It’s Only a Little Treat

So, you’ve achieved something great or are celebrating a special occasion.  Maybe you even just feel peckish or perhaps your willpower just dropped and you find yourself heading to the fridge. Whatever the reason, you really should think hard before giving in and indulging in that little treat. Sure, you might think you deserve it, and maybe you do. But have you stopped to think about the consequences?

You might be working out, taking regular walks, cycling to work or taking the stairs rather than the elevator because you think it is good for you - that it is helping you get fitter. And you’re right, it is.  

So why do you want to undo all that good work? Just look at the calories in that little treat that you “deserve” and then think about how much you will need to exercise in order to work it off. The results may surprise you. Just consider some of the common little treats that may be lurking in your home:

1 x glass of Prosecco = 86 calories or 29 minutes of ironing

2 x McVities chocolate digestive biscuits = 166 calories or 15 minutes of Zumba.

1 x bag of Walkers Ready Salted crisps = 171 calories or 19 minutes of tennis

1 x pint of Fosters Lager = 204 calories or 15 minutes of vigorous cycling

1 x Mars bar = 228 calories or 71 minutes of yoga

1 x Magnum ice cream = 280 calories or 28 minutes of jogging

1 x chicken Pot Noodle = 384 calories or 50 minutes of leisurely swimming

1 x regular Big Mac meal with coke = 1015 calories or 4 hours and 14 minutes of moderate weight training

Pretty scary stuff. And remember, this is just the exercise you need to work off one treat. So, if you have one treat per week, it should be fairly easy to work it off. Right?  

But what if you have more than one treat per day or what if you “deserve” a little treat every day of the week? 

Let’s assume that in the course of a week, you “treated” yourself to just one of each of our 8 examples above. That’s not too bad is it? Just 8 little treats over 7 days. Well, just think about it. You’ll have just consumed a whopping 2534 of additional calories. Or put another way, the amount of calories the average man needs for a whole day. 

So over our imaginary week, what would you need to do to work that lot off?  Well, if you have the time, you would need to do:

3 hours 10 minutes of vigorous cycling or

3 hours 50 minutes of Zumba or

4 hours 15 minutes of jogging or

4 hours 40 minutes of tennis or

5 hours 30 minutes of moderate swimming or

10 hours of moderate walking or

10 hours 35 minutes of moderate weight training or

13 hours 5 minutes of yoga or

14 hours and 22 minutes of ironing

And remember, this is just to work off the extra treats you gave yourself. If you still want to lose weight through exercise, then you’ll need to do more than this.

So next time you’re looking in the fridge for comfort food or feel that you deserve a treat, just remember that your body won’t thank you for it and remember that you’re going to pay a heavy price at the gym if you want to burn off those “deserved” calories. Don't be tempted. Stay strong. You'll be glad in the end.