[mrsred]

I need help figuring out what I should serve, or even buy anymore. Dh and I both need to lose weight. My 98 year old son, that lost nine pounds in 2 months a year and a half ago due to medication has bounced back and is now needing "husky" sizes! The kid has gained 25 -30 pounds since then! Meanwhile, our 12 yr old is almost 5' tall and barely weighs over 70 pounds! A good gust of wind could knock him over... as well as his little brother or sister.
So, how do I cut calories for myself, dh and E while increasing for J????
By the way, our daughter is absolutely where she should be, albeit small for her age. She is at the 10th percentile in both height and weight. (J is 60 for height and 8 for weight, while E is 45 for height and 90 for weight).

[BrandyHagz]

My 98 year old son

Is there something we should know...?

[greenrobin]

Originally Posted by mrsred

My 98 year old son

I'm going to guess that you meant 98 lb

Losing weight is simple. Calories in have to be less than calories out.

Yeah, right!

Having been up and down and up again, and currently spending a ton of money to go back down, I do feel your dilemma. Personally, I need the financial accountability to get it done, but maybe you're better than me. I really hope so!

Here's the part no one wants to hear: Simple, broiled, grilled or poached chicken, turkey and fish, fresh veggies and fruits, complex carbs without butter, sour cream, or gobs of cheese, beans and peas, and water should be the basis of anyone's diet. There are tons of places online that help you figure your caloric needs and some even tell you how many portions of each to eat. Then address your exercise needs. And that's it. Again, yeah right!

For supper, we're having grilled beef (fish for me), spinach salad with a little olive oil and lemon juice, red onions, mushrooms and strawberries in the salad, and probably some corn on the cob--no butter. I'll be finished with my required water, so I'll probably add some green tea because I like it. The beauty of summer is that you get to cook healthy and delicious at the same time. The kids who need more calories can add more food or the butter. We never really make too many changes for me. One fish fillet is no biggie. Usually--I started to say "I eat what they eat" but it's actually more like "they eat what I eat."

Now, just getting there....that'll be my challenge!

[shavon]

98 yr old son...rofl thanks for the laugh even if it was by mistake it totally made my day..thanks

[mrsred]

did I forget to tell you all that I was 127?

Okay, really, he is 8.... no ninety, just eight.

My problem isn't so much how dh, ds8 and I lose weight so much as how I do that while getting dd12 to maintain her weight and ds12 to actually gain weight. Especially since the three kids are very "fair-minded".... keeping track of what everyone else has to make sure they each get thier fair share.

[TxMom65]

I have the same problem at my house. My son especially is thin, even at 18. I tried to get him to drink ensure, but he hated it.
I get the kids whole milk, skim for us. all eat fruit. We don't drink sugary drinks. I also get him things for breakfast that are totally different than what I wouuld eat. He likes pancakes, ect. I can take a different lunch than him, so that helps as well. Mainly our evening meal is our only one together.

It is hard when you are trying to do opposite things.

[mrsred]

TxMom65, J hated the ensure too, but he did like the Boost Plus. There is Boost and Boost Plus, the Boost Plus has extra calories. Another thing I have done is given him the Carnation Instant Breakfasts to dring with his breakfast! I also put one in a plastic bottle and put it in his school lunch. Then he would just buy the milk at school. Since he rarely ate his entire lunch at least that way I knew he was getting some nutrition.

[marythemom]

Hubby and I used the South Beach diet 2 years ago and quickly lost quite a bit of weight. It's time to do it again though!

When D was in RTC he was on Depakote and that, combined with the food they served (I swear it was all deep fried!), caused him to gain 5-9lbs a week! He was there 6 months. Within a couple of months of his return home - eating lots of veggies, whole grains and low fat foods (South Beach diet maintenance menu) - he is back to a more reasonable weight.

His sister, H, has always been very underweight and proud of it. We reduced her Concerta for the summer and she has put on a healthy amount of weight - although she's still very slender.

Our biodd is very big for her age (almost 5'7 and well over 140lb at age 11) and loves carbs and cheese. She is having the most difficult time with her weight of any of the kids.

Mainly we focus on eating healthy. We only serve healthy foods - with the occasional treat. Lately because of money issues we haven't been eating out at all. Hubby and I are the worst about sitting around all day and eating junk while we are at work.

[momraine]

I have one severely underweight child, one overweight and two just right. I am overweight but recently had lap band and am loosing and dh could stand to loose a pound or two. So I buy half and half for one kid, and everyone else gets skim. I also have full fat and fat free dressing for salads and often give different drinks to different people in the house. I also will put more cheese or extra things like sour cream or butter or half and half on the underweight kids food, a little on the normal kids and none or fat free versions on the three of us who need to loose weight. It is tough and honestly some days I do single serving things, not so much because of the different needs, but because we are not always all home for a meal at the same time.

[randyxtracie]

You can find quick and easy recipes at Recipes, Menus, Cooking Videos, Dinner Tonight - Easy Meals, Healthy Cooking, Most Popular Recipes - MyRecipes.com. Just choose the recipes from Health and Cooking Light. We started using Cooking Light recipes several years ago and have been hooked ever since.