Day 43, Saturday 25th August 2018, start of week 7 (halfway point).
Weight lost since last weigh-in: 2lbs (0.9Kg)
Total weight loss to date: 16.6lbs (7.5Kg)
While I’ve lost a little extra than normal in weight this week, (2lbs as opposed to around 1.5lbs), I’ve not seen any discernible change in my waistline, etc. It does work a bit odd like that, though.
You may also find that things you do this week won’t show in this week’s weigh-in but will the following week. By that I mean you could cheat on a Tuesday, but when you do your weekly weigh-in on a Saturday, you won’t necessarily see the effects from that cheat or extra workout. It seems that you are more likely to see that affect your next weigh-in.
It’s why you need to keep a record and to expect these fluctuations. As long as things keep going in the right direction over time.
Last week I talked about “cheating” when on a diet. Mannatech’s 90-day challenge doesn’t specify having cheats/treats, but it is something that is often reported as having positive effects on a person who is dieting.
Restricting calories has been shown to influence several hormones in the body, two of which we are concerned about are Leptin and T3.
Leptin is the hormone that helps tell us that we are hungry or that we have enough energy stored and can stop eating. It’s secreted by fat cells and is key to maintaining your body’s energy balance. As you may guess, being in a prolonged state of calorie deficit can lead to a drop in leptin levels and can increase the chances of a person who is dieting going on an uncontrolled binge. As a result, it has been shown that an occasional higher intake of calories can help keep your leptin levels up and keep binging at bay.
T3 is a thyroid hormone (not just a film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger) that helps regulate our metabolic rate. As with leptin, prolonged calorie restriction can reduce the production of this hormone (and other thyroid hormones), leading to a lower metabolic rate – the exact opposite of what we need when trying to burn fat.
There is also the psychological effects on a person who is dieting, not just the physiological. Allowing yourself a reward for doing well can help boost how we feel about ourselves during a diet, and help make it a little less like a long and hard slog.
Am I making excuses for having the occasional treat? No, not really, research has shown the positives of “cheating”, and I’m sure there is also some research showing the opposite. I’ve only just scraped the top of this subject here and would suggest you do your own research. You, of course, just have to make sure a “cheat” does not turn into “binge”, where too many calories have been consumed, and you go up in weight, which in turn fuels negative feelings about yourself.
If you are eating properly – by that I mean eating healthy, balanced meals, and not just eating junk with little nutritional value, you should find less need for cheats as time goes on. It will just mean that you can have that ice cream on a hot day or that sticky pudding if you go out for a meal. As long as these are the exceptions and not the norm.
Finally, to clarify what I mean with regards to a cheat and a binge – a cheat is where you may have a meal or treat (such as ice cream) with a higher than normal calorie rating. This is something that you could have once or twice a week and may make a little difference to your weekly weigh-in result, or you could potentially burn off by doing some extra exercise. A binge is a prolonged period of high-calorie intake and/or having a meal that far outstrips your recommended intake over a period of time to the point where it will take more than an extra workout or two to undo the intake of these extra calories.
How to donate
You can donate to my chosen charity here:
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