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Should we have cheat meals? | Nutritionist Explains | Myprotein
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Jan 30, 2025
Expert nutritionist explores the pros and cons of cheat day. In this video, Jamie Wright, an accredited nutritionist explores the pros and cons of cheat days, examining their impact on our physical and mental well-being, the potential benefits they offer, and whether they contribute to, or are in juxtaposition with, a healthy lifestyle. So, what are cheat days? Cheat days are designated days where you can deviate from your regular diet and allow yourself to indulge in foods that are typically considered unhealthy or off-limits. It is a deliberate break from the restrictions of a strict eating plan, allowing you to satisfy your cravings and enjoy your favourite treats without guilt or consequences. Let us know your thoughts in the comments section on cheat days, will you try diet breaks instead? *** Chapters: 00:00 - Introduction 00:51 - Cheat days breakdown 02:22 - Cheat day 'benefits' 04:32 - Cheat day 'disadvantages' 07:10 - Diet break explained 12:12 - Any more cheat day q's?
View Video Transcript
0:00
hello I'm Jimmy Wright I'm accredited
0:01
nutritionist and I specialize in helping
0:04
people all across the world achieve
0:05
their goals without silly fad diets on
0:07
today's episode of nutritionist explains
0:09
we're going to be answering the question
0:10
should we be having cheat days
0:13
[Music]
0:16
our cheat days are guilt-free Indulgence
0:18
or are they a slippery slope towards
0:20
derailing our health and fitness goals
0:22
the debate surrounding cheat days has
0:24
been ongoing with fans arguing that they
0:26
provide a necessary mental and physical
0:28
break from strict diets while critics
0:30
claim they undermine discipline and
0:32
promote an unhealthy relationship with
0:33
food in this video we'll be exploring
0:35
the argument and delve into the pros and
0:38
cons of cheat days examining their
0:40
impact on our physical and mental
0:41
well-being the potential benefits they
0:43
offer and whether they contribute to or
0:46
are in juxtaposition with a healthy
0:49
lifestyle so just what are cheat days
0:51
now I don't know about you but the first
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thing that comes to my mind when I hear
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cheat days are the Rocks Instagram posts
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with a small building size stack of
0:59
pancakes or the ocean drilling Sushi
1:02
platter now this is at least in my own
1:04
opinion a bit of a caricature of what a
1:06
cheat day really is cheat days are
1:08
basically designated days where you can
1:09
deviate from your regular diet and allow
1:12
yourself to indulge in foods that are
1:13
typically considered unhealthy or off
1:15
limits a is a deliberate break from the
1:18
restrictions of a strict eating plan
1:20
allowing you to satisfy your cravings
1:22
and enjoy your favorite treats without
1:23
guilt or Consequences these days are
1:26
often considered to be a reward or a
1:28
form of self-care providing a mental and
1:31
physical break from the monotony of a
1:33
regulated diet cheat days have gained
1:35
popularity through various diet Trends
1:37
and approaches especially within the
1:38
fitness and weight loss communities but
1:40
anyway having a cheat day doesn't
1:42
necessarily mean completely abandoning
1:44
all of your healthy eating habits
1:45
although some people do practice it in
1:47
this fashion but rather it's more about
1:49
incorporating a controlled Indulgence
1:51
within the boundaries of an overall
1:52
healthy lifestyle the frequency of cheat
1:54
days can vary from person to person with
1:56
some opting for a weekly cheat day While
1:58
others may choose to have a cheat made
2:00
once in a blue moon in my experience the
2:03
frequency is often dictated by the
2:05
restrictive nature and or the duration
2:07
of the diet that the person is currently
2:08
following the more restricted the diet
2:10
or the longer the person has been
2:11
following a given diet the greater a
2:13
need for a cheat day if people don't
2:15
even need to be necessed necessarily
2:17
dieting to be taking cheat day as many
2:19
people here focused on gaining muscle
2:21
also incorporate cheat days too so now
2:24
we know a little bit more about what GTs
2:26
are let's have a look at the arguments
2:28
for and against having them what are the
2:30
arguments for having cheat days team
2:32
argues that they offer several
2:34
benefits that can actually contribute to
2:36
overall well-being and move you further
2:37
towards your goals one of the major
2:39
arguments in favor of cheat days is that
2:41
they provide psychological relief strict
2:44
diets can be incredibly mentally
2:45
draining and merely the feelings of
2:47
deprivation and restriction cheat days
2:49
are therefore used to provide a much
2:51
needed mental break allowing individuals
2:54
to indulge in their favorite foods and
2:56
satisfy Cravings without guilt at least
2:58
in theory this psychological relief is
3:00
thought to help maintain long-term
3:02
adherence to a strict eating plan
3:04
another core argument for cheat days is
3:06
that they may mitigate metabolic
3:08
adaptation during a weight loss dieting
3:10
is the theories proposed by fans of
3:12
cheat days is that periodic overeating
3:14
can stimulate metabolism and and prevent
3:17
adaptive responses to calorie
3:18
restriction this means that occasional
3:20
indulgences may help prevent weight loss
3:22
plateaus and maintain a more efficient
3:24
metabolism over time I'll actually come
3:27
back to this later after we finish
3:28
looking at the theoretical pros and cons
3:30
of cheat days because I'm also going to
3:32
discuss what may actually be the most
3:34
valuable strategy for you to take away
3:36
from these two seemingly polar opposite
3:38
camps of thought another benefit to
3:40
cheat days that Advocates have suggested
3:41
is that by allowing yourself to enjoy
3:43
your favorite treats cheat days can help
3:45
Foster a healthier relationship with
3:47
food this claim I'm a little bit more
3:50
sauce on proponents say that by
3:52
temporarily removing the Forbidden label
3:54
from certain foods cheat days can reduce
3:56
the likelihood of developing an
3:58
unhealthy or disordered eating pattern
4:03
don't know about that but moving on a
4:05
final point to touch on and this is one
4:07
that I do feel has some Merit is that a
4:10
cheat day actually allows you to be more
4:12
socially flexible in theory having a
4:15
cheat day allows you to fully
4:16
participate in events without feeling
4:18
isolated or restricted they help to
4:20
reduce the need to constantly decline
4:21
invitations or meticulously plan meals
4:24
making it easier to maintain a social
4:26
life while still prioritizing your
4:28
health so these are some of the
4:30
arguments for cheat days but what are
4:32
some of the arguments against before I
4:34
go into the arguments against cheat days
4:35
I really do want you to visualize the
4:37
early 2010s when all of this was blowing
4:39
up popularity here are some of the main
4:41
criticisms against having cheat days one
4:44
of the primary criticisms around cheat
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days is that they may create a morality
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mindset around food by labeling Foods
4:49
either good or bad this can undermine
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discipline and promote an unhealthy
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relationship with food some people may
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also find it challenging to revert back
4:58
to their strict eating habits after a
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cheat day leading to a cycle of
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overindulgence restriction these are
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really murky Waters here as we're wading
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into potential binge eating disorder and
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that comes with a whole Wrath of Health
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consequences and is very difficult to
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break free from on that note critics of
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cheat days believe that they can easily
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turn into binge eating episodes if not
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being a Justified binge eating episode
