Last night I ate almost 3/4th of a bag of Cheetos.  Why?  Because I had a craving for them and they were in the kitchen.  Now this wasn’t some huge 50-lb bag, but still it was a good 6 servings worth probably.  I blame my craving for not eating properly during the day.  I had been over at a friend’s house watching football and had just snacked on the typical football food and earlier in the day I had a peanut butter & jelly sandwich.  Aside from the sandwich, it was a pretty unhealthy day food wise.

Yet, I don’t feel guilty.  Not one bit.

I know a lot of people who just beat themselves up when they indulge on something – especially when they are trying to lose weight or get in shape.  Often times they will indulge for whatever reason (maybe they went to a friend’s house or out on the town for a night, or maybe they just felt like ice cream) and that is the breaking point for their fitness goals.  They throw up their hands in the air the next day and just say “I can’t do it!” 

It’s easy to give up, but I have found it’s even easier to say “Yeah, I ate it – so what?” and move on.  Let’s face it folks if you try to take away all the foods that are bad for you, or take away all the foods you love the most you are just setting yourself up for failure.  That’s a primary reason why I never believed in any type of diet – take away the food people enjoy and they are already 99% of the way to failure.

I subscribe to the fact that as a general rule you should include a wide variety of foods in your diet.  Make your meals well-balanced and include fruits and vegetables aplenty in your daily intake.  Personally, I just love steamed broccoli on the vegetable side and apples on the fruit side.  Mix it up – but don’t run away from food.

Now before you think I’m saying to just eat anything you want, in whatever quantities you want let me stop you right there.  I’m not saying sit down everyday and just stuff yourself or run to McDonald’s or Burger King and think you are going to lose weight.  What I am saying is that McDonald’s and Burger King are OK once or twice a month.  The other 28 days in the month you have to practice self-control and know that these are “treats” and not everyday meals.  Have a craving for a hamburger?  Instead of the the calorie-rich, fat-laden Double Whopper w/ Cheese, why not make a turkey burger at home with some avocado on a wheat bun, or how about cooking up a lean hamburger and dressing it up with some salsa, lettuce and even a few olives thrown on for good measure?  Not only are you going to cut your calorie consumption by 66%, these burgers are going to be so good and so delicious that you may swear of Burger King forever! 

I always give myself one “indulge” day a week.  I know this is my day to have a special treat for myself, or maybe to eat a little unhealthy.  The great part about it is when it’s all said and done – I don’t beat myself up over it!  In fact, I usually feel pretty good about myself because I know overall I’m still zooming right along towards my goal.

In fact, today, the day after my Cheetos episode, I planned my day around my indulgence.  I added an extra apple as a snack, and ate a very low-fat lunch.  For breakfast I had my usual banana and toast with a little bit of peanut butter.  Here it is 6:00PM and I’m not starving at all – I’ll have some chicken and other vegetables and a salad for dinner and be fine.

So stop beating yourself up and enjoy food like Julia Child told us to do.  As long as you are making steady progress towards your goals it is all good.  Just make sure that your indulgences don’t turn into an everyday affair and you will be just fine. 

We all need some McDonald’s fries at least once every few months!

Photo courtesy of Apple Blossom Photography on Flickr