to consider Slimming World for all of us?

[Mmmcoffee]

DH is hugely overweight. He knows it, keeps saying he will do something about it, but never does. I'm a bit overweight, not hugely so, have lost a stone in the past year and I'm now a size 14. I'd sort of like to lose more but not really worried TBH. DD is 14 and in a size 12, but her school trousers are getting tight and I'm concerned her weight is just going up. Her diet is crap really, but she won't eat fruit or veg apart from a couple of things so I'm at a bit of a loss.

I was thinking that if we all join Slimming World it will be a kick up the backside for all of us, and hopefully they will be able to give DD some guidelines on better choices on what to eat. DH isn't keen, he thinks he'll be the only bloke there - and I don't think he wants 'strangers' to acknowledge that he IS overweight because then he won't be able to put of doing something about it. My mum is worried that DD will 'get a complex' and it's dangerous to put these ideas in teenagers heads because she might 'go the other way and get anorexic'. But that's why I'm thinking of doing it as a family, so nobody is singled out.

What do you all think? braces self for the AIBU crowd

I think if you have recognised dd needs to loose weight then go for it , although does s SW take under 16 best to check it out , body image is important and doing it in a positive way can only be a good thing for your dd and if you are doing it as a familiy i dont see how it would give her a complex , ignoring her weight problem and trying to be sensitive to her feelings may do her more harm than good ,

I think it's a bad idea to be honest.

Your DH is an adult and if he really wants to take care of his own body, he will. Encourage him by all means but I don't think 'taking charge' is such a good idea.

Your DD is also old enough at 14 to look after her own body if she wants to...therefore I think encouragement rather than booking a diet club is the way to go.

As for you, if you want to join Slimming World then that's probably a good idea because if the other two see you succeeding at it, it might encourage them to want to join too.

yanbu. but you could join yourself and cook the recipes and he would reap the benefit of it. however you do need to join and attend classes for support.

i am in ireland have lost 31lbs so far, dp has lost 10lbs by my cooking better and ds (3) loves the slimming world chips and dinners.

there are also 3 men in our class.

at 14 of course you can still encourage her to change her eating habits. just because she is 14 you cant hold your hands up and say "well she is in charge of her own body" as worra stated. SW is not a diet, i am never hungry and never eat as much. its just more of the better things. and it changes how you cook ... so no need to be overhauling your fridge. guaranteed your dp and dd wont know the difference taste wise only that its probably nicer.

Why don't you encourage family exercise? For example, a family bike ride twice a week would be lovely during the summer and will help with weight loss.

They are not going to loose weight just because you make them go to Slimming World. Not if they don't want to, it's not a magic wand.

'Worra' didn't state that at all scuzy

Please read my post properly.

It's not a good idea for the OP to book her daughter into a Slimming Club imo.

If her DD wants to join then that is a different matter

If she doesn't then the OP can encourage her in other ways.

Well done scuzy!

Worra I don't want to 'take charge' as such, it's obviously up to DH and DD if they want to join too, I didn't mean to give the impression I was going to sign us all up and demand they come with me!

I've tried encouraging DD to eat more healthily, she does recognise that her diet isn't great but she really won't eat fruit and veg. I have checked with Slimming World, they actually have a programme specifically for 11-15 year olds which focuses on a healthy lifestyle rather than losing weight.

but if weight is a problem tackling what you eat is key. exercise wont magically do all the work. of course a family bike ride is a great idea. but i am biased as i am a sw member and find it great.

YANBU- Making positive changes together as a family is the best way forward. However I would be reluctant to get your teenager into that world of slimming clubs etc, I do agree that it can cause more problems in the long run as it did for me- my attitude to food since a teenager was very unhealthy until I discovered Paul Mckenna's I Can Make You Thin.

I bought the book and cd from amazon for £3 an it has changed my family life. It's not a diet, it changes your attitude and perception towards food. Nothing is off limits, the main rule being only eat when you're hungry! The cd puts you into a hypnotic state, it's really effective and my DP loves it too (he wouldn't EVER consider a slimming club), we have lost weight we eat what we want and we're not on a diet, I can't praise it enough. Good luck to you all :)

While I'm a big fan of slimming world I'm not a fan of the idea of doing it as a family. I think at 14 your daughter is still growing, and I also think that taking her along to weekly weigh ins while she is still growing may be detrimental to her. I was on a diet at 14 and not even that big, I have been left with issues ever since regarding 'what the scales say' your daughter needs to like /love herself for herself and not feel happy only if the scales show the right thing (ie a loss)

By all means go yourself, cook the family meals as sw meals, introduce healthy snacks etc everyone will benefit. But at 14 healthy eating and education on what's healthy is better than counting syns and hoping the scales are showing a loss.

apologies worraliberty. i agree dragging her to go along if she doesnt want to is a bad idea. she must want as, as your dp, want to makes these changes. perhaps join yourself and be their motivation.

