Episode 67: How Often Should You Indulge In Dessert?




The Ancestral RDs Podcast show

Summary: Thanks for joining us for episode 67 of The Ancestral RD podcast. If you want to keep up with our podcasts, subscribe in iTunes and never miss an episode! Remember, please send us your question if you'd like us to answer it on the show! Today we are answering the following question from a listener: “I really enjoy desserts. Is it better to have a treat each day, or set aside a few days a week to indulge? What is a general rule of thumb for how much of a treat to have, for example one cupcake, or a small ice cream cone; and the estimated caloric value, for example 200 calories a day dedicated to treats versus 400 calories for 3 or 4 days a week?” Whether it's our favorite ice cream or just a cookie, dessert for some of us can be the best part of the meal! Are you satisfied indulging every once in a while, or do you avoid sweet treats knowing you will devour the entire box of cookies? Join us today as we discuss how to discover your own personalized approach to dessert intake. We’ll be talking about the importance of knowing how your body reacts to sweets, explaining how making values-based decisions can be more effective than creating rules around indulging, and even sharing our personal experience with sweet treats. Here's what Laura and Kelsey will be discussing in this episode: Why there is no general rule or calculation to the frequency or amount of dessert you should consume Laura and Kelsey’s personal experiences with sugar intake and desserts How paying attention to how your body reacts to sweet treats will help you determine how often you indulge The pros and cons of short term sugar restriction for people who have difficulty controlling sugar intake The importance of eating adequate calories and carbohydrates in reducing sugar cravings The value of working with a nutrition professional to objectively evaluate your dietary intake How factors involved in the preparation and quality of a dessert can influence how much you eat of the treat Why approaching treat intake as a values-based decision as situations arise can be more effective than creating rules around dessert Links Discussed: MyPaleoRehab.com TRANSCRIPT:  Laura: Hi everyone. Welcome to episode 67 of The Ancestral RDs podcast. I’m Laura Schoenfeld and with me as always is Kelsey Marksteiner. Kelsey: Hey guys. Laura: We haven’t recorded in a little bit. We did a little bit of a two in day recording set up for a little bit because I’ve been traveling, and maybe Kelsey’s been having kind of a normal schedule. But, any updates that have happened since our last recording, Kelsey? Kelsey: My life is pretty boring, but I did go camping. That was really nice. Laura: Oh yeah! Kelsey: Yeah, to kind of like reset, and oh man, saw the Milky Way. It was beautiful. It was awesome. That was really fun and I feel a little bit refreshed which is very nice. But other than that, life is kind of boring. Laura: Did you get to see any shooting stars? Kelsey: I did, I think I counted five that I saw. Laura: Five? Kelsey: Yeah. Laura: Because we’re in this shooting star zone right now and I didn’t even know this, but I was in Ohio visiting my boyfriend for the last, I don’t know, week and a half or something. And one of the nights we were driving home from a baseball game I was like the stars look really cool tonight, let’s go out and look at them because middle of nowhere Ohio, I feel like that’s going to be better star gazing than downtown Raleigh where I live. It was funny, we were out in his truck bed just looking at the stars getting used to the darkness and I kind of jokingly said oh now I just want to see a shooting star and it’ll be perfect. Literally, I want to say like a minute after I said that, I saw the brightest shooting start I’ve ever seen in my entire life. Kelsey: Wow! Laura: It was insane. I just kind of was like, oh my gosh! Is that seriously, was that a shooting star?