Eating healthy as a family can be a great way to lose weight. By combining a healthy eating plan with regular exercise, you can help get your family on the path to fitness. Plan and prepare meals for yourself and your loved ones to cut back on calories and fat. Keep junk food out of your house and stock your pantry with nutritious foods to help keep your family on the track to a a healthier lifestyle.
Breakfast
Stay away from carbohydrate-heavy breakfast foods such as bagels. Avoid processed, sugary breakfast cereals and pastries. Start your family's day with a breakfast high in protein to give you all a dose of healthy energy. Scramble eggs for a healthy, quick family breakfast, or keep a few frozen, low-fat turkey sausages in the freezer that you can quickly toss in the microwave for a protein-packed breakfast that's ready in no time.
Lunch
Make and pack lunches for your family to take to school and work. Pack sandwiches, using just one slice of bread to make it open-faced and cut calories from your meal. Include protein in the sandwich, in the form of hummus, low-fat cheese or lean deli meat. Pack a crunchy, nutritious side dish, such as baby carrots, fruit or nuts.
Dinner
Families that eat healthfully together have better success when it comes to losing weight. Plan meals together and involve your family in the cooking process. Sit down each night at dinner to model healthy eating for your children. Make a lean protein, such as chicken, turkey or fish, the centerpiece of your meal. Serve whole grains, such as brown rice or whole-wheat pasta, and lightly steamed vegetables on the side.
Snacks and Drinks
Eating small snacks during your day can help prevent overeating at meal times. Keep healthy snacks on hand for your family. Nuts are a good, high-protein option. Watch serving size, however, as they are also high in calories. Serve your family a healthy dessert of berries topped with low-fat vanilla yogurt.
Drinking sugary drinks can cause you to rack up excess calories quickly. Empty your house of sodas and juice, and drink water instead. Switch to skim milk to further cut back on you family's fat intake.
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