Have you seen the memes and images showing you how many calories you need to burn, or how many burpees you need to do to work off your chocolate cookies or ice cream? Have you ever felt like you need to do a workout, or go for a walk / run because of something you ate?
This is a really common form of punishing yourself for what you ate. It’s one of the quickest ways to start resenting exercise and a sure fire way to get stuck in a cycle of eating something, then feeling guilty for eating it if you then DON’T get your butt moving afterwards.
The problem with this scenario is that it’s not a great way to form a positive relationship with food OR exercise. Both of these things are a part of life that are necessary not only for survival and good health, but for true ENJOYMENT of life. I’ve been through a period of having an awful relationship with both and I can tell your first hand it’s not an effective way to create sustainable weight loss (if that’s even a goal), happiness or a life that you love.
Stress can have an incredibly detrimental effect on our bodies; chronic stress can lead to a variety of disorders related to poor digestion, anxiety, depression, weight gain and so much more. Punishing yourself with exercise and feeling guilty about what you’re eating is going to cause stress to your body - possibly more of a negative effect than if you just ate and enjoyed the food then moved on with your day. If you continue this cycle of guilt and punishment over a period of time, your efforts to eat well and exercise will backfire sooner or later.
So, when you choose to eat something, whether it feels like a treat to you or not, please celebrate and make the most of it guilt free, then move on.The best way to send yourself into a downward spiral is to be upset with yourself for 'caving in'. It is so much easier to stay on track with your goals and healthy eating (in my opinion), if you decide what you're going to have, enjoy it and then get on with your day.
When it comes to exercise, I think it’s so important to examine your mindset around it and choose to do it because it makes you feel good, not because you are desperately trying to torch some fat after something you ate!
Just like one day of eating healthy isn't miraculously going to change your health, one day of including some treats isn't seriously going to destroy your consistent healthy habits, unless you allow it to.