Portion Control Weighing your food success stories pls!

emAZn

I weighed my food religiously for more than a year. It's messed up my food mentality quite a bit because I got into this mindset of "if I don't eat everything on this plate, how will I have known how much I ate?" Not good.

If I have anything left on my plate, I put it in a leftover dish. It's then "free" calories for anytime I'm extra hungry, because it's already been counted for in my day. I have no problem grabbing an already accounted for leftover container for a midnight snack.

Genius!!

Brige2269

I think my ticker speaks for itself.

I can't imagine not weighing my food. How do you know how much you're eating??? I try to keep a 500 calorie deficit. If I eyeballed the ground beef I just had, I could easily underestimate by 100 calories. And then the PB and J I had this morning? How do I know how much 2TBS of PB is? There goes another 50. What about cheese on my taco? I love that stuff, and could easily see myself eyeballing 2 ounces as 1...there's another 100 calories! Before you know it, my 500 calorie deficit is gone!

Exactly this! I was way over estimating what I ate, and when I started weighing it all, I couldn't believe it. Once you do, you know your calories are correct.

stealthq

I weigh and measure, too. My measuring cups are pretty darn accurate, but they weren't cheap either. I've checked them against the scale, and they're rarely off by more than a gram or two.

For me, weighing is important because I like to bake calorically dense foods, and if I don't measure out what went into them and then the total weight of the finished product, how do I know what a moderate serving size should be?

It's nice, because I've been pleasantly surprised most times. I have a tendency to underestimate how much of something can have. Made a blueberry cornmeal skillet cake with brown sugar topping and was shocked that 300-ish calories came out to an 'average'-sized slice (1/10 of a 2" thick cake, 10" in diameter) when I was expecting a sliver.

Katla49

Portion control is the key to our success. DH and I are doing this together, which is also helpful. When we started last year we bought a food scale from Amazon at a reasonable price and ALSO bought food dishers. These look like ice cream scoops and are used in the restaurant industry to serve consistent portions to customers. We chose to get 1/2, 1/3, and 1/4 cup scoops. We started out using measuring cups but they're awkward. We've modified our diets somewhat to cut out junk food like potato chips, but most of our success is based on portion control. We're still able to eat the things we love and don't get filled with resentment or cravings that lead to blow-outs or quitting.:bigsmile: :bigsmile: Good luck to you.

zjpq

I weighed my food religiously for more than a year. It's messed up my food mentality quite a bit because I got into this mindset of "if I don't eat everything on this plate, how will I have known how much I ate?" Not good.

If I have anything left on my plate, I put it in a leftover dish. It's then "free" calories for anytime I'm extra hungry, because it's already been counted for in my day. I have no problem grabbing an already accounted for leftover container for a midnight snack.

that's a really good idea!

Brige2269

I've lost a bit over 50lbs by weighing most thing & using measuring cups on the rest.

Things i weigh pretty religiously are the high calorie things like meat, cheese, nuts. Measure most things with measuring cups, the only exception being low cal veggies like green leafy ones & onion.

To make my life easy i keep a set of cheap set of 1/4 c, 1/2c, 1c measuring cups, a 1TB right in an easy place to grab & use. (If i had to dig them out every time, it wouldn't happen). My food scale lives next to coffee maker easy enough to grab to measure things like cereal & milk at breakfast.

The easiest thing, for me, on most things, is to look at the number of servings and divide that by eye. For example, 1c of rice is 4servings. so ill make that on Monday. Hubby and i have 1/2 Monday for dinner (1/4 of the cooked stuff), & the other 1/2 on Tuesday. In the end, if you divide them, even if eyeballed, averages out over the week.

It really did help me figure out how much I was eating. I had no clue what a serving was. For example, my biggest eye opener was a "serving" of pasta. It's only 1c of cooked pasta! Who, over age of 5, only ever eats 1c?!?!

Wow, what an eye opening post! I didn't have a CLUE that 1 cup of rice is 4 servings!?!?!!!??? :noway: and 1 cup of cooked pasta is a "serving". WOW....this explains a LOT to me in terms of why the scale isn't moving for me as I'd like. Thank you so much for posting. I also LOVE what you said about a "cheap set of measuring cups too...that's extremely doable. Congrats so much also on your weight loss too!!!:flowerforyou:

Don't use measuring cups they are inaccurate. Use a food scale

This is correct. Measuring cups are more accurate than eyeballing, of course, but scales beat the pants off measuring cups for accuracy.

