Four years of Moderation!

Today marks the fourth anniversary of the Food and Fitness blog that begat a newspaper column that prompted the education that is the foundation for the 2013 Ms. Moderation wellness community. I'm overwhelmed with gratitude when I think of the encouragement and support I've received. I've spent a lifetime (literally) embracing wellness, long before it was an industry buzzword. Although it once seemed to be about eating and working out, I've now learned it's about the whole of our being. Spiritual, mental, and physical balance. A strong physical foundation of course, allows us to reach for greater balance and success, but it has little significance without the other pieces. We simply need to focus on the synergy created when we allow ourselves to balance.

Before I go further, I'll mention that the name for my blog (and now company) is my nickname. About 30 years ago, my husband began sarcastically referring to me as Ms. Moderation since he viewed my fitness feats as less than balanced. Ludicrous I say! If racquetball one time a week is good, five times must be exponentially greater. Tennis, kickboxing, kayaking, hiking, skiing, and every du jour sport in between became a conquerable challenge, especially if I had a partner in crime. Take up running? Yep, let's start with a 10k and finish with a marathon.

In the nutrition world, we ate whole grains, unprocessed foods, fresh fruits and veggies, some meat, and little sugar since I first became a grocery shopper. (I ate vegetarian for several years until I was the worse vegetarian ever. More on that later:) No soda allowed, babysitters hated the snack cabinet, my kids sneaked junk at other people's houses, and the ironic moniker stuck.

So when I needed a name for the blog, I threw Ms. Moderation onto the Title bar, with a subtitle of Practicing Extreme Balance in all things Food, Fit, and Fun. Of course, I never modified it and the rest is a tweaking distant memory.

And even more ironic is that I actually appreciate moderation even though I don't always practice it. Healthy aging is now a hot topic for me, and. I'm learning to embrace balance, although I've yet to clearly define it for myself. I look at consistency as a strength, when once upon a time it symbolized boredom to me. I look at stillness with a smile, when once it made my eyes roll.

I'm channeling my moderation gene in my wellness coaching practice. I speak and write of a balanced life plan in the corporate environment. And I'm feeling fine about the journey so far.