Feeding pre-teen boys

[notmywords]

Help

DS1 has always eaten a lot but it's becoming ridiculous.

I'm also very aware that his diet is becoming less healthy. He's 11.

He eats well at meal times but isn't overly keen on meat. He doesn't eat eggs or fish. And not a big fan of cheese or fruit.

This means he eats an extraordinary amount of carbs but they're just not filling him up.

He'll quite easily eat 3 Hot cross buns after school, then dinner, pudding, and have a bowl or cereal before bed.

He's been known to eat 8 Weetabix in one sitting.

How much is normal for a physical boy of his age and how do I keep up?

What can I get him to eat at mealtimes or snack on that will actually make a difference.

He needs protein to fill him up so you'll need to work on the meat thing.

Any ideas?

He'll eat anything with mince, burgers, sausage, bacon, ribs, chicken wings.

But none of it feels very healthy.

All suggestions welcome.

Can you work with healthier versions of what he will eat, e.g. Chicken sausages, breaded chicken breast fillets, homemade turkey goujons?'

Well that's quite a lot of meat!

What's wrong with mince? Make your own burgers maybe? Would he eat roast chicken?

Try toad in the hole if he will eat sausages.

More vitamins in the carbs - more potatoes with skins?

I will try. We always buy quality sausages with a high meat content and I've been trying to sneak things in like egg fried rice etc.

After school snacks are a big issue I think.

We eat about 7:30 as a family, so possibly he fills up too much on snacks after school, then doesn't eat enough actual dinner (except pasta)

But I'd be reluctant to miss out on family meals.

Or I need to give him 4 or 5 meals a day.

So sausage sandwiches for breakfast or as after school snack.

If he won't eat meat what about other proteins?
Cheese, pulses - roasted chickpeas are nice snacks, hummous, nuts etc?

Protein without meat is easy once you get used to it. Lentils, beans, chickpeas. Made into chilli, curries, spag bol. All filling, high in protein, will keep you full for hours.

Chicken is also very versatile (and some believe better for you)

A very easy recipe is fry a chopped onion and a few chopped
cloves of garlic for a few minutes, add a tin each of crushed tomatoes, almost any type of bean (black beans are good) and any type of lentils (pre-rinsed!). Then add whatever vegetables he might eat - maybe broccoli or peppers or spinach. Add tomato puree, salt, pepper, and herbs like basil to taste. Maybe a tiny but if chilli powder if they like that.

Beans and lentils don't have to be boring.

Will he eat peanut butter?
I don't think carbs are the devil but some are better than others, if he will eat wholemeal varieties they will sustain him for longer. So peanut butter on wholemeal toast would pack more of a punch than jam on white toast.
Wholemeal pita breads and wraps are good for a decent snack, better still if combined with protein. I know you say he's not keen on cheese but would he eat a pizza built on a wholemeal pita?
Would French toast/eggy bread be an option? I only ask as again it combines protein with the carb and the egg isn't really eggy if you get my drift!
How about oats? A bowl of porridge or savoury flapjack?
Falafels are another good source of non meat protein.

How about pasta bake with sausages or chicken and loads of hidden veg - I do onions, celery, and any combination of mushrooms, grated carrot, courgette, aubergine, asparagus, spinach, butternut squash - basically whatever is lurking in the fridge, cooked down with passata then all mixed together with cooked pasta and meat and popped in the oven for half an hour. Brilliant for feeding veg-averse sporty types!!

I also use this as a sauce for homemade meatballs with spaghetti

Otherwise a Risotto with chicken and asparagus/peas or butternut squash.

Will he eat sweet potato either mashed or baked or in chips/wedges?

Good advice on here OP.

I used to have this with ds2 who is incredibly sporty. He wasn't a great meat eater either. Pulses were good. And he was fine with chicken and fish. But he would get home from school in Year 7 and demolish 6 crumpets toasted with cheese and peanut butter. Then he would eat dinner 2 hours later.....

I used to tear my hair out over it. Then he became a teenager and it moved on to another level. I recently cooked a roast dinner and he and his girlfriend demolished the meat, veg, 6 large roast potatoes each, stuffing, 2 yorkies each. Then they had seconds. Then they had two helpings each of apple crumble and custard. They are both inedible sporty and not at all overweight. Ds2 is 6'2" and a 32 inch waist. His gf is 5'5" and a size 6.

They are both off to uni in September and will need to feed themselves. They will get a shock! I am.expecting our food bill to halve whilst he is away.

So good luck, OP, you've got years of this to go.

All great advice thank you. And I'm glad to know this is fairly normal!

Definitely need to sneak more pulses in. At the moment he'll pick them out but I shall persist!