How Often Can I Cheat on My Diet?

Do you workout consistently but aren't happy with what you see in the mirror? It's hard to accept, especially if you're physically active all week: weight training, yoga, bodyweight circuit drills, spinning, walking. But are you as consistent with your diet?

Your physical appearance has a lot more to do with diet than training. In fact, a lean and athletic physique is built on roughly 80 percent nutrition, 10 percent training and 10 percent genetics. So while your exercise regimen may be commendable, you will only truly benefit if you channel as much energy into meal planning.

But maintaining a consistently clean and calorie-controlled diet is hard work! In Should You Have a Cheat Treat, we determined that cheat meals should be off the table if you have weight to lose. If you've reached weight goal and are maintaining a healthy diet, however, you can indulge every once in a while--10 percent of the time, to be precise.

According to Dr. John Berardi, a performance-enhancement specialist who focuses on exercise physiology and nutrition, following your healthy meal plan 90 percent of the time allows for some wiggle room in your diet--without sabotaging your physique. Here's how to break it down.

On days I workout, for example, I eat 3 meals, 2 snacks and a post-workout drink. On rest days, I have 3 meals and 2 snack. That totals 41 feedings each week. Following the 90-10 rules means I could stray from my clean eating principles for 4 meals and maintain my current weight.

But following a consistently clean and calorie-controlled diet shouldn’t be torture. Making good food choices, such as lean proteins, fruits and vegetables, and healthy fats--rewards your body and benefits your health. Once you set off on that path, chances are you won't even crave pizza and fries.

Rather than increase my craving for junk, eating a consistently clean and calorie-controlled diet has helped me appreciate the quality of foods. I am, for instance, more likely to choose fresh figs with ricotta cheese over a slice of cheese cake. That's not to say I don’t ever indulge, but I save those extravagances for holidays or special occasions rather than scheduled cheat treats.

Check out Dr. Berardi's The 7 Rules of Good Nutrition for clean eating basics.

Why does this matter to you? Because like exercise, you should match your diet to your goals. If you're maintaining your weight, or trying to add some, feel free to indulge, but limit your cheat meals to 10 percent of your total weekly feedings. Only, however, if you're on track the rest of the time. If you can indulge, try to do so on a workout day rather than a rest day.