Just because we want to lose weight doesn’t mean that we want to be ostracized from society. This is particularly an issue if we happen to be the family chef; nibbling our own lightweight morsels whilst the aroma of ‘real food’ wafts under our nostrils! This can be frustrating, so let’s look at how we can integrate our weight loss program into regular family meals.

Whatever we serve up, when we’re aiming to lose weight the first thing we can address is our portion size. Starting a meal with a full plate is very gratifying, so why not buy yourself a smaller plate? Don’t rush to be the first to start eating. Take your time and chew your food well. This will leave you feeling more satiated, and prevent you from always finishing before everyone else.

It should be possible to eat the same dinner as everyone else for several days of the week. Just make sure you eat lots of vegetables, and only serve yourself a small amount of carbohydrate. Also, restrict any side portions of bread and butter! If the family like their puddings, prepare ones that you can have a taste of. Check any tinned fruit you have is in juice, not syrup.

But you can also sneak in the odd diet meal for the whole family. Delicious low calorie meals can be created without anyone suspecting a thing! Fresh herbs make a great addition to spaghetti dishes – and add plenty of mushrooms and courgettes. Instead of oil, use tinned tomatoes and olives for juiciness.

When you’re shopping for food, always pick out lean cuts of meat. Remember also that fish can be a lower fat alternative. Whatever the rest of your family weigh, it’s still advantageous for them as well to eat lean meat. Roast chicken is a good all-rounder, just make sure you remove any skin and eat breast meat where possible. Select potatoes that have a naturally creamier texture, such as Vivaldi or Maris Piper. Then you can feel fulfilled without loading them with butter.

Whole wheat or oats are the best cereals to buy – and choose ones that don’t have any additional sugar. Leave cereal bars alone too. Even these have far too many calories for the amount of food you’re eating. There are also many ‘hidden’ cals in a lot of drinks. If you drink cola or other sodas, always buy the diet varieties.

Wine and beer can be very fattening, so try to limit it where possible. Tomato juice with Worcestershire sauce and ice has a good kick and makes a change. As apple juice is particularly strong in flavour, water it down half and half and serve it in a wine glass for more sophistication!

Clearly, we can’t keep consuming the same things and expect to drop the weight. Although the odd bit of fine-tuning can work wonders to help things along.