Moms of teenage athletes- HELP!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you European? Because I've yet to see Americans putting butter on toast. I actually had teen girls at school make fun of exchange student from Europe who did that, which I told them to stop and that it is never ok to make fun is normal in many parts of Europe... But, as the budget, I found Aldi to be great for feeding my two athletic teens. They are not as huge of eaters as many others, but it is like a bipolar disorder with mine, one day they are not hungry, next day three steaks. It was a good thing they liked Aldi selection, but I cook a lot so it wasn't premade mostly. If you can afford it, supplement with Chipotle or what they like, I know it is not as healthy, but you can't be cooking day and night, or want to? Don't know what turkey sticks are either. Everything sounds really healthy, but add fat to it. Bacon in the morning, mine will come and say that they want real meat, roasted chicken, pork cops, steaks, not tacos or pasta with ground beef, that fills them up, but it gets expensive, hence Aldi.

Thanks! No, not European. I've never seen an American NOT put butter on toast, lol...unless they're doing something else like avocado/pb/etc.

Ok, so I'm hearing a lot of "needs more fat"...any suggestions for foods?

Same pp quoted, I will correct this... I've seen Americans put butter on bread at the Texas Roadhouse and a few restaurants, but not at home and at school. I think I went with a too strong of a phrase... Sorry, I meant at the school I work at, it was pointed out how this girl was so "weird" for doing it, by other teen girls, and as I am from Europe, I guess I assumed it was rare here and DH's family in Colorado doesn't do this. I shouldn't make assumptions, you would think I know better than a few teen girls? So, I stand corrected and accept my ignorance.

As for fat, yes, how to get teens in a society obsessed with fat is bad to eat more fat? I suggest hamburgers as well, will they eat curries? I find that Chinese food never makes my kids full, but Indian food does. I make a lot of Chicken Tikka Masala, curries, naan bread with butter. As for the budget issues, I found that my kids actually prefer dark chicken meat, and it is cheaper, I buy boneless, skinless tighs and make those curries with that, it is softer and doesn't get so chewy like the breast meat. I add chick peas to it and sometimes regular peas, just to add volume. u I also make ribs, buy at Costco or Aldi, and not one rack, two to three. It was so funny watching my DS, who before ate tiny amounts and just the breast, lean, come home, see a whole roasted chicken I just made, and go "yes, I need meat!" He ripped into that chicken and all of a sudden even the wings were his best friends! If your boys are not underweight, I would not do what nutritionist recommended for my DS, which was adding oil to stews, soups, more butter on everything. Nuttela was recommended for DS 4 years ago, but now there is some controversy about it.
Dinner has become not just dinner at our place any more. Home from school and sports, and then immediately eating, most likely DS would have bought a smoothie or noodles dish anyway(he drives now) before coming home, and still act like he is famished. So dinner around 5, 6pm, and then by 9 dinner is forgotten and it is the time for the second dinner, often soups, toast, more meat, tacos left overs. They are like Hobbits, first dinner, second dinner(breakfast!) Often, I will fry them up some potatoes and sausages in the evening as a second dinner, or make a batch of pancakes with maple syrup. My kids don't really like snack foods, and I am an ok cook. I hope you like to cook? I am sorry about the long post, DS has weight issues and I had to work on his nutrition a lot, so I guess I am still too much into it.

[Anonymous]

You are missing fat from their diet. If their body fat gets too low they will get more injuries. Fat protects the joints, muscles and bones from impact.

I would add cheese to their eggs and their sandwiches.

My boys eat 4 meals a day. Breakfast, lunch, dinner (5pm), dinner (8pm), dessert.

Dessert is usually milk shake or ice cream because it has the dairy/fat they need and is lower in sugar than cake.
A smoothie can act as a meal or a dessert, use WHOLE MILK yogurt.
Sometime I put out a charcuterie platter before dinner for dinner #1... cheese, meats, and bread.

Add granola to their yogurt, smoothies and cereal.

Chipotle is a savior.

Cereal can be dinner #1... add granola.

Quesadilla is a quick meal... left over chicken and some cheese.

I add butter to everything. I will add a pad of butter to their spaghetti and meat sauce, scrambled eggs, bread.

Gatorade has a protein bar with 20g of protein.

Sour cream is high in fat, calories... I will make veggie soup like butternut squash for me, but then mix sour cream in theirs.

The trick is to give them high calorie food that is not filling because if they are full they won't eat. Of course, they are usually hungry.

[Anonymous]

OP, first let me say I admire how healthily your kids eat - I think it's great that you're teaching them good eating habits early on! I agree with the PPs who said you need to build in more fat given their level of activity and the fact that they're growing. My kids won't eat hard boiled eggs, so I sometimes will make a breakfast casserole or quiche on Sunday that they can eat all week. In addition to the protein in the eggs, I add cheese, spinach, turkey sausage, etc. to make them tasty and filling. Easy to cut a piece and heat it up for breakfast or as a snack between meals. Also agree with the pulled pork suggestion - you can make it with chicken or beef, and also do either Mexican spices or Asian. That can be cooked in bulk in a slow cooker, then rolled in a soft tortilla with peppers, cheese, sour cream, etc. Another good easy quick meal with leftovers for snack.

[Anonymous]

The menu is very healthy. If they're burning a lot of calories and you're looking to save money, I would serve more pasta at night and pancakes in the morning. Casseroles with vegetables added are also a good idea. As a PP said, all those shoes are going to be expensive.

