The free day, or Guilt Free Day as I like to call it, has been one of the best motivating factors for my success in eating a healthy diet. The secret is in the way my body now associates completely different feelings to the foods I used to love.
I used to really enjoy a few beers in the evening. They were my reward for working hard all day (Miller Time!). I usually also watched a ball game or relaxed on the couch with some chips and salsa. I liked the taste, and of course I liked getting a little buzz.
I used to love cheese! It seemed to add flavor to almost any food, especially if it was a relatively plain food such as bread, chips, tortillas, salad, etc.
Ice Cream was one of my favorites. When I was a kid, I remember how excited I would be to get to have Neopolitan ice cream at my Dad's house! I even remember the bowls!
Since I had all these positive associations with foods that are high in calories and low in nutritional content, It had become extremely difficult to give them up. They taste good and remind me of good times. In addition, before I started using a Guilt Free Day, all I had on my side was will power. Every once in awhile, I would use will power to say no to these foods, and I would feel good about that, but my will power only seemed to ever last for a few times, or in the case of beer, a month or two, and then I would give in. I think I knew I was eating more than I should, but it just didn't seem like life would be all that great if I had to give up the foods I really enjoyed for good!
Enter the Guilt Free Day! Hallelujah! After committing to eat only the recommended foods on the Body for Life program for six days, I came upon my first free day. I was allowed to eat whatever I wanted, so my girlfriend and I went out for Lasagna and Ice Cream and a strange thing happened.
The first bite was amazing! The second was too! By the third bite, I had had enough! By the time I finished, I felt a little sick to my stomach.
Even in only six days, my body had adjusted to the point where it didn't crave as much fat, salt, and sugar.
I realized the Guilt Free Day is an excellent teacher, because that day I started creating new associations to the foods I used to love so much. Now when I think of Ice Cream, I think, only in small doses, because too much will make me feel sick! Cheese is so salty to me know, I barely think about it at all, and more than one beer means I'm going to feel really dehydrated!
The other great psychological component of the Guilt Free Day is the excuse it gives me on all the other days. When I get a craving for something I know I shouldn't eat, I simply say, "I'll save it for my free day" and the craving passes. By the time the Guilt Free Day comes around, I've usually forgotten about it, or I go ahead and eat it WITH NO GUILT WHATSOEVER!
Knowing what you should and shouldn't eat is important for your mind to understand. But to really learn it, your body needs to feel it on a physical level.
The Guilt Free Day is a weekly reminder of how I used to feel everyday - tired, dehydrated, and sugared up.
