‘Just the meat for me please’ Sunday Lunch issue ’

[Mondaytuesdayhappydays]

SIS and BIL coming for Sunday Lunch, bringing DN and her BF- recently engaged.
Got a little gift for them and card etc, my parents were coming any way so invited Sunday for food as makes sense.

SIS has just WhatsApped to say jokingly that the BF -mega gym bunny - ‘doesn’t do potatoes and trimmings- but don’t worry he’ll just pile his plate high with meat’
Im doing a couple chickens and a gammon between us all so plenty for everyone alongside stuffing, veg, Yorkies , gravey, cauliflower cheese etc but definitely not for a huge piled up plate of just meat!

I replied lightheartedly to SIS to this effect and she’s not a happy camper at all.
Just texted to say wants him to feel welcome so will bring him a couple of raw pork chops or similar to fry - I’ve said bring them cooked and sliced already in a Tupperware as I won’t be frying chops with all the carnage of the roast going on and my parents milling about under my feet ‘helping’

Shes voice noting at the moment can see the symbol
honestly am I just old or a shit hostess or is this how guests who barely know their hosts I might add expect to be catered for ???

I mean veggie/vegan all power to you
but a plate piled up of meat for lunch seems a bit full on to me ??

O level Biology is a long way in my past, but surely glucose, which is a carbohydrate, is absolutely essential in the body as our fuel source, transported round the body in the blood cells, levels controlled by insulin. I know we can get glucose from protein and fat but eating complex carbohydrates is an easily digestible way to get it, and for most people easier and cheaper than eating huge amounts of meat, with the added benefit that if we eat wholegrain foods, pulses, raw fruit and veg etc we get the soluble and insoluble fibre that keeps the bowels in good order, helps deal with harmful cholesterol and gets toxins out of the body much more quickly.

Perhaps it might be worth starting a new thread focused on the pros and cons of fitness based diets. You’d probably get a broader range of views there.

This thread’s really about whether it’s reasonable to expect a host to cater for a dietary choice made for fitness or physique goals rather than ethical, religious or medical reasons. You could argue there’s some overlap with weight loss diets, but in those cases there’s usually no extra burden on the host. Here, it’s been suggested that the host should provide an additional chicken to support someone’s training goals. Given that context, it’s natural that replies will lean a certain way.

If Im going to somebody's house for the first or subsequent time I would not have the gall to expect a whole chicken (or a massive pile of boiled eggs in my case being vegetarian) I'd just eat what Im given. How bloody rude.

carbs aren’t the enemy.

chicken and other animal based proteins do however lack fibre…

I’m shocked that as a ‘gym bunny’ he thinks it’s healthy to just eat lots of meat and skip the veg…

To be fair to him he’s not asked it’s his mil to be causing a fuss. If he’s in his 20s he’ll probably be mortified. His plan was probably just to say hi (meeting gf extended family for first time) eat some lunch without everyone staring at his plate - he could easily have just had his portion of meat and a tiny bit of veg on plate and no one any the wiser.
Then at 3.30pm on way home if he was genuinely hungry or his gym macros messed up stop at supermarket buy a cooked chicken (probably reduced as about to close) and eat it. No fuss or drama.

Sounds delicious

FYI, I tend not to make Yorkshire pudding on the day, as they can be a bit hit and miss / unpredictable. But home made YP freeze beautifully. I make in advance, freeze them. On the day defrost for a few hours and put them in oven for 5 mins to crisp up

My macro tracker app counts fibre, I'm getting 107% of my daily fibre needs today.

Starch and grains are not the only sources of fibre; you can eat limited carbs and still get enough fibre.

Yes, but you've described your diet, @Frequency, and you are making sure you eat a good amount of vegetables and fruit. This lad is not proposing to eat any leafy green veg at this meal at all, just some sliced avocado. Environmentally his diet sounds disastrous, btw!

Starch and grains are not the only sources of fibre; you can eat limited carbs and still get enough fibre.