[Anonymous]

My son isn't quite as old as yours, but he is a serious athlete (and vegetarian by choice) who eats a ton. Hard to imagine that it will probably get worse! Some snacks he likes that might help you:

full-fat yogurt with granola and fruit added (we buy vanilla; I don't worry about the added sugar because he doesn't eat much sugary junk)

chocolate milk (ditto)

mashed avocado with salt, pepper, various dried herbs, on any kind of grain (bagel, crackers, toast, pita)

large salads with tahini dressing (look up a recipe) and lots of cubed tofu (you can buy a pre-marinated sesame or teriyaki tofu in the fridge section of any good grocery, or better yet, marinate extra firm tofu yourself and pan fry it; there are tons of recipes online, and every kid whose been at our house loves it)

good old cheese and crackers

peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, or any other nut butter they'll tolerate

sturdy pretzels dipped in heavy amount of hummus or peanut butter

Definitely buy whole milk, full-fat cheese and yogurt. Try some veggie burgers to mix it up a little. And a little more fun junk food won't hurt them.

[Anonymous]

There was a similar chain a while back that had a bunch of suggestions but the two I stored away were:

1) make an entire loaf of bread into PB&Js and put it back in the bread bag for them to grab when Hungary

2) hardboil and peel a dozen eggs at a time for them to grab out of the fridge

Eggs are relatively cheap and filling and add the fat some are suggesting. I also have pita pizza makings on hand so my kids can make their own pitta pizza in the toaster oven easily at any time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There was a similar chain a while back that had a bunch of suggestions but the two I stored away were:

1) make an entire loaf of bread into PB&Js and put it back in the bread bag for them to grab when Hungary

2) hardboil and peel a dozen eggs at a time for them to grab out of the fridge

Eggs are relatively cheap and filling and add the fat some are suggesting. I also have pita pizza makings on hand so my kids can make their own pitta pizza in the toaster oven easily at any time.

OP here. PBJs- great idea! Twin 1 won't eat hard boiled eggs, twin 2 is ambivalent. Wish they liked them more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My son isn't quite as old as yours, but he is a serious athlete (and vegetarian by choice) who eats a ton. Hard to imagine that it will probably get worse! Some snacks he likes that might help you:

full-fat yogurt with granola and fruit added (we buy vanilla; I don't worry about the added sugar because he doesn't eat much sugary junk)

chocolate milk (ditto)

mashed avocado with salt, pepper, various dried herbs, on any kind of grain (bagel, crackers, toast, pita)

large salads with tahini dressing (look up a recipe) and lots of cubed tofu (you can buy a pre-marinated sesame or teriyaki tofu in the fridge section of any good grocery, or better yet, marinate extra firm tofu yourself and pan fry it; there are tons of recipes online, and every kid whose been at our house loves it)

good old cheese and crackers

peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, or any other nut butter they'll tolerate

sturdy pretzels dipped in heavy amount of hummus or peanut butter

Definitely buy whole milk, full-fat cheese and yogurt. Try some veggie burgers to mix it up a little. And a little more fun junk food won't hurt them.

Thanks.

[Anonymous]

If not hard boiled eggs, how about scrambled egg muffins?

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/222586/scrambled-egg-muffins/

A million different versions on-line. You can add or subtract pretty much anything you want -- veggies, sausage, cheese etc.

Bake multiple trays in the oven. Big batch cooking is the best. Put some in the fridge to reheat later. Freeze the rest for future.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If not hard boiled eggs, how about scrambled egg muffins?

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/222586/scrambled-egg-muffins/

A million different versions on-line. You can add or subtract pretty much anything you want -- veggies, sausage, cheese etc.

Bake multiple trays in the oven. Big batch cooking is the best. Put some in the fridge to reheat later. Freeze the rest for future.

PP with the 16 yr old here. Thanks for this, I had forgotten about those.

Op - mini quiches - would they eat those?

[Anonymous]

Lots of great advice on here. Seeds, nuts and avocados have gotten a lot of votes and I wholeheartedly agree. Also consider making up your own bags of trail mix from the bulk section of the store. The concept of Dinner 2 for teenagers is so accurate. My 16 year old (non-athletic) has a ravenous appetite after 8 p.m. I can't imagine what it would be like if he was more active. My two younger ones are both athletes and keeping up with their appetites in a few years is going to be a real challenge.

[Anonymous]

My kids, who are fit and talented athletes, don't eat anything remotely related to some of these bird seeds diets. Yes, they eat pasta and protein, whole milk, drinks lots of water, but they also eat chipotle, chic fil a and other chain foods. I don't regulate what they eat or snack on but they generally eat healthy foods because I try to keep that in stock along with a few bags of chips and cookies. No sodas except Izzy or sparkling waters.

[Anonymous]

Pizza, tacos, oatmeal, whole fat ice cream, mac and cheese, potatoes.

[Anonymous]

Wondering what people think of whole milk. My siblings and I all drank whole milk until we were adults. When my brothers were teens, my parents bought them each 2 gallons per week and put their names on it -- otherwise, they would just chug a gallon down and not leave any for their siblings. For what it's worth, they are now all in the 50s and 60s and they are all very thin and none have heart problems.
At some point in the '90s, they pushed everyone to low fat or skim milk....but looking back now, I'm not sure why.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kids, who are fit and talented athletes, don't eat anything remotely related to some of these bird seeds diets. Yes, they eat pasta and protein, whole milk, drinks lots of water, but they also eat chipotle, chic fil a and other chain foods. I don't regulate what they eat or snack on but they generally eat healthy foods because I try to keep that in stock along with a few bags of chips and cookies. No sodas except Izzy or sparkling waters.

Yeah, my 15 year old athlete eats a lot of chick-fil-a, McDonald's and Chipotle. I hate it, but he struggles to get enough calories in, so if he can get calories that way I'm willing to accept it. It's kind of crazy, but the insane 1500 calories-in-a-single-sandwich items that some fast food restaurants make are kinda useful if you have a teen who needs tons of calories but is never hungry.