So here you have it - Candice's take on Cheat Meals. Read, take it as her opinion, and use what you need. If you read something that you don't agree with, that's fine. I believe all things true should stand up to questioning so it may further confirm your own opinion, or perhaps raise some doubt on your original stance. Both are positives in my book.
Enjoy....
Candice Lamb....
Last weekend in Katherine we had
two lovely ladies come down and give us a great presentation on bodybuilding. So
many topics were covered, and one in particular really got my attention. Now
before I start ranting on about this keep in mind that in the health and
fitness and particularly body building industries, everyone does things very
differently. Also keep in mind that I am no expert, but I do quite a bit of
research and have been taught by some great athletes so if there is anything
you don’t agree with or think is wrong, let me know. Anyway, the topic of cheat
meals was mentioned and I saw a few eyes light up around the room and a few
months ago, mine would have popped out of my head at the sheer mention of
‘cheating’ on my nutrition program.
For my last comp prep I was allowed to
cheat once a week until TWO WEEKS pre comp, and I did! Right up until Kirsten
found out and had a stern word with me about having to get on stage in next to
nothing six weeks later…that stopped me cold in my tracks. I didn’t go crazy
with my cheats, but I definitely cheated once a week – usually with peanut m&ms
and medjool dates. This time around under a new coach, no cheat meals. None.
Nothing. Nada. So now that I am experiencing both sides of this argument I
thought I would do a bit of research and help you all minimise some time on
Facebook reading about it!
So what is a cheat meal? Well,
the name says it all – a meal that ALLOWS you to ‘cheat’ on whatever nutrition
plan you are following whether this be a structured plan for a competition or
just general clean eating. The point of a cheat meal? This might be a little
longwinded, so take a seat. Our bodies are created for survival and this means
holding on to a particular amount of fat to ensure that we are warm, our organs
are protected and for females, even more fat needs to be on board to make sure
we are ready to make babies. When we are on low calorie diets or restricted
food groups our metabolism starts to slow down over a period of time in order
to keep as much fat on us as possible. Crap, hey? The idea of a cheat meal is then to give the system a big kick up the bum – we introduce a heap of food we don’t normally eat and our metabolism momentarily freaks out and speeds up a bit to try and work it all off. Then we go back to our normal eating plan for the rest of the week and our metabolism returns to where it started. Sounds pretty good right? I found a lot of positive information on cheat meals and really, most of them make sense. Cheats help some people stay on track – knowing that you can give in to that chocolate craving on Saturday night might help you walk away from the confectionary aisle at Woollies earlier in the week. The absolute best thing about cheat meals in my book however is the small part of a social life that you can keep, especially when prepping for comp. Cheat meals allow you to go out for dinner, lunch, breakfast – whatever, once a week with your loved ones if you choose to do so. It takes away the isolation factor, particularly during a comp prep, which is something that I really struggle with. F
For those last few weeks that I wasn’t allowed to have cheat meals I became a hermit. The only place I would see people was at Uni, the gym or Woolworths…apart from that it was just me. And my cats. Just kidding, I don’t have cats, but I seriously turned into a crazy cat lady and for some people that could be the deal breaker to ever wanting to compete or opt for a healthier lifestyle.
When I was doing my research I
was a little surprised that almost EVERYTHING supported cheat meals. There was
hardly a bad thing mentioned about them however I think there are definite down
sides to this fantastic little invention. For me, the hardest thing about
cheating was knowing that I had to go back to normal at the next meal…once I
had a taste of those peanut m&ms, I never wanted to be without them again!
I know that other people also struggle with feelings of guilt after they have
cheated – even when it is a scheduled cheat meal. Knowing that you need to be
on stage in a few months and throwing chocolate and cake down your throat
really doesn’t settle any ‘I won’t be ready in time’ feelings.
So my overall thoughts on cheat
meals? Still undecided. I still don’t even know if they work for me. But what I
have noticed this time around is that now, this is so much more than trying to
get on stage in the best shape. For me this is now about being the healthiest I
can be and eating junk once a week won’t make me healthy, nor will it help me
lift heavy stuff at the gym. I can see some of you rolling your eyes and
thinking that one meal a week isn’t going to affect me that much, and you’re
right, it probably won’t, but when it comes to food, I have no off button. It’s
honestly easier for me to not allow myself to cheat. As much as I really want
to eat junk at times, especially now that I am back in Katherine and actually
wanting to socialise, I know that unhealthy foods won’t get me to where I want
to be. I also feel that it wouldn’t be beneficial on the program that I am on.
I am eating SO MUCH food. Six meals a day, and am getting heaps of calories
from all food groups and I don’t feel that a ‘cheat’ would speed up my
metabolism at all – it’ already firing so fast trying to work through all the
food I am getting fed! So what should you do? Unfortunately, I can’t tell you
what to do – I don’t even know what I’m doing myself most of the time! I did
find some great information written by Charles Poliquin with some tips that
Kirsten taught me which might help some of you …
1. Eat
your protein first – this will fill you up and give your muscles some nutrients
2. Always
eat your cheat meal at a table – either at home or a restaurant (I used to curl
up in bed with my m&ms and a book – craaaazy lady!)
3. Once
your butt leaves the seat your cheat meal is over
4. Plan
what you are going to eat before hand and don’t change your mind. Stuff goes
wrong when we aren’t prepared.
5. Even
though it’s your ‘cheat’ meal strive to make the healthier choice – have potato
instead of chips, brown bread instead of white etc etc
6. Save
your cheat meal for an event – go out on a date, have dinner at your mums…don’t
sit around and stuff your face on your own. You won’t eat as much when others
are watching you!
For those of you prepping for
comp this year or next here is a little quote from Scott Goble, Australian Body
Building Champion that snaps me out of my cravings (sometimes) ‘I doubt anyone
has ever completed a contest prep without wanting to cheat. The best thing is,
every time you think about it, one of your competitors does it, and you move up
another placing.’ Do yourselves a favour and follow him on Facebook!
So what’s next on the cards for
me? Well, I’m finally a member of the body conquest team and very excited about
it. I’m 12 and a little bit weeks out from my next competition and the
rollercoaster has well and truly started again. I took about three weeks off
from any structured nutrition plan and training after my last comp and I was a
miserable little troll. I felt so lost and empty without a goal in the near future so I decided to go again this year!
If all goes to plan (which it will, I’m a little terrified of letting Ingrid and the team down!) I’ll be competing in the fitness model division at the INBA Tropix in Townsville in September. It’s the same weekend at the INBA NT so unfortunately I can’t do both but I really wanted to experience a big competition and as the INBA season B (there are two seasons of bodybuilding shows every year) opener I know it will be huge! I feel a lot more prepared this time – I know where I fell down before and I’m trying to learn from that and better myself this time. Hopefully I’ll write a bit more during this comp prep if Kirsten doesn’t mind me hijacking her blog – it keeps me sane and on track and I know there are a few out there that read this blog. If there are any questions about anything – let me and Kirst know and we will get writing. 12 weeks to go, let’s do this! Xx
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