“Everything in moderation” is complete crap.
You know it’s true.
The people that tout this as the key to their successful weight loss/maintenance are full of shit. Either they have impeccably good genes or they starve themselves all day to “indulge” in that margarita or cheesecake for dessert (there are quite a few bloggers guilty of this actually).
I do not have good genes. I also do not have the willpower to have just one bite of dessert or just one cookie out of the box of oreos.
“Just one” of something usually equates to “just one” extra pound of fat for me.
And dammit, I don’t have the fortitude to starve myself. I could never be anorexic. I just like food too much.
Here I am on Day 6 of my Operation Healthy thing (I don’t really have a name for it but I hate the word “diet” as referring to cutting back calories for a specified length of time to achieve weight loss so “thing” will have to do for now) and I am struggling.
I have never had a problem with working out. In fact, I have been known to overtrain in the past. I have worked out 4 times this week with the intention of working out again today.
It’s glorious, delicious, mouth-watering food that is the problem. I have a raging sweet tooth that takes over my entire brain when I need a fix.
Case in point last night. I have absolutely NO sweets in my house…except for some chocolate chips I use for baking. After dinner last night, I could NOT stop thinking about the half bag of chocolate chips sitting in my pantry. After an hour of continuous day dreaming about those chips, I broke down and melted some to eat straight out of a bowl. I didn’t really eat all that much, maybe 1/4 of the bag (it was a smaller bag). Maybe 300 calories worth. Still I was overwhelmed with guilt afterward that I wasn’t strong enough to resist.
Some others would have been able to resist completely. Some would have just had a few chips out of the bag. Moderation is not for me.
I don’t even know what it means to have something in moderation. I am an all-or-nothing kind of girl.
Knowing this, I threw out the rest of the bag, as well as the last sleeve of saltine crackers (another trigger food for me, I can eat a whole 700 calorie sleeve in one sitting easily). At least now they aren’t there to tempt me.
In this healthy endeavor of mine, I have vowed to limit my sugar intake as much as possible, give up alcohol completely (because again, I can’t just stop at one drink, I’m kind of a boozehound), and eliminate as much processed food as possible.
I know I’m still in the first week of trying to eat the way I know I should and it will get easier as time goes on and I will crave sugar and fatty foods less and less. Until then, there will be no having “just one” for me.
Call it disordered eating, call it common sense, call it whatever you want, but the truth is that moderation does not work for everyone, and it does not work for me. If I want to cut back on something, I have to eliminate it completely or only have limited quantities presented to me to be able to keep myself from binging.
Does moderation work for you?
I so could have written this post. I have to go all or nothing because I just don’t have the ability to moderate appropriately. For example, I was at a party on Sunday and I wanted to have one chip with this bean dip (mostly cheese and cream cheese, not a lot of beans or I would have relaxed about it) but ended up having quite a few chips. Not enough to do serious damage but enough that I felt bad about my lack of willpower. And it’s like that with most things I encounter. I don’t think the practice of eliminating entirely is “disordered” in and of itself – there’s a lot to be said for knowing your limits and adhering to that!
Blame it on my (diagnosed) OCD or addictive personality, but I have to admit that I’m also an all-or-nothing kind of girl. As I’ve gotten older it’s gotten better, but to be on the safe side with things like food or drinks, I know that I’m in a much better place mentally if they’re just not around. If it’s there, I will eat/drink it. Or if I don’t–I have incredible “will power,” for better or for worse–I will obsess over it, just knowing it’s there.
While I know this is part of my personality, I also know that it’s impossible and impractical to think that I can eliminate or remove these things from my life completely. Enter moderation. I don’t keep things around that are triggers for me, but if it’s truly something I want, I know that I can have it. There are no hard and fast rules, as chocolate chips or a Cosmo aren’t going to become extinct. It really is about moderation and remembering that we always have a choice, even if it’s not an easy one. Most of all, cut yourself some slack
There is 700 calories in one sleeve of saltines?? Oi.
Moderation works for me for the most part but it really matters on what kind of day I’m having. I can’t keep chips in the house b/c thats all I will think about. This past winter I had half a bag of white chocolate morsels for baking but I never used it for baking-just snacking. I didn’t even have the patience to melt it so you’re one up on me.
I echo Tiffany…700 calories in one sleeve of saltines?!
I’ve defintely demolished close to one of those before in one sitting. So that kind of answers your question–nope, not very good at moderation!! I throw food out all the time because I know I’ll finish it up ASAP if it’s just sitting there. Here’s how bad MY lack of control is–I won’t have any junk in the house but will be doing my grocery shopping and stand there for ten minutes in the candy aisle battling with myself about whether to buy something “bad” or not. Um yeah, I always do. And then eat part. Then throw it away. I need to start literally throwing money out at the same time, maybe thatll help me with my willpower? haha 
Just having a few chocolate chips would have pissed me off. Truth.
