How do you get used to smaller portions?

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kookla33
kookla33 Posts: 234
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm still having challenges accepting what a real serving of pasta, ice cream, and chips, etc. is. What helps you to stick to smaller servings and still feel satisfied?
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  • sbwood888
    sbwood888 Posts: 953 Member
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    I struggle. If I dont control myself, my portions are way over the line. Many times I do not feel satisfied--especially with pasta and rice--most any carbs. (sigh) Dont know if I will ever be able to be happy with one cup of pasta............:grumble:
  • bethrs
    bethrs Posts: 664 Member
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    I'll be totally honest with you here Kookla...and it's probably not going to be fun to hear....

    I didn't. I changed what I ate. I am a hungry human being so now I eat a boat ton of food but it is different food- veggies, fruits, green and leafy.

    If I tried to eat "regular" food in the correct portions I would starve to death.

    I do occasionally eat something like pasta or ice cream and either I save it for a day I can eat a normal serving (from a restaurant or weighed out in the kitchen in terms of ice cream) due to an intense work out, but I make sure that I'm already full on something else first- like a salad or a healthy dinner.

    I hope that helps.
  • rileamoyer
    rileamoyer Posts: 2,411 Member
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    gradually.
  • wilmelenne
    wilmelenne Posts: 113
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    for snacks I put one serving size into snack bags and take that with me so I know how much i'm eating. If you continue to eat less your stomach will get used to eat and begin to feel fuller with smaller portions
  • lexis0911
    lexis0911 Posts: 50
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    i use a smaller plate sometimes...it helps because the smaller portion fills it up making you think you are eating more food!! *trickery*
  • godroxmysox
    godroxmysox Posts: 1,491 Member
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    for snacks I put one serving size into snack bags and take that with me so I know how much i'm eating. If you continue to eat less your stomach will get used to eat and begin to feel fuller with smaller portions

    I do the same...premeasure so you don't even think about it =) Good luck
  • JillyCornwall
    JillyCornwall Posts: 376 Member
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    I'll be totally honest with you here Kookla...and it's probably not going to be fun to hear....

    I didn't. I changed what I ate. I am a hungry human being so now I eat a boat ton of food but it is different food- veggies, fruits, green and leafy.

    If I tried to eat "regular" food in the correct portions I would starve to death.

    I do occasionally eat something like pasta or ice cream and either I save it for a day I can eat a normal serving (from a restaurant or weighed out in the kitchen in terms of ice cream) due to an intense work out, but I make sure that I'm already full on something else first- like a salad or a healthy dinner.

    I hope that helps.

    I'm with you, I have changed a lot of what I eat...I used to eat sandwiches at Lunchtime now I eat crispbread or have an ommelette because two small slices of bread with a bit of nothing between them does not satisfy my 'brain'. LOL
  • tarjake
    tarjake Posts: 56 Member
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    honestly, i drink more coffee in the morning than i used to. seems like i dont starve as much for food when i first cut down the portions.
  • LittleVikki
    LittleVikki Posts: 88 Member
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    Drink a glass of water before you have your meal then afterwards but if you get hungry later don't starve yourself have something then you should gradually accept that the smaller portions fill you up
  • JanerZzz
    JanerZzz Posts: 276
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    downsize your plates, fill your plates with veggies...that way you're not sitting there having being sad about a cup of noodles and how hungry you are :). I think as long as you add plenty of vegetables to your diet (not drowned in butter and sauce) and adding a small cup of healthy soup (barley mushroom, veggie medley) you will feel full and satisfyed! and if you work out and do all your calorie math ,you'll find that you can enjoy a serving or two of noodles or wahtever if you earned it!
  • cdoane
    cdoane Posts: 11 Member
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    Your stomach does adjust. I have always had a problem with portions, and two years about when i worked on getting healthy for the first time i did notice that over itme i got fuller faster as your stomach adjusts to the smaller portions. And then i gained it all back and was eating way to much, and now i am back at it again. but your stomach should adjust as you eat less and loose weight, and you will notice that what now leaves you hungry will be the right amount.
  • wonishca
    wonishca Posts: 1
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    It helps me to make sure I am drinking water all the time, at least eight glasses a day. When I start getting hugry I drink a glass of water and wait ten minutes. It is helping when I do it.
  • SeasideOasis
    SeasideOasis Posts: 1,057 Member
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    Honestly, it is just a lifestyle adjust...

