Here’s a story of what cheating on my diet did to me mentally and physically.
As I write this, I am looking at a half eaten piece of pizza next to my computer. Pizza is my downfall. It’s just too good.
But it’s not part of my diet, and it hasn’t been since the middle of December.
I started the ketogenic diet and have seen AMAZING results. Unfortunately I think I reached my breaking point a few days ago. Once I started cheating I could not stop!
I have mentioned in previous posts that I have cheated before, but it was only a meal or two. It was never to the extent I cheated this time.
My mind was telling me, “hey you already had pizza for dinner, might as well have the left overs for breakfast the next day”. And then knowing I already ruined my diet that next day I told myself “well now that your day is shot, you might as well have a good carb filled dinner”.
This went on for SIX DAYS!
Finally I had some willpower to stop and get back into my keto diet. Now I want to share with you the effects of what my body went through physically and mentally in those days.
How Cheating On My Diet Affected Me Mentally
This is the part of cheating on my diet hit me first. That initial feeling of guilt or that you are doing something wrong is constant.
People will say, what’s one cheat meal going to hurt? Well if you aren’t strong enough to stop it can be extremely damaging.
For me personally, I struggled with ordering my first cheat meal from one of my favorite restaurants. Once I started eating, I felt like I did deserve to be eating the wrap and fries. I have seen such amazing results and what’s one meal really going to do right?
But then the next day I had leftovers. Of course I finished it, because Italian people don’t throw away food.
So in my mind I’m thought…it’s ok because I’m done. NO MORE CHEATING.
Until later on in the day came and I convinced myself cheating again would be fine. And then came more left overs that I would need to eat the next day, and I found myself in this horrible downward spiral that my brain could not get me out of.
I kept making excuses until it got to day four when I really started to feel down about myself. I was thinking that I wasn’t strong enough to get over this hiccup and this really took a toll on me.
This continued and here we are day six and I finally decided I am done feeling bad about myself and my choices. I am hoping that tomorrow I’ll start with a clean slate and be able to bounce back and start feeling like I am doing my body some good again.
How Cheating On My Diet Affected Me Physically
Here is where I took the biggest hit while cheating on my keto diet.
Any fad diet you commit to, you usually see great results, but these diets are not sustainable long term. Most people end up falling off and putting all the weight they lost back on and then some.
I look at the keto diet as a lifestyle rather than a diet. I know I will not be doing keto for the rest of my life, but I do plan to transition into a low carb lifestyle vs a strict less than 20 carbs a day.
Unfortunately, for me I jumped from less than 20 carbs a day to pizza, pop, chips and other random unhealthy items.
My body did not like that one bit.
Immediately I put a pound or two on.
Not really caring, because at the time I figured I’d get right back on track I went on about my day. But then the cheating kept happening and before you know it I’m six days deep with ten pounds put back on.
Granted some of this is water weight. I’ll be able to get a few of these pounds off easily. But some of it is legitimate weight that I had worked really hard to get off, now just hanging out around my stomach or back in my face.
Not only can I tell the difference in appearance, I can feel it. Of course I am still smaller than when I started, but I have notice my face swell up a little more and I tend to want to wear my high waisted yoga pants.
Side Effects
The part that affected me the most though was how tired I became. Any time you start to eat healthier and work out more often your body just becomes naturally energized. The good food you put into you fuels your body to perform better.
Keto or not, your body wants nutritious foods, and when you take all of that away suddenly, your body will let you know it’s not happy.
Now on the keto diet that I am on, I gained a ton of energy and naturally felt amazing. I was energized in the mornings, I was rarely hungry or had cravings, and my mind felt sharp and alert.
But now that I am six days into a cheating binge, I am SOOOOOO TIRED. My body couldn’t even make it through a day of work without wanting to go into my office and put my head down.
When did this start?
The tiredness started around day 2. I actually was thinking about how the excess carbs I was eating was weighing my body and mind down.
Of course I continued to eat unhealthy, but this feeling amplified. By day four it was impossible to get through my day without wanting to take a nap.
Day five as when I gave in and went to bed by 6:30 pm. I was driving home from work and could feel my head bobbing back and forth. My eyes were also SO HEAVY. I went to lay down and before you know it I was sound asleep by 7.
Being on the keto diet and having tons of energy every day, I knew I needed to stop cheating. I really just wanted to feel like my old self again.
Another side effect is the all day headaches I’m experiencing. I don’t get headaches very often, and when I do they don’t usually last too long. But this headache has lasted for a good two days now. It’s a sharp pain all around my forehead and eyes.
Lastly, the feeling of just being weighed down and feeling heavy has been constant for a few days. It’s the overloading of excess carbohydrates that my body got used to not having, and the processed and unhealthy foods.
Overall, you are the only person stopping you from getting back on the right track. With a strong mindset to stay healthy, and perseverance to overcome the slip ups, you can transform your life into something so great!
Cheating on my diet put me in a downward spiral until I crawled my way out. Don’t let that be you!
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