Portion Control

thomaslh83

Part of my contribution to my weight gain has been wrestling with portion control. I have always struggled with this, but I am getting better at controlling my urges to eat more. The foods that are my biggest culprits have been bread and pasta. I'm a sucker for these foods, and I've always struggled with the amount of these foods I ate. Consequently, the more I ate, the more calories and carbs I packed in and increased my weight.

As I have started this program, I have been more conscientious with what I eat. However, there is still that temptation of wanting to eat more. I guess my question is this: What type of foods should I aim at consuming to control my urges to eat more? Do protein-rich foods aid in this, or should I look at other factors? My target calorie consumption is around 1500 calories, and I'm usually shy of that goal (but never below 1200 cal). I also have a goal of doing light cardio a few times a week.

I can use any help and encouragement that anyone has to offer. Thanks a million!

marniehodges

Load up on proteins and fiber! Makes you feel full longer :bigsmile: . When you eat a meal, put it on a smaller plate. It's psychological, but I still feel like I'm getting a whole plate full; full size dinner plates are so big now. Oh, and drink LOTS OF WATER! So important for so many reasons. Good luck!

jpmajors

Higher protein foods do leave you feeling less hungry than an equal Calories of Carbs. But you can not go completely carb free your brain will stop working. I am in the same boat, I have a huge hunger and it is hard to satisfy. It is important for me to eat bulky and low cal. foods, lettuce, celery, nuts, berries etc...

JMJohnson1005

Bread and pasta are my weaknesses too! I have slowly learned to control the portions of them I eat. It felt so good the other week to go out to eat and be served bread and only eat one piece.

dave4d

Proteins will help. I have to plan beforehand what I'm going to eat, and then stick with it. I try to eat 6 small meals every day, sometimes that helps when you can eat every 3 hours, and you are feeling hungry. For some It might be better to go with a little bit bigger meals, and space them further apart. Find out what works for you. Some people say load up on veggies, You can eat a lot of them, and still stay in your calorie range, they seem to make me hungrier when I eat them though, Maybe I'm not eating big enough servings on veggies. Drink lots of water, that helps too. Especially if you like to eat out of boredom. Good luck.

calmmomw3minimeez

Hi. We have the exact same problem! I just had sooooo much trouble loggin in my dinner for today(pasta of course). There were so many choices to choose from that I'm not quite sure today if I'm accurate or not. I don't usually have this problem but the actual measurement didn't look like what was on my plate although I measured it before I plated. Anyway on days unlike today, I have found that my appetite is beginning to curb. I usually make sure that I stick to the whole grain breads and pastas, raw veggies,(marketside organic salad mix-favorite), some fruit and a protein with each meal. Regular green tea(hot/no sweetener) helps curb the appetite also as does plenty of water. One more thing I've noticed is that the more I exercise, the less of an appetite I have which can make it a little difficult to eat back your earned calories.....I still manage to find a way(lol) feel free to add me as a friend and you can check out my diary.:drinker:

ShellzLo

Well 1st I want to say to you to deffinetly add more protein it tends to be a filler upper, which should make u less urging the lovers of your life... Pasta and breads... LOL But I can honestly say those are my 2 weaknesses also. Just eat them in portions of 1 serving no more than 2 and you should see a difference. So great luck to you and I'd like to encourage you to do better, taking control of your portions and not allow them to control you... You'll do fine...

MsFitnFabulous

I agree, protein and fiber to help a lot. Also the water trick. Try drinking a full glass (8oz) before you eat. Them while you eat drink.some more
Shying away from items made with white flour will be a benefit too. Eating whole grain breads, cereals, rice etcetera. You cut down on processing that way so it's better for your body.

MakingAChoice

Since breads and pasta are your weak spot let's look at those. If you replace the standard white pasta with whole grain pasta you will be able to eat less and feel full longer. The same goes with the bread, find the highest grain breads you can and use those instead of white or over-processed wheat bread. You will see a huge difference in how much you eat to feel full. I use a 21-grain bread (Dave's Killer Bread) as a snack most days as it is a very filling bread even for one slice (110 calories). With both bread and pasta you have to watch what you put on them too. Simple sugars in pasta sauces can make you crave more carbs, it can be a vicious downward (or upward in the case of our weight) spiral.

You can also tray adding larger veggie side dishes when you have pasta. So the pasta becomes more of a sidedish than the main course. Good luck in the battle!

jllipson

We have started buying Healthy Life Wheat Breads - 35 calories per slice and 8 carbs - it's a little dry (not overly though) but it lets me get my bread fix when I need it, the taste is good too. I think the dryness also kills the want for more - it's good, but I tend to use extra mustard to make the bread a little moister, when I eat sandwiches.

PPFEIFER2

Keep it up this program is pretty easy and works well, the weight comes off a little slow but I think that is ok and you will keep it off longer.

pwiggy

I have a huge weakness for breads and pasta as well. I am finding if I wish to indulge in these to at least make sure it is whole wheat- it gives me some protein and feel satisfied with less, If making lasagna or spaghetti using 2% cheese and lean ground turkey or chicken in place of ground beef.

I make most of my own breads- King Arthur makes a great whole wheat white flour. Perfect for making breads or other indulgences like cakes and pastries.

It is a journey and trying to get the most nutrients out of the things we eat, even if sometimes it isn't the best.

ajbeans

I've gotten to the point that I almost never eat pasta, because I LOVE it and have a hard time stopping at one serving. I also don't eat toast. I'll have bread on a sandwich, but that's it. Even at that, I'm still getting enough carbs easily because I switched to fruits and veggies. More nutrition, good fiber, more filling, fewer cals. And still the carbs you need.

