Dieting when your family isn't!

hannahandme2006

My family (especially my honey) doesn't need to be dieting...it's really hard trying to diet when they don't need to! How do you cope with this without fixing 2 meals for every mealtime? One of the dieter and one for them! I don't have enough time in the day as it is!!!

mikeyml

Is the rest of the family at least eating healthy food? They may not need to diet but they would probably benefit from a balanced meal. If they aren't then there is no easy fix. If you cook the meals then you can gradually adjust their meals to become healthier or be forced to cook multiple meals. =/

mikeveggie68

sometimes i will make a meal for them, but i will eat my favorite healthy cereal and some fruit, instead of what i made for them.

xraychick77

Just because they dont need to lose weight, as you see, doesnt mean they dont need to eat healthy. I am lucky to have someone who enjoys eating healthy, too bad I am a vegetarian and she is a meat eater. But we work around that, I just dont eat meat with the meals we prepare. I just usually eat the veg, or i may add a soy meatless substitute. Get your family to start eating healthier. There is nothing wrong with them eating low fat foods, low cal foods etc. And if all you are eating is salad, you are going about this the wrong way. Remember being fit and healthy is NOT a diet plan, its a lifestyle change for a lifetime.

humpalc

They may not need to diet, but they can certainly eat healthy We all eat the same thing, I just usually have a smaller portion, or instead of serving something with pasta, I may eat it on a bed of spinach - if we do a fish-fry (my hubby is a fisherman) I bake a pan of fish for me (though usually these days the deep fryer stays put away and that's what we ALL eat).

hannahandme2006

I just started today so we'll see how it goes from here but I'm going to try to start cooking healthier meals. Like you said mikeyml they could all definitely be eating healthier! I just hate to make them all suffer when they don't have to. I do like your idea mikebiggs68 because cereal is my weakness! I could eat it for 3 meals a day!

CarlydogsMom

Lean meat and veggies for everyone; potato or rice for the rest of your family.
Spaghetti: use the tomato-based sauce, add veggies, and serve with either a small amount of pasta for you (regular serving for the rest of your family) or serve your own sauce over green beans.
Mexican food: get rid of the taco shells/tortilla for yourself; make it into a salad; the tortillas or taco shells for them.

Etc etc. You can do it. I have a husband who has no interest in dieting, and we make it work, mostly by making healthy base items, leaving the "extras" for him.

looby1968

My family (especially my honey) doesn't need to be dieting...it's really hard trying to diet when they don't need to! How do you cope with this without fixing 2 meals for every mealtime? One of the dieter and one for them! I don't have enough time in the day as it is!!!

Well, I find with doing a decent amount of exercise, I can eat most of the stuff I ate before! If not, then I make them slightly different and most of the time you can't tell the difference. I also add a lot more veggies to my meal and sometimes reduce my portion of the meal.

I'm a Brit and I love sausages and mash, chicken and chips (french fries if you are American) and even fish and chips.

I make slightly better versions of chilli and bolognese, using turkey mince (ground turkey?).

There's loads of websites for lower calorie/lower fat meals. Try googling: cooking light?

LouiseXXX

soccermom004

I often make sides that I won't eat along with other things that I like. I'll make grilled chicken and a big salad, some fruit and perhaps FF for the kids. I make sure not to make enough for me so I only eat the good stuff. For the most part though they should be eating the same healthy whole foods.

Charli666

i struggle with this to be honest, and make 2 meals, because my hubby point blank refuses to eat any fruit or veg, sorry he'll eat carrots once a week if i'm lucky, if you find a magic cure let me know lol, sorry i couldn't help more x

SiltyPigeon

Eat the same foods as the rest of your family, but smaller portions.
Also, sneak healthy alternatives in with their foods. What they don't know will only make them and you healthier!
My husband has been unknowingly eating healthier foods for a couple of months now! He doesn't need to know the sour cream is low fat and that I haven't used "real" sugar in anything for weeks! He hasn't even questioned the fact that we have had a vegetable with every meal recently.

Good Luck! No excuses! )

tarat20

I understand how you feel. My whole family is not trying to diet and ever time dinner comes around they want to eat turns of empty calories and then when I dont want to eat it they look at me funny. I have no one motivating me at all its really depressing and sometimes i just want to quit.

