糖質制限にチートデイを設けるメリットとは? やり方やポイントを解説

What are the benefits of having a cheat day for carbohydrate restriction? How to do it and key points explained.

 

Carbohydrate restriction is one of the dieting methods that have been gaining attention in recent years. By reducing the amount of carbohydrates in the diet, fat can be burned more easily and weight can be lost efficiently. The amount of insulin secreted by carbohydrate intake is also reduced, making it more difficult to gain fat.

This article explains the benefits of setting up cheat days in sugar restriction, effective ways to do so, and key points. We hope you will find it useful.

 

Table of Contents.
What is a Cheat Day during Sugar Restriction?

Benefits of Cheat Days During Sugar Restriction

How to Do a Cheat Day While Restricting Sugar

Key Points to Incorporate Cheat Days While Restricting Sugar

Points to keep in mind while restricting carbohydrates

Conclusion

What is a cheat day during a sugar-free day?
Cheat means to deceive or cheat. A cheat day in relation to carbohydrate restriction or dieting is a day to lift dietary restrictions for one day. In recent years, more and more people are successfully incorporating cheat days into their dieting periods.

It is not uncommon for people to reduce the amount of food they eat in order to lose weight, but if they continue to do so, it will no longer be effective. This is because the body is considered to be in a state of starvation and begins to store energy, causing the metabolism to slow down. Cheat days prevent the body from going into a starvation state and allow you to lose weight efficiently. Cheat days also have the effect of releasing a moderate amount of stress as you continue your carbohydrate restriction.

Benefits of having a cheat day while restricting carbohydrates

The benefits of having cheat days while restricting carbohydrates are as follows

Helps relieve stress caused by dietary restrictions
Maintain basal metabolism
Supplement nutrients
Prevents plateaus caused by restricted diets.

Each of these will be explained in detail.

Helps relieve stress caused by dietary restrictions

 

Setting up cheat days is an effective way to keep up with carbohydrate restriction without strain.

There are many situations in which people have to endure foods they want to eat in dietary restrictions, including carbohydrate restriction, and this can cause a lot of stress. In particular, people who normally eat rice, bread, noodles, and other carbohydrates as their staple food will easily feel a great deal of stress in reaction when they start restricting carbohydrates. Excessive stress can lead to overeating and cause rebounding.

A rebound is when a dieter temporarily loses weight but then gains it back. Since you may gain more weight than you did before the diet, you need to be careful not to rebound.

By adopting a cheat day, you can relieve stress in moderation by having a day when you can eat rice or bread that you would normally hold off on. If you set a cheat day date in advance, you will find it easier to look forward to that day and continue your daily sugar restriction. It will help you stay motivated and add variety to your days as you continue your carbohydrate restriction.

Maintain basal metabolism

Reducing calories in the diet through carbohydrate restriction or dieting may result in a loss of muscle mass and basal metabolism. Basal metabolism is the energy consumption necessary to maintain life, such as maintaining body temperature at rest and worrying activities. It is estimated that basal metabolism accounts for 60-70% of total energy consumption.

It is important to note that if muscle is broken down and reduced due to carbohydrate restriction, at the same time, basal metabolism is reduced and weight loss becomes more difficult. If you have cheat days and take in calories, you can maintain your basal metabolism without losing weight even though you normally restrict carbohydrates. In order not to lose muscle mass, be sure to take in enough protein and exercise moderately.

Supplement nutrients

Because carbohydrate restriction limits the range of foods that can be eaten, it is easy for the nutritional balance to become unbalanced. Lack of important nutrients such as dietary fiber, vitamins, and minerals can lead to a decline in immunity and basic metabolism. With a lowered immune system, resistance to bacteria and viruses is weakened, making people more susceptible to illness.

Therefore, it is especially important to pay attention to nutritional balance during sugar restriction. Even if you lose weight, your health will suffer. By having moderate cheat days, you can broaden the range of foods you can eat and compensate for the nutrients you tend to lack. During cheat days, try to eat not only the foods you like, but also the foods that will provide you with the nutrients you need.

 

Prevent stagnation due to dietary restrictions

Even if you are on a carbohydrate restriction program and are steadily losing weight, if you continue to do so, you may gradually lose the effect and fall into a period of stagnation. When caloric intake is suppressed, the body judges that it is in a state of starvation, and homeostasis (maintenance of homeostasis) kicks in. Homeostasis is the mechanism by which the human body maintains normal physiological functions in response to change.

