If You Do One Thing This Week . . . Don’t Work Out To Pig Out

It’s late at night, there’s a tub of ice-cream and you went for a jog today – so surely you’ve earned a guilt-free midnight feast?

Or you’ve hit the post-workout munchies and the bars of chocolate in the vending machine are like sirens on the rocks.

Exercise brings many benefits to the body, and the odd food splurge is understandable – but working out so you can routinely indulge in your favourite calorie-laden treats slightly defeats the purpose.

If it helps, get to know the numbers. Think about the effort it takes to jog, swim laps or do high-impact aerobics – half an hour will typically burn off between 250 and 400 calories.

Now think about how quickly you can scoff a standard bar of chocolate and its attendant calories, which can easily burst past the 200 mark.

And if you can make the bar last more than a few minutes, your resolve is admirable. So do the maths.