[banananutmuffin]

Originally Posted by shcirerf

What is this, called by you, "diet" food?

Just wondering, are you hoarding the good, fresh, veg, fruit, lean meat and feeding your kids, yukky stuff.

I follow, at the moment, a calorie-controlled diet. Often I rely on frozen dinners or such items that are pre-packaged so that I know my exact calorie counts. That's the plan that works for me, and I know most people around here fall in the line with the philosophy of "do what works for you."

I do not think calorie-controlled frozen dinners are healthy for kids.

But thanks for jumping to the most offensive conclusion possible about what I consider to be a fairly innocuous topic that certainly some other dieters have faced at some point in their lives.

[Palestrina]

Originally Posted by banananutmuffin

"Diet" food = my low-cal/carb pitas & lavash, frozen calorie counted dinners, etc.

Yeah. All I feed my kids is noodles and bread, and I eat the green veggies. In fact, I refuse to give them broccoli and spinach, though they beg for it when they see it on my plate.

Yes, I do think cheese and butter are health (and I mean that non-sarcastically). I believe that kids need fat. They need whole milk. They need the extra calories for their growing bodies. I, however, do NOT need the extra calories. I am a 41-year-old mostly-sedentary woman. Although I do eat butter, cheese and whole milk, I have to watch portions from a strictly calorie point of view.

And no, I do NOT want my kids to know I am dieting. They see me as beautiful. I do not want them to think I am critical about my appearance. Fact is, I don't need to lose weight for health reasons. I am within a healthy BMI. The pounds I am trying to lose are vanity. If I had to watch what I eat for my health, that would be a different story.

I think it's okay to tell them that kids and grown-ups have different nutritional needs, which I believe is true, but I also believe in the unity of the family meal.

To those who offered advice, I thank you.

I think you are absolutely right about not wanting your kids to think you are critical of your body. Dieting is very difficult and I think people around here are a little jaded when it comes to the range of nutrition. I also don't think people are aware of how damaging diets are to all people, not just kids and I do not follow a diet for my own reasons, in addition to not wanting to set up my kid into the diet mentality. Kids have a lot of needs, but exposure to diet culture is certainly not one of those things. You're doing the right thing here.

This site can be tremendously supportive but don't forget it's full of dieters that have very specific and rigid perceptions about what is healthy and what is not healthy. In my opinion out behavior around food is what is most important in determining our health, not just the food itself.

[synger]

I find that my definition of "one-pot" has changed. I make a low-carb stew or meatballs or chili, and then make noodles or potatoes or pull some frozen rolls out and heat them up to add.

They have their meatballs/sauce over noodles; I have mine over zoodles or spinach. They barely even notice that mine is different. If they ask, I explain, but by and large they're more focused on their own food than on mine.

[HaveDogWillDiet]

My family ate dinner together daily, but rarely breakfast and lunch. Are you able to "customize" your breakfast and lunch more so that you can have a more flexible dinner if you want to eat something your kids like but isn't necessarily "diet" food?