🎉Celebrate🎉~ Controlled Portions
There were many questions from the leaders about how to score this Healthy Habit.
The final word is, "If you bite it, write it; if you sip it, count it."
Too often, we fool ourselves into thinking that those few extra drops of creamer in our coffee don't make a difference, or that the five chips I added to the serving I counted out don't matter in the bigger picture, or that I think I'll walk an extra mile tomorrow to make up for it.
These are real examples, at times, from my day-to-day food habits. Why do I tell myself those lies?
I am becoming more aware of what my actual portion size is, and I am being honest with myself and my food tracker.
Replies
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This challenge is a mixed bag. So far the things I had been eyeballing that I've measured have been spot on. Except for one. A dish I make almost daily and because it is a single portion, I've been saving on dishes by eating it right out of the pan. But yesterday because of measuring portions, I dumped it into my soup mug that I consider a portion for most soups and one dish meals, expecting it to be nearly full and hoping it wasn't more than that. I was shocked to see it was less than half full.
All this time, I thought I was eating double what I've actually been eating. That is good in a way. But seeing it in my portion mug messes with my perspective. When seeing I didn't even have a full half portion, I felt deprived and like "well, that was a good appetizer - where's the rest of my meal?" and needed a snack 2 hours later, when before if I was hungry, I'd dismiss it as false info because that meal (if a full portion) would be filling and pushing it on both calories and carbs. I'm going back to my pan with the same amounts and hope I can "forget" or disregard that it's less than I thought it was. I've been thinking I might need to reduce my portions on that meal, but I'll try to focus on I already have and it's been enough, so let's keep it that way. If I dish it up from a larger batch, I need to fill my mug only half way now. That's going to take some getting used to. It's just doesn't seem right!
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I went to a potluck the other night. We all grab a little this, and a little that. Later on, not remembering and who's going to write it down? I used a hint I read on PS4L: take a picture! I thought of this week's HH Portion control. See the can of soda, I kept comparing my portions as I ate them to the can size.
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Thanks for the tips. I often think I've heard it all, but, nope, I have not, lol!
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A simple way to potion food on a plate is to have half a plate of veggies and fruit, one quarter carbs, including whole grains, and one quarter protein. Of course not all food is on a plate since we snack on fruit, nuts, and in my case, dairy, yogurt. A chocolate snack is my usual treat.
I don't think portions should be complicated. Measuring and tracking everything is very time consuming and is only good for a short time to see patterns. We have to have time for something else in a day that doesn't center around food. We already buy it, prepare it, serve it, and after enjoying it, clean up.
We need some time for other healthy activities; like going for a walk.
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