To think most family meals are low enough in caloroes and the diet industry is not necessary?

[ElderAve]

Obviously not if you're going to deep fry everything but we know that. A standard family menu at home.

A grab and go breakfast of cereal, porridge, toast, eggs or fruit and yogurt will be no more than 400 calories.

A sandwich lunch will be about 4/500 calories

A home cooked dinner based around lean protein, some carbs and veg will be about 500 provided you go easy on the oil and butter . Even an M&S beef lasagne is only 620

So, 3 meals a day = 1500 calories max. We don't need special products or cookery books.

We do need to stop with all the junk we eat and drink between meals. But we have to do that whether we foĺlow a diet book or buy diet products or not.

I don't buy diet food but I think you're under estimating the calories in meals it will take to actually a) get enough nutrients and b) fill you up. My dinner is definitely more than 500 calories and I'm exactly at my ideal weight. Any less I'd be ravenous. Likewise If I just had a sandwich for lunch I'd be thinking all day about food.

Obviously if you eat healthy meals based around "lean protein and veg" then of course you're likely to be healthy. I don't think that's very controversial is it?

It's portion sizes too that's the problem, I think a lot of people have no idea what is considered an appropriate portion size and that leads to overconsumption.

Portion size is definitely an issue, I am over weight, I cook proper meals from scratch - there’s nothing wrong with what I cook, the problem is how much I put on the plate.

Are you privy to most family meals Op?

YABU just for assuming.

It surely what you’ve put as the menu is a diet menu?!!
I think you are underestimating the amount of calories in sandwiches if you have butter, mayo, cheese and ham for example plus a packet of crisps, cake and a bit of fruit and a drink of juice or a latte - All of which is a pretty standard lunch for the majority. I also think you are underestimating the calories in an evening meal that isn’t just a small piece of plain chicken/salmon with 1/4 of a boiled potatoes and some salad.
Things like curry and rice with a naan bread are much more than 400 calories etc

But good for you OP you are one of those people who naturally eats hardly any calories and doesn’t have the imagination to see that other people have different appetites, metabolisms and tastes in food. Maybe you should write a diet book and make millions 🙄 yes day people KNOW what they should be eating, that’s not the problem.

Agree about portion size.

Portion size and cooking methods/skill.
I know a family that deep frys everything .

In principle YANBU. Almost all adults know roughly what constitutes a healthy diet. We know that snacks, crisps, cakes and fried foods are calorie laden and unhealthy and yet many adults still eat them.

Obesity is really, really complex. The diet industry relies on people remaining overweight in order to feed its multi billion pound profit so pushing their revolting foods on their customers is encouraging them to retain their unhealthy habits rather than forming new, better ones.

Also, a lot of people, including DH seem to think that’s its only “main foods” that count. Many people are of mindset that a single biscuit/blob of ketchup/butter in sandwhiches/dollop of mayo/jug of gravy won’t matter.

I too think you are underestimating. A 500 evening dinner is bugger all.
A meal at some restaurants can easily slip in the 1000 category with a small garlic bread/wine etc.

What is a "standard family menu" at home.
I think it involves a huge amount of processed high salt &/or high sugar food.

Bread, breakfast cereals, crisps, biscuits, fish fingers, ketchup, ready-meals...

ps: I need 2500 kcal/day. Fitbit, separate heart monitor & the phase I had of calorie counting all come/came to just about that same number.

Yes, that’s around 1500calories. If I eat over 1200 I gain weight though! I need to eat 1000 or less to lose, and I need to do this whilst providing more calorific meals for 2 teens.

It's not what we eat, its the amount. There was a doctor (I think he was a doctor, it's been a while since I read it!) who demonstrated this by living on 'junk' food with the conditions that he remained under a certain amount of calories per day. He lost weight and his cholesterol went down, I'll see if I can find a link and I'll post it if I can.

Ultimately, calories are calories regardless of the source and if you burn more than you eat you will lose weight. Obviously there are foods that will leave you feeling more satisfying than others and foods that are better for your overall health than others but if you need 2000 a day simply to exist and all you eat is 1500 calories worth of McDonalds every day then you will lose weight because you're in a calorie deficit.

The current healthy eating campaigns need to move away from demonising foods and ingredients - sugar, carbs, fat, etc - and focusing on portion sizes and calorie content. Stop making it entirely about 'good' foods and 'bad' foods, instead put a small picture on all food packaging showing the portion size - 30g of cereal means nothing to most people but show a small picture of 30g in a bowl and it will give people a clearer idea. What we eat should be secondary and the primary message should be about how much.

There should also be better support services as for a lot of people it is not as simple as "eat less calories", many people have emotional issues around food and an unhealthy relationship with food. Any changes they make are almost always doomed to fail unless these issues can be addressed.

