Worried about impact of my calorie counting on 8 year old daughter

2»

Replies

  • jlynnm70
    jlynnm70 Posts: 460 Member
    My kids asked WHY I measured/weighed food - I didn't focus on the calories so much as to explain Portion Size. That even the cereal box says 1 oz is a portion - but when you fill the cereal bowl up it's closer to 3 servings or more - and that sometimes I have to measure to keep in mind what a REAL portion is. They aren't so focused on calories (and by no means need to be as they are definitely on the thin side) and my daughter (15) really does eat pretty healthy...Todays lunch was a PBJ sandwich, carrot sticks and clemintines. But Everyone else in the house has a different metabolism than I do - they can see that because they see me eat -but obviously my body type is not the long and lean (think short and curvy!) Mostly I just have told them over the years that I can't eat like they do because my body is different. Seemed to work.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    I personally don't think calories are scary, people just tend to attach too much baggage to them. Normalizing the concept of a calorie from a young age is good because it becomes just like inches, miles, cups, 7 almonds, or half a chicken breast. A quantitative measure, not a measure of a person's moral qualities.
  • Fitnessmom82
    Fitnessmom82 Posts: 376 Member
    Cbean08 wrote: »
    Fitnessmom82 wrote: »
    Use it as a moment to talk about healthy choices. I have three middle school aged girls and have worried a lot about what they are thinking about my weight loss. I try to stress that it's for my health, not my looks. Two of my girls are blossoming and getting pretty curvy. They have always been a bit on the thicker side of things. It never bothered them until I started to get thin. Now they ask how they can lose like me ect...we talk (constantly it seems, haha) about loving ourselves at every size. But, on the other hand, I don't want them to use it as a license to eat whatever they want. They eat healthy at home but I know they make poor choices when away from me. It's a delicate balance. When they expressed how they wanted to lose a little weight I told them that they didn't need to, but we could go on runs together ect...I told them that I am not on a diet, but I chose to eat mostly things that are nutritious. I try to stress balance.
    I never thought that this would be an issue when I started out, but man, it is sure becoming one. It's hard talking to young girls about weight. I'm always afraid to give them a complex!

    This is actually a great opportunity to connect with them. Why don't you all train to do a 5k together? Put the focus on the activity and let food play a supporting role. Teach them to fuel their bodies well so that they can run and so they feel strong and healthy.

    Present the idea to them and plan 3 days a week where you will all run together. On the other days, encourage them to get out and play - ride bikes, walk around the park, swim, play a sport. They'll see that they feel better when they eat right and are active. It takes the focus off of appearance and puts it on feeling good and overall wellness.

    I love the idea of training for a race!! Now that the weather is nice we are planning on doing weekly hikes as a family as well. Luckily for me, they love playing outside, so they usually spend a chunk of every day just running around the neighborhood with friends!

Categories