[flowermama]

Yet another fresh start for the new year! I've lost some weight but still have around 5kg to go and DH really needs to lose around 10kg. I need to find more dinners that are healthy but that the kids will also enjoy (DD1 is nearly 4 years and eats most things, DD2 is going on 15 months and is very fussy). Does anyone know of any good diets or recipes (for dinners) that everyone will enjoy while not being full of calories??

[kiwi-girl]

I would reccomend Michelle Bridges. She has a few recipie books out there and all her food is pretty simple and yummy.

[snuffles]

Personally, I try to keep dinners large in the vegetable department, small in the carbohydrate department, and medium in the fat/protein department. This has worked really well for me. We do have the occasional 'naughty' dinner like mac cheese but I load that with vegies too.

I don't believe that you need any special sort of plan, just start thinking about substituting some of your meat/carbs with veg. If it's you and DH that are mostly focussed on losing weight, you can also reduce your serving sizes, and just give the kids their regular portions.

Also think about chucking in a vegetarian meal once a week, I find that tofu stirfry goes over really well here.

Also, switch to brown rice, wholemeal pasta, etc if you haven't already done so.

[Alacritous~Andy]

I have two cookbooks that are my go to for kid-friendly family meals.

One is a Women's Weekly one called "happy baby", I think? And the other is called "Dinner with kids". Both books are very simple, healthy meals, though not specifically "diet" meals.

[Alacritous~Andy]

Dinner with kids

[IVL]

I agree with snuffles advice, make small changes that are easy to incorperate into your familes needs -this way they become healthy everyday habbits instead of fad diets which will result in the weight coming back once the diet is finished.

In our house I try and follow an anti inflamatory diet which is low fat, low carb and no night shade vegies, very little dairy. Also most processed food is out as one of our DD's is ANA to eggs and nuts. We eat a huge variety of foods even with these restrictions I would say our diets are more varied than the average household. Also have 2 - 3 meat free nights per week. Tofu is also popular in our house, try in stir fries or on kebab stick with vegies. You and your DH can have extra vegies then give the kids a portion of rice, noodles or pasta to up their callories.

Again portion control is key, maybe invest in some kitchen scales just until you learn what the correct portion sized are. If I compare what I serve up on a plate with what is on offer in retaurants or cafes, it would be atleast triple to size! We really don't need that much food and if you use good quality fresh produce the taste is also great.

[Canberra chick]

I agree with snuffles. Our diet in the past year has only varied in terms of upping the veggies and general reduction in portions and stupid things like not buttering bread that is being dipped in soup... I lost 7kg over six months and have about 3 more to go. I chose a slow loss as this is life now, so anything drastic would not be sustainable. I still drink wine, still make pizzas once a month, still have some home made cake on a Sunday afternoon. I make sure I exercise regularly, don't blow out too much on weekends and eat lots of veggies instead of lots of bread, rice or pasta.

[flowermama]

Thanks all, some good advice here. I think making small changes is the way to go, it's really the snacking that's the main problem for both DH and I (we both have a terrible sweet tooth!). I'll definitely check out the books mentioned

[itsmemacdolby]

you could also try the Women's Weekly 21 Day Wonder Diet - even if you don't follow religiously, the dinners are easy to prepare, lots of fresh herbs and vege and very low in fat. They are also delicious!

Obviously the diet plan works better if you follow it by the letter but its really tough the first few days!

[snuffles]

I still drink wine

Wine is compulsory!! LOL.