Nobody can follow a perfect diet all the time, this just isn’t realistic. In reality, it’s probably beneficial to expect dietary deviations.

The critical element here is making sure that your deviations don’t derail your progress.

So here are 6 ways to prevent diet cheating from blowing you up like a balloon:

1. Pair the junk food with roughage: For instance, if you have a small salad before eating that candy bar, the digestion rate of the candy bar will be reduced significantly. This in turn will translate into less fat storage since sugar is entering your blood at a slower rate.

2. Hydrate before splurging: This is a nifty trick to make you feel full temporarily. You see, when you are well hydrated your brain gets feel full signals from your digestive tract. Proper hydration also helps you digest food properly.

3. Try to position the cheating after your workouts: Right after an intense workout your body is able to absorb an above normal amount of calories with minimal fat storage. Thus, it makes sense to position your cheating right after your workouts.

4. Employ the new sweeteners: Modern day sweeteners have come a long way. In fact, it’s very hard to tell the difference between real sugar and an artificial sweetener. The only issue here is that we still don’t know if artificial sweeteners are safe for long term use.

5. Don’t have a cheat day: The idea that cheating for an entire day is beneficial for fat loss is a wives tale. There is no physical benefit to this practice. The only benefit here is psychological relief. For best results, however, restrict cheating to one meal.

6. Go all out if you are at your limit: If you’ve been dieting really hard and feel like you are about to throw in the towel, then please go all out with your cheating. You see, one meal of massive proportions won’t cause much harm, but it will relieve that built up psychological pressure.

Nobody is perfect, so don’t expect your diet to be perfect. If you do, you will set yourself up for major disappointment!

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