My best success with keeping my portions down and not feeling hungry is INSISTING on a filling breakfast and at least two snacks EVERY day. If I skip that snack, or if I skimp on breakfast, I have a hard time getting full at my next meal. I also try to eat slowly, but that's not usually a problem for me because I have two kids. Every other bite I'm telling somebody to get their feet off the table or stop showing everyone their "see-food." :laugh:

amycal

When I eat pasta now I have whole wheat and I weigh/measure it on my food scale. It amazes me how that tiny portion of pasta is 200 calories compared to how few calories are in other foods esp fruits and vegetables. And there is very little benefit to it. If you eat lean protein (chicken breast or fish for example) you can have a huge portion before you get to 200 calories and it is very filling. So I do still eat some pasta and bread but I try to be very aware of how much I am having and add plenty of other low calorie filling foods to it.

Losing2Live69

I was a pasta-holic before I started dieting in January. I never thought I could live without pasta. I would eat huge amounts of it frequently. Now, I don't eat it at all. As I backed off from eating it, a little at a time, it just got easier. I guess it is from eating healthy foods. I cooked bulgur wheat tonight and it tasted like pasta to me, but it is the consistency of couscous. I also eat quinoa now instead of pasta or rice. There are still about 30 carbs in each of them for a serving (which is 2/3-3/4 cup), but they are full of fiber because they are a whole grain. They are very filling. A cup of pasta would never fill me up, but less than a cup of bulgur wheat or quinoa fills me up fast. I even turned down an invitation to Olive Garden on Valentine's day...which I never thought I could do! Once you start backing off from "empty carbs" like pasta, rice, white bread, refined sugar, most cereals...you just stop craving them so much. I have replaced those carbs with "good carbs", like dried beans (black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans), fruit (frozen blueberries are a favorite and a cup only has 15 carbs), and bread made from sprouted grains (like Ezekiel bread). I am diabetic and I know when my blood sugar use to stay high it made me crave carbs really bad. Have you had your A1C checked lately?

For portion control...I have a basket sitting on my counter with measuring cups for both liquid and dry foods and measuring spoons. My son and I are doing this together and it is much easier when I keep those tools right where it is easy to use them. We also put our meals on a small saucer instead of a large plate. Most people seem to always want to fill up their plate. When you eat with a smaller plate you are filling it up and eating less at the same time.

I hope this gives you some ideas! Feel free to message me or add me as a friend. Also, my food diary is public.

Ex pasta-holic,

Angela:laugh:

Marll

This is part of my problem, and why after taking a ton of weight off once, I'm back at it again years later. While I did my best to find lower carb options, the market isn't what it used to be and it got harder and harder to make good choices with carbs.

I found personally that being super strict and not eating them at all worked best for me. I KNOW that I have a problem with overindulging on them, so just staying away completely worked better for me.

I also found that low carb diets were great for me, I was NEVER hungry, and the restrictions of carbs gave me a clear border not to cross.

Some say it's not healthy, but I can attest that I never felt or ate better than on a low carb diet, and really am thinking of going that route again, paired with myfitnesspal to track what I'm actually taking in daily. I also did super low carb for a quite a while, once taking in less than 5g of carbs a day for over a month, and never felt lethargic, quite the opposite actually!

jim0822

Hi Tom! The most useful thing I did for portion control was to buy myself a food scale. A decent one runs between $20-$30. It may sound a little over the top but I weigh or measure everything I eat. Pasta - I only cook the 2 oz. portion, that's all that goes on my plate. It's a learning place - by seeing that much food only, you begin to understand you actually ARE satisfied with a "normal" portion. When I have days when I'm hungrier, I make myself wait 10-15 minutes after my meal and if I still want something, then I have a banana or something similar (I always have a plan of what extra I will eat so I will make good choices). If I am still hungry, again I wait 10-15 minutes before I eat something else. Often it's just the necessary time for your body to realize it's full. I hope this helps.

liscar

I like when people refer to a portion as the size of a computer mouse ---- that's helped me

Lots of water!

Eat ALL your calories AND any exercise calories you get

easy peasy

lisapisa1

I have a major pasta weakness. I only cook one serving of it otherwise I know I'll eat too much. I use a food scale to measure out the dry pasta before I cook it. My other fav trick is using Ronzoni Healthy Harvest extra wide noodles. The way they cook up makes one serving look like a whole lot of food so it tricks my brain

rileysowner

The way I control portions is that I cook only enough for the meal I am going to eat. I used to not measure at all, now it gets measured carefully and I stick to one serving. If I want another serving, I would have to cook it afterward. Usually, that means even if I am desiring more, I will not go for it. Too much work.

thomaslh83

Thank you everyone! You all have been so helpful! I will certainly take all of your advice to heart and be proactive. You guys are awesome!

plato2011

The key is veggies. At least 2 servings with every meal, you can substitute 1 serving of fruit for breakfast. Each serving here is roughly 1/2 cup. Now to make this really easy, you can use cherry tomatoes, or cut up cucumber with a small amount of dressing or celery or easy stuff like that to keep it simple and easy to do. Plus the person who said to use a smaller plate is right on too! Good luck!

rileysowner

Yes, the plate thing works well both at home, and if you go to a pot luck. Bring your own small plate and you will likely eat less.