Cheating On Keto: Weekly Habit, Good Or Bad?

The keto diet is a very low-carb, high-fat diet that is popular for its weight loss effects. It encourages ketosis, a metabolic state in which the body burns fat as its primary source of energy instead of carbohydrates. As the keto diet is very strict, it is natural to crave forbidden, carby foods and consider a cheat day. A cheat day is a 24-hour period in which a person can indulge in foods that are typically restricted by their diet. While cheat days can be a welcomed break from the diet, they can also interfere with ketosis and hinder further weight loss.

The pros of a keto cheat day

The keto diet is a very low-carb, high-fat diet that is popular for its weight-loss effects. It can be challenging to stick to, so some people opt for a keto cheat day or cheat meal. While this can be beneficial for some, it's not ideal for everyone. Here are some pros of a keto cheat day:

Long-Term Sustainability:

The most popular argument for a keto cheat day is that it may help you stay on the keto diet for the long term. The idea is that by allowing yourself some flexibility, you're more likely to stick to the diet overall. This approach may work for some people, but it's important to be mindful of how it affects you. If you find it challenging to return to the keto diet after a cheat day or meal, this strategy may not be the best choice.

Psychological Benefits:

Including a strategic diet cheat may offer psychological benefits, such as reduced cravings and improved adherence to your overall meal plan. A cheat meal can be a tasty reward for your hard work and a way to satisfy your cravings. However, it's important to be mindful of the potential for increased cravings, especially for carbohydrates, which can be challenging to manage.

Social and Emotional Benefits:

A keto cheat day can provide a sense of freedom and flexibility, allowing you to indulge in foods you enjoy and miss eating. It can be a well-deserved reward and a break from the restrictions of the keto diet. This can be especially beneficial when attending social events or family gatherings, where it may be challenging to stick to a strict keto diet.

Motivation and Moderation:

Cheat days can help you stay motivated by teaching you how to practice moderation. By allowing yourself a cheat meal, you can learn to incorporate your favorite foods into your diet in a balanced way. This can lead to the development of sustainable long-term health habits.

Enjoyment and Satisfaction:

A keto cheat day can be an opportunity to enjoy foods you love and satisfy your cravings. It can be a way to treat yourself and increase your overall satisfaction with the diet. However, it's important to be mindful of the potential physical and psychological consequences and not let a cheat day turn into a cheat week.

While there are potential benefits to a keto cheat day, it's important to remember that everyone's experience may vary. Some people may find it challenging to return to the keto diet after a cheat day, and it may interfere with their weight loss goals and overall progress. It's essential to listen to your body and make adjustments as needed to find what works best for you.

The cons of a keto cheat day

While a keto cheat day can be a welcomed break from the diet, it's not without its drawbacks. Here are some of the negative consequences of a keto cheat day:

It can knock you out of ketosis

Eating too many carbs can kick your body out of ketosis, which is the metabolic state that's the hallmark of the keto diet. Ketosis is a state where your body burns fat as its primary source of energy instead of carbohydrates. To stay in ketosis, you need to eat fewer than 50 grams of carbs per day. A single cheat meal can easily exceed this daily carb allowance, and a cheat day is almost certain to surpass it. It can take several days to a week to get back into ketosis, which can interfere with your weight loss goals.

It can affect your blood sugar levels

The keto diet is often recommended for people with type 2 diabetes or cardiovascular disease because it can help stabilize blood glucose levels. However, eating a high-carb cheat meal can cause your blood sugar levels to spike, followed by a crash. This can lead to an intense sugar crash and leave you feeling unwell the next day.

It can increase cravings

The keto diet is designed to reduce appetite and hunger cravings by stabilizing blood sugar levels and hunger hormones. However, by veering away from your keto meal plan and removing your body from a ketogenic state, you may find yourself craving carbohydrates and sugar more than before. Studies have shown that carbohydrates, especially sugar, can induce reward and craving similar to addictive drugs, making it difficult to stop once you've started.

It can lead to unhealthy eating habits

Cheat days can lead to overeating and promote unhealthy eating habits. It can be challenging to get back on track after a cheat day, and you may find yourself falling into a cycle of restriction and binging, which is not conducive to a healthy relationship with food.

It can be physically uncomfortable

If you've been on the keto diet for a while, you may experience symptoms of the "keto flu" when resuming your diet after a cheat day. These symptoms can include fatigue, headaches, low energy, and bloating.

How to cheat on a keto diet the right way

The keto diet is a very low-carb, high-fat diet that is popular for its weight loss effects. It encourages ketosis, a metabolic state in which your body burns fat as its primary source of energy instead of carbohydrates.

The keto diet is very strict, and it can be difficult to stick to it 100% of the time. Cheat meals or days are common strategies for strict diets, and some people find that by allowing yourself short periods of indulgence, you're more likely to stick to the diet over the long term. However, cheat meals or days are discouraged on the keto diet because they can easily break ketosis.

