To ask, if you have big solid boys...

[Mammysboys]

What on earth do you feed them? My primary aged sons are tall and solid, in proportion for their height/weight and eat a wide variety of food.

However, here's my dilemma: They eat like horses and generally have a wide variety of wholesome food at their disposal.

Is there something different I should be doing? Is there?

I was constantly 'starving' when pregnant with them both & consequently I ate like a woman possessed. They breastfed like champs.

We're not exactly flush. Looking for tips, really. Thanks

Eggs, lots of eggs; tinned chickpeas, humus, cheese, bananas
Anything with mince like a chilli (which also has beans!)
Milk. Lots of milk! Full fat.
Peanut butter (you can sometimes buy the good stuff with no additives in large packages)
Try to make your carbs wholegrain as they will keep them full much longer (wholegrain rice, pasta and bread, and I mean proper rye bread not brown sliced bread).
Ham sandwiches.

Sorry, a slightly messy list!

I'm basically going down the protein route here as I'm guessing that's what they're after most?

Protein, protein and more protein!

DS is short but built. He's all muscle. He requires lots of protein and is definitely a meat eater. He can eat adult sized portions of meat.

I'm a veggie.

I've had to learn how to prepare meat for him (he's only 10) without gagging. He also enjoys nuts and eggs. He likes leafy green vegetables (iron!) But getting a root vegetable (besides parsnips), pulse or legume in him is a major fail, even though he used to guzzle houmous and falafel as a little one.

His paediatrician also monitors his weight - for all he eats he is a little underweight. He was pleased with their recommendations to go back to full fat milk and to give him buttered pasta with a protein source (his favourite is wholewheat pasta with salmon).

My kids eat very little processed food, they're all massive and even have freakishly defined muscles lots of calories go into them, they get the chicken skin, real butter smothered on everything, and full fat milk. If I make a chili it will be about 15-20 portions that I'll freeze some of etc. But will use just one pack of mince and the rest of the bulk will be mixed beans. I do feel like I feed my kids as if they're going out to the fields, I'm always thinking of rather than just filling a hole, that they need to be sustained for a hard slog. Their breakfast is always either porridge with ff milk plus CREAM, followed by homemade smoothie full of fruit and veg, they then walk to school with an apple each. Or I'll do something like fried potato cakes and eggs, beans and bacon, then still the smoothie and the apple for the walk. Things like cereal are not only full of crap, but don't touch the sides. Porridge is your friend. Potatoes are your friend. Lentils, chickpeas, kidney beans are also your friends. I make hummus in my mixer from tinned chickpeas as my boys love it as a snack with dips, but a little pack between them lasts all of about 2 minutes. A tin goes further. All of the little ways in which you can make their food more filling and go further really make a difference. Barley in stews, macaroni in soups and all of that type of thing.

Great advice here.

You could try giving them a starter before dinner each night, lentil and veg soup with bread and butter? Lots of veg and pulses in it.

Homemade cakes made with carrot, dates etc.
Full fat milk always.
Cheese as a snack.
Egg mayo sandwiches, soup and cake as pudding.
Spotted dick, syrup sponge and custard etc as dessert.
Peanut butter and banana on toast as brekky or a snack.

Raw veg for snacks and lots of eggs.

I agree, ditch any processed stuff.

Get a cheap breadmaker, make bread. Homemade nut butters, tons of oats in porridge, flapjacks and so on. Homemade fishcakes with salmon/mackerel, egg, potatoes and breadcrumbs.

Fantastic advice! Thank you all.

I'm going to increase and diversify their protein intake. They always have pudding, which usually consists of natural yogurt and berries or other fruit. Portion sizes probably need to be upped, too.

Now a believe MIL about the legendary quantities of food teenage DH used to eat

Mine aren't even that big but they eat plenty!

I put home blend muesli into yoghurt as a dessert. Also if I am not in a baking mood I use little trifle cakes from the cupboard (very simple ingredient list!) And add fruit and yogurt, cream or custard. Crumble topping has oats in and we will sprinkle nuts on a lot of puddings too.

I make a fair bit of soup which they can eat after school in winter. Yes to barley and lentils! I buy up plain bakery stuff on offer and store on the freezer so there are pittas, crumpets or bagels available.

They eat a lot of eggs and I go for bigger packs of meat and cook a lot of casseroles with beans. The teenager also fills up with avocado on the side of his dinner.

