A great strategy in achieving effective weight loss is to get your whole family involved. It can be very tempting to have a hamburger with your husband or a whopping plateful of fries with your kids, but if the whole family is eating healthy food, weight loss goals will not seem so far out of reach. Keeping junk food out of the house will make everyone healthier.

Do you get your family involved in your weight loss efforts?

How do you keep everyone in your household happy, especially kids who don't see why they should be involved?

I decided a long time ago, when my kids were small, that I'm the food gatekeeper and in the house. What's healthy for me is healthy for the rest of the family, so we all eat the same foods. I've never followed a stict "diet", but instead use portion control and making sure we include a variety of healthy, lower-calorie foods in our meals. Sure, sometimes the kids complain, but they complain about something every day!