How do you eat healthy with a toddler??????

[Belbar]

I am a first time mum, my daughter is 15 months, i have a lot of weight to lose but i just cannot figure out how you can cook/eat healthy with a toddler (whos very active) and a partner on 12hr shifts! Any advice would be fab because i dont know where to start. Oh im also addicted to chocolate, i find its the only thing that gives me the energy to get through the day
Thanks

What do you mean op? Can you eat something both you and the toddler eat - so you only make one meal.

Surely you feed your toddler healthy food? Just eat normal meals - meat/fish/eggs with veg? Pasta with sauces, cottage pie etc etc.

I think eating a lot of chocolate is probably best avoided if you want to lose weight.

Just eat what you make for your toddler. There’s tons of inspiration for toddler friendly meals online if you’re stuck for ideas.

I found when I had a toddler was the easiest time to eat healthily! I wasn't giving them anything processed or salty or with loads of 'bad' fats so was doing a lot of home cooking and a lot of fresh veg and just did myself the same. And they didn't have sweets or crisps or chocolate as toddlers so I didn't have to have it in the house.
Now they're older and chicken nuggets and pizza have entered their lives, it's a bit trickier

If you really need a chocolate fix, try the Skinny Whip and Skinny Crunch bars. They do them in B&M and supermarkets for around £1 a box for 4/5. They've been a life saver for me whilst dieting as I have a super sweet tooth but have taken the edge off the cravings. Good luck with the weight loss.

I am following slimming world and have found it's actually improved all of our diets! Plenty of fresh fruit and veg, whole grains and a limited amount of healthy fat. Plus a small amount of treats which I think gives balance.

Thank you x

I’ve always just made normal home cooked meals and gave the kids small portions, and me and DH ate the same.

when you say the toddler is very active, do you mean you can’t leave them while you get on with cooking? I’m not really understanding the issue. If they still nap, can you cook batches then and just reheat when it’s dinner time? Or at weekends or whenever partner has time off, prep lots of meals and put them in the freezer for the week?

Also, the chocolate is probably more for comfort and habit, plenty of other foods will give you enough energy, chocolate is just a quick sugar rush of energy, but you need to try and eat nutritious meals with protein and veg that’ll fill you up.

What does your toddler eat? And what do you normally eat?

I don’t get what having a toddler has to do with anything? They just eat what you and your partner eat surely?

I don’t understand why a toddler has any impact? Surely it easier as you will cook healthy meals for them and you/your partner. It’s hard but i just have to not buy chocolate/ unhealthy snacks so there’s no temptation in the house

Keep fruits and veggies on hand and prepared to consume when choosing nutritious snacks. Low-fat yogurt, peanut butter, celery, or whole-grain crackers and cheese are a few other healthy snacks. Serve lean protein and other high-protein foods like fish, eggs, beans, almonds, and other dairy products.

@Belbar you mean how to physically cook while toddler is around, right?

Just eat what they eat. My 2 year old has always been an active child. Meals take less than 10 mins to prep in general here unless it’s the weekend and one adult can be with toddler. He doesn’t nap.

Tonight is cod ( just in oven 10-15 mins with Lemon and oil on), rice seasoned with stock and herbs. Green beans and peas. It’s not going to win awards, but it’s quick, healthy enough and toddler might eat some

I batch make roast veg and lentil tomato sauces and have frozen for quick pasta night with salad

Ah OP do you mean physically how do you manage it? Sorry. I absolutely hammer my slow cooker!! While toddler is eating breakfast I pop dinner in the slow cooker and it's always enough for at least two meals for four people so I can pop half of it in the freezer for another day. One morning I'll cook up some bacon medallions, tomatoes, mushrooms (all chopped) and cook with a tin of beans added - I eat this for breakfast heated up a bit at a time in the microwave every morning on a slice of toast. I cook a gammon joint/chicken thighs in the slow cooker and eat it for lunch shredded on a jacket with salad, or with sandwiches, I also use a soup maker which takes 3 mins to just chop veg and switch it on - 18 mins later I come back to perfect soup. I also have some toddler knives so while I'm getting dinner on the table DD will be in her kitchen helper box and I'll get her chopping salad veg or whatever, sometimes I'll just get her chopping a fruit like a pear because then she eats it as she goes and it keeps her distracted. I write a meal plan at the start of the week and roughly stick to it.

Starting your toddler on a vegetable packed diet now will only help them in the future. My children love pretty much all vegetables (except courgettes!) because ours meals always include them and they always have had them. It's their normal.

What do you mean?

For breakfast I have a bowl of porridge with blueberries and cinnamon.

For lunch I have a hot salad with roasted veg, grains, chickpeas etc

For dinner I have fish/ chicken and veg with various spices on.

Snack... Cup of tea and a satsuma.

Eat what the toddler eats!
I usually give mine pretty healthy meals and snacks, plenty of fruit and veg. Does mean lunch at 11am though 😀

I eat healthily and my kids follow suit because i dont give them anything else. They eat what I eat, therefore they eat healthily. I don't do separate meals for anyone.