Licence To Eat

Ajay was devastated that four months of vigorous exercises had not given the results he was looking for. He was exercising for two hours a day. He had not lost a kilo and was demotivated to discontinue exercise all together. When I probed about his eating habits, he finally confided that he generally treated himself to a pastry,a beer, a packet of chips etc in the night. He thought it was okay to reward himself as he was working out.

I have been associated with the fitness industry for many years now. During that period, I have seen multiple cases where people join the gym to burn off calories they consume through an unhealthy diet, or a busy, extravagant social life. And rather than focusing on getting fit and healthy, many are using it as a way of ‘balancing the scales’ – wiping out the unhealthy food they have already tucked into or giving them an excuse to eat more.

Let us do the math. One medium size samosa is around 300 calories and a 200ml juice is around 250 calories. An average person burns anywhere between 300 and 400 cals an hour. Some people burn even less. But post workout if somebody has a samosa and juice it adds upto 450 calories, which is more than what they burnt. So the argument that I can reward myself falls flat.

Post-workout indulgence:

This is more common than many people would admit. We fail to underestand  that a rewarding behaviour can cause us to regularly overeat without even noticing. And before we know it,  we end up eating more calories than we have actually burned.

Psychology of “the reward”:

Our brains are malleable substances. They notice, learn, and adopt patterns and behaviors without us consciously realizing it. This can be great for learning basic skills as a child, but it can be detrimental to our success when trying to permanently adopt a healthy lifestyle.

Though after a great workout we may think to ourselves, “Hey, I worked really hard. I’ve totally earned a little sweet treat!” We must consider what is going on.

Rewarding our good behaviors with opposing, less desirable behaviors can actually trigger our brain to derail and fall back into our old lifestyles of unhealthy eating and reward systems.

Even just one treat as a reward can lead us off course. One cookie can easily trigger our brain to fall into an addictive behavior…until it’s not just one cookie anymore.

Reward mentality is often the very same reason as to why people don’t end up losing weight, even though they are working out up to 4 or 5 times a week. The number of calories consumed in that post-workout treat tends to be higher than the calories burnt in the workout; making the workout completely null and void.

Solutions:

Prepare ahead:

Keeping handy post workout snacks at hand is absolutely necessary. When food is readily available after workout, our mind will heed to discipline.

Do not starve:

We should not starve ourself. The more hungry we are, the more likely it is that we end up eating far more than we need. Eat regularly. Try to find delicious snacks and treats that are healthy and won’t ruin the results or training effects.

Food is not a reward:

We should stop viewing food as a reward. If we ask ourselves  a fundamental  question ‘what is food?’, the simple answer is that it is fuel. Food is fuel for the body and quite simply – the better the fuel, the better the performance. Instead of thinking how we feel when we eat a desired food, we should  think about what our body needs in terms of nutrients.

Hydrate Well:

Nine times out of ten, when we think we are hungry, we are actually experiencing  thirst. Yes, our brains confuse the early signs of dehydration; low energy, sleepiness, moodiness  with feelings of hunger as thirst and hunger centre lie next to each other in the brain. Make sure to always carry  a water bottle filled with fresh water with you whenever you work out and remember to drink small, frequent sips from it throughout.If you do feel hungry after exercise, try drinking lots of water first and then wait for 20 minutes before asking yourself whether you are hungry. If you still feel hungry, have a healthy meal of carbohydrates and protein.

Stop Measuring:

It is so easy to become obsessed with number counting every last little morsel that enters our mouths, but it really is not a healthy and sustainable way to live. If we are eating a healthy, whole food, balanced diet full of fresh fruit, vegetables, protein and carbs, and try to avoid consuming as little processed foods, sugars and alcohol as possible then we really shouldn’t need to worry about the calorie content of your food. Likewise when you exercise, don’t become fixated with the number of calories you’ve burnt.

Clean up the house:

Do not stock any junk at home. When there is nothing stocked chances of bingeing are minimal.

Final Thoughts:

Most of us look at exercise as a difficult task that requires a lot of effort to accomplish. So, when we have a good workout, we feel the need to reward ourselves with a heavy meal. This trap all too often leads to overindulgence, thus driving up calorie intake and messing up weight loss or muscle building progress. One very simple but effective way of stopping this cycle is to view exercise in a new light. If you start looking at exercise as something fun and necessary for enjoying overall health and fitness, you will not feel the need to reward yourself for reaching a huge milestone in your fitness journey.

We do not have a Licence To Eat just because we decide to exercise.