Janelle Brown: "Eat In" For Diet Success

02/07/2013

Janelle Brown of Sister Wives is Kody's second wife. Follow along on her journey forward to weight loss and a healthier lifestyle.

I made only one resolution this year and that was to make my dieting more of a lifestyle change. An extension of that commitment was to start implementing an “eat at home” policy. With my hectic schedule, I find myself too often stopping by the local drive-thru or cheap pizza place for dinner. So my “eat at home” policy is exactly what it sounds like. Does it mean I will never eat out again? No, of course not, but it means that, if possible, I will cook food purchased from the grocery store! One month of resolution is now under my belt, and I’d like to share some of my triumphs, epiphanies and struggles.

1) It’s a pain to retrain yourself to make dinner on a regular basis. I grew up in a home where we had dinner at the table every night. It seems that these days, there aren’t many people I know, except my sister wife Christine, that make dinner every night. It was hard to establish a new habit. It is slowly beginning to take hold, but a mindset is hard to change. I have found that to keep meat always defrosted and available in the fridge is a big help. You can always make something with a little ready-to-cook meat on hand.

2) Be prepared for feedback! My youngest two, who have unfortunately been the most subjected to an “eat out” kind of culture, constantly beg me for chicken nuggets from the drive-thru. They have even gone as far as to call me on the phone whining that there is no “real” food in the house -- even though there is a very nice roast with potatoes in the Crock-Pot for them. But the upside is that after a month, they are beginning to get the hang of the idea that we are eating at home.

3) Cook simply! I’d love to channel June Cleaver, but it doesn’t feel like I have time to be the “cook dinner every night” mom. I am committed to try, though. One night, we came home late from an afternoon appointment. I had previously shared with Kody that I was trying to stop the constant eating out, so we opted to forgo grabbing take-out to bring home to our hungry mob. Yes, it was 7:30, but I threw the defrosted chicken (see #1) in the pan with some olive oil and celery. My kids thought I was amazing and, between them and Kody, the whole pan disappeared.

I continue to be a work in progress. The benefits are a not a shock, but still nice. I am finding that not only do I make much better personal food choices now, I have improved nutrition for my family, spend MUCH less money feeding them, and generate less garbage. Another nice bonus, Logan was home a few weekends ago and was raving about my new “cooking jag” as he wolfed down the leftovers in the fridge. Now if I can just master getting us all to a sit-down dinner each night…

Get updates from Janelle on Twitter @JanelleBrown117 and @TLC!

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Comments

[francy]

Keep up the effort, Janelle! I used to eat fast food every day, and now, years later, I cook at home 90% of the time. Once you get used to good, home cooked food, you won't go back! It's a lifestyle change that is worth the effort. You just can't beat home made meals for taste and nutrition.

[debra]

I too am cooking at home alot more. I enjoy making healthy stir frys. Its been a huge lifestyle change for me. I have a lot to lose, but I'm trying everyday. Thanks for the blog and reading about someone else going thru the same things makes it a little easier.

[Tee]

This is so true. It's not only one of the best money savers, but it's much healthier. I struggle immensely with planning ahead enough so that take out isn't the only option. I find that if I can prepare a large meal that will cover a couple of days - such as a baked pasta dish that it really goes a lot further. I must admit that it's difficult to come up with enough variety when you're time poor or uninspired. I'd love to see a cook book from you guys that deals with larger meals :)

[Andrea]

Janelle! You're my favourite sister wife, and I think it's because you're open, honest, simple and real. If more people would be like you, they would just find a genuine contentedness in this world, instead of looking to complicate life with meaningless stuff. Love you and you're an inspiration!

[Amber]

I just came across your blog and I wanted to say keep up the good work. Loosing the weight and keeping it off can be done. I use to weight just shy of 300 pounds. I now wear a size 8 and have kept the same weight for three years. It takes work and dedication but you can do it. Good luck.

[Amaris]

Hi Janelle;
While my post has nothing to do with your blog post for this week- I wanted to say that your family is absolutely beautiful. I know people see a polygamist family and make misconstrued judgement calls on a life they don't really understand much about... although I can never be emotionally or mentally strong enough to be a Sister Wife, I do think the Brown Family is a wonderfully made family and I wish every single one of you the very best of luck. I can't wait to hopefully see another season of your family, as I do look forward to seeing how life goes for you all!

[Jane Write]

YES! This is so true and right on the money. My family is also discovering the benefits of eating-in rather than constantly getting take-out. The last few weeks we've been off schedule with on and off being sick. Who wants to cook when you're sick! Kudos to you for making the difference. Your kids will love you more for it in the long-run.

[Jennifer]

Keep up the GREAT work! You are an amazing woman and I know sometimes put yourself and your health on the back burner. I am very proud of you to make these changes even when you are constantly working and taking care of your beautiful kiddos! : ) Keep up the good work!

[Cheryl]

Cooking your own meals at home is one of the best things we can do for so many reasons. Keep up the good work and the good cooking!

[Chris]

we never eat out and I cook breakfast (and lunch on the weekends) and dinner, but the only time we really eat at the table is holidays or when our older girls are home for something.

