The Culture of Extreme

I saw a story pop up on GMA a couple weeks ago that really stopped me.

A 30-year-old fitness coach died after intentionally consuming nearly 10,000 calories a day as part of a binge-eating challenge. He was trying to gain dramatic weight so he could later showcase an equally dramatic transformation. It was supposed to be a classic "before-and-after moment." A spectacle our culture tends to reward.

And what struck me wasn’t the shock of the headline, but rather it was the reminder of how easily we lose our center when the world around us keeps pushing us toward extremes. In yoga, we talk about brahmacharya , not as restriction, but as right use of energy. It’s the practice of moderation, balance, and alignment. It’s choosing the amount that sustains us rather than depletes us.

This story felt like a reflection of something bigger than one person’s tragedy. It’s a mirror for all the ways we override our inner wisdom in the name of achievement, comparison, pressure, ambition, or validation. How often do we go past our own edge? Physically, emotionally, and energetically? Because we think the “result” will be worth it?

Brahmacharya invites us to pause and ask oursleves:

Is this nourishing me, or draining me?

Is this choice aligned with my energy, my truth, my well-being?

Am I honoring my body… or overriding it?

Moderation isn’t small. It’s spacious. It’s the place where clarity lives. It’s the practice of staying close to yourself in a world that pulls you outward. In a culture that glorifies extremes, choosing balance is actually the brave thing. It’s tuning in instead of performing. It’s stopping when you feel the edge instead of stepping over it.It’s listening to your body when it whispers, instead of waiting until it has to scream. Let this story serve as a gentle reminder: You don’t have to live at the edges to live a meaningful life. Your energy is sacred. Your well-being matters more than any transformation arc.

Come back to the middle. Come back to yourself. That’s where the yoga is.