Home Features The Journey to Healthier Living: Balance and moderation are important (and delicious)

The Journey to Healthier Living: Balance and moderation are important (and delicious)

June 23, 2016

As the father of an adorable human waste factory, I’ve been going off three or four hours of sleep. Accordingly, mornings are not my favorite. In fact, mornings suck. I mean, mornings always suck, but now they suck wicked bad.

This morning as I drove in to work, I felt the need for a pick-me-up. Pulling into a gas station, I could have done any number of things to get that pick-me-up, such as buying an orange or a fruit and yogurt parfait, or pumping unleaded straight into my body (not advised). I decided to go with a nice iced vanilla coffee. As I was getting my drink, the most energetic lady I’ve ever met struck up a conversation with me. It was a hoot! We talked about coffee and treats. Of course, I then had to buy a treat. I mean, I’m not a heathen. I could have gone with the blueberry muffin to at least keep up the appearance of something healthy, but this isn’t about being perfect, and it’s most definitely not about keeping up the appearance of perfection. If I shoot for perfection, I’ll crack and fall back into a pile of donuts, cookies, and potato chips. This is about taking little steps toward healthier living. So, I went with the gooey cinnamon roll. Is that a healthy choice? Ha! No. But it is an okay choice in moderation. And if I’m going to try and live with moderation, I shouldn’t categorize the choice as a mistake or a moment of weakness. It was neither. It was a calculated choice. I didn’t do it thinking, “Oh, gosh, I shouldn’t do this,” or “I’m so bad.” It seems to me that those mindsets set you up for failure later on. It is what it is: a delicious morning treat. It’s not something I’ll do all the time, but I accept and acknowledge that it is something I’ll do every once and a while.

Of course, the other side of moderation is adding in healthier foods and activities. Those things need to happen as well. And when I do them, it doesn’t mean that I’m a rock star or that I deserve a reward. It means I’m living a moderated life that is moving toward healthier living. Just like the cinnamon roll wasn’t a mistake, it also wasn’t a reward for doing 20 pull-ups this morning. It was a choice; so were the pull-ups.

I believe moderation allows for consistency and longevity. Part of my moderation is my heavenly healthy lunches at Twisted Noodle Café. While I’d imagine they might disagree with the cinnamon bun, I’m sure glad that they’re there to help provide me with the healthy side of my balance. And with chef and owner Cameron Payne, there is always something to be excited about at Twisted Noodle Cafe.

Today’s special, the Fit Chick Pasta, tasted like the kind of full-flavored pasta dish that would cost me a full day’s worth of calories at a pasta shop. It was so much more enjoyable knowing that it was healthy on top of being delicious. And it had zucchini! Have I ranted about how much I love zucchini? It is the god of vegetables. I’ve used it as a noodle, a fry, and the primary ingredient in vegetarian meat(less)ball. My favorite is to cube it and put it in anything and everything. It has a great texture and seems to absorb the flavor of a meal well while still adding a twist of its own flavor.

Now, will I have a unhealthy treat tonight? No. Moderation. I will probably have a tasty treat of chilled grapes. That is some yummy moderation right there.

How do you add moderation to your eating and lifestyle? Let me know in the comments below.