Warning: Adult language

Please do not read any further if you are offended by adult language.

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Would you like to eat ice cream and have it not count against you? Okay, I know… really stupid question. Well I’m gonna show your sexy ass how to pull off this magic trick! I know, I know… I’m your favorite person right now. You love me, don't ya?

Oh come on... you can admit it. Yup, it's final, you love me. Cause I said so.

Well.... Just remember how much you love me when you’re reading another article where I’m giving you my Tough-Love-Move-Your-Ass spiel. Cause you know that shit's bound to happen soon. It's kinda my thing. I love ya, but I don't sugarcoat. I tell you what you need to hear, not what you want to hear. But today is the exception! Today I'm totally gonna tell you what you want to hear! I'm totally gonna tell you that you can eat ice cream and still lose weight! Holy shit, kids, today is a big day!

So if you’ve been following me for any length of time, you know that I always make you dangle for a little bit before I give you the goods. Don’t worry, it won’t be too long. I just gots some stuff to say first. And if you haven't visited me here before, let me say, Welcome to Half of Gabby! Man did you pick a good day to show up. I mean, ice cream! Nuff said.

Okay, so here’s how it’s going to work. I’m going to show you how you can eat ice cream (or whatever goodie you want) so that it doesn’t mess up your eating plan or calorie count. But first (see here’s where I make you wait a bit), I want to talk a little about Cheat Days and Cheat Meals.

Let me get one thing off my chest... I hate the terms Cheat Day and Cheat Meal. Like really hate them. Here’s why. If you are calling a particular meal or an entire day a cheat, then you are implying that you are doing something wrong. This is just another form of self-shaming.

You are NOT doing anything wrong because you decide to have an unhealthy meal or dessert. You are not being bad or doing anything wrong. You don’t have to deem it a Cheat Meal or a Cheat Day for you to make it okay in your brain and justify it. STOP giving so much power to food.

It’s not a cheat, it’s a choice.

Using the term cheat over and over creates a harmful subconscious belief that when you eat ‘bad’ food, YOU are bad. It’s a parasitic and shaming thought that gets buried in your mind and once it’s there is very hard to get rid of. Watch how you speak, out loud and to yourself. Our brains take these words to heart.

Okay, WHEW… I feel like I can actually get to the part of this article that was my main intent now. I know you want to know how you can eat ice cream and have it not count against you. I’m finally ready to give you what I promised you like 28 years ago. Oh well, I am a very long-winded bitch! Hopefully I’ll make up for it by showing you how to have ice cream or cake or whatever with absolutely no impact on your emotions!

NOTE: Oh one more thing, I’ll be quick I promise! Just a reminder that what I’m showing you here today should not be how you eat all the time! Most of the time you’re going to want balanced nutrition throughout the day. This post is for those of you who want to eat unhealthy foods some of the time, but want to find a way for it to still fit into your caloric plan for the day.

Okay here we go! So I have a fondness for Cold Stone’s cookie dough ice cream. Okay, scratch fondness, let me just get real here… I love it! I found a way to eat it so that it doesn’t mess with my calorie count. I try to stay somewhere around 1500 calories/day. It’s no big deal if I choose to have ice cream every once in a while, but lately I have been indulging a little too much. But I refused to feel bad about it so instead I rearranged my calorie distribution on the days I knew we’d be going to Cold Stone. Correction: On the days I knew I was going to come up with some lame ass excuse to go to one of the businesses in the same plaza so that I could stop into Cold Stone ‘unexpectedly’.

So you know how I said I like to keep my calories around 1500/day? Well a small vanilla bean Cold Stone ice cream with one cookie dough mix-in is 550 calories. In case you missed that, let me repeat myself... 550 CALORIES! Seriously, life just isn’t fair. So how can I eat 550 calories worth of ice cream and still stick to my regimen? I’m going to show you! But first… Ha! I know you’re probably ready to throat punch me by now with the ‘but firsts’. This will be super quick. I promise.

Two rules you need to follow when you’re making room for goodies in your meal plan:

1. Do NOT skip meals/snacks throughout the day.

2. Make sure the food you do eat that day is HIGHLY nutritious.

The worst thing you can do when you know you’re going to eat unhealthy later in the day is to try to ‘save up’ calories. It always backfires. Not only does it build you up into a ravenous feeding frenzy, but no food means you’re slowing your metabolism down to a snail’s pace. Not good! Especially when you’re going to be jamming high-calorie foods down your throat later. You are going to need your metabolism to help burn that off.