By the way, someone asked above who eats only a single serving of cooked pasta. Once I started weighing it out (although I do so dry, again, for more accuracy), I do. So does my husband. If it doesn't feel like enough food, mix with some veggies (spinach, mushrooms, bell peppers, zucchini). You're not pretending it's pasta, you're just rounding out the meal, but it is a lot more filling that way.

I weigh the pasta dry. Most serving size is 2oz, dry. So measure that, then cook it. Of course, it doubles in size, and it IS a lot for one person.

CorlissaEats

I've been weighing my food for about a week and a half now. I was worried about the obsessiveness before I started but I have to say that I don't have that mental "problem" as expected. In most cases it allows me to eat more than I thought I could, and helps me cut the things I need to. I am eating way more veggies now that I weigh which means I am full and not snacking in the evening.

If you are worried about the accuracy of not finishing your plate- then write down the total empty plate weight and the full weight. Then weigh the remaining weight to get the percentage of the food weight remaining and subtract that from your dinner entry. Its not going to be precise but its better than nothing. I do that sometimes when I dont finish my coffee.

Weighing out your portions is about retraining your brain too. Just because you grew up eating an entire plate of spaghetti and meatballs doesnt mean that its the necessary amount/type of food to fuel your day. If you eat more than a "portion" its not wrong-- its just a choice. I find with starches, I am content with a portion or less now.

CindyArlene

Pro Tip - When weighing things like peanut butter, jelly, mayonnaise or any other high calorie but hard to estimate stuff... Put the bread on the scale first and then zero the scale out, then add whatever it is to the bread to get that weight right.

I remember when I first started weighing things, somebody told me that and it helped me.

Same here. When I started hearing "Weigh everything" I was thinking to myself, "I am not going to weigh out 10 grams of butter before I put it on my toast. That's just silly!" Well, it is silly because there's an easier way, hehe.

I found another tip about weighing things like butter or oil etc. Instead of weighing the bread before and after (and getting crumbs everywhere) weigh the tub of butter before, take out what you want and then weigh it again and check how much less it is! No mess no fuss!

NewLIFEstyle4ME

Ya know what?!? ALL of you guys, each and EVERYONE of you ALL are my heros and sheroes for posting/replying. I appreciate your sharing more than you will know. I've toyed with the idea of weighing my food before, but talked myself out of it time and again. I have been troubled by not seeing the scale move as I think it should (because I eat & drink very healthy stuff) BUT, for sure I've been over estimating my foods big time--FOR SURE. I'm going to buy a food scale today.

Thank again to you ALL!!! :drinker: :flowerforyou: :flowerforyou: :drinker:

ash8184

I think once you start weighing, you'll begin to get a good idea of how much is a portion size. You may not need to weigh for years and years, but it's definitely a great way to see exactly how much you want to/should be eating.

Koldnomore

If I have anything left on my plate, I put it in a leftover dish. It's then "free" calories for anytime I'm extra hungry, because it's already been counted for in my day. I have no problem grabbing an already accounted for leftover container for a midnight snack.

This is what I do as well

I have also weighed my food for probably at least a year and it's still working for me so I am not going to mess with it. These days I actually try to eyeball the weight before I weigh it just to see if my brain has been paying attention. Most of the time I can get close so it really helps when I am out for dinner or over at someone's house without access to a scale

My lunch containers have markings for volume too but I will not trust those - it's the same as using measuring cups/spoons instead of weights - completely pointless. There’s a great you tube video on the differences between weighing and measuring food here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY

SNLover87

Weighing my food really opened my eyes. I didn't get a scale until a few months into this process, and when I did I weighed everything I possibly could. I found that I was both over and underestimating some foods. But after a few weeks I knew about how much 2 tbsp of dressing was, or what 8 oz of juice looks like, so I eased up on weighing every single thing. I still do it with some foods that I don't trust myself with, and I'll also do it every once in awhile with some things to keep my idea of portions from becoming exaggerated.

I agree that it does seem restrictive and obsessive. But I also think it's necessary, at least at first, so that you have a starting point. So many of us have no idea what 8 oz looks like to being with, so how can we count calories accurately until we know? That being said, if I measure 8 oz today, and tomorrow I don't weigh and get 8.5 oz, it's not going to ruin everything. Once you get an idea you can get it close enough.

tasharock

Get a good scale and put it somewhere convenient. I have a digital one at home and a cheap-y analog one for the office.

They say knowledge is power and the scale lets you know exactly what you're putting in your mouth.
I prefer weighing to measuring on things like almonds, etc.

