retirehappy posted this quote in an earlier post, and I think it pertains here:

“If you don’t make the time to work on creating the life you want, you’re eventually going to be forced to spend a LOT of time dealing with a life you DON’T want.”

- Kevin Ngo


When it comes down to it, you need to make the choices for yourself and be a good example for your family. They'll follow. It's hard, my family is a feeding family. Every gathering revolves around food. Delicious food! And it's really hard to stay on track around them. But I'm sitting here, 76 lbs from where I want to be and really miserable. Go for a walk and ask them to join you, if they say no then you may just have to go on a walk by yourself a few times. My guess is though, that the kids will want to spend time with you. Make it a game! you can get some of your marathon training in too! haha.
For me, I've just had to be stubborn and say no to the really fatty foods my family makes and I've started making dinner before everyone gets home so they can't really say no to a no-work meal. It's more work for them to make something not-healthy than just eat what I've made.
With eating out, I kind of plan what I'm going to eat anyway. I have a set of foods I get from each restaurant whether its fast food or sit-down. You can look up the menus of almost any chain online or on a smart-phone, so you can stay in control of what you're eating. If they give you grief for eating healthy, take it as a compliment haha! My parents always try to make me feel guilty for eating healthier and it used to really bother me until I changed my thinking on it.
Park your car farther from your stops, stores, work, for your kids too! make them walk farther haha. Do squats when you brush your teeth (takes major concentration..) if you're watching tv with the fam, at commercial see who can do more push-ups you or the fam. If they win they get a reward :P ( I just said this to my friend and she looked at me and said... You win! without doing anything) Good luck!

One of the most difficult thing about eating clean and well is satisfying the 11 year old and 13 year old. Especially the 11 year old boy that loves cheese pizza, mac n cheese, bean and cheese burritos......and hates everything else. It can be maddening. Focus. I keep thinking the example will rub off one day.

I agree! When the family is gone, I don't have a problem eating well and staying on track with my calorie counting. However, as soon as they show up, they want everything! Right now, I don't have anything in the house that is really bad for you, and everything I have has to be prepared, so the kids aren't just getting into stuff. My problem shows up around dinner time! I have 4 of my own boys, a picky boyfriend (that didn't like ANY kind of vegetable until we got together and is very slowly adding a few into his eating habits because I keep making them and griping at him till he eats them), and he has 2 boys. My oldest 3 boys will eat whatever they are given. They may complain a bit about something, but they eat it anyways. His oldest one will usually eat his food without too much complaint also. However, his youngest one is 7 1/2, and we have a 2 year old together. The 2 year old is quite picky just because he's 2. The 7 1/2 year old has to nearly be force fed anything that doesn't come from a fast food place or a homemade version of something you can get from a fast food place; ie. chicken nuggets, french fries, burritos, hamburgers. Trying to come up with a dinner that everyone will eat is very hard, and it usually ends up packed in a lot of calories, like macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes and fried chicken. I have found that it is the carbs that kill me. I can eat all the meat and cheese and vegies and fruit I want, and as long as I do a little exercise every day, like take a 30 minute walk with my baby, I lose weight. As soon as I have a slice of toast, I automatically gain 1-2 pounds back by the next day. That is depressing to me! Do you know how hard it is to feed a family of 8 and not use some kind of bread or noodle AND make something that everyone won't complain about? It's no wonder I haven't lost a single pound in the last 6 months! Luckily, I've only gained 1, too. lol