5 'Guilty' Pleasures That Could Actually Help You Reach Your Fitness Goals

We all indulge in one pleasure or the other daily, but you probably do not even know there are certain pleasures you are guilty of taking for granted toward achieving your health and fitness goals. A pleasure you could be guilty of taking for granted would be something you enjoy doing, but could also help you accomplish a goal. In this case, it is a pleasure that applies to getting fit, which is something that boosts your overall health.

Being physically active is important for your health because it helps lose or maintain weight, increases muscular and bone strength and boosts the strength of your heart. These are all the things you want to start taking place before you get into your older years, but you can start anytime you want, unless your doctor tells you not to. Here are five pleasures you might taking for granted that can increase your overall fitness capabilities:

1. You enjoy having sex.

Staying sexually intimate with your partner probably feels great already, but you most likely do not realize this pleasure helps both of you stay fit as well. Sex enhances physical health, and it is also mutually beneficial since both men and women benefit from a healthy sex life.

Studies show that maintaining a healthy sex drive is beneficial for your heart, hormones and body as a whole. Various other studies show that your mental and emotional health is being stimulated as well. This goes to show that your pleasure is pretty beneficial to you. Perhaps you should explain this to your partner to increase intimacy and keep you both mentally and physically fit.

2. You enjoy eating snack foods routinely.

Snacking foods that some consider unhealthy for your body are actually good for your health and boost your ability to stay fit. There is one catch to this, though. You cannot excessively consume too many calories from your cheat foods per day, and the ones you consume have to be prepared in a certain way as well. Let's look at dark chocolate first.

Dark chocolate is lower in calories and sugar than its counterpart containing milk. Plus, it has the capability to curb your cravings for sweets faster, which prevents binge eating. The most valuable part of this guilty pleasure is that dark chocolate contains fiber and plenty of minerals for your body.

Another example, popcorn, is only a good guilty pleasure food if you prepare it correctly. The prepackaged and ready to microwave brands available in stores are not very healthy and contain a lot of preservatives. However, the popcorn you pop yourself in olive or coconut oil is good for you. Add a very tiny bit of butter if you wish to get some fats in your diet. Popcorn contains plenty of fiber to assist with your digestive system.

3. You pose nude in front of your mirror.

A lot of people can admit to this being one of their guilty pleasures. This is more focused on the motivational side of your path towards fitness.

When you look in the mirror and see that your body as a whole has benefitted through your various workout routines, you are now stimulating yourself to be motivated about training harder to accomplish your goals. Be proud of looking at yourself in the mirror nude, but just make sure to close the blinds.

4. You drink wine every night.

This is a guilty pleasure you probably take advantage of every day, and believe it or not, it does seem to have the ability to help you stay fit. Red wine in particular has been deemed the most beneficial for your body when you consume one to two glasses per day.

Research shows that red wine could increase antioxidant activity within your body, and it may help with the prevention of heart disease and hypertension. Don't feel too guilty about drinking red wine routinely. It's fine unless you drink too much.

5. You do a quick workout before going out.

Have you ever done push-ups or ab exercises before going out? Then you have a guilty pleasure that helps you get fit by wanting to impress the people around you. This sometimes is regarded as not a reason you should workout, but why not enjoy your body and showing your physique off?

These guilty pleasures are nothing to be ashamed of since they are helping with your physique and keeping your body healthy. Enjoy them if they work for you, or give them a try if you have never really thought about them.