A question I get a lot from people is, “What diet plan do you recommend for me to follow to lose weight?” Ā It’s such a hard question because there’s simply no right answer for it. (Diet in the context of this post is defined as the sum of food consumed by a person)
There are so many diet plans and theories out there that it’s overwhelming! Each claim their own benefits and have personal success stories. You’ll find some with similar “rules” and others that take everything you’ve learned about eating and thrown it out the window. The question gets even more complicated when we have families also to consider. It’s one thing to choose this information as a single or married couple, yet quite another when you have children to also cook for and feed! So what’s a person to do?
It reminds me of when my son was a newborn. As a new mom I was completely overwhelmed with the amount of information out there in regards to sleep training.
Do I let my son cry it out? Do I rock him to sleep? Should we co-sleep? Should he have a pacifier?
Every time I would read about a method, I would read about another that would also resonate with me. At the end of the day, I had a ton of information, a cluttered brain and a baby who was still waking in the middle of the night. It was so frustrating and what it left me to do was nothing. I played around with one method, then 4 days later would try another. I accomplished nothing and left my poor son confused.
I think we do the same thing sometimes with our eating habits. We read up on something we’ve heard from a friend, Dr. Oz, or the latest Fitness magazine. We clear out our cabinets, make room in our budget and go a new route….until we get hung up for one reason or another. We stop and re-start with another method. It’s frustrating, isn’t it? Here are some things that I’ve found successful families have considered when making a choice in not only this area, but others!
Keep these things in mind while choosing a diet plan for your family:
ā¦ Family Dynamic.
Each family has their own set of challenges and resources available to them. Some families have members with food allergies. Some have LARGE families. Some have very limited resources available to them. Do not try and do what your friends or other family members are doing. Their situation will be different and you are held accountable for YOUR family.
ā¦ Budget.
The honest (& unfortunate) truth is that eating healthier is more expensive. Now for many families (mine included) this extra expense is worth it because of the positive advantages it provides now and will provide in the future, however there will be a point where you have to weigh that out. It doesn’t make sense to live totally organic but not make a car payment.
ā¦ Effectiveness.
How’s it working for you?It’s a great Dr. Phil quote, but it’s something I tell folks a lot. At the end of the day, is what you are using giving you the results you need and want? If what you are doing causes resentment and distaste (no pun intended) in your mouth, then maybe it’s time to move towards something that works. (Remember though, you must be consistent for some period of time to actually measure if it’s effective. Minimum of 4 weeks is my recommendation)
ā¦ Pray.
Yes. That’s right.I remember someone telling me this AFTER I spent hours researching on sleep methods. Why I thought about that AFTER the fact blows my mind. I needed to seek wisdom from the Lord. It’s no different in our health either.
I believe that it does take a lot of hard work and fortitude to push through things that are hard and unnatural in life. Changing your diet is one of these things, so when you finally get on a plan you have researched, give it some time. Get educated. Be prepared and give it your all.
What an excellent post! I am so with you on this!!! I am the type of person who researches… researches a bit more… then researches the research. It frequently leads to burnout. You offered such great simple advice in here- thank you!
I absolutely agree Clare! In the middle of October I decided to finally get serious about my diet and gave up trans fat, soda and fried foods. It works for me and is backed by sound medical trials. I now weigh about 10 pounds less than I ever had at any point since I stopped growing. I can still eat out and eat with my family with very few foods actually being off limits. I feel a lot better having eliminated those foods from my diet and can see myself eating like this for the rest of my life and that is important to any diet that someone chooses to follow. Who wants to work hard to lose weight just to gain it back again?! Not me!
Love this post and the timing of it. With so much information instantly available to us on the internet, I often get overwhelmed with homemaking ideas, nutrition ideas, activities to do with the kids, etc. and have been really convicted to seek God first through all of this. I have to pray and trust that He will reveal through His word and other resources He puts in my path information that will help me to better serve Him!!
That was *perfect!* I have been working on cleaning up our eating and have to take it baby steps at a time. ESPECIALLY with the kids. I find making small changes over time ensures sticking to the new habits better than an all or nothing overhaul all at once.
Such a great post!! Thank you!
I love the last answer (the entire post of course. LOL). But, the last answer stood out to me because that’s what I had to do because only God knew what I needed to do in order to loose the weight.
You are so right about this – you really have to thoughtfully and prayerfully consider what works best for you and your family. I have been interested in nutrition since my teen years (I’m now in my early 40’s) and I’ve taken bits and pieces of information from the various books and articles I’ve read – then tailored those recommendations to meet my needs and those of my family.
I have found that for me personally – counting calories, fat, carbs or whatever simply does not work. I just eat REAL food. Organically grown whenever possible, fruits, veggies, nuts, lean meat, very low amounts of sugar, drink tons of water, and I also try to sensibly limit my dairy & bread intake. My one vice is my morning coffee, but I use raw honey & almond milk in that (no sugary creamers).
I stay away from anything processed, soft drinks, trans fats, MSG, high-fructose corn syrup, etc…. and I can only say that I’m still the same size I was at 16!! My weight has never fluctuated more than 5 pounds either way in the last 25 years, so I have definitely found what works for me.
Of course we have the occasional splurge (life is just too short to never eat fried chicken & mashed potatoes or pizza), but I firmly believe that if you are consistent with eating healthy and exercising, then those splurges are not a big deal at all!!
Great Post!!! I often suffer from information overload which causes me to paralyze in fear of doing the wrong thing and not doing anything! Our family (Myself, Husband, and Kids ages 14 and 10) have recently been following the Daniel Plan as our guideline for healthy eating. We have adapted and tweaked things to our tastes, but it was a good starting point. I have tried so many diets and this was the first that really made sense and felt right from the beginning. It is a hard shift, but it is making an impact. My kids will now eat sunflower seeds and almonds as a snack. Just yesterday they decided we should no longer have Pop Tarts for breakfast because they just don’t fill you up – They said it without my prompting! I NEVER thought I would hear that from my unhealthy snack loving kids! Still a struggle to get the veggies in daily – but to me it was an encouragement from God that we can make healthy choices as a family! Do Not Be Discouraged! š
So…. What sleep method did work?? š