Americans eat too much!!!
flippy1234
Posts: 686 Member
I am finding that to really lose weight, you need to weigh or measure everything. Seriously. An American portion is so much bigger than we should be eating. Think about it...a serving of chicken is the palm of a woman's hand. NOT the fingers, but the actual palm. I bet most of us are or at least were, eating a whole chicken breast. It is so easy to go over the calorie count of the day. Through my diet, I am learning how much food I actually need to feel good and still lose weight. The first few days, I was starving because I was use to eating more. Now, I am feeling much better and my body is adjusting. So, my advice to all starting out is get through the first few days of hunger, it gets easier and then, weigh or measure everything...properly. Don't estimate. It will drive you crazy at first but then it becomes routine.
I would love to hear your thoughts on this...
I would love to hear your thoughts on this...
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OK, I did not proofread my Title...Americans Eat to much...not East LOL0
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Since that is basically what this site is founded on, yes, you are right.0
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Hmmm - and here I was thinking just the opposite- that "Americans west too much" - interesting... Ha ha - jk0
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TiffanyR71 wrote: »Hmmm - and here I was thinking just the opposite- that "Americans west too much" - interesting... Ha ha - jk
I live in Southern California so I West every day. Or should that be, I Left every day?
And by the way, regarding what your sentiment should have been, yes, we do. But we've got a couple/few hot on our heels eager to eat too much too. Perhaps the title should be "Humans With Tons of Food Resources Eat Too Much." Eventually it will be, anyway.
Have a nice day.
And try not to eat too much.
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Someone would be getting very short shrift if they served me a piece of chicken breast the size of a women's palm.0
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I agree, but it's not just in America. All industrialized countries are having weight problems.0
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Yes most of us who are overweight eat too much but portion sizes be damned. If I want 10 oz of chicken breast and it fits in my calories, I'm going to have it
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It's very eye-opening when you start logging everything and realize how much you are actually consuming. Thank goodness for MFP.0
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all first world and lots of developing countries eat too much. That is why there is such a diet industry.
It can be very eye opening when you realize how much food is served to you.
I did find a place close to home with reasonable prices and portions...love going there esp since the food is sooooooooo good.0 -
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Of course.I don't think we can say it's just Americans which you can see by the fact that there are not only Americans on this and other sites like it
But in all honesty, I have noticed a difference in the portion sizes in the US. I live in Canada but very close to the US border and travel to the US frequently, at least once a week. I am always surprised at the serving sizes when I eat out in the US.
That's not to say that the US is the only country with an obesity epidemic, just an observation of mine.
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Of course.I don't think we can say it's just Americans which you can see by the fact that there are not only Americans on this and other sites like it
But in all honesty, I have noticed a difference in the portion sizes in the US. I live in Canada but very close to the US border and travel to the US frequently, at least once a week. I am always surprised at the serving sizes when I eat out in the US.
That's not to say that the US is the only country with an obesity epidemic, just an observation of mine.
Then how are other nations beginning to become too overweight as well? Are they still eating the same portion sizes as before, just more of them? Or are the portion sizes beginning to grow, just as at one point, they began to grow in the U.S.?
Because one thing's pretty much sure: the UK, for example, isn't getting fat by continuing to eat small portions without snacking.
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I generally agree that portions are pretty huge...but suggesting that a serving of chicken breast the size of a woman's palm would be an appropriate serving for everyone is not quite right. Saying that 4 ounces of chicken = a serving = 120 calories just makes the math easy...it doesn't mean everyone should only be eating 4 ounces of chicken when they eat.
For example, I maintain my weight on about 2800 - 3000 calories per day...I'm going to eat more than a woman's palm size piece of chicken.
But yes...people get fat because they have no clue how much they should be eating to support their activity (or lack thereof) and stats and they vastly overeat.0 -
I think knowing how much you're eating is important. I also think that's separate from portion sizes.
