Hi everyone. I am going to be starting the sonoma diet at the beginning of next week after I purchase the book and go grocery shopping. I am very encouraged on everyones progress with this diet.
Hi Jessa, I'm with you...planning to start Sonoma next Monday. I bought the book yesterday and have been reading a lot. She advocates cleaning your kitchen and throwing (giving away) anything not on the diet. Sounds like a good idea and I don't mind giving away all the sweet stuff and salty snacks but there is no way I'm disposing of fresh fruit, juices etc. Decided I would spend the weekend enjoying those while I plan menus. Since I live alone I don't plan to just use her suggested menus as written. I'd have way to many leftovers. I'm looking forward to getting started. Hope by the end of next week you and I can both be proudly reporting our progress!
Mundy
I'm a single mom and the more I read the more I'm thinking this iet choice is going to be very very hard to continue with. My children wouldn't touch meals like these.
"my children wouldn't touch meals like these?" What would they touch? From what I read in the Sonoma book, it looks like all the foods mentioned are extremely healthy foods. So what do you do? Feed the next generation foods that won't make them strong and healthy?
As I see it, children eat what their parents give them. If you don't give them unhealthy foods what will they eat? Nothing? I think eventually they would eat what was set in front of them if you refused to budge on what they were given to eat.
It is extremely important that parents feed their children healthy food. Their children's health depends on it. I was reading once about how western diet changes the shape of our jaws, that western junk food diets create deficiencies that pass on generations after the one we are in. That orthodontics are needed by generations of children maybe as far away as grandchildren based on what we have eaten and fed to our children.
Among my mother's children, only I needed orthodontics out of 4 kids. In my children all three of my kids have needed it. In places where people eat their native diets their jaws grow wide their teeth aren't crowded, they look and are healthy. Take them away from that and put them in a western culture with all its junk food and within a generation or two the teeth are crowded, the facial bones not forming as they should.
I believe that there are certain foods children shouldn't be forced to eat, or at least certain ways of preparing foods that they shouldn't be subjected to. Okra is one (it is too slimy), and cooked spinach might be another. But most foods (including spinach) if prepared in another way are things that children can learn to like. My kids love spinach salad and brocolli because I prepare them in ways that they love. There are very few foods that my kids would simply refuse to eat. Sure some kids are pickier than others, but parents attitudes toward food can also influence the outcome. Letting them call the shots when it comes to their health isn't a good idea.
While I think SherryA came off a little harsh, I really don't think you should give up so quickly. I have 2 small children as well, and they really will eat what you give them.
I am trying to get healthy for my girls, and I really want to show them what a healthy diet looks like so that when they are 34, they won't have these same issues. Ideally, they will NEVER have any issues with food, except to enjoy good, healthy food.
Also, I think you need to keep in mind that you need to make yourself a priority - giving up on a healthy way of eating because your child doesn't normally eat that type of food is really putting yourself last, and making an excuse.
Good luck with whatever plan you choose, and I hope you figure out something that will work for you.
Jessa, It is possible to adapt a lot of your family recipes to be sonoma friendly, by substiting whole grains for refined, olive or canola oil for other fats, and reducing the amount of meat. I also substitute Splenda for sugar in some salads [not exactly sonoma] and reduce the amount of meat in recipes.
My DH is a midwestern meat & potatoes guy, but he is coping well with our new way of eating. I have even been mixing low fat ground beef with soaked cracked wheat 1 to 1 and using it in recipes. He says that he can't tell the difference.
It might help with your kids if you made the changes gradually. Don't give up, you will figure it out and you *can* do it.
How old are your kids Jessa?? I found that involving mine in the choosing and chopping of the vegetables gave them an incentive to eat the food. It also made the prep work easier and more fun.
It took a little to get used to going without potatoes and switching to whole grains, but my family is behind me in this and we are all finding the foods on this diet to be *delicious*. The Greek Pizza was a surprise favorite, and the Sonoma Wraps are inspiring envy in the school lunch room.
I know a lot of people would not agree to this, but I've been fixing myself a different dinner every night. It's not extra work for me because one of my daughter's chores is to fix dinner on three nights a week. One of the benefits that she gets from fixing dinner is that she gets to choose what she cooks. I just pop a chicken breast or fish or something like that in the Forman grill and work around what they're having. On the nights I have to cook, they will just have to deal with what I cook.
I'm hoping that some of the recipes that I cook will become favorites and she will incorporate them into her menu plans!
Jessa
Remember if your excited about the food you can lead your kids in that direction. I don't know if you have these commericals where your at, but here in Los Angeles there is a campaign on TV right now targeting parents. These beautiful children are talking about foods, but instead of asking for donuts, they are saying things like "Mommy can I please have some diabetes" At a fast food establishment "Daddy, please can I have some obesity?"
I totally get that being a single Mom is challenging and difficult, but this is a great gift that you can give to your children. It is harder to deal with these issues as an adult, you have the opportunity to do something amazing for your kids as well as you.....we are all behind you!!!!
I hope you give the plan a try. We had my family over for dinner once, and my niece is a very particular eater. So at first she kinda turned her nose up to the food, but then we were talking about what foods were in it, and she realized that she liked pretty much all of them, so she tried it and loved it.
Soon to start Sonoma
