to wonder how the hell she stays so slim??

[SequinsAndSparkles]

My BIL is engaged to a spanish woman, and we spent the weekend at MIL's, all of us together.

She is very slim, I'd guess a size 6/8. Her skin is glowing and she is stunning, yet her diet perplexes me?

On the first morning, we were all having breakfast, MIL made a fry up for everyone, but I am on a diet so I had special K and some toast. SIL prepared her own breakfast (they are currently staying at MILs while they have some work done on their house), and she had some kind of cheese, can't remember what she said it was, about 10 olives and a slice of ham! Yet she said that my breakfast of Special K and toast was stodgy and apparently English women have 'very strange ideas about nutrition'.

For lunch, she had a chicken salad, but it involved lots of extra virgin olive oil, all over the peppers and a big dollop of salsa. And then for dinner she had chicken smeared in pesto, with green beans in salt, more salsa and a slice of cheese.

How is she so slim??

I didn't have a particuarly healthy weekend in the end, we ended up having a takeaway on the Saturday evening, and SIL wouldn't eat any of it, she wasn't rude, she politely declined but I just find it hypocrytical that she eats all this fatty stuff and made the comment about England having strange ideas about nutrition when I was eating Special K and toast!!

MoChan - I agree some people would have 3 mars bars a day and a latte and be skinny but as I said in my first post, if you educate yourself about food and care what you put in your body and want to sustain a weight for the rest of your life then it is something which you may only have to do for a month while you learn what calories and nutrients is is what food and then you can carry it on without having to count EVERY single calorie. Putting your food into an App is only like writing in a diary - it is proven that people who list what they have eaten lose more weight.

Special K is shit and as long as it is available people will eat it and if that makes you happy then fair enough. Each to your own. Preferably I would rather have something which fills me up and is fresh.

I don't think weetabix and shredded wheat are the worst thing you could possibly eat. But it's my opinion that it's not a great thing to eat for breakfast, because I think you should have some protein at the start of the day. And MOST cereals are full of refined sugar, which I don't like. I think Shredded Wheat is one of the better ones, because they don't add sugar.

catinhell - I will put this into perspective - you may have pasta and ragu sauce for tea - the pasta you will plate up sky high and you may over time gain weight. IF you weighed it once or twice you would learn what portion is adequate (100g is perfect) and be surprised to learn that the portion you have been eating is 300g therefore more like 600 calories just in the pasta. You don't need to weigh out food for the rest of your life! Just while you teach yourself portion size. - Trust me I don't even touch the scales in the kitchen - I know by plating up what is right for me.

MoChan - shredded wheat is okay - better than weetabix but don't dismiss then as crap - not a bad choice for breakfast. Better than a bowl of Special K!

I think dieting is what makes a lot of people fat. Like fannybanjo I am 36, have three children and am a size 8. I have never dieted. I love food, get so much pleasure out of it, why would I want to turn it into some kind of chore or guilty pleasure. If I want a chocolate croissant for breakfast I'll have one, if I want some ben and jerry's whilst watching TV in the evening I'll have some. However I will also make sure I'm getting plenty of fresh fruit and veggies. It's not about forbidding things, it's about enjoying everything in moderation.

Someone asked about muesli - I think the difference is how processed your cereal is.

If you eat wheat/barley/oat flakes with dried fruit then it is pretty much non-processed - just mixed grains and fruit.

Very different to eating processed breakfast cereals, that we are told are so healthy and wonderful but are in reality high in salt and sugar.

I know lots about food, about how it breaks down in my body, and I agree that knowledge is power when it comes to diet. But I just eat healthy things. Eating healthily helps your body maintain its own.... well, thermostat, for want of a better word - you stop when you have had enough. Weighing out portions of low-cal stuff won't help you do that.

Fannybanjo, I'm not saying that's what you, but when the majority are calorie-counting, I suspect that's exactly what they are doing (drinking diet coke and eating low-fat 'diet' crisps), and that isn't healthy.

I totally agree with the principle of imagining you lived two thousand years ago - I do this all the time!

I'm a size 8-10 and eat pretty much whatever I want but I always try to follow that principle. I have so many friends who are horrified that I only eat real butter and don't buy low-fat, sugar-free versions of things but I honestly just don't understand why anyone would - they taste awful and are packed full of additives.

