Why I think “everything in moderation” isn’t great advice…
Moderation is a skill.
As such, it takes practice to get good at it, and it is going to fit some circumstances better than others.
If we take the advice as it is often given, as an absolute, we will fail more than we need to.
Moderation isn’t useful when;
You are trying to eradicate a negative habit (quitting smoking.)
You are trying to stop behavioral patterns from emerging (eating some crisps leads to eating all the crisps.)
You are trying to increase the frequency of a new behavior, and skipping it leads to a loss of momentum (missed daily activity leads to weeks of no daily activity).
Moderation is useful when;
You’ve developed a base of evidence of what life is like without something (sweets for example).
You wish to engage in a behavior that adds value to your life without having to be binary in your approach (to go for a drink with friends without it becoming a nightly habit).
You have developed the self confidence and self efficacy that an action is bolstered by habits (you can have a single alcoholic drink at night because you know any more will interfere with your morning workout routine which you also value.)
I spoke about this on IG here
So often, tools such as moderation are packaged and delivered as absolutes and because of the nature of humans (we want answers and like rules) we don’t question them.
When we do this, nuanced statements become more harmful than helpful.
Moderation, restraint, restriction, reward, and many others, are tools that we can build into our plans when trying to change behaviors and achieve specific goals.
If your goal was to win gold at the olympics, moderation can work well for you at some points during your training, and terribly for you at others.
If your goal was to lose 50 lbs, moderation might work well for you towards the end of your efforts, and terribly for you in the early stages.
The dose makes the poison.
How do we decide if we should use moderation in our plans?
I would ask;
Is this something that you can do just once? Why do you feel that way?
If I answer this for myself it sounds like…
“Is eating a bar of chocolate during your diet something you can do just once, Jay?
No.
Why do you feel that way?
Because I find chocolate delicious and it has hedonic, cultural, and behavioral knock on effects that don’t align with my current goals”.
Ok. So I don’t eat the chocolate. Not because it’s bad and I’m good, but because moderation isn’t the best skill for me to use during this phase of my plan.
If I held the limiting belief of “everything in moderation”, I’d just be handicapping myself.
Want to work with me?
This is the way I think about programming for my remote training clients, conversations and plans with my nutrition coaching clients, and how I built the systems within the builtXyou™ Transformation Program.
If your brain bulbs just lit up, you realize that there is a better way to approach your health fitness efforts, and that this approach of building a custom plan that is tailored to your needs, preferences, goals, and experiences makes sense for you, then I am your guy.
I have opened up 2 more available spots on my coaching roster for March and would love to work with you.
Complete the 3-5 minute application form HERE or drop me an email with your questions HERE.
Cheers and I look forward to working with you.