SiltyPigeon

Eat the same foods as the rest of your family, but smaller portions.
Also, sneak healthy alternatives in with their foods. What they don't know will only make them and you healthier!
My husband has been unknowingly eating healthier foods for a couple of months now! He doesn't need to know the sour cream is low fat and that I haven't used "real" sugar in anything for weeks! He hasn't even questioned the fact that we have had a vegetable with every meal recently.

Good Luck! No excuses! )

Mindful_Trent

Just because they dont need to lose weight, as you see, doesnt mean they dont need to eat healthy.

Exactly what I was thinking!

Try to find some healthier foods that everyone enjoys, healthy versions of unhealthier favorites, new foods, etc. You simply eat less (portion control) since you're trying to lose weight. Everyone will benefit from eating healthier!

hannahandme2006

I went grocery shopping last night and instead of buying normal lean beef I got ground turkey so I am trying to substitute that in there. I did my first food post today of what I ate for breakfast and lunch and even after just yogurt and granola for breakfast, a lean cuisine for lunch I only have 300 calories left for dinner! This is gonna take some getting used to! Thank you ladies for all your input!!

oxnina

if your the cook of the house, they have to eat what you make, that's that!
if not, just make sure that you eat small portions and fill yourself with veggies.. I still live at home with my parents, my mom knows that i'm eating healthy so she always asks my opinions. Besides, it wouldn't hurt if my family ate more healthy anyways.

earthy_lady

Portions portions portions. You can cook healthy veggie items and a salad with juicy steak for example and just serve yourself smaller portions of the rich items and larger portions of the low-cal stuff. Everyone else can eat large portions of the decadent stuff and small servings of healthier items

courtneykrueger

My husband and I eat the same things, even though he actually needs to gain weight. I have started eatting MUCH healthier, and regardless of whether someone needs to lose weight, healthy is better!! And he typically just eats at least twice as much as me. I'm lucky he is not picky. I watch my portion and always get my food first and then the hubby and our little girl will grub out on what is left!

chefchazz

mostly i make ONE dinner. and they will eat it or make their own(which they wont) so i win! but seriously, whatever i make i just portion mine and give my hubs a bigger size.

mikeyml

I went grocery shopping last night and instead of buying normal lean beef I got ground turkey so I am trying to substitute that in there. I did my first food post today of what I ate for breakfast and lunch and even after just yogurt and granola for breakfast, a lean cuisine for lunch I only have 300 calories left for dinner! This is gonna take some getting used to! Thank you ladies for all your input!!

It sounds like you are on a 1200 calorie / day diet and have it set to 2 pounds per week as your weight loss goal. Is that right? If it is I would suggest changing your weekly goal to 1 pound and seeing if that gives you some more calories to eat during the day. There is a thread on here that talks about this in a lot of detail so if you have some time I would take a look at it.
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/181080-mfp-s-most-common-user-pitfall-to-avoid

It will be hard to convince other adults in the family to start eating healthy if they don't already. That is really a choice that they have to make. But if you have kids then it will be a great learning experience for them to see the difference between healthy food and unhealthy food. They will carry the skills you give them for the rest of their lives.

DPruneda17

I went grocery shopping last night and instead of buying normal lean beef I got ground turkey so I am trying to substitute that in there. I did my first food post today of what I ate for breakfast and lunch and even after just yogurt and granola for breakfast, a lean cuisine for lunch I only have 300 calories left for dinner! This is gonna take some getting used to! Thank you ladies for all your input!!

Watch which types of yogurt / Lean Cuisine you buy. They vary with calories/fat. Dont' buy yogurt that has more than 100 calories. Also, granola is usually a no-go. Maybe look for a low cal cereal (Kashi) that you can put into your yogurt instead. Good Luck!!

Oh, and I cook healthy dinners. If they don't like it, they are open to cook for themselves! Sometimes they like it, sometimes they don't...!

ms_erica

I would suggest you eliminate 'dieting' out of your vocabulary...you'll come to find out that you wont have negative outlook on it. cook the same thing for everyone because it is healthier...

rosebarnalice

My tall and skinny honey eats what I eat at dinner for all the right reasons--for his own health, and because he loves me and supports my goals. But then to get the extra calories he wants/ needs (and particularly protein), he'll usually makes himself a snack either before or after dinner (sometimes both)-- typically lean chicken or turkey breast, or several handfuls of nuts and dried fruit.