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in of itself it's fairly well
5:21
established that excessive restriction
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can lead to overeating and binge eating
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so when practicing a routine of extreme
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restriction and then overeating in the
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form of a cheat day which replicates in
5:30
essence a cycle of binge eating it could
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in theory reinforce that pattern and
5:36
make it all the more difficult to break
5:37
in the future basically you're actively
5:40
mimicking a binge restrict cycle and the
5:42
worry is that you could very easily find
5:44
yourself to be no longer mimicking one
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but being trapped in a cycle itself
5:48
another somewhat related issue that
5:50
critics of cheat days have with that
5:51
practice is that they believe it
5:53
promotes an unhealthy relationship with
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food now while she days may help Foster
5:57
a healthy relationship with food for
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some individuals they may also lead to
6:01
an unhealthy Obsession or preoccupation
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with foods and others this can manifest
6:05
as guilt anxiety or an inability to
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enjoy meals outside of the designated
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cheat day or even within said cheetah
6:12
itself a somewhat less serious critique
6:14
is that actively programming in cheat
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days made derail progress for those with
6:18
specific health or fitness goals cheat
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days can slow down progress and make it
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more difficult to reach the desired
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outcomes depending on the frequency and
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the extent of the indulgences cheat days
6:29
May hinder weight loss disrupt blood
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sugar control or impede other health
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markers while there isn't a huge amount
6:35
of research looking at this specifically
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if you were to look at binge eating
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studies which would be arguably the
6:40
closest representation of these eating
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patterns we've seen that intermittent
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episodes of overeating can increase the
6:46
risk of both mental and physical health
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issues even in instances where
6:51
bodyweight hasn't changed these
6:53
arguments highlight the potential
6:54
pitfalls of incorporating cheat days
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into a healthy lifestyle it's essential
6:59
to consider these concerns and find a
7:00
balance that works for your individual
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needs and goals So based on the
7:05
arguments for and against
7:07
should we or shouldn't we include cheat
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days quite frankly it's up to the
7:12
individual but I'd like to offer an
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alternative solution which is designed
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around some of the same philosophies
7:18
used to justify cheap moves but perhaps
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applying these in a manner which is more
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favorable with the critics of cheat days
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I'd like to present diet breaks diet
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breaks also known as refeeds or Diet
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refeeds refer to planned periods of
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higher caloric intake during a weight
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loss phase or calorie restricted diet
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the concept of diet breaks is rooted in
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evidence-based strategies to optimize
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fat loss and mitigate some of the
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negative effects of prolonged calorie
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restriction the purpose of diet breaks
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is to temporarily increase caloric
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intake primarily from carbohydrates and
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in some cases fats I can hear some of
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you already saying in the comments hey
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Jimmy this sounds a lot like cheat days
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and just hold up now the differences
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between the two is that rather than a
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single day a diet break is usually a few
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days or even a few weeks whereby the
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person dating will increase their intake
8:07
to a previous maintenance amount or just
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above this extended period of higher
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caloric intake is believed to provide
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several physiological and psychological
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benefits the first benefit worth
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mentioning is that it may help address
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metabolic adaptation similarly to the
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theoretical rationale for cheat days
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diet breaks may help counteract
8:25
metabolic adaptation by temporarily
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increasing caloric intake which may
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prevent or minimize the decline in
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metabolic rate another suggested
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beneficial mechanism of diet breaks is
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the potential effect on leptin leptin is
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a hormone that plays a crucial role in
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regulating hunger energy expenditure and
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body weight during prolonged calorie
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restriction Lambton levels tend to
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decrease leading to increased hunger and
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decreased energy expenditure diabetics
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may help restore leptin levels leading
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to reduced hunger and potentially
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improved adherence to the diet prolonged
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dieting can also disrupt other hormones
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specifically those related to thyroid
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function reproductive health and stress
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response by incorporating diet breaks
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hormone levels may be better maintained
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which can positively influence overall
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health and well-being another Point
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worth highlighting around entire breaks
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is that they may actually help to
