Alright… it’s saturday already. You’ve done well during the week, probable eaten way less than you’ve burned. Things are going well, the scale is going down.
But somehow you manage to ruin all of it in one night. You decide you’re going to have pizza as your cheat meal. Then you eat almost an entire 16 inch pizza by yourself!
But you don’t stop there. You drink some coca cola with it, and then you have ice cream later in the evening as a dessert.
Congratulations. You’ve just ruined a week’s worth of dieting in one sitting.
Sound familiar?
I know I’ve done this multiple times myself when trying to cut off some body fat.
I’ve eaten 5000 calories in one sitting, that’s like two days worth of calories in ONE HUGE MEAL.
Maybe you’re not as bad as me, but still find yourself way overeating when you have your glorious cheat meal.
You’re in for some good news.. I have found a method on how to eat pizza and still lose weight.
This can also be applied to other sorts of cheat meals.
How to eat pizza and still lose weight
This formula is easy to remember, but just in case you might want to bookmark this article or subscribe at the top right corner of this page.
As with most other good things in life, it’s simple.
What you need is:
- An apple. A medium or large apple will do.
- A glass of water. A decent sized glass, not too small, not too big. Resources to refill that glass are required as well.
Alright, so this is a two-step process. If that doesn’t work, I’ve outlined a third bonus step.
Step 1: About 15-20 minutes before eating the pizza, eat your medium or large apple. I like to do this in the car on my way to pick up the pizza (shh… don’t tell the cops I’m DAE – “Driving And Eating”).
Step 2: Drink an entire glass of water with each slice of pizza. Put one slice on your plate at a time, and NEVER, EVER reach for another slice without finishing and refilling your glass of water.
Simple, right? Just try it.. this stuff really works.
But just in case it doesn’t, here comes the bonus step:
Bonus Step: When you’re eating your first slice, only eat half of it (and drink a half glass of water). Then, go stand up and do something for about 3-5 minutes. For example go and empty the dishwasher or take out the trash. When you’re done, sit back down and continue eating your pizza as described in Step 2.
The results? You will most likely eat WAY less and still feel just as full.
A basic pizza dinner with the family would usually involve me eating 6 slices of a large pizza and 3 breadsticks. When doing it this way, I eat 3 slices and 1 breadstick and I still feel absolutely stuffed.
Actually, I feel pretty much full after doing Step 1 (the apple) and the Bonus Step (eating half a slice + water and waiting 3-5 minutes). I just feel that I should finish the three slices because after all it is my “cheat meal”.
Conclusion
If you want to lose fat, but still have that glorious cheat meal every now and then, then this method will help you not to overeat.
You can also apply this to other cheat meals, such as burgers, cakes and fried chicken.
Do you know any special tricks to reduce appetite and prevent overeating? Please say so in the comments section below.
You had me at “how to eat pizza”! Good tips though, there is no way you could eat as much using this plan, it would be far less appealing.
One trick that works for me is to make sure that the meal beforehand is nutrient dense. This takes away the cravings you might get when you are staring at the menu ready to order. It becomes just a treat and you don’t feel the need to stuff yourself as much.
Another is to make sure I buy the most expensive, highest quality item I can. Not only does this mean I appreciate it more, but it also means I likely will buy less of it. So no leftovers to torment me later.
Michael
Those are solid tips, thanks for contributing :)
Hey!
Just found out about your site from Rusty. This is an awesome blog with tons of incredible and useful information. When I cheat I have a hole in my leg! Seriously I can eat sooooo much food. I will try these techniques and I’m sure they will help.
Greg O’G
I gotta say I’ve been in the pizza situation many times and besides your great tips, making your own really does help a lot! It doesn’t even have to be a super-healthy version; I just think making it on your own saves a lot of calories without sacrificing taste.
Yo can eat pizza and still lose weight and don’t need to spoil the feeling of pigging out by doing any tricks, just eat in a calorie deficit most times during the week.
I appreciate what you are saying but I love lashing into a whole pizza with no interruptions except for drinking beer, anything else spoils the effect, thats the purpose of doing it.
But then I have to pay later and not eat so much during the week.
It also depends on your current training and fitness status on how your metabolism is working at the time. Since I train everyday I need a lot of fuel and I can eat cakes and alcohol everyday if I want and still keep to single digit bodyfat easily.
Nice blog post I like the ideas.
Raymond
Hey guys, thanks for commenting.
@Ahmed: I agree and I think cooking your own food is always the best solution since you have complete control over the ingredients that are used.
@Raymond: I agree doing it like i described kind of ruins the pigging out factor which is really the main reason people have their cheat meals. I happen to be one of those guys that can completely lose control during a cheat meal and eat up to a few thousand calories, it would be pretty tough to try and make up for all of that during the week without some iron discipline.
Good advice Kris. I was expecting you to recommend fasting the next day like you can read all over the web but I feel like this is more of a realistic cheat meal… I’m with you, I usually slam 5-6 pieces when it comes time to my “cheat meal” cause that’s “okay” but this is obviously a much healthier way to go.
A trick I used a few years back was to take one slice at a time and eat it with a knife and fork. This made me eat slower and allowed my system time to register that I was filling up.
this is a great advised, although i would like to know what can you after eating it, i know it sound stupid but just today i ate 2 slice of chessy bites from pizza hut felt so so so gealthy, so plss help me!
i lost 30 and want to keep losing…
thks..
How does this work with a low carb diet?
I have been cutting all my carbs to a low and realistically have completely lost my appetite for pizza and beer as well ! Is it good if I break the cycle once a week for pizza or pasta?
Thanks
C
It may be okay. It’s called a “cheat meal.”
Some people do well with weekly cheat meals, others don’t. It’s hard to give a specific answer as this depends on the individual.
Great stuff! I’l be sure to try it!