I eat a fair amount of so called 'forbidden' foods (like cheese, butter, olive oil etc) but very little processed food (for example, I never have crisps, squash/fizzy drinks, processed cereal etc and would never touch anything sugar free/low fat). It seems to work for me and my weight always remains pretty constant.

And as to the weighing of food, I think that if you want to lose weight it is a good thing to sit down with some scales and check your portion sizes, like I did with the Special K.

Knowing that a bowl of Special K has the same Weightwatcher points (even if you don't do WW) as a juicy steak with veg and a small portion of potatoes was enough to ensure that I never bought Special K again.

fannybanjo, that is very far from MY mental picture conjured up by someone who says they are calorie counting. you are simply applying your knowledge of healthy portion size

A breadmaker is a good investment - making our own bread is far healthier and one slice is plenty and it is far denser as no fillers in it. A slice of wholemeal bread and a boiled egg is a great breakfast.

Mochan. totally agree. my mil buys all that diet crap. loaded with additives.

Exactly, catinhell. It is portion control, not calorie counting.

I mirror what people have said, she is slim because her diet is great.

Just to hijack a little, has anyone got any recommendations for yogurts? I struggle to find any without sweetener or without a low fat label.

MoChan - portion control/calorie counting - to be fair it is just eating well, everything in moderation, it's not rocket science and it works for me, I am fit and healthy and there's certainly no harm in being aware of what calories you are putting in your mouth and totting them up.

Tyler
that drives me nuts when I am in UK. Trying to find normal yogurts.

And the fact that my mother calls them "fat yogurts" and "fat coke".

tyler80 maybe try a natural yogurt and add your own fruit and if you need it sweeter, a little honey?

Tyler, I also find it so difficult to find a nice non low fat yoghurt. I usually buy the Tesco Finest/Sainsbury Taste the Difference ones - they are quite expensive but don't seem to have any many additives as the diet ones. I've just found out that you can buy similar ones in Aldi and Lidl, which are cheaper - I think they're called 'Deluxe' (in a white and black carton)

Tyler80 - I can highly recommend the Lidl 1kg "bucket" of plain Greek yoghurt - it's thick and creamy and none of that non/low-fat crap. :) It's also higher in protein than regular yoghurts. 1.99 euros a tub here.

Tyler - we have either Yeo Valley or Rachel's organic.

I lived in Spain. The main difference is the lack of processed food - it's difficult to buy a ready-made pizza, never mind sliced bread.

They don't eat fruit except for pudding and never eat the English style traditional puddings. Nearly all of their food is cooked on the hob (many spanish houses still don't have ovens) - there is no culture of baking (no cakes/puddings/bread).

Just lots of grilled/frien meat/fish with lots of salad and green veg and quite a lot of pulses. Tons of garlic and oil but all olive oil. No butter and not much cheese. Pasta and rice are usually served as a starter, not a main meal (excepting paella which is for special occasions). ALl super-healthy.

But they all smoke themselves to death and are completely in denial about the health effects of 20 a day. They are also more obsessed with being skinny than British women - you see anorexic looking women on a daily basis there.

I've really enjoyed this thread. Have been tricked into the Special K for brekky scenario, although I usually have a boiled egg and Ryvita. This morning I had a slice of Emmental cheese and a boiled egg, and it left me full until lunchtime.

Are Ryvita any good? I have given up bread for Lent and feel I need something to fill the gap.

But what about Diet Coke and the like? Obviously I know it's not brilliant, but I usually have a can a day, is it likely to stall weight loss? Despite having no fat/sugar carbs?

Some really interesting posts on here, can't believe how much I've learnt since starting this thread, I must say I am embarrassed at my lack of knowledge!

Just a word about the Spanish diet - don't be fooled, it's not always that great! I'm half Spanish, and have lots of family in Northern Spain. Traditionally, the Northern Spain diet was based on fish, vegetables, pulses etc, because that was pretty much all they could grow/catch. Now, it has become quite red meat heavy, compared to ours, with very few veggies.

My family are now just as obsessed with diets and weight loss etc as the English are.