Strategies For Eating In Moderation
What is moderation?
For most of us, we have known the word moderation since we were very young. Whether it was moderation in regards to the amount of time we spent watching TV, or moderation in regards to how much ice cream we were allowed to have for dessert any given night. Some of us may have even been living a life where everything we did had to be in moderation, and though it may seem like a fairly simple instruction, in reality it can be extremely difficult to follow.
But do we really know what moderation is?
The technical term for moderation is the avoidance of excess or extremes, especially in one's behavior. However in the world of nutrition, moderation can be damaging to those with eating disorders if they do not fully understand what moderation is. Moderation is something that is often thought about when it comes to the content of food, like what you’re eating on your plate. You might recognize moderation as eating sweets in moderation, allowing yourself to have salty foods in moderation, or even alcohol in moderation. And while allowing yourself to have these things in moderation is true, you need to first understand what your relationship to moderation is.
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Relationship to moderation
Often times those who struggle with emotional eating, and want nutritional results either related to their body weight or their skin or any other physical symptom, might think that understanding or creating a different strategy around eating is the only thing that can help. When in reality it’s your relationship to your relationship with food that is going to be most useful with moderation.
So just by shifting your relationship to moderation, the physical outcome that you’re looking for will most likely arise. It could even arise spontaneously. However it does arise, your body will be in harmony once it does. Your body, your heart, your mind. And in order to reach this harmonious state, it’s important to know why moderation matters in the first place.
How to eat in moderation
Often times, when you’re emotional and you’re eating, you can sometimes feel like the idea of moderation is scary. It’s almost like this neutral place where you might not necessarily trust that being moderate is going to give you that outcome that you want.
Most of us can even be so conditioned to feel like the extremes are where we are going to feel the most, that we might not want to even consider the thought of moderation. But the trick is to begin to feel into the thought of what being moderate feels like. And when you ask yourself, “What does moderation feel like?” You might notice that there’s this feeling sense of calm and relaxation that comes along with it.
You might feel this in your belly and there’s this nice, soft feeling of letting go and grounding yourself. There’s the feeling of being anchored, and that allows your nervous system to relax, and it just allows your hormones to rebalance. It allows the inflammation within your body to relax, and even lower if there’s an abundance of inflammation.
So when it comes to eating in moderation, begin by asking yourself what moderation feels like for you. It could be only having one extra portion instead of two, or it could be only having dessert one night a week instead of every night. But once you figure out what moderation feels like for you, and once you begin to understand the relationship to have with moderation, eating and living in moderation will become a feeling of calm.
Strategies to help you eat in moderation
When you’re working on improving your healthy eating habits, some strategies are pretty obvious, such as adding more veggies to each meal and sipping on more water. Other advice like eating everything in moderation, can be a little trickier to define.
Moderation means including all foods in a healthy diet without guilt. This is easier said than done for most people, and it requires a lot of unlearning. All of us consume not-so-nutritionally dense foods and drinks we love, and we’ve likely been conditioned to believe these foods are bad. When you make comfort foods forbidden, you set yourself up for painful feelings of deprivation and guilt, leading to binges, overeating and a harmful cycle of yo-yo dieting.
The truth is there’s no need to avoid less nutritious foods to get fit or lose weight. Learning to incorporate all foods into a healthful diet is a more realistic approach and helps you nourish a healthier relationship with food. The following are strategies that will help you to start that everything-in-moderation lifestyle.
Change the way you talk about food
The first step is to free yourself from food labels that pin moral judgment to your eating choices. Instead of believing some foods are good while others are bad, start using terms such as more nutritionally-dense - which includes foods like whole grains, lean proteins, fruits and veggies and healthy fats found in nuts, seeds, olive oil and fatty fish - and less nutritionally dense - which includes foods like refined carbs in white bread and pastries, processed foods and sugary drinks.
Over time, this shift in perspective can remove the guilt and shame we feel when we enjoy less-healthy foods. One way to drive home the idea that less nutritionally-dense foods aren’t bad is to remember they come with benefits too. They might make you happy, bring you comfort or provide ways for you to connect with others and celebrate special events.
Be a kid again in regard to your portion sizes
Eating in moderation is enjoying food to the fullest, but also knowing in what quantity to eat certain foods. Portion sizes outside of the home have increased dramatically since the 1970s, with items like pasta, muffins and bagels exceeding USDA standards by 480%, 333% and 195%.
When it comes to less nutrient-dense foods, shrinking the portion size - like a kid-sized for a scoop of ice cream - can allow you to still enjoy it without going over your daily calorie needs. You’ve likely heard about the 80/20 rule (eat nutritiously 80% of the time and the not as nutritious stuff 20% of the time). Another way to think about it is choosing to eat those foods that are lower in nutrients in a kids size portions — a kids ice cream cone, a mini-chocolate bar or a small personal pizza.
