One of the most common New Year’s resolutions people make is to lose weight by dieting. The idea is that restricting the pleasures of tasty foods will lead to greater fitness and a finer physique. But if these rewards are so valuable, why is it so hard for us to stick to our resolution? Maybe the problem is that when we try to lose weight, we also lose the pleasure of eating.
What if we could have it all? Keep the pleasure and stick to our resolution? In the US, we tend to compartmentalize pleasure, separating it from our daily chores and relegating it to special times. We have happy hours, not happy days. We have guilty pleasures, as if enjoying chocolate or a favorite movie is a moral failing.
In France, pleasure, or “plaisir,” is not a dirty word. It’s not considered hedonistic to pursue pleasure. Perhaps a better translation of the word is “enjoyment” or even “delight.” Pleasure, in fact, takes the weight of a moral value, because according […]
Oui!
I totally agree with you, Stephan!
Really good article Stephan, thank you.. Raising my children, I had a “palate rule” they had to try a tablespoon of something they’d never tried before. If they liked, it they could help themselves, if not the tablespoon was enough to help them make their own decision. They were never forced, but they had to try a tablespoon again the next time it was served. When they’d ask me why, I’d tell them because their palate might change and develop. A few times, they did in fact decide, that they enjoyed a certain food that they previously hadn’t before. Now, as adults, they find pleasure in a wide variety of different foods, and practice the same experimental palate rule with their own kids.