Can You Have One Cheat Day a Week on Keto?

Is there such a thing as a cheat day on Keto? And more importantly, is it okay to have one? 

Although Keto is not a restrictive diet, despite many people’s beliefs, there are times when you may feel the need to indulge a bit!

Strong emotions such as stress, lack of sleep, or anxiety might be the reason for your cravings.

Having a cheat day once a week while on keto is not recommended. Depending on the meals, you can be kicked out of ketosis, and repeating the cheat day every week will likely keep you out of ketosis. However, occasional cheat meals after you have been fat-adapted will be easier to bounce back from.

So what is fat-adaptation, and what are the ways to get around the occasional cheat meals? 

We will go over them in this blog. So keep on reading! 

Reason Why You Shouldn’t Cheat on a Ketogenic Diet Regularly.

The purpose of practicing a ketogenic diet is to get into the state of ketosis. 

The ketogenic diet is a low-carb, high-fat diet that forces your body to use its fat instead of carbohydrates, a state known as ketosis. 

Ketones are the by-products of fat burning and are a powerful source of energy with numerous benefits for overall health and weight loss. 

For a beginner, on average, it takes between 4 to 6 weeks to get into ketosis while following a ketogenic diet. 

Fat Adaptation 

Once in ketosis, it will take months to get fully fat-adapted and enjoy all the benefits of ketosis. 

The longer you follow the keto plan consistently, the more fat-adapted your body will become. This means your body becomes efficient at using its own fat as fuel. 

When it comes to cheating on keto, the damage from the cheat meal will depend on how fat-adapted your body is.

If you have been on a Ketogenic diet for several months or several years, your body can get in and out of ketosis faster and easier. 

Therefore, the less damage control you will need after a cheat meal or cheat day.

What Happens to Your Body When You Cheat on Keto?

Keto can and likely will diminish your glucose tolerance. This means your body no longer uses sugar as the primary fuel.

When you cheat on keto, you force your body back into using sugar for energy. 

As a result, you may suffer from some consequences, including body ache, headaches, foggy brain, fatigue, and overall weakness.

Studies indicate the human body thrives using only one primary fuel source, sugar or ketones. 

Switching back and forth between the two fuels may cause damage to the metabolism.

Can You Do Keto for Five Days and Have Two Days Off?

After a cheat meal or cheat day, it can take the body up to 7 days to get back into ketosis, depending on how fat-adapted you are. 

Therefore, if you cheat for two days per week and only follow the keto diet for five days, you will likely not have enough time to get back into ketosis.

This will defeat the purpose of the ketogenic diet and will not provide you with the benefits of ketosis.  

Does a Cheat Meal Boost Your Metabolism?

A study published in The Journal of Metabolism demonstrated that one cheat meal is not enough to offset the number of calories you ate during the cheat. 

Based on this study, one cheat meal does not provide any significant benefits, and you will not gain any metabolic boost from it.

How to Properly Cheat on Keto?

So what if you have been on keto for months and now have the urge to cheat a little?

There are ways to do some damage control from your cheat meal, and here is how to do it:

• Wait at least 4-6 weeks when you initially begin Keto. Do not cheat during those initial weeks.
• Plan the cheat meal or cheat day. Don’t go ravenous and eat whatever you want without a solid plan. 
• Try cheating with fats instead of carbohydrates and sugar. 
• Increase your fiber intake during your cheat day. 
• Try lower glycemic cheat meals. 
• Try higher saturated fat meals. 
• Take some diluted apple cider vinegar with your cheat meal.
• Take Vitamin K, Vitamin D, Magnesium, and B1: to buffer the effect of the high sugar. 
• Don’t spread out your cheat day to a cheat week! Do it for one day and get back on track. 

Having a strategy for your cheat meal or cheat day is critical! Stay within the keto limits and have a little fun with it. 

Best Cheat Day Food Items

• Keto pizza
• Keto bread
• Extra cheese 
• Steak
• Keto ice cream ( HALO TOP, etc.)
• Fat bombs
• Keto bars
• Keto snacks
• Keto cookies
• Keto chips
• Pork rinds

The Day After Your Cheat Day:

• Do not feel guilty! 
  • We all do it; it happens. Let’s move on.
  • The goal is to get back into ketosis as fast as possible.
  • Your blood sugar is high, and we want to burn the extra sugar quickly. 

• Exercise: 
  • Get moving and workout the morning after your cheat meal, on an empty stomach.
    • HIIT (high-intensity interval training) A 20-30 minutes session would help use the sugar in the blood system.
    • Weight training. The presence of glucose in your blood, after a cheat meal, makes it an ideal time to build muscle. A good weight training session will go a long way!
    • Low-intensity cardio. Practice low-intensity cardio for 30-60 minutes to mobilize the fat in your body.
• Meditate. Meditation can help you relax and take away the anxiety and guilt that may come after a cheat day or a cheat meal.

After a cheat day, the body likely has inflammation due to the consumption of carbohydrates and fats together, to help combat that you can:

• Take some omega-3, chromium, and bone broth to combat the inflammation.
• Fast for 20-24 hours to compensate for the damage. 
• Drink plenty of water.
• Drink diluted Apple cider vinegar.
• Get back on Keto, and don’t look back!

Takeaway 

You have to make your own educated decision about whether it’s worth having that chocolate cake. But if you do, have a plan, and do not let it go too far, do it methodically in order to control the damage. Have you cheated on your keto? Let us know about it in the comments.