And then still seems to need a bowl of cereal before bed.. The biggest extravagance is his box cereal which I don't rate but he loves it..So it's only bought when on offer.

DH has a great metabolism and both my boys appear to have inherited it.

MIL used to give DH half a pizza as a starter, followed by main, then a salad, then dessert, then fruit...

I think we'll have to do similar soon although they're only little (2 and 5).

Watching with interest for ideas. We'll often do main meal, 2 puddings (yogurt and fruit) then a sandwich. Then biscuits as I run out of ideas. Unfortunately neither of them like eggs.

Place mark. Good thread.

I found what they eat changes over time. Rate of change can be glacial for a long time then they do a quick change and will eat eggs/ spicy food/ green veg and furthermore will not accept that they were ever fussy..

DS is 16 and has always eaten loads. Isn't 'big', but pretty slim and muscular. He doesn't eat much processed foods, and we stock up on oats, fruits, vegetables, potatoes, wholegrains, loads of chicken and fish etc, rice, eggs, nuts, full fat milk, cheese, butter, cream etc. Takes a lot to fill him up, and even then he'll be eating again shortly. Protein is your friend.

My DS is tall but very very slim. He eats loads but just burns it off fast, it's a challenge to get him to keep weight on. We do full fat everything for him, butter wherever possible, as much protein as we can get in. At one point whatever his tea was I'd do him a couple of poached eggs to go on top. I make puddings like rice pudding with full fat milk, some butter and cream.
His favourite forms of protein are things like peperami's or mini sausages so he has lots of those for snacks - not too keen on the amount of processed meat he has but I feel like that's a battle for later on.

Following with interest - my 5 year old son is constantly asking for more food!

I've 2 very hungry teenager boys, I try to cook a full roast and then a huge pasta dish on alternate nights. I buy discounted joints and freeze them. Cheese, pepperami, ham, nuts, strawberries and grapes as snacks. A big no no these days are yogurts, crisps, biscuits, sweets, sugared cereal: none of these ever fill them up and are left craving for more.
Lots of water, squash and milk to drink.

Watching thread. DS1 is nearly 10 and seems to want food constantly. An hour after lunch he will ask 'is there anything to eat? He's ravenous when he comes home from school.
Whilst his preference is snacks (like crisps etc) I know if he's trying it on because I'll offer him peanut butter on wholewheat toast with a glass of milk instead. If he takes that he is definitely hungry (he always whinges that he only likes white bread). I also keep a stock of bananas, because he is not a fruit or veg lover, but he seems to like them at the moment.
I also buy flapjacks in bulk from B&M to take with us when out and about. Not hugely healthy, but the oats seem to fill him up for a while. ( I won't make them myself because I just eat them all)

I'm jealous of all these ravenous eaters! My eldest is 11. He does gymnastics and football but I can't get him to eat! He would happily live on cereal and toast and he is always so pale looking. I give him vitamin supplements to try and make up for what he isn't eating.

Going to try and sneak in some of these suggestions to his diet.

I offer boiled eggs after school or hummus and veg, leftover soup if we have it. It's often a good time here to put less favoured foods out and see them get taken!

Both my brothers could eat like this when we were kids. on the very rare occasion we were allowed a mcdonald's, the younger could eat 2 big macs and 20 chicken nuggets in a sitting; the older once polished off an entire bucket of chilli (it was called "chilli unlimited"; he got a badge and the restaurant said he was the first person ever to finish it. he was 14!).

they grew out of it and eat perfectly normally as adults of 30 and 40, but it must have been expensive for my parents at the time!

Ooh yes my sons were huge babies (nearly 11lb), at 14 and 15 are both over 6' and eat us out of house and home so I'm following this thread with interest!

Oh and I too was ravenous throughout both pregnancies. Not eating just because I could; properly, genuinely desperately hungry all the time. I remember having 8 slices of toast one morning and I'd have had more but I was late for work 😳

Taking teenagers out to eat is expensive isn't it! I look back with nostalgia to the days of a shared scone taken with a sippy cup of formula..Chili unlimited sounds handy!

My similarly aged son is crazy for meat, mainly chicken

furiously taking notes. i have a string bean i need to fatten up
thanks for the thread OP

Aaww, this is a lovely thread!

For those who have fruit smoothies, try adding a big dollop of peanut butter - it gives a great nutty taste which most kids like and is full of unsaturated fat and protein.