Nelson-Yes having fast food every weekend and fatty food during the week is definitely HORRIBLE for your aunt. Not only is she loading her system with saturated fat and other crap, shes most likely getting more calories then she needs... hence the weight gain. Fast food ONCE IN A WHILE is ok... however I would still try to keep it in check... having 2 double whoppers with extra large fries, extra large soda, and milkshake would definitely set a person back big time. Instead if i a person were going to do fast food they'd be better just ordering a small simple burger with extra veggies, small fries, water or diet soda if they must have soda, and side salad.. this wouldn't set them back as much... Fast food makes me want to vomit. I don't see how people can put that crap in their bodies and feel ok.
Bossman-I totally agree with you on this one! Some people "need" cheat meals to keep their sanity and I've found that others do better without them. I honestly feel like I do better without cheat meals.... atleast while i'm in contest diet. The last time I had a cheat meal was 6 weeks ago and i felt so guilty and physically ill afterwards that it just wasn't worth it. Plus, for me, its hard to just have one cheat meal then stop. I want the whole cake or none at all! LOL! Once I go off this diet, I believe I will obviously "treat" myself every now and then, however will not designate a specific cheat meal each week. I think I'll be so stinking happy to be able to have things like fruit and oatmeal that eating those will be like cheating!
Kevsworld- I do agree with you that having a cheat meal can definitely provide a metabolic advantage as it kind of shocks your system a bit... especially for those on low(er) calorie diets and those who tend to eat the same things every day. I'm currently training for a figure competition and have been doing reload days instead of cheat meals to kind of play with metabolism a bit.... without going totally overboard on calories. Once a week or so instead of having a cheat meal I increase carbs and calories a bit to shake things up a bit. It seems to help and workouts the next day always rock from the extra carbs and calories.
Overall I think if a cheat meal helps to keep your sanity then go for it. However, if you find that your cheat meals are turning into cheat days then you could be setting yourself back more than helping yourself. I do think that a cheat meal shouldn't be an excuse to go completely crazy and eat 3 whole pizzas... instead it should be a way to satisfy a sweet tooth.. or have a bit of whatever youre craving.
Just thoughts.
Cassie
. However joking aside, she needs to be advised to alter some of her ways. Mild gorging on junk at weekends, is not in her best interests, and unless she attempts to reverse this worrying trend, it could cause bad repurcussions for her, potentially sooner rather than later.
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Im still having a hard time of eating enough calories through out the day while eating clean, but Ill get there. I started mixing fruit in with protein shakes and it is like cheating without the cheating, its really good and I look forward to having them so it does a lot to satisfy cravings that might otherwise lead me to the vending machine or worse! 