When caloric intake is drastically reduced, homeostasis suppresses energy consumption to maintain life, and as a result, it is difficult to lose weight. Therefore, if you normally restrict carbohydrates, but supply calories and nutrients on cheat days, your body will not be judged as starving. Try to incorporate cheat days as often as once a week as a countermeasure when you hit a plateau.

Related article

*A chronological explanation of the changes that appear with carbohydrate restriction! What are the advantages, disadvantages and tips for success in a short time?

 

How to do a cheat day while restricting sugar
The following is how to do a cheat day while restricting carbohydrates

1. set a calorie intake guideline
2. calculate the amount of carbohydrates and protein
3. be aware of what you eat and how you eat it.

Each of these is explained in detail.

 

1. Set a calorie intake guideline
First, set a guideline for the amount of calories you can consume on your cheat day. Basically, you can eat whatever you like on your cheat day, but avoid overeating as it can cause rebound. Calculate your calorie intake in advance and know what you are allowed to eat.

The standard amount of calories you should consume on a cheat day is three times your basal metabolic rate. The basal metabolic rate varies with age, gender, and weight. The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare publishes the basal metabolic rate reference values for Japanese people.

 

[Basal metabolic rate for women].

 

Reference value of daily basal metabolism (kcal/kg)

Reference weight (kg)

Basal metabolic rate (kcal/day)

18-29 years old

22.1

50.0

1,110

30-49 years old

21.7

53.1

1,150

 

[Male basal metabolic rate】

 

Reference value of daily basal metabolism (kcal/kg)

Reference weight (kg)

Basal metabolic rate (kcal/day)

18~29歳

24.0

63.2

1,520

30~49歳

22.3

68.5

1,530


The approximate calorie intake on cheat days for men is as follows ● 18-29 years old and 63.2 kg: 4,560 kcal ● 30-49 years old and 68.5 kg: 4,590 kcal

2. Calculate the amount of carbohydrates and proteins.
Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for the human body. Protein is an important nutrient for muscle maintenance. While you basically reduce carbohydrate intake during carbohydrate restriction, you can eat carbohydrates aggressively on cheat days. However, you need to calculate your carbohydrate and protein intake.

The guidelines for the amount of carbohydrate and protein you should take are as follows.
Approximate amount of carbohydrates: 6 g per kilogram of body weight
Approximate amount of protein: 1 to 2 grams per kilogram of body weight

If carbohydrate intake is extremely low, the aforementioned homeostasis will function to sustain life and weight loss will be difficult. If you take in enough carbohydrates on cheat days, you can prevent your body from recognizing that you are starving. This will prevent a period of stagnation in weight loss and will allow you to lose weight more efficiently.

 3. Be aware of what you eat and how you eat it
Even on cheat days when you are allowed to eat whatever you want, you need to be aware of what you are eating and how you are eating it. For example, junk food and sugary foods can trigger binge eating, even if you only intend to eat them once. This is because salt, fat, and sugar are highly addictive. If you are going to eat junk food or sweets, do so in small quantities and for a set amount of time.

Cheat days also require that you be creative not only in what you eat, but also how you eat it. It is recommended that you do not eat a lot of food at one time, but rather consume small portions. Since you will consume more calories on cheat days than usual, it is best to divide your meals into three to five portions. You need to remember that you are on a diet even on cheat days, and you need to be mindful of your diet.

 

Points for incorporating cheat days while restricting carbohydrates

The key points to incorporate cheat days while restricting carbohydrates are as follows

Eat a well-balanced diet even on cheat days.
Maintain a carbohydrate-based diet.
Avoid exercise on cheat days.

Each of these points will be explained in detail.

Maintain a balanced diet even on cheat days.

If you binge eat or drink because it is a cheat day, it will be hard on your body and may be detrimental to your health. If your health deteriorates, it will have a negative impact on your carbohydrate intake from the next day onward, causing your diet to fail, so you need to be careful about what you eat. Basically, it is advisable to eat three to five well-balanced meals even on cheat days.

Eating too much at once can cause stomach upset, heartburn, daytime sleepiness, and fatigue. Be careful not to eat too much at one time, as this can cause a rapid rise in blood glucose levels and excessive insulin secretion. Avoid binge eating and eat moderate amounts of food to ensure good mental and physical health.

Be aware that cheat day meals should be well-balanced in terms of protein, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients.

Make carbohydrate the main meal.

