Moderation is key. I'm sure at least one person in your life has said this to you as you reach for that third cookie. That saying always bothered me. It felt like I was being told that in order to be healthy, all I needed to do was eat things in moderation, but everyone knows that's not really the case, right?
Not exactly
Most people believe that moderation is a subjective term and I agree with that. It's the way that you look at moderation that really makes it key.
Moderation is more important than you think. I am the poster child for all things diets and trying to lose weight. I have tried everything over my lifetime and always end up with the same results: I lose X amount of pounds and feel great, but then a few weeks pass and I start eating too much and the weight comes back. It sucks, I know, but it's because when you diet, you don't truly learn moderation.
Think about it...
If you try a diet program such as Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers, you can argue that you are learning how to have a healthy lifestyle because you see the weight coming off. The problem is you aren't learning how to keep this up once you're done with the program. With Jenny Craig, your food is pre-made for you and is usually a frozen meal. That's all well and good and the meals are definitely portion controlled, but that doesn't mean you're learning how to minimize your eating on your own.
Weight Watchers is great because you are eating your own food, but you're following a point system. When you're following these diets, you usually are super motivated and want to see results. You probably aren't learning how to keep the weight off in the end, so once you get to your goal weight, you fall back to your old habits.
This is where moderation comes in
Think about it, if you decided today that you were ready to make a change to your body, moderation could help you. To be healthy and lose weight, you not only need to exercise, but you need to eat a balanced diet, including vegetables, fruits, proteins, and even carbs. However, to be healthy and successfully lose weight and keep it off, you can't cut all sweets out of your life. Depriving yourself is not the answer. Cue moderation!
If you eat healthy foods and you keep moderation in mind when you reach for a piece of chocolate or a serving of cookies, you can still successfully lose weight and get healthy. Just don't go back for that second serving because that's when moderation goes out the window.
So, yes, moderation really is key, but not in the way you might have thought it was. Moderation is key in the sense that on top of eating your healthy foods, you should still allow yourself to have some less healthy foods, but in moderation. Take a serving of the junk and put it back in your pantry and you'll still be on your way to a better and healthier you!