And we have a "don't ask-don't tell"' policy about lunch when we're both at work. . . so I know that he sometimes eats hamburgers and other "off list" stuff when I'm not around!

dave4d

I make what I make. If they don't want it, They can have something like a tv dinner. That just means more leftovers for me. Then I can cook less.

Mindful_Trent

Dont' buy yogurt that has more than 100 calories. Also, granola is usually a no-go.

You might want to be careful giving such specific advice. Quality is as important as calorie count, and some things are super healthy for you, but have lots of calories. Yes, granola can be high-calorie, but if you buy a good type that is low in sugar and is made of whole grains and things like flax seed and nuts, it can be very healthy for you.

For yogurt - if you buy the no-fat yogurt it will be lower in calories but often they add a bunch of other "crap" - sugar, etc. You can find no-fat or low-fat yogurt without that stuff, but you have to read the labels carefully. To say that you shouldn't buy yogurt with more than 100 calories (per serving, I assume) is super general and rather restrictive. Plenty of good, healthy yogurts have calorie counts higher than that per serving.

hannahandme2006

Wow. I love this site already! You guys are awesome!! Thanks so much for all the wonderful advice! My honey is actually needing to gain weight so I try to eat half of a normal portion and he eats the other half plus his own. Then the kiddos eat their normal portions. This is gonna be a fun ride!

syd1980

i had the same problem. my hubby sure dont need to lose no more weight. i just started cooking healthy . but i also buy the junk he likes. but my secret i only buy him the junk i dont like . so when he eats his ice cream , i have a 45 calorie fudge stix. it takes time but you will figure it out

omgitsgarry

I eat the same things as the rest of my family, I just make sure that I have enough calories and I don't go back for seconds. I save the left over calories for a small snack later. It works. However, I've flat out refused to make cookies, because then I know i'll be in trouble then, much to the disappointment of my mother. She use to just make the batter and ask me to put them on the cookie sheet and bake them.

Jena_72

Just because they dont need to lose weight, as you see, doesnt mean they dont need to eat healthy.

Exactly what I was thinking!

Try to find some healthier foods that everyone enjoys, healthy versions of unhealthier favorites, new foods, etc. You simply eat less (portion control) since you're trying to lose weight. Everyone will benefit from eating healthier!

Our endocrinologist once told me EVERYONE should eat like a diabetic. And it's true. Just because someone is thin by no means does that mean they are healthy. I do fix different things for the rest of my family than I do myself sometimes or like the other poster said eat the same thing just smaller portions(use those scales and measuring cups!) I have started to lower the sodium consumption for my entire family Shhhhh they don't know that
and like last night I was tired I made baked chicken and veggies thats it! My daughter said is that it?! I said Yes. If an entire leg quarter, veggies and a glass of milk doesn't fill you up let me know, she was fine. My husband I told him since you don't eat veggies here's your "big" piece of chicken. Dinner is served they know where the kitchen is if they want something else. Do what you can when you can. We decide how our family eats not the other way around it's one of those "mom"perks!

Jaedynmoon

I just cook healthy, well balanced dinners that everyone will enjoy. If we make pizza one night, I load mine with fresh veggies and no cheese (I can't eat dairy anyways so this cuts a ton of calories) and it's REALLY good!! We all eat the same stuff!

jenbusick

Lots of good advice here.

Nobody else in my family has a weight problem either :frown:

I use portion control (same stuff my family eats, I just watch portions), as well as the strategy of multiple side dishes. For example, I'll make hamburgers (which everyone eats), with French fries, which everybody but me eats, and a salad, which the kids and I eat (my spouse won't touch a salad). Or I'll make goulash (which everybody eats) with rolls (which everybody else eats) and peas (which the kids and I eat; my spouse won't touch peas).

So we all eat the same entree; I just measure mine more carefully than theirs. And if they're having a side that I can't eat, I make two sides -- one that I can eat.