Celebration!

[Brent Brown]

The term "cheat meal" has always bothered me.  This is a relatively minor point, and it is probably just me, but it is something that I want to change during this rest week. 

I don't like it because I don't feel like I am cheating during that meal.  I work my keester off for six days and eat 20+ clean meals.  That one meal is a reward for a job well done and I look forward to it.  So labeling it as a "cheat" just rubs me wrong.

I've heard the term "free meal" used as an alternative.  But that bugs me too.  (I know, I'm a problem child about these little details :)).  I don't like "free meal" because it feels like an implication that I am somehow held in bondage the rest of the week.  Should those 20+ clean meals during the week be called "slave meals?"  I actually think it is the opposite.  Slave meals are what I was eating when I was so addicted to carbs that I couldn't control myself.  Having the control and the power to consistently eat clean is a great demonstration of my freedom.  So I don't like the implication that those meals are not "free."

My son and I kicked it around for a while and we settled on the term "celebration meal."  That weekly meal is a celebration of a week of tough workouts and great nutrition, which is something worth celebrating!  Celebrations are something that are, by their nature, occasional.  To celebrate everyday robs the celebration of its meaning.  Also it implies that if (for whatever reason) the workout and clean eating do not happen, then there is nothing to celebrate.

Like I said, probably a minor thing, but I feel better about it.  :)

[Brent Brown]

@Rachelle Yeah, if it were all up to me, I think I would just have a few planned treats during the week instead of a whole meal... Then slowly reduce the frequency of the treats.  But my family has upended their whole diet to support this lifestyle, and that meal is much much anticipated and enjoyed by the kids.  So, what the heck...  :)

 

@Jim Totally!  Plus I don't like using the work "cheat" with the kids.  Don't want to give them bad ideas.

 

@Pam Yay!  Glad you think it is worth stealing! 8^>

[Pam Benedick]

I totally agree with this! I'm going to be stealing it.....celebration meal! :)

[Jim B]

I have to admit that the term has troubled me, too.

 

I don't really look at it as a cheat, because I'm not on a diet and have never been on a diet in my life, so I never felt like I was cheating.

[Rachelle Lowder]

I like your thinking on the "celebration meal". Of course, those meals aren't something you HAVE to have, either. That's something I've come to realize. But, that doesn't seem to stop something from coming up that opens it's door to a weekly "celebration meal". =) Big congrats on your 3 month mark and enjoy your rest & recovery!