Portion Control.

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brenannn
brenannn Posts: 19
in Food and Nutrition
I suck at it.
How can I improve on this?
Any tips?

Replies

  • Kukenan
    Kukenan Posts: 44
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    Weigh EVERYTHING you eat at home. As you do it you will get used to what are the usual sizes of the portions you should eat and be able to approximate them when eating outside. However keep weighting your food at home even though you think you know what yoou are eating, it is easy so estimate incorrectly.
  • ovi212
    ovi212 Posts: 145 Member
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    you could buy pre-portioned foods, measure out your food before you put it on your plate and log so you know what you are having and stop at that, use small plates, cutlery etc., take 1/2 of what you had planned on eating, eat that and then see how you feel, serve your food and then immediately pack up the rest in the fridge etc. so you can't just keep going back, don't eat out of large containers, bags etc, put it into a bowl
  • just4nessa
    just4nessa Posts: 459 Member
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    Eat slowly. Enjoy each bite. Focus on and savor the taste of your meal, and avoid distractions that cause you to eat mindlessly (tv, work, reading, etc). If you start with the correct portion size on your plate and take your time eating it, you will realize that you are full/satisfied with that portion and not go back for more.
  • aqualeo1
    aqualeo1 Posts: 331 Member
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    Try to eat foods that aren't very calorie dense so you can eat bigger portions to fill you up. Double up on veggies or salad with dinner so you can eat a smaller portion of the higher calorie foods and not be starving.
  • Apocalypz
    Apocalypz Posts: 155 Member
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    1. Smaller plates
    2. Eat at a slower pace ("normal" pace if you're a gobble-gobble)
    3. Leave the table when you're done
    4. If from tupperware, put it away once you've added some to your plate
    5. Eat with skinny people ;)
    6. Smaller is okay ... honestly
    7. Bigger isn't better unless it's love
    8. Tastings are awesome and can be done at a Sunday buffet as well
    9. When you want seconds, just give the food some time to do its work in your tum-tum
    10. Pre-portion when you're not hungry
    11. Shop at the grocer when you're not hungry
    12. You'll fall every once in a while and that's okay too
  • Apocalypz
    Apocalypz Posts: 155 Member
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    ...avoid distractions that cause you to eat mindlessly (...work...)
    I love this! All I read was "avoid work". :wink:
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    i love big portions, especially at dinner, and i would most certainly go back for a second or third helping. what i started to do is serve myself smaller portions in small bowls. i'd eat it, go back for a second and third helping. in the end i'd still be eating less, but i guess psychologically i tricked myself.
  • tinileak92
    tinileak92 Posts: 45
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    I am a big portion eater too but over the past 3 days I have took advice from a few MFP friends and started weighing EVERYTHING! wow! I didn't realise how many calories I was really eating at lunch! I know it's a pain in the neck but weighing everything for at least a week will show you how much of things you should be eating and this will give you a rough idea for when you have to guesstimate food.. :)
  • ewtx1000
    ewtx1000 Posts: 24 Member
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    Get a digital scale with both ounces and grams display, then weigh everything you eat. You'll really learn that the portion is so you can track more accurately. Especially good with things like peanut butter and margarine. Put the container on the scale, turn it on, then serve yourself and the amount scooped out will appear.

    Good luck!
  • Jill_newimprovedversion
    Jill_newimprovedversion Posts: 988 Member
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    A good tip for eating out- order a take out container RIGHT when your dish arrives,
    put 1/2 of the entree in it, close the lid, and move it out of sight.



    * Save it for another meal *
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,725 Member
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    You may not yet be able to have certain food items in the house. Buy single portions of them while you're out or if somebody else serves them. With infrequent exposure, at least you might not do significant caloric damage over time. And know that keeping items out of the house does not have to be forever. You could find yourself reintroducing them when you can finally handle them
  • runningagainstmyself
    runningagainstmyself Posts: 616 Member
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    Adding to the choir here -- a digital scale that measures grams and ounces is a god-send, not to mention affordable. I think I picked mine up for around $15.

    Also, measuring cups. If you can, try to get ladles that equal a close approximation of measuring cups. That way if you are dishing out soup, you know how much you are getting.

    Plan what your meal is going to be before you get hungry. Once you hit that plateau all hell will likely break loose re: eating (at least that's been my experience).

    If you are a night snacker, save 200 calories out of your day so that at minimum, you have enough for a serving of air-pop popcorn.

    But yeah... measurements are key. If you don't have them you can't keep yourself accountable and it's just too easy to deviate under the pretense of not knowing how much is on your plate.

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