lot of diets out there whose trick to weight loss ultimately boils down to limiting your intake of certain foods… Paleo, Atkins, South Beach, etc. Unless you have the discipline of a Tibetan monk, the main reason most of these diets fail is because it’s just too hard to live with such restrictions on a long term basis.
Most health experts will encourage you to eat a balanced diet, and to have a cheat meal, usually one time a week. Registered dietitian Jim White explains, “After several days of consuming fewer calories than you burn, splurging can rev up your metabolism while stocking up glycogen for tomorrow’s workout. It should also satisfy cravings that may nag at your daily diet.”
Since I started this weight loss journey, I weigh in on Saturday mornings, so Saturday evening is my cheat meal – a fun dinner and some kind of dessert. Most times they are really enjoyable, but for the last three weeks in a row, there’s been a bit of a disconnect between my brain and my belly.
Over these last several months, one of my biggest cravings has been a chocolate chip cookie with frosting. Back in my unhealthy days, one of my favorite treats were what I called “devil cookies”; a chocolate chip cookie sandwich with sugary frosting in the middle, from Nestle Toll House or Mrs. Fields.
July 4th weekend, my parents, hubby, and I went to Atlantic City. We went to dinner at Broadway Burger in the Tropicana Casino; just down the hall, there’s a Mrs. Fields. Stepping over the threshold of the store, my nostrils were flooded with the intoxicating scent of freshly baked cookies. Shelves and shelves of so many delicious options. I was cookie drunk.
I selected this mamma-jamma, which was slightly larger than the palm of my hand. My “fat habits” were back, and I intentionally picked out the one with the most frosting on it.
Hubby warned me, “Careful babe, that’s not going to agree with you.” Pfft! What does he know…
I could feel the buzz of the sugar rushing through my veins. IT. WAS. SO. GOOD. About halfway though, it was hard to stop eating, but I was feeling full and decided not to push it – so I packed away the rest of the cookie and decided to save it for when we were watching fireworks.
A few hours later, I couldn’t wait to finish off my treat. After the first bite or so, I still felt full. But this was cheat day! Time to indulge, right? Despite by better judgement, I finished the cookie. Ughhhhh… I felt disgusting. Sugar headache, bloat, nausea. Whyyyy did I do it? Hubby’s “I told you so” face was no comfort. I should’ve known better. Mental note: not worth it. Tsk tsk, fat brain.
The following week’s cheat night found us at Grand Lux Cafe. I am obsessed with their Sonoma Salad, which has two of my favorite things: walnuts & goat cheese. For dessert, I got their rustic apple pie. Holy mother…
The sugary crunch of the flaky crust was heaven; nice & light, not too heavy. The apples were delicious, as was the ice cream. I got halfway through, and that yucky, full feeling was back. I had to stop.
But other people at our table weren’t done eating their desserts, and we had an utterly dreadful server who wasn’t coming around to clear the table. So I started picking… another bite of crust… an apple with some caramel. Ughhhh. I was feeling gross. C’mon fat brain, knock it off! My stomach couldn’t handle any more, but I still felt the urge to keep eating. I literally had to cover my plate with my napkin.
This past Saturday, I met up with some friends in New York City. I had gone for an 80 min walk that morning, and did an intense 55-minute Jillian Michaels workout video. I missed breakfast, and short on time, had to quickly devour my fav’ Saladworks lunch to get on the road.
We went to Momofuku for dinner, where I had two pretty good steamed buns (filled with pork belly & hoisin sauce) & a pretty disappointing scallop dish (of which I only was able to eat 4 scallops). We went across the street to Momofuku’s famed sister location, Milk Bar. After that dinner, I was still hungry and excited to try out their famous desserts.
Tortured by so many amazing options, I narrowed it down to three selections:
- a Compost Cookie (packed with pretzels, potato chips, coffee, oats, butterscotch and chocolate chips, this cookie strikes the perfect balance between salty & sweet)
- a small “cereal milk” milkshake (made with milk, cornflakes, brown sugar and a pinch of salt. it’s like the milk at the bottom of a bowl of cornflakes)
- a slice of “crack pie” (toasted oat crust, gooey butter cake meets chess pie)
The milkshake was surprising – it really did taste like cornflakes! Halfway through it though, I was kind’ve over the novelty. The crack pie was thick and dense, almost like a brownie. It was really good, especially the oat crust. I was content, so I saved the cookie for later. See… I’m learning. Sorta.
As I waited for the train that night, I ate the cookie. Meh. It didn’t taste like anything special. I wasn’t even really hungry, I only ate it because I had it with me. Those are the worst kinds of cheats… just a pure waste of calories, nothing satisfying about it.
I read another article about cheat meals recently, which talked about knowing your “cheat meal tolerance”. Obviously, I’m still struggling with this. My brain wants all kinds of decadent foods, but my body just isn’t having it any more. While I know I shouldn’t eat these foods, and my body is having adverse physical reactions to them, I still feel like I’m missing out somehow by not indulging in these cheats.
Do you struggle with “cheat food”? Do you have any strategies that help you avoid temptation?
Myrtle's Hurdles 