No problem [busmile]

I think it's GREAT idea!! SW is not a 'fad diet' it's basically retraining yourself how to eat healthily and well, like your own nutricionist.

I've always been a bit bigger than I would like to be, would diet and lose weight but unable to stick to somthing that restricts and is not an easy way to eat and live would put the weight back on. Not huge, but a stone/stone and a half so I would go down to a 10, then settle on a 12, sometimes get to a 14.

I did SW after having my ds, weight shifted easily after having dd but not with ds even with more walking than before and BF. I wish I had done it sooner as it has really 'taught' me how to eat so to speak.

You ask any dieticain and they will tell you to look at how much (bad) fat and salt are in your diet and try to restict that. Cut down on cakes/sweats/biscuits and eat more fruti and veg. That is bascially what SW is showing you.

A friend of mine took her dd with her, she was my childminder and when I was on mat leave my dd only went there part time as a retainer and so I never saw this girl. I was shocked when I did as she was huge, a real roly poly and she was very embarrassed and upset about it and how she was treated by other kids at her school (she was 13/14?) She went with her mum and they just sort of encourage the kids to do healthy swaps or something like that and her mum would just cook for the family so that would help her.

Perhaps if you and your dh go and take her along she can choose, even if she just sits with you each week, after a month you will prob have lost at least half a stone and she may talk to you a little about it?

There were lots of men at my SW groups, dare I say it they tend to do really well, better than the women. Why not sugest he does it for 2 months and if he hasn't lost a stone (prob much more if he is quite overweight it is that easy) he can stop??

I don't think they do the syns for that age group, not even sure if they even weigh children. DD doesn't overeat, she doesn't really like sweets (her easter eggs are usually sitting around until the summer when we finally throw them out!), she just seems to exist on bread, cheese, yogurts, meat and potatoes.

Exercise as a family is tough, we do swim every week but DH won't go for a walk, I can't ride a bike, you're right though we do need to 'get moving' more.

what about taking up an out door hobby instead walking swimming or something like that , dont take the car as much walk more , I do think you are being sensible about this , my teens dont really eat fruit and veg but dont eat much junk either i only have 1 at school now but they walk to school so i guess that helped to keep them fit ,

actually i agree. i do think that it is a bad thing to have a 14 yr old obsessed with what the scales say. perhaps get the pack from a friend or join yourself, learn recipes and better eating and introduce your dd that way.

You can't "make them" join SW but i think they would benefit hugely just from you cooking SW-friendly meals. MIL was a consultant and i have been on it before and it's just a way of healthy eating!

Another vote here for Paul McKenna [bublush]

my sister took advantage of scottish slimmers they were doing a free trial she joined for 2 months and then is doing it herself she has lost nearly a stone maybe something like that , you could also stop buying biscuits or whatever you like to eat if its not in the house nobody can eat them , dh lost weight by just cutting out fizzy drinks, he used to buy bottles for his works van , he would drink 2 litres a day ,

I'm sure Paul McKenna is good but I'm not comfortable with introducing a 14yo to a hypnotherapy CD entitled 'I can make you thin', not the right signals, I think.

I don't buy biscuits or cakes, we don't drink fizzy drinks. It's not so much that we are eating lots of crap; DH eats far too much and DD won't eat 'healthy' things. I thought SW could help with that.

I agree with you and hypnotherapy isnt reccomended for children anyway I wouldnt want a book or cd plonked onto my 14 yr old , saying think yourself thin,

why dont you join and then cook the meals for everybody so thats what they are eating ,

There are 2 families that attend the SW group I go to. One has teenage kids the other has a boy of 9. I was a bit shocked, but found out they went to the doctor for a medical first, who agreed it was a good idea. Also slimming world have special plans for kids. SW is about healthy eating, nothing is 'banned'. Kids get extras as well. I have been at SW on and off for a while. I lost the baby weight from dd then went back to lose the baby weight from ds. I love it. The kids eat my food as well. I just add extras for them. I, personally, think its a worth a try. Also there are about 8 men at my group.