Boogage

I was rubbish at losing weight without my scale. I tried to eat healthily after my last little one was born but the lbs just kept piling on and I couldn't work out why, until I joined MFP and bought a scale. Cereal was one of the most surprising foods for me, a portion is soooo tiny! For fun I tried out a real sized portion on the kids and they thought I was being really stingy lol

odonogc

I measure things that it's easy for me to go overboard on, like cereal and trail mix. I think it is a really great weight loss strategy

stuffinmuffin

I've been maintaining for about two years and I still weigh some foods - especially high calorie stuff like cheese. For quite a lot of things now I know what a portion looks like and eye-ball a calorie guestimate for bread, rice and pastas.

Portion control was one of the key things that MFP taught me. I had it all so wrong before and it was shocking how many calories I was eating without really realising.

Sometimes I do love to have a large meal though so just pack the plate full of veg to make it into a feast! x

_Resolve_

My $30.00 food scale was one of the best investments I have made, if I cant weight it; i don't eat it.

qtgonewild

i weigh my food too.

Lili0817

Loved this post, I'm convinced! I'm totally buying a food scale like TODAY!

Serah87

I weigh EVERYTHING, see ticker below. :happy:

bekahlou75

So y'all tell me what kind of food scale do you use? What's the average price of a good one?

Katla49

So y'all tell me what kind of food scale do you use? What's the average price of a good one?

I bought ours on Amazon based on customer reviews. It was under $50, but I don't recall the exact price.

JTick

I bought this one:

http://www.amazon.com/White-0-04oz-Digital-Kitchen-Compact/dp/B0096YDPNA/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1383593082&sr=8-13&keywords=food+scale

$7, and it's worked great. I wish the platform were bigger, but I really can't complain for the price, and I've always managed to make it work. Sometimes I do have to weigh in a bowl before transferring to a plate if I'm weighing something large though.

GothyFaery

I have OCD so weighing my food comes naturally to me. I never knew exactly how much I was really eating until I started weighing it. I recently had some potato salad, never thought it was THAT bad for me, but when I started scooping it out on the scale, I saw just how many calories I had been eating before I started MFP. Without weighing, I would have easily had double the portion without realizing it. After that, I decided to buy a pocket scale to take with me on the go ($9 on Amazon, can't beat it). Now I weigh just about everything I eat, including at a restaurant. The scale is important because it teaches you how much you SHOULD be eating. After a while, I would assume a non-OCD person could phase the scale out as they teach themselves exactly what 32 grams looks like. I don't think I will ever get away from the scale. My OCD won't let me.

You can get the pocket scale here http://www.amazon.com/American-Weigh-Scales-Digital-BL-1KG-BLK/dp/B0012N1NAA/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1383592912&sr=8-3&keywords=pocket+scale

But if you're looking for a scale for home, I would suggest something more like this for better accuracy http://www.amazon.com/EatSmart-Precision-Digital-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B001N07KUE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1383592968&sr=8-1&keywords=food+scale

bekahlou75

Didn't know there was a pocket scale. I think I want a home one and a pocket one.

cwolfman13

I weigh or measure out most things.

Some people seem to think this is over the top, obsessive or extreme in some way. Not sure why. They all think having nutrition facts on the label is great but then scoff at actually making sure you are eating the correct serving size.

Yeah, I've never understood the aversion to it...personally I think it's because people are scared to truly see what they're eating...and it's no wonder that "it just doesn't work" for so many people. "Do you weigh and measure" is pretty much the first question I ask when someone insists they are doing everything right. For calorie counting for weight loss you have to be as precise as you possibly can be for it to work...eyeballing is not in anyway precise.

Even in maintenance I weigh most things unless I'm out and about of course, then I just do the best I can estimating based on seeing similar items on my scale a gazillion times.

zjpq

I got my digital food scale for $15-20 from Amazon with free prime shipping! LOVE IT!

GretchenReine

I weigh and measure darn near everything and have since I started in September, 2011. If I don't finish everything because I get full...it's ok...I still log it. Odds are I didn't skip enough to make a substantial difference. It keeps me aware of portions and makes me conscious of what I'm actually eating! As someone else said...my ticker speaks for itself. I don't see myself ever discontinuing this!

beekuzz

We live with our food scale. Problem is, my eyes and stomach seem to think a proper portion size is about 5x a real portion size. Along with eating better - not eating out -, drinking water, and getting regular exercise, not only do I feel better, but look much better. If you have problems with portion sizes, you must use the scale.

beekuzz

Totally agree with you. Great commitment to yourself!