The “Ruined” Diet Day Mentality and Why It’s Bad

Women (and a lot of men too) tend to think a certain way when they start their day off on a bad foot as far as their diet and eating healthy. Many people say the same thing. “Oh, I already ate horribly today, why not just finish off the day with a cheeseburger and french fries or pizza and call it a day”.

There is a reason the commercial was made about a woman who starts her day off right ( I think it is for a yogurt, or a healthy bowl of cereal), and then makes better food decisions throughout the rest of the day.

Then it shows the counter of that, and the woman starting off with a totally unhealthy breakfast and snacks, and going through the day eating fattening, greasy and fried foods.

It is true that the way we start our day, or even if we ruin it in the middle, our bodies crave “crap” for the rest of the day. I’m definite proof of that, and I have the mentality myself.

However, I noticed when I started to reject that mentality, and get right back on track that same day and eat right, my weight really seemed to either stabilize or come off if that’s what I was trying to do.

Foods like salty, fried fattening foods and sweets that are heavy and fatty in nature are truly addictive. There has been multiple studies that have pointed out that fatty and sugary foods have the same addictive chemical effects on the brain as some addictive drugs. However, part of it is also a state of mind.

You can definitely put yourself back into the right state of mind after eating unhealthily at one meal, and get back in the groove. It’s just that it takes a lot more effort to do it after you’ve indulged because your brain is sort of programmed to crave that kind of food for the rest of the day. When it doesn’t get it, it may still send out those signals, but they will go away.

You just have to be patient and realize that this is a typical process. It’s almost like going through a withdrawal phase. You have to add some willpower to it and really try to resist the urge to splurge.

You will be amazed that if you can get into the habit, it will impact your waistline like nothing else.  Skinny people typically have this habit, even if they don’t know it or actively try to do it.

They just may have a natural affinity to get back on track and they may naturally crave good eats after indulging in foods that make them feel crappy.  Your appetite gets fueled for fatty, greasy and sugary foods when it gets a taste of them in other words.

Emulate the skinny people in your life in this way, and in a few months, you will realize the positive impact it has on your weight goals.

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Are There Any Sweetener Alternatives That Aren’t Bad for You?

It seems like every time the sugar alternative industry comes up with a new industry darling artificial sweetener, the world falls in love. Until, that is, the bad news starts coming out about it.  This happened with Splenda, the sugar substitute with the chemical name sucralose that came out a while ago that claimed to be an offshoot of real sugar.

People loved it because it seemed like a healthier alternative to saccharin and aspartame, which is the common artificial sweetener found in diet drinks and sodas.  Now, people are clamoring for all natural sugar substitutes like Stevia (my personal favorite) and agave nectar (not sure about this one, I heard it is even harsher on the blood sugar than real sugar).

Sucralose, or Splenda, has come under scrutiny for a variety of reasons.  The first is the claim that it is a derivative of real sugar, which was one of the main draws behind its popularity.  People thought that by using it, they were using a sweetener that was close to real sugar, without all the calories.

In fact, it is a totally chemically altered form of the chemical we know as sugar.  There were also a lot of side effects claimed from the every day use of Splenda. People were starting to report side effects from headaches to kidney problems. Now, I don’t know how much you have to consume to get these types of side effects, that type of information is conveniently not available many times.

Now, there is also evidence that many artificial sweeteners are actually linked to obesity, increased body weight, and over eating. This is because your body is naturally programmed to expect higher calorie foods when ingesting sweets. When the sweet taste is there without the calories, it can promote excess hunger, carb cravings, and other habits that lead to weight gain.

Splenda has also now been linked to an impact on intestinal health. There are claims that it may actually harm or deplete the healthy intestinal flora that inhabity the gut.  Another reason not to eat it.  However, it makes me wonder if even by using my beloved Stevia, I’m promoting myself to over eat, and to crave carbs a lot more for the rest of the day. 

After all, it’s not sugar…..hmmm…..

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