35kg goal, and how to cook 1 meal that suits you and everyone else at the table
A 35kg goal, about 5 stone 7lb, is far easier to sustain when you cook 1 balanced meal for the whole household and simply adjust your own portion. Making a special plate for yourself every night is tiring and lonely. Sooner or later most people give up and go back to what everyone else is eating.
A coach at the club looks closely at where you stand and offers the best guidance.
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Why separate meals rarely last
Cooking twice doubles the time, the washing up and the shopping list. It also sends a message that healthy food is a punishment for a single person. A shared meal that everybody enjoys removes that problem, and often improves what the rest of the family eats too.
The shape of a shared plate
The British Dietetic Association explains on its healthy eating fact sheet how the Eatwell Guide balances the main food groups, and why cutting out a whole group can unbalance your diet. That is good news. It means a family dinner can include potatoes, rice or pasta for everyone.
- Cook the base for all. A chilli, a stir fry, a fish pie or a traybake.
- Serve veg on the side in big bowls. You fill half your plate from them first.
- Adjust the starch. Your portion of rice or potato is a bit smaller, while growing teenagers take more.
- Keep sauces and toppings separate. Grated cheese, cream or extra gravy go on the table for those who want them.
Recipes the children will eat
The NHS Healthier Families site has a large collection of easy family recipes, from fakeaway curries to quick pasta dishes. They are designed for busy households and many cost little to make. Trying 1 new recipe a week keeps things interesting without a big upheaval.
Talking to the household
Tell the people you live with what you are aiming for and how they can help. Perhaps nobody leaves a packet of biscuits on the side, or someone joins you for a walk after tea. Our guide to light evening meals has more ideas, and carbs and weight loss explains why you do not need to cut them out.
The road ahead
35kg is a long project with plenty of ups and downs. Family meals give you a steady base through all of it. When you approach the finish, read our section on keeping 35kg off.
Batch cooking on a Sunday
An hour on a Sunday can cover several weeknight dinners. Make a big pot of bolognese with extra veg and lentils, a tray of roasted vegetables and a pan of brown rice. Through the week, you mix and match them with fresh salad, and nobody in the house has to wait while a separate meal is made.
Meet the founders
Willerby Nutrition was founded by Phillipa and Pete Fox. Members have breakfast at the club each morning, with a daily check-in from a coach trained in nutrition, so the first meal of the day is sorted before the family dinner even begins. A free assessment is the place to start.
For a goal of this size, see your GP first. This article is general guidance and not a replacement for medical advice.
Your own weight loss curve
Type in your profile and the line redraws immediately.
At the middle pace, 8 kg comes off in about 11 weeks. At the gentlest pace you are looking at about 4 months.
The usual guide for weight loss that lasts is between 500 g and 1 kg per week, which forms the best band on the chart. Keep exceeding 1 kg per week and the body burns muscle nearly as much as fat. That is the striped band.
A rough projection only. Everyone follows their own path and results differ. Your device does the sums and nothing is stored or sent. At 65 or older, see your doctor first.
The way this curve is worked out
The zone tops out at 500 g every week, the gentlest pace, and bottoms out at 1 kg every week, the level where the risk starts.
Early weeks go quicker, largely because of water, and then things level off. After 40, the typical curve flattens gradually as metabolism slows. For similar effort, men tend to shed weight slightly sooner than women.
The journey curve includes flat spells lasting several days and slight regains, just like everyday life. It cannot tell you how yours will go.
These tips are general ones. They do not stand in for medical advice.
Further reading
For help from day to day, take a look at the healthy eating programme.