You can have a huge portion, as long as it fits in your goals and it doesn't have some adverse effect (like hunger) later on that makes it unsustainable.
Or put another way, I'm perfectly capable of knowing how much chicken I can eat. Thanks, though.0 -
Perhaps the problem isn't that we east too much, but that we don't work hard enough.0
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I'm from the East Coast!0
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I think knowing how much you're eating is important. I also think that's separate from portion sizes.
You can have a huge portion, as long as it fits in your goals and it doesn't have some adverse effect (like hunger) later on that makes it unsustainable.
Or put another way, I'm perfectly capable of knowing how much chicken I can eat. Thanks, though.
Correct. OTOH, you can convince yourself you're superior to others by eating dainty little portions...yet manage to eat them all day long, and get fat.
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And Americans have gotten lazy, don't want to workout, want everything handed, bunch of cry babies. Even Sonic has a drive through! A drive through on a chain that's suppose to have people bring the food to you while you wait in the car!0
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The visual palm/deck of cards/pair of dice type portion clues are not as helpful as old-time diet plans would have had you believe. There is too much variation in those concepts for them to be accurate.
Weigh out your portions of solid foods, use measuring cups for liquids.
I'm not sure about portion sizes in restaurants around the world because I haven't been abroad for years. However, I do find the portions at mid-level US restaurants to be absurd, I've always gotten 2-3 meals out of them (I bring home my leftovers!). When my husband and I treat ourselves to a higher-end fine dining place? He whines about the "small" servings, but we always leave sated and happy. I think that higher end restaurants do a much better job of serving food as it "should" be....smaller servings, better flavor. But, you know...preferences.0 -
TimothyFish wrote: »Perhaps the problem isn't that we east too much, but that we don't work hard enough.
Doubtful. Yes, we're lazy as all git the more technology we acquire, but weight gain does come down to how much you're eating. It's hard to out-exercise a bad diet.
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It's down to convenience and a shift in the kinds of jobs we have. Many, many Americans have jobs where we sit all day, then get in a car to go home. Then, because in America we work absurd hours just to stay afloat, no one has time to cook and we end up eating high-calorie convenience foods on a regular basis. You have to actively fight not to fall into that pattern, because it's just so easy and expected.0
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Did you miss the bolded part?
Of course.I don't think we can say it's just Americans which you can see by the fact that there are not only Americans on this and other sites like it
But in all honesty, I have noticed a difference in the portion sizes in the US. I live in Canada but very close to the US border and travel to the US frequently, at least once a week. I am always surprised at the serving sizes when I eat out in the US.
That's not to say that the US is the only country with an obesity epidemic, just an observation of mine.
Then how are other nations beginning to become too overweight as well? Are they still eating the same portion sizes as before, just more of them? Or are the portion sizes beginning to grow, just as at one point, they began to grow in the U.S.?
Because one thing's pretty much sure: the UK, for example, isn't getting fat by continuing to eat small portions without snacking.
As I said, personal observation.
I don't have the answer and wasn't claiming to.
ETA: that didn't quote properly. What I was meaning to highlight was my previous comment: "That's not to say that the US is the only country with an obesity epidemic, just an observation of mine."
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AMEN to that! My boyfriend and I will split a chicken breast for dinner and then have healthy veggies for the sides!0
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I would agree that we do eat too much. Specifically, we eat portions that are too large and some of us eat too fast. Me!
But you can easily change that by:
1. Making less food, or even better making a dish and reheating the rest the next day, not having to cook again.
2. Chewing more (why not count)
3. Ordering more wisely when eating out, or take half home. You can order appetizers and sometimes menus have half size meals. Or eat out less. We eat out only once a month. Yes, really!
Years ago I was doing the Weight Watcher program and questioned the wisdom of "unlimited vegetables". I did feel the volume of food I was eating (too much, because I could) was not what I needed most. I needed to eat less for my body. Still struggle with that.
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