Help My Family is Sabatoging MY Diet

Trying to feed your family right and get the proper nutrition for yourself is something that I have had a hard time doing. I have tried many different styles, diets and food fads to kill an elephant. The problem is your family has learned to eat a certain way and to veer from that type of eating is declaring war on your household. Not to mention to eat right for you is not always the right way for growing, still developing children. We don't need the fat. They still do. The human brain is always growing in a way. It can replace lost cells and nerve passage ways throughout your life. In some ways, the behavioral part of the brain is developed to a large extent by the age of 12. Other behavioral aspects continue into the mid twenties. But the brain cannot develop properly if its not getting enough fat. Not sugar fat, or fast food fat but good healthy fat. (From avocado, meat, chicken and very important fish to name a few) People mistakenly get the wrong types of fats into their diets. I had to go through many different types of meals before I found one that we can all agree upon. 

The one that I have chosen (I should say my family has chosen) is a Mediterranean style eating. (Think Greece, Croatia, Italian) In this type of eating I have laid out many different types of food. From dairy (cheese slices, yogurt, cold milk, hard boiled eggs), starches (mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice, couscous, Quinoa, bread) veggies (raw/steamed broccoli, carrots, bell peppers, fresh tomatoes), fruit (oranges, apples, grapes, mango, olives) on the table. Then I give them a small piece of meat/fish on their plate. They pick and choose what they want to eat and everyone is happy. Surprising enough this doesn't cost anymore to eat this way. It does take more preparations, but cost wise eating on one big plate was more money then eating like this. And everyone is happy and full. What ever is leftover is used for the next day's meal. 

Portion control is a must as well. Too much of a good thing can still be bad for you. American's have the mentality of "More is Better". With that we have an over excess of everything...(except money). Bigger houses, more clothes, abundance of food than the rest of the world. The rest of the world looks at Americans as gluttonous. Unfortunately I have to agree. We have become so spoiled with getting more of things that our waistlines have expanded with the rest of our lifestyle. To train yourself to eat off of a small plate is hard to do. I eat off of 6x6 plates. That's what our portions should be. To go beyond that is asking for a bigger midsection and more clutter in your home. It's not easy, but nothing worth the effort ever is. Find the right diet for you and your family and not only will you have a happy home but your waistline will thank you for it.

Breakfast in my house

Let them pick and choose