I quite agree. I also limit my (starchy) carbs.

but as you said: broccoli contains carbs as well. All vegetables and fruits do…. And whilst the carbs may not be essential, vegetables are a part of any healthy diet. A diet based exclusively on animal proteins will not be healthy longterm, whatever OP‘s niece’s boyfriend may be thinking.

This is good to know...will do this for Christmas as I'm feeding 7 and was a bit concerned about oven room! Thanks for the tip 👌

I agree. His diet, assuming every meal is like this, is lacking in everything except calories, fat and protein. I don't know what his goals are, but unless he is built like the Hulk and training for an ultra marathon alongside his bodybuilding, or his goal is to become fat and constipated, he is not going to achieve it with his current diet.

Either way, it is the height of cheeky fuckery to expect someone who has generously offered to host you to provide you with an entire animal to eat. He's bringing his own avocado; he can bring his own cooked chicken.

Obsessing over protein is vanity. Obsessing over the gym is vanity.
Eating a healthy diet and getting regular exercise is not the same as obsessing.

Constantly trying to improve definitely involves vanity.

Its not going to kill him to eat like a normal human for one meal, plus I think it's good for young men to learn that sometimes they are the ones than have to bend, rather than expecting the world to cater to them

I wonder if the idea of a lifestyle very different from one's own and actually quite niche is challenging to people who don't have the discipline?

Half way up a hill in the middle of nowhere at the mo.
I'll eat my chicken , eggs and salad at the top!

Um, I'm not sure I'd want the discipline to be bordering on disordered eating or to be making silly demands of others.

So you think every competitive sportsman or woman is vain? What about musicians?other professionals? Some, yes, absolutely, but not all I don't think. We've probably derailed this thread a bit too much now, but interesting discussion, thanks 😀

OP's future nephew-in-law aside, why is tracking macros disordered? It's no different to tracking calories (which are a macro).

Surely, eating a "regular" British diet, which typically is high in processed foods and low in micronutrients, is more disordered than taking the time to ensure your diet is balanced and tailored to your activity type/level.

It probably is challenging but that's because different people have different priorities (often based around their responsibilities).

Discipline looks different to different people because of this. Being disciplined in my world is managing my workload (senior job) so I can spend more quality time with my son. It wouldn't occur to me that being disciplined involves adhering to a strict diet because that just doesn't factor into my priorities (of course I try to eat healthily as a responsible adult and parent).

There’s a difference between tracking something and being obsessed with something.

Unless eating something triggers a life-threatening health condition or will completely go against a core belief, it doesn’t seem healthy to be planning your entire life around your food restrictions (generic “your”, not meaning you personally).

He must know that he has a restrictive diet which it expensive to accommodate, so why doesn't he eat at least a partial meal in advance, rather than expecting his host to provide him with huge piles of meat?

Decades ago I was vegan (when it was very unusual and not catered for anywhere) I would always eat before going out for food and then just partake it what I could (generally salad!)

I wonder what he would do if he was invited for food at a non meat eating household...

I still think this whole thing is a massive drama over nothing . A extra chicken costs £5 , doesn’t take that much extra planning either . It’s no different to welcoming a vegetarian person or one with other diet needs . I would hate for any guest of mine to feel there isn’t enough food and I would have never created an issue over this .
yes your mil shouldn’t have requested it for him but it’s common courtesy to serve people well if I’m hosting .

I suppose it depends on your setup up but in my house, it would cause extra planning. It would mean I would need to start cooking 90 minutes earlier, and then think about how to keep the first chicken warm while I cook the other 2, and the gammon.

I could fit 2 chickens in my main oven with the roasties around them and the gammon in the air fryer, but there is no way I would fit 3 chickens in my standard-size oven.

Plus, where are people buying their chickens, or are we all eating caged meat? Because the last time I bought a whole chicken, I'm pretty sure it was closer to a tenner than a fiver. I doubt they've gotten considerably cheaper in the last few months.

This in spades. It's one bloody meal FFS and the women in his life are asking OP to cook him an extra chicken. What an entitled nightmare they could be creating.