As previous posters have said, people can fall into a trap of dishing too large a potion size out. You find this out when you do actually calorie count. I mainly stick to 1000 calories or thereabouts. My portion of the meat & sauce part of a dinner would be half a mug full or one standard ladle size. I add to that green veg or salad. If the dinner doesn't have many carbs in I might add a single potato wedge or 3 chips or a dessert spoon or rice or table spoon of mash. This is easy at home. I don't eat dessert or sweet things apart from special occasions. When I do I only have a ramekin sized portion. I don't eat between meals. When eating out I scrutinise menus online. Sometimes I end up with a starter and side salad for my main meal!

Saying that I'm not particularly hungry between meals and my meals satisfy my appetite. I think not eating added sugar or too many simple carbs helps. As does not eating low fat.

Thing is most people are overweight because of portion size imo, I don’t believe every overweight person is stuffing themselves stupid everyday with crap. Many just eat 3 meals but eat too big portion.

People don’t eat grilled chicken, veg every night because it’s boring as hell. People want variety ( curry. Chilli, Thai noodles etc ) and you can of course eat theses foods most like me do and stay a good weight however this is where portion control has to come in.

Who has just a sandwich for lunch? Even if someone does have just a sandwich it depends on the filling ( cheese for example is high calories)/mayo, butter/ type of bread. Add a medium size banana to your lunch and that’s another what 100 calories right there.

Most people also don’t move enough which doesn’t help

youd be surprised. Ive started logging my food again recently as keep gaining weight, and, my breakfast the other day of scrambled eggs, seeded toast, tomatoes and spinach was already 650 calories. A cooked breakfast can easily be 800 + or 1000+ if fried with toast.

Pasta is really heavy on calories for portion size as is bread and butter, and a nice yoghurt can be 200 cals

If you have something like macaroni cheese, curry or lasagne for dinner it is really calorific, and chicken + salad is nice in summer, but if I dont take care, I eat a lot. Its very very easy to overeat.

I eat exactly like the OP describes and have lost 3 stone in the last 18 months - I have 3 more to go and expect to do this by the end of 2020.

I eat peanut butter on toast, shop bought sandwich or salad, veg/rice/salad/potato for dinner - if I eat 1500 or less I lose weight

But I MUST count the 1500, it takes effort - though I know what I'm doing (and I eat the same things again and again)

I can't eat less than 1400 or I start shaking and on days when I've done exercise I need to eat 1700 ish.

So it's the long and slow game for me

People eat too much of little to no nutrition.

We get Hello Fresh meals and they are usually around 700-800 calories. The ones that are marked low-cal are under 600 calories so I think that your assertion that a normal evening meal is around 500 calories would be leaving people hungry and tempted to snack.

I can't eat less than 1400 or I start shaking and on days when I've done exercise I need to eat 1700 ish.

Laurie, I used to be like that years ago. Then I did a low carbohydrate diet. I was amazed that I just never seemed to get that hungry. Since then when I have had to fast, for example before an operation it doesn't bother me at all. I run everyday and can happily do a run before breakfast. I have done Maffetone training with my running which is designed to optimise fat adaptation and increase the body's proficiency at burning fat for fuel. If you are fat adapted you don't get the sugar highs and lows because your body can burn body fat for fuel if your blood sugar levels start dropping. Incidentally this has meant some people have to careful with regards to interpreting fasted blood sugar levels:

https://www.dietdoctor.com/low-carb/fasting-blood-glucose-higher

But at least it shows it works and there are other checks that can be done with regards to diabetes.

I agree with you op. I'm a bit overweight atm post baby but it's because I keep partaking of the cake/biscuits at baby groups. If I eat 3 normal meals, I know the weight will gradually ease off.

E.g. porridge with fruit
Tuna/cheese/ham sandwich at lunch with salad
Dinner: homemade shepherds pie, casserole & mash, seafood pasta etc.

I think lunchtime meal deals are killer, I see people automatically adding a pack of crisps or choc bar, plus a sugary drink, in with their sandwich and that's where the calories you don't need are.

Agree. I now skip breakfast have no bad snacks crisps chocolate etc during week and normal dinner but on smaller plate. Lost 2 stone in 3 months

Most double shop-bought sandwiches are over 500 calories and that's before you include the crisps that come with the meal deal, the latte or takeaway coffee, the can of drink and the fruit you might have afterwards.

I also don't know many people who work who don't have the odd biscuit with tea etc. It all adds up.

I do think you're underestimating the calories involved.

a single potato wedge

veryvery
If the dinner doesn't have many carbs in I might add a single potato wedge or 3 chips or a dessert spoon or rice or table spoon of mash. This is easy at home. I don't eat dessert or sweet things apart from special occasions. When I do I only have a ramekin sized portion. I don't eat between meals. When eating out I scrutinise menus online. Sometimes I end up with a starter and side salad for my main meal!

I'm not sure this level of scrutiny/portion control is healthy.