4 tips to recover from a cheat day (or two!) (2024)

Now and then I do it: eating for pleasure and not out of necessity. In order to maintain my healthy lifestyle I schedule certain days where I’m allowed to eat whatever my heart, and belly, desires. It’s called a typically cheat day (or two!), but what happens after? How to bounce back after a binge?

So let me tell you why I prefer to add cheat meals into my diet. First of all it gives me a psychological break from the stressful feeling associated with following a strict food schedule. Secondly, a cheat meal results in a kind of “guilty feeling” that gives me a boost of motivation to stick to my eating plan afterwards.

Doesn’t sound so bad right? No, but I still feel a little “bad”after a well deserved cheat meal. I always tell myself that if I can’t lose 1kg weight in one day, I can’t gain 1kg weight in one cheat day. Though it’s the truth, I still feel knocked down! Therefore I wanted to find out how you can get back into your normal plan and regain control after cheating. The following tips will help you to deal with the day after a cheat day: easy and effective!

1. Hello protein and veggies!
The day after your cheat day you should choose a high protein and veggie day. Cheat meals count tons of (bad) calories, so combine it with a low-calorie day after and it willhelp you to balance your calorie intake. Click here to get inspired for delicious low-calorie recipes.

2. Bumping up a calorie burn – but don’t over-do-it!
This one has to be understood properly. It’s ok to bump up a calorie burn with a workout the day after a cheat day. However, most people get the urge to do an intense long cardio session to feel like you’ve balanced out the bad eating. Wrong! Endurance cardio sessions in combination with an improper diet will stress your body maximum. Stress overload causes cortisol and cortisol is a stress hormone that has a relation tofat storage. Bad news! So don’t go crazy and just do an extra 20 min of cardio or add a couple of extra sets to your weight-training routine.

3. Drink water – lots of water!
Cheat meals consist of bad foods and bad foods have lots of salt or sugar – or both! The best way to bounce back after a cheat meal is to flush the salt, sugar and other toxins out of your system by drinking water. Try to drink at at least 2L the day after your cheat day.

4. Move on! Hold on!
This one might sound logical, however in practice it can be hard to put a cheat day behind you. Personally, I’m still (secretly!) thinking about it 2 days after.. It’s a sin, because there’s nothing you can do about it except moving forward and turning your cheat into motivation. A cheat meal won’t hurt us as long as we have a plan to regain control. Include my 4 tips into your plan and you’re always back on track the day after a cheat meal!

How do you feel after a cheat meal? Can anybody relate to my story? I would love to hear from you girls and tips and tricks are always welcome 🙂 Thank you!

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