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support your exercise performance and
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Recovery during calorie restricted
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periods you may experience decreased
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energy levels reduce strength and
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impaired exercise performance diet
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breaks May provide a temporary increase
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in energy availability potentially
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leading to improved training performance
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and better retention of muscle mass
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during weight loss a final point to
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touch on is on the sustainability front
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dieting for prolonged periods of time
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can be mentally challenging leading to
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feelings of deprivation frustration and
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a reduced adherence to the diet plan
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diet breaks May provide a psychological
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respite by allowing you to enjoy more
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fluid and flexibility temporarily making
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the overall dieting experiencing more
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sustainable and enjoyable okay so diet
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breaks look to be at least on paper a
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perfect compromise between the pro and
9:59
anti-cheat day camps but do they
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actually work well allow me to introduce
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one of the coolest zoning studies out
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there The Matador study Matador stands
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for minimizing adaptive thermogenesis
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and deactivating obesity rebound which
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admittedly doesn't quite rule off the
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tongue but what was this study all about
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well in this randomized control trial
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they took 51 overweight and obese man
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and they split them into two groups
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participants were assigned to either
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intermittent energy restriction which
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was the diabetic group or to continuous
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energy restriction which served as the
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control group in this study the
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difference between groups was that in
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the diabetic group they were assigned a
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two-week period of energy balance after
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every two weeks of energy restriction
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I.E the diet break whereas The
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Continuous energy restriction group had
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no diet breaks the participants were
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placed on a diet that prescribed a 33
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reduction in energy intake with a
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breakdown of 25 to 30 percent of energy
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is fat 15 to 20 percent of energy as
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protein and 50 to 60 percent of energy
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as carbohydrates the participants were
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required to complete daily self-report
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food diaries for the duration of the
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study to monitor their food intake so
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what exactly did the researchers find
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well they found that the diabetic group
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lost significantly more weight as well
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as body fat Mass compared to the
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continuous energy restriction group one
11:18
interesting finding was that the
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fat-free Mass so the likes of muscle
11:21
bone Etc didn't really seem to be
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significantly different between the two
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groups which is surprising given that
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one group lost significantly more weight
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than the other the researchers also find
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that resting energy expenditure was
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better maintained in the diet break
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Group which suggests a positive impact
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on sustaining metabolic rate and
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reducing the impact of metabolic
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adaptation a final finding to highlight
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was that the diabetic group also 10 to
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maintain their weight loss better than
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the continuous energy deficit group
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suggesting it to be a more effective
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long-term strategy for weight loss
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overall The Matador study provided some
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really interesting data for what it's
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worth I personally use this strategy for
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some of my clients and find it to be
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hugely beneficial to them as I am not an
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advocate for cheat days as I just don't
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believe it sets the right president for
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health either physically mentally or in
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regards to your relationship with food
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so my advice
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skip the cheat days and instead why not
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give diet breaks a go in their place
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cheat days may be useful for some but
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likely lead to more issues than they
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solve for most try giving diet breaks a
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go and take a Health First Focus for
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your next dieting fears whether it be
12:30
weight loss related or not hopefully
12:32
this video helps and as always don't
12:34
forget to like the video and subscribe
12:36
to the my protein YouTube channel for
12:37
more helpful content and be sure to keep
12:39
asking the team questions so we can keep
12:41
providing you with more evidence-based
12:43
answers
12:45
foreign
12:48
[Music]
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