Cheating: Is food fair?

This is a topic I get asked about by everyone...and I do mean EVERYONE...So often I hear people bemoan the fact that their one cheat meal of the week was traditional barbecue food or cookout food...I hear...but it was just one meal, but my digestive system feels like a wreck...I'm holding water weight...I feel heavy...on and on the list goes. Some say, can I really cheat, or is that just a lie trainers use to get you to try a diet... The good news is yes, you can cheat, but moderation is a lot less that what you may already believe. Here are the cheating commandments...er uh...guidelines...of cheat meals/snacks

1. A cheat is only a cheat when it is once a week. More than once a week and it's a habit, not a cheat.

2. It is not a piece of that chocolate mousse pie. It is one BITE of that chocolate mousse pie. People think that following the moderation rule involves pigging out on that food once a week during that cheat meal. I say is is a portion only a tiny bit larger than what you already eat...you normally would not THINK about chocolate mousse pie...as Mary Poppins said, "Enough is as good as a feast." This is a time to practice self-control and feel empowered by exercising control over what you put in your mouth.

3. It is not "saving" your calories for tonights big banquet...This is especially true for those of you who go to family get-togethers and business dinners. By doing this, you are depriving your body of the nutrients it needs to keep your metabolism fueled, and then gorge when you arrive in temptation central. Practice pre-eating: a small clean meal, even if it's only cucumbers and hummus, will trick your body, and you will eat less that what  you would have originally.

4. Food is not a social networking tool...even though we treat it like it is...you will not be anymore or less accepted in reality if you eat that shrimp scampi or those doritos than if you do.

5. If you must gorge, gorge a whole food you love, like blueberries...

I hope you enjoyed this comical but practical take on cheating....please feel free as always to comment. :)

Galatians 5:23

"For the fruit of the Spirit is...self-control."