Take a moment to slow down
If you tend to speed through meals, especially pleasureful foods like restaurant meals or junk food, one way to avoid overdoing it is to slow down the experience. Eating slowly can make you feel fuller. For starters, try chewing each bite 25 times because this also helps you fully focus on the flavor and texture of the food. When you eat mindfully, you really take in the pleasure of enjoying that one piece of food, and your body will be satisfied, which will decrease cravings for larger portions in the future.
Spice it up (literally)
Another way to practice moderation is to add more nutritional value to recipes you love. For example, mix oats into your cookie batter to up your fiber intake, slow digestion, and avert a sugar crash. Swap high-fat sour cream for high-protein 0% Greek yogurt for healthier party dips, and add roasted veggies to your pasta and sauces for a flavorful antioxidant boost. Increasing the number of nutrients you get in less-nutritious foods you already love is a win-win. You keep the foods on your menu while also ensuring they’re healthier, and you’re fuller and more satisfied.
Why does moderation matter?
So, why does moderation really matter? By understanding moderation and recognizing how achieving moderation with your food, exercise, and your overall attitude on life can help you to calm your nervous system, this then allows your body and your mind to create a feeling of safety. This feeling of safety then allows your body to relax and let go of any inflammation or weight or holding of toxicity that your body might have.
More importantly, those who have struggled with emotional eating or any other nutritional pain point will be able to free themselves of that toxic weight by understanding the relationship they have with moderation. And it’s important to note that everyone’s relationship with moderation is unique and specifically tailored to them.
Lifestyles that would benefit from moderation
While anyone can benefit from moderation, there are certain lifestyles that would more greatly benefit from moderation. Once you recognize that you fall within one of these lifestyles, you can begin your journey and be one step closer to a healthy lifestyle. However if you don’t relate with one of these lifestyles, you might find that you could still benefit from living in moderation.
Emotional/Binge eaters
Those who struggle with either emotional eating or binge eating, or even any eating disorder, would be more likely to benefit from moderation. Someone who experiences emotional or binge eating might turn to excessive amounts of food when they are feeling intense emotions. They might find themselves in a never ending binge cycle, with no concept of moderation. These lifestyles would benefit from moderation because understanding their relationship to moderation will in turn help them understand their relationship to food.
WHAT CAN BE DONE
If you find yourself struggling to eat in moderation and experiencing emotional or binge eating behaviors, the first thing you should do is check in on your emotions. You’re more likely to binge or emotionally eat when you’re sad, stressed, bored or anxious, and less likely to consider moderation. BY checking in on how you are feeling right before you eat, you can start to develop a better relationship with your food and moderation.
Mindless eaters
Those who are mindless eaters, or who don’t manage what or how much they eat, would be more likely to benefit from moderation. Someone who is a mindless eater typically eats on autopilot, and is rarely ever aware of how much food they are eating until after the fact. They might find themselves sitting down in front of the tv after work with a bag of chips and finishing the bag in one sitting. This type of lifestyle would benefit from moderation because they might not know how to eat in moderation.
WHAT CAN BE DONE
If you find yourself struggling to eat in moderation and experiencing mindless eating habits, remember to first ask yourself what moderation feels like to you. Try by asking yourself this right before you go to grab something to munch on. And if you suddenly find yourself in the middle of eating, pause and ask yourself then.
IBS
Those who suffer from IBS, or irritable bowel syndrome, would be more likely to benefit from moderation. Someone who has IBS typically has a hard time eating most foods and may even be on a Low-FODMAP diet. They might find themselves still experiencing IBS symptoms even though they are following the diet. This lifestyle would benefit from moderation because they might be eating an abundance of the foods they can eat on the Low-FODMAP diet, and eating in excess amounts.
WHAT CAN BE DONE
If you find yourself struggling to eat in moderation and experiencing IBS symptoms, in addition to asking yourself what moderation feels like for you, try to recognize what your relationship to moderation is. Once you recognize what relationship you have, or if you even have one at all, apply that relationship to your eating habits.
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Just by shifting your relationship to moderation, the physical outcome that you’re looking for will most likely arise. It could even arise spontaneously. However it does arise, your body will be in harmony once it does. Your body, your heart, your mind. Remember that it’s less about moderation around the content of the food you’re eating, and it’s more about your relationship to moderation in context.
Extra tips for moderation
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Avoid trigger foods. Some foods are tough to eat in moderation. So if you can’t control the amount you eat, control how often you eat these foods.
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Make the healthy choice the easy choice. Stock your favorite healthy foods, and keep high-calorie, high-fat items out of the pantry or out of sight.
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Try a 90/10 approach. Have 90% of the foods you eat be healthy and then allow yourself 10% of the foods you eat to be indulgent foods.
