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[quote=Anonymous]Yes.  I talk very matter of factly with my daughter about weight and health.  It is not healthy to be overweight (like I am) and I acknowledge that and tell her I hope to give her a better foundation than I was given.  She had definitely been getting heavier going into middle school.  Her doctor, a woman, told us at her last appointment that she had gained 20 pounds in a year and that was too much.  She said not to focus on losing weight, but on not gaining at that rate.  She was very matter of fact about it.  We took her advice to heart and made some tweaks.

I do all our family grocery shopping.  I cook at home for dinner 5 to 6 nights per week now instead of 3 to 5.  Dinners are a lean protein and a vegetable.  I eliminated extra starch with dinner.  She eats breakfast at home and eats a packed lunch each day.  Her lunch is typically a sandwich, a piece of fruit, and a bag of carrots.  I do not buy cookies, baked goods, or candy of any kind and bring it into the house.  Daughter and husband like ice cream so we have one container of ice cream at a time and dessert is a serving of ice cream with a teaspoon of fun sprinkles measured with a fun heart shaped measuring spoon.  I have one "junk" snack food at a time and those things are pretzels, pop chips, popcorn, or something similar.  I buy no soda that she or I will drink.  I do have some diet soda for my husband for his lunches.  I love soda.  Love it.  So I only drink it when we go out to eat and I am really trying hard to eliminate that -- need willpower.  Daughter is choosing water at restaurant meals now so that is an improvement as well.

We increased her exercise and opportunities for exercise exponentially.  She plays a fall sport at school and gets 2 hours of practice time 4 to 5 days per week.  We joined a gym as a family so after school when her sport is over she goes to work out at the gym with me.  We also paid for a couple sessions with a personal trainer who works her out until she is sopping with sweat.  This has made a *huge* difference for her because she is really proud of what she can do and how much she has improved.  Her summer activities are all active.  Sleep away camp that is non stop all day long -- sports, swimming, climbing walls, river tubing, etc.  Outdoor day camp with swimming and on no camp weeks pool time with swimming, diving, lots of sharks and minnows, etc.  When she wants to invite friends over, we go do something so there is no sitting around.

We have been making these efforts for less than a year.  I had to take her to the doctor for an earache earlier in the summer and she had grown 2 inches and lost 4 pounds.   [/quote]

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