The second worse thing you can do is not feed your body nutritious foods throughout the day. This is important every day, but especially on the days when you will be spending a portion of your day eating unhealthy food that won’t provide you any nutrition or sustenance. So on the days you know you will be eating treats, stick to calories that pack a huge nutritional punch for as little bang as possible.

Throughout the week I do stay true to a very strict eating schedule as well as a regimented fitness schedule, but on the weekends I allow myself small indulgences. Every once in a while I will do what I'm showing you today and cut some calories to make an allowance for said indulgences. That way it really doesn't even become an indulgence. Well to my tastebuds it still is, but in relation to calories it isn't. But even though I am cutting calories off of my meals, I am not cutting out any nourishment (VERY IMPORTANT!).

I must note here that I do NOT do this regularly. Well, actually, the last few weeks I have been, but it’s just a phase. I haven’t had ice cream for four days now, so I think this most recent craving has passed.

Again, I DO NOT suggest eating only 100 calories meals and then eating high calorie desserts that hold no nutritional value on a regular basis. But every once in a while it's a viable option to stay on track for the day and still get a yummy treat. I will say again though that it is IMPERATIVE that you still eat your regularly scheduled meals!!! DO NOT STARVE YOURSELF all day long so that you can indulge later! Working yourself up to a hangry state doesn’t help anything and will likely end up with you binging.

Below I’m going to share with you an actual daily intake of meals/snacks for when I choose to indulge on a particular day. You do NOT need to follow this, for I am simply showing you how I do in fact continue to eat throughout the day AND eat very nutritiously.

EXAMPLE MEAL PLAN FOR TREAT DAY:

Breakfast: 131 Calories

3 egg white and veggie omelet with 1/2 Ezekiel English muffin

Mid-Morning Snack: 70 Calories

Naval orange

Lunch: 100 Calories

5 egg whites, peppers, and spinach

Afternoon Snack: 260 Calories

1/2 Ezekiel English muffin with natural peanut butter

Dinner: 300 Calories

Turkey burger (without bun) with onions and mustard. Big side of green beans.

Dessert: 550 Calories

Small vanilla bean ice cream with one cookie dough mix-in. (Cold Stone)

Evening Snack: 100 Calories

Baby Carrots and Hummus

TOTAL CALORIES FOR THE DAY: 1511

Note:

Let me point out that all three of my meals combined is still less calories than the dessert!! That is just crazy to me!

On the fitness side of things, I get my workouts done very early in the morning (5:00am). So even if I indulge in a very yummy treat for dessert, I've still put in a near perfect day that falls in line with a healthy lifestyle!

Again, I have to reiterate that this is NOT something that you should be doing everyday. Part of getting healthy is learning to eat healthy food most of the time. Can you treat yourself occasionally? Absolutely yes! But fitting in ice cream, other desserts, or greasy unhealthy foods should not be part of your everyday meal plan. It's also important to understand that the more you eat unhealthy foods, the more you want unhealthy foods. Especially when we are talking about sugary foods. Sugar is very addictive and the more you give your body, the more your body is going to demand it via cravings. So use this technique when you want to avoid screwing up your regimen, but don't make this a regular thing! Moderation is key.

I wanted to give you a way of indulging AND sticking to your plan, but I don't want you to be using this as a daily way to eat shitty foods! Don't abuse the loop hole... or I'll be coming after your ass.

Bottom line:

I want you to get two things from this article.

1. Quit giving food your power! If you want a treat, then CHOOSE to have a treat with no shame and no guilt. Own your choices so that they don’t own you.

2. If you want a treat but don't want it to throw a wrench in your regimen, choose healthy, nutritious, and low calorie foods for meals and snacks all day long. You can also amp up your workout to burn a couple extra calories too. Remember, there are consequences to your choices and you have the control to even it out with your food choices and fitness activity for the rest of that day. By being smart, you can have the best of both worlds... You can have your cake (or ice cream) and eat it too!

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TRY MY

4 Week KETO Meal Plan & Meal Prepping Guide

I HAVE EVERYTHING ALREADY FIGURED OUT FOR YOU!

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*The information on this site is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content in this article is for general information purposes only. I am not a doctor, nor am I a dietitian. Talk to your physician before making any changes in your diet or exercise regimen. The information found in this article is from various sources which include, but are not limited to, the sites listed above. I encourage you to do your own research and talk with your physician before making any changes in diet or exercise. What has worked for me may not work for you. This information in this article or on this website should never replace or serve as medical advice.

NEVER DISREGARD PROFESSIONAL MEDICAL ADVICE OR DELAY SEEKING MEDICAL TREATMENT BECAUSE OF SOMETHING YOU HAVE READ ON OR HAVE ACCESSED THROUGH THIS WEB SITE.