The main meal on cheat days will be carbohydrates. During a normal carbohydrate restriction, you basically consume more protein instead of less carbohydrate. On the other hand, cheat days are high in carbohydrates, so you do not need to consume as much protein.

The standard amount of carbohydrate to take is 6 grams per kilogram of body weight. As an example, if you weigh 50 kg, your carbohydrate intake would be 300 g. As a reference, a bowl of rice (about 150g) contains about 53g of carbohydrate. Therefore, if you take in 300 g of carbohydrate, you would eat 6 cups of rice.

In addition to rice, other foods that contain a lot of carbohydrates include bread, noodles, grains, potatoes, beans, and root vegetables. Some fruits and vegetables are high in carbohydrates, depending on their type.

 

Refrain from exercise on cheat days.

Adequate exercise during carbohydrate restriction will help you lose weight more efficiently. This is because exercise helps maintain muscle mass, which keeps basal metabolism from dropping. However, it is important to relax and refrain from exercise during cheat days.

Cheat days are more difficult on the gastrointestinal tract because more food is consumed than during carbohydrate restriction. You should stay in a restful state because you need to expend a lot of energy to digest the food and absorb it well. Strenuous exercise under heavy strain can cause digestive problems and physical discomfort. If you exercise on cheat days, keep it light, such as stretching or walking.

 

Points to keep in mind while restricting carbohydrates
The following are points to keep in mind while restricting carbohydrates
● Complete cheat days in one day ● Be careful when to do cheat days ● Do not choose only meals that are high in fat.
Each of these is explained in detail.

 

End your cheat day in one day.
Cheat day practices should be completed in one day. This is because although your body will be in a better state to burn fat if you continue to restrict carbohydrates, if you consume more carbohydrates, you will be more likely to gain fat again. Even if the diet has helped you lose weight, if you continue to do cheat days for days on end and increase your calorie intake, you are more likely to rebound.

If you are continually holding off on the foods you want to eat through sugar restriction, you may be tempted to continue cheat days for many days instead of just one. However, you must have a strong will to stick with your carbohydrate restriction in order to successfully lose weight. Be aware that the cheat day is only effective because it is only one day, so be sure to restrict carbohydrates the next day.

Be careful when to conduct cheat days
Cheat days should be conducted with care in terms of timing. Do not do a cheat day when you are restricting carbohydrates and have not lost any weight.

A cheat day is intended to prevent the body from recognizing that it is starving itself and starting to function in a homeostatic manner due to continued carbohydrate restriction. If you do a cheat day before your body perceives that it is starving, you will gain weight due to caloric intake.

The best time for a cheat day is during a period of weight loss plateau. Even if you are steadily losing weight due to carbohydrate restriction, it may become progressively harder to lose weight. If you feel that your diet is losing its effectiveness, you may want to incorporate a cheat day.

 

Don't choose only meals that are high in fat.
Excessive fat intake on cheat days can lead to poor health and weight gain. Be careful not to consume only foods that contain a lot of fat, such as butter, cream, and fried foods. As mentioned above, set a calorie intake guideline in advance and avoid consuming fat in amounts that exceed the guideline.

Nutritional balance in your diet is important, even on cheat days. Eating a variety of foods provides a wide range of nutrients. If you eat sweets, fruits and Japanese sweets are recommended rather than western sweets, which tend to be high in fat and calories. In recent years, health-conscious people have also become more health-conscious and there are Western-style confections with reduced fat content. It is also a good idea to include them as a cheat day snack.

Related Articles

What is *Sugar? Basic knowledge and recommended products for a healthy lifestyle

*How to choose snacks and recommended products that are OK during ketogenic!

 

Conclusion.
You can lose weight more efficiently if you have moderate cheat days during carbohydrate restriction. This is because cheat days can prevent diets from plateauing, and keep you motivated to continue restricting carbohydrates. Cheat days will relieve the stress of holding back on food cravings in moderation, leading to a successful diet.
If you want to eat delicious sweets even when you are restricting sugar, we recommend NATUVIEW's products, which focus on low-sugar products. NATUVIEW's products are characterized by their unique keto-theory-based manufacturing process, which effectively utilizes fat while reducing sugar content.
In particular, NATUVIEW's gateau chocolates, with their reduced sugar content and rich flavor, are ideal for cheat day snacks. You can enjoy a luxurious dessert time without feeling guilty on cheat days during sugar restrictions.

 

 

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