Cheating on Your Clean Diet?

CHEATING.

That word brings all kinds of negative thoughts to mind - cheating on a spouse, cheating on a test, etc. However, these are a few questions we are asked all the time: "Do you ever cheat?" "How often do you cheat?" "What do you eat when you cheat?"...

This post has been in "draft" status for over a year (no joke) but I decided to finish and post it after hearing from some of you about the photo we posted on Instagram. These are hard questions to answer because everyones version of "cheating" is different.  Just like I mentioned in our "Getting Started with Clean Eating" post, everyone has a different view on what exactly constitutes "clean eating"...same goes for "cheating".  We even get emails from readers that some of our ingredients are not clean enough!

So, I will say we don't "cheat".  Let's use the word treat instead of cheat anyway. We eat clean meals 5-6 times per day, every 2-3 hours.  We drink water.  We workout 4-6 days per week.  We do allow ourselves a few "treats" but normally save those for special events or vacations.  Notice that I said "few", we don't let our treats turn into a week of fried chicken, cheeseburgers, french fries, and milkshakes.  We just feel better when we eat clean food.  Our body functions better.  Our skin looks better.

We eat clean because it is good for our bodies.  We also love the way we feel because of clean eating (along with weight lifting).

We don't keep "treats" (candy, chips, etc.) in our house.  However, we also do not deprive ourselves, if we want a treat we eat one. Sometimes we eat the real thing (ice cream, pizza, etc) but still try to find the better alternative such as pizza from Whole Foods or Mellow Mushroom and ice cream made with real ingredients. Sometimes we even try to make the treat on our own (which is where many of our dessert/treat recipes came from). We have come up with some amazing clean(er) recipes that I actually prefer over the original!  When we make clean treats I do not even consider those cheats but some people would.  How can you go wrong with our cookie dough, oatmeal cinnamon raisin cookies, or our cinnamon rolls?

If we are on vacation or out to dinner and want something special we normally split whatever it is (cake, brownie, etc.) because restaurant dessert portions are huge (plus you save money)! We do not just eat a donut, ice cream, chips, etc. every time they are placed in front of us (which is pretty often in an office environment, unfortunately). We choose our treats wisely. It's easy to feel pressured into eating a treat just because co-workers or family members are giving you a hard time. If you want the treat that is fine but don't eat something just because someone else is pressuring you. We want to make sure that when we do treat ourselves that it's worth it! We aren't going to eat a piece of strawberry pie (which we don't even like) just because our great aunt made it or because it's sitting in front of us. We choose our treats and when we eat them.

I posted the picture above on our Instagram and Facebook but we don't always post pictures of our treat meals because we don't want people to think we eat that way all the time. There's a lot of "fitness accounts" out there that only post pictures of ice cream, pizza, and then their abs. We don't think that is realistic. We also don't want to trigger anyone who is just starting out. We still believe that it is important to refrain from too many treats when first starting just so that you can re-train your tastebuds and build up your willpower. How often we treat ourselves just depends on what is going on in our lives. Every single person will be different because of how our bodies react, our goals, etc. There is no right or wrong answer, you will just have to take time to find out what works for you!

This is our lifestyle.  This is how we choose to live.  This is how we choose to eat.  We are not fitness models or fitness competitors.  We do have a life.  We do know balance.  We hope you find it too.

31-Day Scarecrow Squat Challenge

It's another booty-focused challenge this month! We're going to build on your basic squat and also introduce you to a few new types (see below for descriptions)!

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31-Day Scarecrow Squat Challenge

• Squats - find explanation here
• Narrow Squats - same as a regular squat but with your feet in a narrow stance (legs less than shoulder wide apart and toes slightly pointed out)
• Single Leg Split Squats - find explanation here
• Plie Squats - find explanation here

Depending on your fitness level you can do these squat variations with or without weights. You can also split them up throughout the day if needed.

Remember, these challenges should not be your only workout! These are just a fun addition and should be adjusted based on your fitness level and other planned workouts for the day! Looking for a workout plan to keep you on track? Try one of our 4, 6, or 12 week workout plans! You can find more information here.

Don't forget to take advantage of our Fall Workout Challenge which is your chance to transform your life and win big!

Want to add in another challenge? Try our Pumpkin Push-Up Challenge!

30-Day Step-Up Challenge

We love challenges! And we love step-ups! I'm pretty sure that step-ups are my favorite exercise, so I wanted to make sure you develop a strong love for step-ups too with this 30-Day Step-Up Challenge! ;-)

Remember, these challenge are not meant to be your ONLY workout. These should be done in conjunction with your workout (which is hopefully one of our workout plans)!

Step-ups are literally just like they sound - you step up! Use something sturdy: a bench, chair, or step and step up and back down. When the challenge indicates a knee lift step up with one foot and lift the opposite knee towards your chest and then return to the starting position. When it indicates a rear leg extension step up with one leg and extend the opposite leg out behind you, really squeezing your glutes.

The number of reps listed is per leg. For example, on day one you will do 5 step-ups on your left leg and 5 step-ups on your right leg. You can either complete all reps on one leg before switching or you can alternate. Depending on your fitness level you can perform these weighted or without weights.

Always listen to your body and remember that these can be split up throughout the day. I actually perform step-ups as "cardio bursts" in between sets on my non-leg days (using a high bench and moving quickly). I do weighted step-ups on leg days (using our She Sweats workout plans).

Trust me, your booty will thank you once it's all over.