And I agree. I struggle with moderation and the word “diet” just throws me into rebellion stage, which leads to eating the entire through the entire pantry. I have to have serious motivation in order to stick to a clean diet. Serious motivation. Because my exercise habits? Awesome. My eating habits? Well… last night I had a salad to go along with the pound of chocolate I inhaled from someone else’s halloween candy stash… ummmmm….
I’m with you, moderation doesn’t work for me. I can’t keep chips in the house because I’ll eat the whole bag in one sitting, same with frozen pizzas. I should really just stop buying those. If I could get my eating habits to be like my exercise ones I’m pretty sure I’d be much happier. I really can’t give up my wine though, no, no, no.
I know of this moderation you speak of. I eat all the things. Food is most definitely my downfall. If I want it, I have it. I can’t say no.
My boyfriend is the KING of moderation. He can have just one mini Reese’s cup and be totally satisfied, whereas I will want to eat the whole bag. The first time I went grocery shopping after we moved in he was all “where are the snacks?” Up until that point I didn’t keep ANY. Moderation blows.
Being a science geek, words that usually have a rational meaning (like organic means containing carbon) and have been “healthied” over to mean something else can send me into a rage. For me, diet means “what you eat” so EVERYONE is on diet. Ugh. /endrant
Moderation? What is that?!?!?! F&%# no, I can’t moderate! I LOVE ALL THE FOOD! Except peas. I will never love the peas. Poor bastards.
I’m right there with you. I try the whole “not buying processed/sugary things to keep at home” and buy healthy stuff…then I fail to eat the healthy stuff and buy the bad stuff when I’m out. I can find ways to lose my taste for overly sweet things for short periods of time but dammit…IT NEVER LASTS.
I am ok with sweets- if i eat one bite of a donut or a piece of pie, I can say to myself “ok, that’s what it tastes like.” and walk away. But salty foods like chips or (like we’ve talked about before) frozen pizzas are just asking for trouble. Instant 1,000 calorie addition to my day guaranteed.
I am totally the same way. I am trying to cut down on drinking too because it always makes what little bit of self control I have dwindle when it comes to food. It’s so hard living with my BF because he loves triscuits and cheese, candy corn, doritos, etc… I always tell him to hide them because I have NO SELF CONTROL.
Wow! We’re a LOT alike! I’m the exact same way. I can’t do ANYTHING in moderation. I can’t exercise in moderation, eat in moderation, love someone in moderation, loathe someone in moderation, cook dinner in moderation, etc., etc. I am very much an all or nothing girl. I’ve had this problem as well…I think it might have been the exact same scenario with the chocolate chips as a matter of fact! And if I don’t work out to the point of breaking myself, those chocolate chips will magically turn straight into FAT! It’s enough to make me want to scream!….I scream…..Icecream. Mmmmmm…..Icecream.
I think most people are all or nothing. Like you said, the ones who say they aren’t are probably lying. I’m all or nothing but in the opposite direction. I have trouble letting myself eat “bad” foods and am regimented and strict with my food. It’s only because I used to be a fatty and am scared to end up that way again. I’ve also been way too skinny. I’m happy where I’m at now, but probably still pretty fucked up in the head. We all are in our own ways I guess.
I can’t do moderation either. I usually just don’t buy certain foods because I know that I will eat it all. Although my husband does buy them (and then I eat it all.)
I am generally very good when it comes to moderation. Though I will admit – there are times where I have thrown cookies or cake away because I am so ravenous. I think everyone has done it one time or another.
I’m really glad you wrote this post- I’m the same way! And yeah, I’ve totally melted chocolate chips in a bowl to eat straight (although, I’ve also mixed them with a little peanut butter and some cereal- good combo right there). Happens to the best of us. I think more people are incapable of moderation than will admit it- after all, why else would 100-calorie packs have become something that people would readily pay twice as much for?
I just ate 400 calories worth of mini halloween candy. And after each piece, I would say, “Ah, yes, this is the one that shall satisfy my craving and I can blissfully put the rest in my desk for some other day.” But I’m going to Zumba, so it’s like they totally don’t count! (Perhaps this is why I am fat?). Irksome.
This is great! So happy there is a ‘real’ person on the other end of this blog:)
Wow! You sound like me. I try to eat and drink in moderation, but it never happens. Food is too good. I want to enjoy it! Yes, I feel bad after … but lately I’ve been in the mentality to love my life doing what I love.
I’m not going to lie, thought I have been TRYING to cut back on sweets and such. This means, I eat them only when I crave them … but yea.
Moderation is HARD.