Kind of a Stupid Question

I had the same problem. Go to fatsecret.com. You can search for low calorie recipes. Kids don't always like it at first so you might have to be sneaky. I think it is fun sometimes to fix them things and not let them know what is actually in it until they tell me they like it. The diet coke chicken was really good and they were shocked I put soda in their chicken.

Make small changes with your family, rather than a complete overhaul all at once. Try to buy less processed foods. I started out with oven fries made with olive oil, lightly seasoned. Find a healthy flatbread recipe online and make personal flatbread pizzas, everyone adds their own toppings, we have roasted garlic, mushrooms, onions, spinach and whatever cheese or meat you want. Fruit and yogurt smoothies. Substitute low fat ground chuck or turkey for hamburger. Pitch the cheap white bread for wheat or whole grain. Make fresh tossed salads. Frozen yogurt , peach is our favorite. Buy an air popcorn popper for popcorn nights. Have a loaded bake potato bar night include salsa, cheese etc. The ideas are endless, you might be surprised at how much your family will enjoy eating well! Bon Apetit!

fresh fruit and veggies, as little processed as possible.

Thanks!

I'll definitely start with small steps. It sounds so overwhelming when i think about it.

It is very overwhelming when you first start. We would spend hours in the grocery store comparing labels and trying to figure out what to buy. We now buy very little processed foods. Nothing frozen (other than plain veggies) or anything that comes from a box. We shop mostly around the outter edges of the store. I buy organic ketchup, salad dressings, mayo, pickles, wheat thins, some no salt added canned goods, and some cereals. Everything else is from the outter two isles. We now know exactly what to buy, we get in and out. Organic does mean clean eating. We don't buy organic. When you eleminate all the other foods, it doesn't cost much more to eat healthy. Just takes time and planning.

This is NOT a stupid question at all! It is a very smart place to start!

I began my weight-loss and health seeking journey at 355 pounds in August, as a major junk food junkie who drank coke all day. Today, I weigh 226 (I have lost 129 pounds since August), and I went off ALL sugar cold turkey in August. Now I drink green tea all day instead of coke, lol! I eat WAY more vegetables and a LOT less meat. I have made many other changes as well. It just happens that I have done a great deal of nutritional research over the past several months, because I was diagnosed with cancer in July, and I am putting every effort into defeating it!

You mentioned not being able to afford organic vegetables, since you have a big family with teenagers. According to the books I have been studying, organic food is best BUT the nutrtional content of vegetables is more important than whether or not they are organic. Just don't skimp on vegetables! I have read that it is moe important to get your MEAT products organic and either grass-fed or free-range (or, in the case of fish, wild caught). Talk about EXPENSIVE! Fortunately, it is also recommended in the books I have been reading to greatly reduce meat consumption, and instead, eat a lot of plant based proteins like beans, lentils and quinoa. I am still making that transition, because it involves learning all new recipes!

It is wonderful that you don't drink sodas! How about other sugar consumption? Besides baked goods, there is sugar added to everything from "healthy" breads and yogurts to spaghetti sauce! Getting rid of refined sugar is tough to do, but I think it is important for good health, and in my case, I have learned that sugar actually feeds cancer, so obviously, I don't want any of THAT!

If you would like to hear more about the changes I have been making, feel free to drop me a line, or send me a friend request!