[Donavan]

I think we all have to make changes at times in our lives and it can be a struggle. You seem to be able to conquer all you set your mind to. It brings family's closer to sit and have dinner together. keep up the good work!

[TabS]

In the older episodes you mentioned that you love that you can go home to already home cooked meals. What happened?? Don't the other sister wives that are home with the kids or even the older kids cook? Your oldest son was quite amazing and reponsible. I thought the other wives would be cooking at least one meal for you. You're contributing with your income afteral.

Best of luck to you and the other sister wives with your personal goals and being happier in your lives and marriage.

[TabS]

Also wanted to add, that juicing, which would be a great way to increase vegetable intake would be a healthy idea for weight loss. You can make posicles and sauces out of the juice also. I have gained some weight and looking to find a good juicer. I'll probably start with a cheaper Hamilton for now. I'm also going to buy a YoNanas it's about $40-50 which makes like a sherbet icecream treat all from from frozen fruit and bananas aren't required as base. I'm getting it for Valentines for my four kids.

[valerie]

I struggle with my weight and I admire you Janelle.....keep it up

[Manda]

Loved this blog. I have been trying to do the same thing myself. Especially being 8 months pregnant with GD, I have to really watch what I eat. You talked about keeping thawed meat in the fridge, I think this is a great Idea but for some reason, when I do this, it always seems to go bad before i get to it, or at least a portion of it. I know you have a much larger bunch to feed, but do you ever run into this problem? Just curious.

[Leslie]

Love reading your blog Janelle! Keep up the good work!!! :)

[Megan]

I really look forward to your blog every week. Thanks for sharing your struggles, because you are not alone with these issues.

[Patricia]

Keep up the good work. Don't let the not having anything thawed out stop you from serving dinner. My family and friends swear I can throw a complete meal together with a piece of frozen meat and the cupboard in about thirty minutes or less. Put the meat in a pan on low and start gatnering ingredients to complete a meal.
Miss seeing all the Brown family come back soon.

[Ginger]

I love having defrosted meat on hand, too, but I've found having a few vegetarian recipes on hand helps. Even my big "strappin'" boys enjoy veggie meals if they have enough beans and pasta in them. Here's a favorite Mexican food meat-free meal that's quick and easy to fix and fills you up so you don't miss the meat!

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/mexican-pasta/detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Title&e11=mexican%20pasta%20vegetarian&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e13=A%3aSearch%20Results-List%28control%29&e7=%2fmy%2frecipebox%2fdefault.aspx

[Brandy]

Hi I am in the same boat as you making healthy changes. One thing I am noticing is that as I am getting physically stronger its easier to physuicallymake dinner. Have you thought about talking with the other sister wives and seeing ig each could maybe make a large dinner every two weeks for everyone. That's three dinners in two weeks that you don't have to cook and more time for the whole family to spend together after you are in new homes and closer. If that frequency isn't good, maybe once a month. Keep it up, you will help your kids so much by sticking with this

[tammy]

Janelle, I totally understand where you are coming from in this. I too am overweight and I have been trying to lose for almost 2 years now. I have lost from 321 to 267 which is great but my entire family is skinny and can eat anything they want! it's hard to change your lifestyle when you hae to feed eveyone else too. I applaud you and your family!

[Julia Beydler]

Thanks for the post. I have also tried to cook more at home and make better choices with more nutrients. It is something when you are over weight but vitamin starved. Hard for us working women to do it all sometimes and I like to remember this saying to make time to exercise now or you will have to be sick later.
Good work and many blessings to you.

[Lisa]

Great blog once again! Good luck on your journey. It is also a lot cheaper to eat at home!

[KAREN GRAYAM]

JANELLE YOU ARE AN INSPIRATION TO ME!!!! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU FOR STICKING WITH IT. IT'S HARD I'VE DELT WITH WEIGHT ALL MY LIFE . LOVE SEEING YOU PROGRESS. KEEP IT UP LADY..... LOOKING GOOD. AND I LOVE ALL THE SISTERWIVES...... STAND TALL & STAND TOUGH..... TAKE CARE, KAREN G.

[Rebecca]

Aw Janelle, I think we are living parallel lives lately! I was encouraged by a workout post you shared a few weeks ago, and now this post about eating out less is also "close to home." I finally got my act together and really looked at how much money we were spending eating out- it was too easy to ignore before, because ends were meeting. Now we can be much more financially savvy and SO much healthier!

My biggest struggle is that I have to make sure I'm totally prepared, or it will be a big temptation to just order out. Keeping a meal plan for a few days at a time, having the right ingredients on hand, and making sure that my protein is defrosted on time are absolute MUSTS to succeed! I also find that I am so tired by the time my husband gets home, that I often want to take the easy way out. We've been using the time to talk and connect and that makes it seem less like a chore for me. He does a few dishes, our son plays, and I cook.

It is hard to re-train myself, just like you said! Even though I grew up in a house where we ate home-cooked food at the table almost every night, I learned bad habits as I got older. It will be a wonderful feeling to know I'm truly in the habit of cooking at home again!