If you do choose to have a cheat meal or day on the keto diet, here are some tips to do it the right way:

• Opt for keto-approved cheat meals: Instead of cheating on your diet, try splurging on keto-friendly substitutes to curb your cravings. There are many recipes for ketogenic versions of popular meals, as well as packaged keto snacks and "cheat foods" on the market.
• Have cheat meals, not cheat days: It's easier to stay on top of your overall nutrition and calories if you stick to just one cheat meal, rather than a whole cheat day. A large cheat meal can add 1000 or more calories to your day, while a whole cheat day will add much more and potentially undo all your hard work from the week.
• Plan your cheats: The easiest way to ensure your diet cheats don't ruin your progress is to plan for them. Pick which meals you're going to cheat on and budget some calories and carbs in advance. Prioritize certain events or favorite foods over random temptations.
• Track your daily intake: Don't forget to track your calories and daily macros. If your cheats are blowing your weekly nutrition goals, you might end up gaining weight.
• Space out your cheats: Cheat days aren't a daily thing. Space them out generously—the less you cheat, the less likely you'll form bad eating habits.
• Keep portions small: This will prevent overeating. Instead of relying on willpower, make sure seconds aren't within easy reach.
• Make it count: Don't waste your cheat meal on a handful of stale tortilla chips. Eat the foods you miss most, like a special holiday dessert.
• Avoid sugar: Sugary cheat meals will fuel sugar addiction and drive future cravings. Think long-term by using keto-friendly sweeteners like erythritol, stevia, and monk fruit.
• Cheat close to exercise: Exercise increases insulin sensitivity (your ability to handle carbs), so you can get back into ketosis faster.

Remember, if you're finding that you're cheating on keto too often and having a hard time sticking to your diet consistently, it might be time to revisit whether or not this diet is right for you.

How to recover from a keto cheat day

It's natural to crave forbidden, carby foods when on a keto diet, and cheat days happen. If you've had a keto cheat day, don't beat yourself up about it. Instead, follow these steps to get back into ketosis:

• Don't give up: Emotional eating is common, and dwelling on your keto cheat day may set you up for getting derailed. Your cheat day is over—it's time to move on and restart keto!
• Fasting (optional): Some keto dieters swear by fasting as a way to get back into ketosis, but make sure to check with your doctor first.
• Drink lots of water: Alcohol dehydrates you, and staying hydrated will help flush the carbs out of your system. Aim for 72 ounces of water if you're an adult woman, and 104 ounces if you're an adult man.
• Meal plan: Having a solid meal plan will help you keep on track.
• Check your progress: It could take up to 4-5 days to get back into ketosis, and you can check your levels with a meter or strips.
• Count your macros: Start counting each and every one of your net carbs, fats, and proteins. Use a free app like Carb Manager to calculate your macros.
• Sleep and exercise: A good night's sleep and some exercise will help with your overall energy levels, which will help you burn more fat.
• Be patient: It can take a few days to get back into ketosis, but once you're there, you're set.

In addition to the above, here are some more tips to help you recover from a keto cheat day and get back into ketosis:

• Try intermittent fasting. Combining intermittent fasting with the keto diet may help your body shift its fuel source from carbs to fat.
• Track your carb intake. Make sure you don't underestimate your daily carb intake.
• Try a short-term fat fast. Fat fasts like egg fasts are very high-fat, low-carb diets meant to last only a brief period.
• Exercise more. Physical activity depletes your glycogen stores, which are your body's stored form of carbs. This promotes ketosis.
• Try a medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) supplement. MCTs are a rapidly absorbed fatty acid that's easily converted into ketones.
• Measure your ketone levels with a breath analyzer or urine strips.

Tips to avoid cheating on a keto diet

The keto diet is a very low-carb, high-fat diet that is popular for its weight loss effects. It encourages ketosis, a metabolic state in which your body burns fat as its primary source of energy instead of carbohydrates. As the keto diet is very strict, you may find yourself tempted by the occasional high-carb food.

• Practise mindfulness: Mindfulness involves paying attention to your body, which may help you resist cravings and emotional eating.
• Plan your meals and snacks: A solid dietary plan makes it less likely that you’ll get hungry during the day.
• Make your everyday diet enjoyable: Try incorporating different keto-friendly meals to vary your diet and make it more enjoyable.
• Keep tempting foods out of the house: Keeping treats and other tempting, high-carb foods out of sight can make cheating inconvenient.
• Have an accountability partner: A buddy or accountability partner can help you stay motivated to stick to your diet.
• Opt for keto-approved cheat meals: Instead of cheating on your diet, splurge on keto-friendly substitutes to curb your cravings.
• Have cheat meals, not cheat days: It is easier to stay on top of your overall nutrition and calories with cheat meals compared to entire keto cheat days.
• Track your daily intake: Don't forget to track your calories and daily macros. If your cheats are blowing your weekly nutrition goals, you might end up gaining weight.
• Exercise before your cheat day: Before you eat larger amounts of carbs, make sure your glycogen stores are empty. You can do this by exercising, which will help to minimise the chance that excess carbohydrates are stored as fat.
• Drink apple cider vinegar: Apple cider vinegar has a protective effect on the induced insulin response. Consuming apple cider vinegar with cheat meals that are high in carbohydrates lowers blood sugar and insulin levels.
• Limit the time for cheat days: The longer you expose your body to high amounts of carbohydrates, the more likely you are to store excess energy as body fat.
• Choose foods with soluble fibre: Soluble fibre can help to reduce carbohydrate absorption and dampen blood glucose and insulin levels.
• Exercise after a cheat day: Exercise is a great tool to burn off excess carbohydrates stored in muscle and liver tissue.

Remember, it is okay to have a cheat meal on the keto diet occasionally, especially if your primary goal is to lose weight. However, if you are staying in ketosis for reasons other than weight loss, cheating on the keto diet may not be the best idea.

Frequently asked questions