Although I really loved having a cheat day to look forward to each week to plan special lunches or dinners out or decadent dessert recipes I wanted to try with the kids, I found that my cheat day wasn't just one day. It turned into more like a cheat couple of days. There were leftover baked cider doughnuts or slices of peanut butter pie, and I was eating a few servings each on Sunday and into Monday. I started to feel the same sugar overload I was feeling before I started this cheat day experiment.
I started to have the attitude, "Well I already screwed up; I might as well keep going," which made for other unhealthy choices like skipping Monday and sometimes Tuesday workouts and not getting enough sleep. By Tuesday or Wednesday, I would pull it together and get back on track, but the cycle started up again come Saturday.
The result? I ended up gaining a few pounds by the end of the month, which was a red flag for me because my weight hasn't changed much. Aside from feeling uncomfortable in my skin, eating too much sugar made me bloated all week long. I was foggy headed, and I had increased sugar cravings, increased hunger, and low energy. Eating crappy three or four days out of the week just made me feel crappy all week. I felt out of control, unbalanced, and not at all like myself.