Cheating with Jalapeno & Cheddar Hot Dogs

In the dieting community there is this wonderful thing called a cheat meal. The idea is that after working hard all week to maintain a healthy lifestyle, you’re allowed to let your hair down and indulge.

There are those within the community that would say that cheat meals are crazy. How could you allow yourself such an indulgence when you’ve got a clear goal in mind? After all, the cheat meal contradicts your goal and literally sets you back!

On the other hand, you have those that feel they’ve earned the indulgence. What is the point of living life if you can’t enjoy a few things along the way? One day out of the week isn’t going to do irreparable damage. Live a little!

I fall somewhere in between the two camps. Breaking the healthy cycle once a week isn’t going to bring things to a grinding halt or push me backwards. That is, as long as I keep things within reason. I’ve been trying to avoid pizza (because it is loaded with calories) so if I cheat I’m going to limit myself to a slice or two. A whole pizza, on the other hand, could potentially push me backwards.

I’ve spent the last week eating healthy. Lots of vegetables, chicken, and water. I’ve been under my caloric goal all week and have been exercising regularly. Today was the day to take a step back and indulge.

I’ve had a fairly busy day working around the house and then attending a meeting at Stowe Archers. I got side tracked and missed eating lunch. I had a bunch of calories to spare when dinner time rolled around and I just didn’t feel like whipping up a salad.

I grabbed a cigar and made my way out to the grill. I threw on some chicken (for salads during the week) and dug out my remaining to jalapeno & cheddar hot dogs from the refrigerator. I have a local butcher that makes them and they are amazing. Simply put, when grilled these are the most amazing hot dogs I’ve ever eaten.

Because they are home-made from angus beef, I have no real way of knowing how many calories they contain. I have to assume high and figure about 300 calories each. Two of those plus buns puts my meal at about 840 calories.

Ordinarily I’d try to steer clear of any meal that dense in calories but today I cheated. Even so, I’m still just barely under my 1800 calorie daily goal. I’ll pay for it later, not on the scale, but they were well worth it.

While doing my weekly weigh-in this morning I was down another 2.8 pounds. Additionally, my measurements look good with decent losses (about 1.3% average). In the beginning eating healthy was hard. The cravings for fattening foods have diminished and I’m beginning to enjoy the healthy stuff.