DC gained 5+ lbs last week at sleep away camp

[Anonymous]

Maybe also look into a new camp. My son's camp has dessert maybe twice a week and it's hours after dinner.

[Anonymous]

I can gain 5 pounds of bloat in 2 days on a diet of high salt food while traveling. If the camp served typically crappy camp food, that could even be enough to do it without over eating.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I can gain 5 pounds of bloat in 2 days on a diet of high salt food while traveling. If the camp served typically crappy camp food, that could even be enough to do it without over eating.

Exactly this. My DH spent a week at Scout Camp and gained 8 pounds - and he was trying to be careful about what he ate and was extremely active during the trip. But it's a totally different diet than what we eat, and the poor sleeping, heat, mosquitoes, and very salty food led to a lot of water retention.


OP has a seriously screwed up attitude about eating. Boys especially grow out, then they grow up. And the cycle repeats. My DS was very pudgy as an 11 year old, but shot up between 12 and 13, growing 4 inches but only gaining 3 pounds. Now at 14, he's 5 foot 10, probably on his way to 6 foot 2 or 6-4. It takes some calories to grow that tall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, you do realize boys fluctuate in weigh all the time. They eat a ton, gain weight, and have a growth spurt. Puberty enhances that.

I have 4 kids and have never weighed them and at their pediatrician appointments, I don't even care.

You continue down this path, he will have a severe eating disorder. Would you do this if your child was a girl? Do you know how little self esteem pre-teens and teens have? SUPPORT him. Stop tearing him down. If he exercises each day, let him be.

Some human beings gain weight really easily. Some stay thin no matter how much they eat. Maybe the OP is going to equip her child to grow up with a solid understanding of how to avoid being overweight, even though his peers can eat more than he does and stay thin. Why is that "tearing him down." Not everybody has weight issues because of their mommy. How old fashioned.

In a previous post, she gave him the silent treatment after he ate too much at lunch on a field trip. How is that NOT tearing him down?

Maybe you should be posting on that thread, then. This is another thread.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, you do realize boys fluctuate in weigh all the time. They eat a ton, gain weight, and have a growth spurt. Puberty enhances that.

I have 4 kids and have never weighed them and at their pediatrician appointments, I don't even care.

You continue down this path, he will have a severe eating disorder. Would you do this if your child was a girl? Do you know how little self esteem pre-teens and teens have? SUPPORT him. Stop tearing him down. If he exercises each day, let him be.

Some human beings gain weight really easily. Some stay thin no matter how much they eat. Maybe the OP is going to equip her child to grow up with a solid understanding of how to avoid being overweight, even though his peers can eat more than he does and stay thin. Why is that "tearing him down." Not everybody has weight issues because of their mommy. How old fashioned.

In a previous post, she gave him the silent treatment after he ate too much at lunch on a field trip. How is that NOT tearing him down?

Maybe you should be posting on that thread, then. This is another thread.

Oh, ok. I'll just pretend that thread never existed and tell OP what she wants to hear. Better?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:i'd take some advice from posters who've helped an overweight/obese child with big appetite overcome his/her food choices and weight problems.

btw i don't "expect" my 10-yo to make good choices - i want him to and work with him on that accordingly, and when he let me down i get frustrated. it's called parenting.

Right, but as a PP said, you've set him up for failure by sending him to a camp that serves a lot of junk food. So you've also set yourself up to be let down and frustrated. Are you just venting or are you actually looking for advice? Another PP mentioned "fat camp," which I'm sure was meant as a joke, but I'm sure there are camps that involve healthy eating and activity as a component if that's important to you.

[Anonymous]

So is chick wings junk or not? Is having ice cream dessert ok or not? You're even crazier than me if you skipped a camp because they served either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My guess is he is actually overweight/chubby but since you see him every day it didn't really register. Once he was gone for a week and came back, you noticed.

Even if his is true, he's about to hit puberty and will thin out. OP needs to see a therapist.

Absolutely. Most 10 year old boys put on weight because they're about to take a big growth spurt. My ds did -- he proceeded to grow 4 inches in one year and gained very little weight in that year.

That said, the Boyd that I know who have weight issues are the ones whose Moms have always been the most obsessed with food, limiting sugar intake, etc. I think they cram themselves the first chance they get.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
Some folks here seem to believe it's normal to gain 5+ pounds in ONE week.

It is not.

Further, it is obscene that it happens during a CAMP. What kind of camp is that? What explains a 20,000 caloric surplus...and while presumably engaging in physical activities?

Poop. And water retention.

The kid probably gained five pounds of backed up poop.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So is chick wings junk or not? Is having ice cream dessert ok or not? You're even crazier than me if you skipped a camp because they served either.

Are you the OP? Both are fine in moderation. But sending a borderline overweight child who is "on doctor's orders to lose weight" and then complaining that he "didn't make good choices" is nuts. You see that right?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Best to start weighing him both before and after a shit, just to be safe.

I agree. And everyday before and after school. Get a "demeaning your child" weight log and report all the findings. Get back to us after a month please.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:he's borderline obese and is under dr's order to lose weight. yes you read it right, to lose, not just maintain, weight.

it's like if after numerous warnings your son still went to the skate park without a helmet wouldn't you be frustrated too?

Because those things are not the same. You can take away the skateboard if your child doesn't wear their helmet. But you can't take away food. You have set up a power struggle with a 10 year old, for God's sake. There isn't a boy on the planet who is going to nibble on salad at sleep away camp while his bunkmates gorge on ice cream. So you need to find a better and more realistic approach because YOU are setting HIM up for failure and then punishing him for it.

This! OP, you're giving your son conflicting messages regarding food. Restricting him at home but sending him to a camp with unlimited ice cream and expecting him to make good choices. He's ten, he's going to binge on everything he knows he's not allowed to at home.

Planting the seeds for some disordered eating down the road, please tread carefully.

I agree. How did he get "borderline obese" in the first place OP? Obsessing about food is THE problem. The more you take away the more he will binge and want to eat more. Make him healthy options, cook healthier options of his favorites. Limit screen time and make him play a sport each season, ride his bike daily, drink tons of water. No lunch money - you pack his lunch daily. There are ways to handle this that does not mean breathing down his neck, weighing him and berating him for obvious 10yr old choices.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My guess is he is actually overweight/chubby but since you see him every day it didn't really register. Once he was gone for a week and came back, you noticed.

Even if his is true, he's about to hit puberty and will thin out. OP needs to see a therapist.

Absolutely. Most 10 year old boys put on weight because they're about to take a big growth spurt. My ds did -- he proceeded to grow 4 inches in one year and gained very little weight in that year.

That said, the Boyd that I know who have weight issues are the ones whose Moms have always been the most obsessed with food, limiting sugar intake, etc. I think they cram themselves the first chance they get.

This is such a tired and stupid cliche.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Best to start weighing him both before and after a shit, just to be safe.

I agree. And everyday before and after school. Get a "demeaning your child" weight log and report all the findings. Get back to us after a month please.

I guess demeaning posters on DCUM is your outlet. Better to be demeaning to the OP than your own child -- is that your theory?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Best to start weighing him both before and after a shit, just to be safe.

I agree. And everyday before and after school. Get a "demeaning your child" weight log and report all the findings. Get back to us after a month please.

I guess demeaning posters on DCUM is your outlet. Better to be demeaning to the OP than your own child -- is that your theory?

Absolutely. I love my kids. All moms should love and support their kids. Instead of being happy to see him, OP brought him home and WEIGHED him. She sucks. She deserves all these posters telling her what's up.