This is a scary time of year to be dieting. With what seems like endless temptations around, it would be easy to cheat or have a lapse. We know that you’ll have moments of weakness and you may eventually cave. When you do slip up, you may take some comfort in the fact that everyone makes diet mistakes once in a while. We’ve blogged about what to do after a cheat before. And we still maintain that what’s most important is what you do immediately after. Hint: the absolute worst thing you can do is beat yourself up about it.
To start, recognize it for what it is—a lapse.
Your day started out right. You showered, got dressed, got the kids off to school and went to work. You took your HCG drops and ate your planned and pre-measured meal. And then the Halloween candy started calling your name. You ignored it. You were strong for hours. But it kept calling and kept calling. The only way to make it stop calling was to eat it. And just like that, in that moment, your diet went from “great!” to “gosh.”
Don’t be too hard on yourself. Don’t let it get out of control. And most importantly, don’t give up. Here are some strategies to bounce back mentally and physically from a cheat:
1 – Expect to Stall or Gain
The biggest consequence to cheating on the HCG Diet is weight gain or stalled weight loss. Not everyone gains after a cheat, but most people do. It’s a good idea to have a good stall-breaker like Green Coffee Total on hand (and check out Lowery’s Cali Kicker blog post for more information about how stall-breakers work).
2 – Don’t freak out.
Gaining weight does not mean your diet is ruined. Don’t get down on yourself. Don’t dwell on it. Just get back on track and go forward. The weight will come back off, it just may take a couple of days.
3 – Figure out what triggered your cheat
Most people can identify the emotional trigger to cheat on their diet. Stress is a big one. Boredom, habits, sometimes even people can trigger a food-based response. People eat in response to a particular emotion because they think the food will help them feel better. And maybe it will, for a fleeting moment. I heard Oprah say something once—something to the effect that nothing you can eat feels as good as being fit feels. The point is to figure it out so you can change your response to your triggers next time.
4 – React differently—Stay Positive
I know it’s easier said than done, but the idea is that instead of telling yourself what a failure you are for cheating, you treat yourself like you’d coach a friend who’d done the same thing. “So you ate some fun-sized candy bars. So what? Let’s go for a walk to burn the calories and get back on track.” And the next time you’re stressed, try stalling your reaction to eat. If you can put off the urge to eat by calling a friend, changing your scenery by taking a walk or a drive, or try relaxing to some soothing music and a cup of tea.
Diet cheats happen to all of us, but it’s important not to let one little mistake ruin your diet for good. You’re not a failure, you’re human. A human who lost a battle but who can still win the war.
Want to lose weight quickly? Try HCG Triumph diet drops. Looking for more tips like these? Check out our downloadable e-book, Lose 50 Pounds Guaranteed. It has tips from our experienced diet coaches to walk you through every Phase of the diet and guarantee your success.
