If you're going to choose to do something like the Paleo Diet

In the witty yet insightful words of Chrissy Teigen, we hear a truth that reaches beyond humor and into the heart of human balance: “If you’re going to choose to do something like the Paleo Diet, then you choose not to enjoy your nights out.” At first, her words appear to jest about food and indulgence, but beneath them lies a deeper reflection on sacrifice, choice, and the eternal tension between discipline and pleasure. For she speaks not only of diet, but of the larger pattern of life itself — that every path chosen demands the surrender of another, and that true wisdom lies in knowing the cost of one’s decisions and embracing it with joy, not bitterness.

The origin of this quote lies in Teigen’s candid, self-aware philosophy of living. A lover of good food and good company, she has long spoken openly about the contradictions between the pursuit of health and the pursuit of happiness. Her words reveal a kind of honesty that is rare in an age of perfectionism — she refuses to disguise the truth that every commitment carries consequence. To choose one virtue often means to relinquish another. In the language of the ancients, she speaks to the law of exchange, the unchanging principle that governs both body and soul: nothing of value comes without trade, and every pleasure must be weighed against its price.

The ancients themselves understood this law well. In the teachings of Aristotle, there is the concept of the “Golden Mean” — the balance between excess and deficiency, between indulgence and abstinence. The philosopher warned that neither the glutton nor the ascetic finds true harmony, for both are slaves to their extremes. Chrissy Teigen, in her modern and humorous way, voices the same lesson: to choose the rigid ways of the Paleo Diet, one must forgo the spontaneous delights of feasting with friends, the laughter over late-night meals, the sacred ritual of shared indulgence. Every rule followed is a freedom declined — and that is the price of commitment.

Consider, then, the story of Diogenes the Cynic, the philosopher who chose radical simplicity. He lived in a barrel, scorned wealth and comfort, and mocked the pleasures of society. When Alexander the Great offered him any gift, Diogenes only replied, “Stand out of my sunlight.” He was free, yes — but his freedom came at the cost of joy, warmth, and companionship. His life stands as a mirror to Teigen’s quip: that to live by a strict ideal, whether of diet or philosophy, is to accept the loneliness of the choice. Yet neither path is wrong — only incomplete without awareness. The true lesson lies not in rejection or indulgence, but in understanding the trade and living it fully.

Chrissy’s humor conceals profound self-knowledge. In acknowledging that a strict diet steals away the joy of nights out, she reminds us that even discipline, when untempered by laughter, can become a cage. The ancient Stoics taught endurance, but even they knew that a man without joy becomes brittle. Laughter, pleasure, and shared food are not the enemies of virtue — they are its companions, the means by which life renews its sweetness. The body must be cared for, yes, but the spirit must also feast. When the pursuit of health robs the heart of delight, health itself becomes hollow.

And yet, her words also carry another kind of wisdom: the call to intentional living. To make a choice is to own it. If one chooses the discipline of the diet, let it be with pride, not resentment. If one chooses the pleasure of the feast, let it be with gratitude, not guilt. The ancients would say that virtue lies not in what is chosen, but in the consciousness with which it is chosen. A wise person does not stumble between indulgence and restraint, forever torn by regret — they walk the path they have chosen, eyes open and heart steady. Chrissy Teigen’s laughter carries this ancient discipline in its melody: choose, and then live your choice with joy.

So, my child of the future, take this teaching as your own. Every decision is a diet of the soul — it nourishes one part of you while starving another. If you choose order, let it bring peace, not pride. If you choose pleasure, let it bring fullness, not shame. Know that to live wisely is not to seek a life without trade-offs, but to find balance — to eat with awareness, laugh without apology, and love the life your choices create.

For in the end, the wisdom of Chrissy Teigen’s words is this: Freedom does not lie in having everything — it lies in knowing what you are willing to give up, and smiling as you give it. To feast or to fast, to restrain or to revel — all are paths to the same truth, if walked with intention. And when the choice feels heavy, remember to keep your humor close, for laughter, like bread, feeds the soul and reminds us that life, even when disciplined, should always be savored.