When letting loose goes to extremes

While at Canyon Ranch -- a health, healing, and fitness resort in Tucson, Arizona -- a nutritionist told me to take a breather from hard-core healthy eating once in a while. "Order a pizza once a week," she told me. "Everyone needs a break." At the time, before I embarked on my strict diet overhaul, this seemed like sound advice. It was an invitation to let loose. I liked it. But now, five months and 15 pounds later, I can't seem to let go of my nutrition reins and give in to that cheesy, greasy pizza.

Is my diet behavior too extreme? Should I loosen up? Perhaps. But what about those who go to the other extreme? The one where letting loose is practiced a bit too often.

While every health nut should lighten up now and then and a short hiatus from the gym is certainly OK, it's not wise to go overboard. Practicing a healthy diet all week long only to guzzle beer on the weekends, shovel in the junk food, and party until the wee hours of the morning is simply counterproductive.

Binges of any sort are bad for the body and their effects add up over time. Doing great all week won't keep the weekend calories and cholesterol from adding up, for example. And regular drinking -- even if only on weekends -- still affects the liver, not to mention your ability to safely drive and make sound decisions. Lack of sleep even adds up and is said to be linked to weight gain.

Before you let loose, do yourself a favor. Make sure it doesn't become a habit. Keep it minimal. Keep it occasional. Keep it for nothing more than a treat.