It's here! It's here! My very exciting news that I can't wait for you all to see! I'm pleased to be partnering with Diets In Review to publish the Mom 2 Mom newsletter! Written by a mom for moms, the newsletter will focus on the four things a mom needs to live a healthy and balanced life: Food, Fitness, Family and Fun. Would you take a minute and sign up? The newsletter will be delivered directly into your inbox and I can promise it will be chock full of interesting and helpful information!
Last year at this time my oldest son weighed 138 or so pounds. He was about 5'4". Today he weighed in at 111 pounds and stands 5'8". 4 inches taller, 27 pounds lighter. Does that seem, well, odd behavior for a 17 year old to you? Especially one who eats just about anything he can get his hands on. I've blogged before about our trips to the doctor and the blood work we've had done. He's been tested for just about everything that we could imagine, and it all came back negative. Meanwhile, the 10 15 20 pounds became 22, 25, 28 and the kid is all bones. You can count his ribs, his hip bones jut out sharply and the center of his chest, the spot where the ribs meet (that spot where you place your hands when you perform CPR - I'm too tired to look it up) sinks in. He's exhausted all the time and if he's not sleeping he's on the coach. BUT. His cross country times are the best they've ever been - his last 5K time was around 20 minutes. As the doctor put it, how sick can you be when you can run a couple of sub 7 minutes in a row? Indeed.
The next step was a trip to the sports nutritionist.
The kid runs cross country 3-5 miles every day. Up until a few months ago he took boxing a couple of times a week. Maybe he just burns off more than he takes in.
The nutritionist was a great help. She went through his day and he told her exactly what he's doing at any given time and what his daily intake and exercise habits are. To start with, her goal is for him to gain 28-30 pounds and her idea is to move him to a 2400-2800 calorie diet with at least 100 grams of protein. No more than 130, no less than 80.
He's not a big breakfast eater, so she came up with a few idea for him. 4 eggs (2 whole + 2 whites, any way), or a protein shake with a banana, peanut butter toast, something to keep him from being incredibly famished at lunch. (Part of his problem is that he's not timing his meals correctly - he's eating enormous snacks because he's ravenous, and then he's not hungry at meal time.) Add some kind of jelly to his 2 peanut butter sandwiches that he has had every.single.say of his high school career, plus add in a fruit and a drink that has calories - either juice or milk. The most important change is that he needs to eat something at the end of school, before practice. He never does, and then he comes home and eats 1/2 of a loaf of bread - and then he's too full for dinner. If he eats a protein bar, it might be enough to hold him through practice, and then have a piece of fruit at 5 and dinner at 6. Then a snack before bed.
So, we'll see if this works. One other (enormous) factor in the equation is that the child is incredibly picky. She suggested tuna, chicken salad, protein bars, nuts, yogurt, pudding, milk shakes, and about 100 other things - all of which he vetoed. I think she was a wee bit aggravated by his fussiness, but maybe we can think of this as a challenge, yes? She mandated that he MUST take a multi vitamin every single day - something I've said for years - because he may have a low level of a nutrient that is making him tired - and guarantees that he will have more energy if he gets his diet corrected.
Something has to work - 111 pounds is the limit.
It's here! It's here! My very exciting news that I can't wait for you all to see! I'm pleased to be partnering with Diets In Review to publish the Mom 2 Mom newsletter! Written by a mom for moms, the newsletter will focus on the four things a mom needs to live a healthy and balanced life: Food, Fitness, Family and Fun. Would you take a minute and sign up? The newsletter will be delivered directly into your inbox and I can promise it will be chock full of interesting and helpful information!
Last year at this time my oldest son weighed 138 or so pounds. He was about 5'4". Today he weighed in at 111 pounds and stands 5'8". 4 inches taller, 27 pounds lighter. Does that seem, well, odd behavior for a 17 year old to you? Especially one who eats just about anything he can get his hands on. I've blogged before about our trips to the doctor and the blood work we've had done. He's been tested for just about everything that we could imagine, and it all came back negative. Meanwhile, the 10 15 20 pounds became 22, 25, 28 and the kid is all bones. You can count his ribs, his hip bones jut out sharply and the center of his chest, the spot where the ribs meet (that spot where you place your hands when you perform CPR - I'm too tired to look it up) sinks in. He's exhausted all the time and if he's not sleeping he's on the coach. BUT. His cross country times are the best they've ever been - his last 5K time was around 20 minutes. As the doctor put it, how sick can you be when you can run a couple of sub 7 minutes in a row? Indeed.
The next step was a trip to the sports nutritionist.
The kid runs cross country 3-5 miles every day. Up until a few months ago he took boxing a couple of times a week. Maybe he just burns off more than he takes in.
The nutritionist was a great help. She went through his day and he told her exactly what he's doing at any given time and what his daily intake and exercise habits are. To start with, her goal is for him to gain 28-30 pounds and her idea is to move him to a 2400-2800 calorie diet with at least 100 grams of protein. No more than 130, no less than 80.
He's not a big breakfast eater, so she came up with a few idea for him. 4 eggs (2 whole + 2 whites, any way), or a protein shake with a banana, peanut butter toast, something to keep him from being incredibly famished at lunch. (Part of his problem is that he's not timing his meals correctly - he's eating enormous snacks because he's ravenous, and then he's not hungry at meal time.) Add some kind of jelly to his 2 peanut butter sandwiches that he has had every.single.say of his high school career, plus add in a fruit and a drink that has calories - either juice or milk. The most important change is that he needs to eat something at the end of school, before practice. He never does, and then he comes home and eats 1/2 of a loaf of bread - and then he's too full for dinner. If he eats a protein bar, it might be enough to hold him through practice, and then have a piece of fruit at 5 and dinner at 6. Then a snack before bed.
So, we'll see if this works. One other (enormous) factor in the equation is that the child is incredibly picky. She suggested tuna, chicken salad, protein bars, nuts, yogurt, pudding, milk shakes, and about 100 other things - all of which he vetoed. I think she was a wee bit aggravated by his fussiness, but maybe we can think of this as a challenge, yes? She mandated that he MUST take a multi vitamin every single day - something I've said for years - because he may have a low level of a nutrient that is making him tired - and guarantees that he will have more energy if he gets his diet corrected.
Something has to work - 111 pounds is the limit.