    When working in a restaurant (Buffalo Wild Wings) a couple years back, I went from only being able to eat three or four wings and a small order of chips and cheese to eating twelve wings and an large order of chips and cheese....Which is HORRIBLE...I would never want to see what the calories are for that meal :indifferent:

    What I found to help me get back to smaller portions is eating many times throughout the day.

    Typically my day is something like this...

    Breakfast: Yogurt
    Morning Snack: Banana
    Lunch: Protein and veggie or fruit
    Afternoon Snack: Mixed Fruit (fresh) or a Protein water
    Dinner: (Depending on the day) Either an Organic Protein Shake OR a protein with a pasta/rice and veggies
    Late Snack: Sometimes I dont need this because I feel full....But add in something small like Jell-O :)
  • Julesfame
    Julesfame Posts: 32 Member
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    I agree with changing what you eat. All the carbs take too many calories away from my totals. So I tend to eat more protein and veggies. It works. Although I was never a huge pasta fan, but pizza was a nice guilty pleasure . . . . no more, though.:smile:
  • kmunis
    kmunis Posts: 48 Member
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    Like many of the above posters said - add veggies. It will help fill you up without adding a lot of calories.

    Here's a couple of other silly tricks that work for me and might help:

    1. Serve yourself from the kitchen counter and not the kitchen table. If there's still a bowl of mashed potatoes on the table when you're finished your plate, you're going to be tempted to get yourself a second helping. If you're really tempted, put any leftovers away before you even start eating.

    2. Eat slowly. Drink a sip of water between every few bites. Have a conversation during your meal. It takes time for the stomache to send the "I'm full" message to your brain - give it time to get there.

    3. Have small healthy snacks during the day. It was keep you from being ravenous at meal times.
  • ShellyMacchi
    ShellyMacchi Posts: 975 Member
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    i treat things like pasta and cheese almost more like condiments now (it's the first bite that tastes the best anyway *S*
    i bulk up on the things like vegetables, whole grains etc etc.

    treats are just that.... a 'treat' a lil thing to reward me if i want... but in fact i virtually never have them anymore. i found that by eliminating the sweet things i used to crave, i now no longer crave them..my body does not miss them at all (all those sweet, creamy, salty snacks that is *S*).

    i found, by doing this, i have been able to identify the things that i honestly do crave most... and that's pasta and cheese. (together *L*)
    so i just plan for it... and indulge it .. guiltlessly *S*

    i find now i only have it ocassionally (instead of several times a week as i once did, and in huge portions then).. i now am perfectly fine with it in a smaller portion.
    Primarily i handle this treat by only having it when i go out to a restaurant now... and then cause i KNOW the sodium will be way too high for me i automatically only eat 1/2 of the serving i get, taking the rest home for another day or for hubby *L*.
    if i slipped and ate the whole serving now i KNOW i would feel awful.. not from guilt *L*... but from feeling physically sick.. my system can no longer handle that much fat/carbs at once anymore.

    i never thought i would see the day... and i did not even risk doing that first couple of months i was trying to eat 'clean'... but it paid off. Now my body rebels when i try to eat the way i once did.. now my body is trained to expect high quality, healthy veg & fruits with no salt.

    if anyone had told me a year ago i would reach this point in 2011 i would have laughed my head off at the notion.
    *S*

    good luck!
  • Painten
    Painten Posts: 499 Member
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    It does get easier the longer you do it. I found at first even swapping for healthier stuff no amount of veggies ever made me feel as satisfied as a plate of pasta or even keep me feelign fuller for longer. I however do have the smaller amount of pasta, rice or potatoes and extra veggies on the side. Now though i eat a previous sized portion of food and i'm fit to burst. I just can't do it. I really reccomend spreading your food out, eat all the way up to your callorie allowance every day. Have your 3 meals and save some calories for snacks, take a not of when your the most hungry between meals and save a good amount of calories for that time of the day.
  • MakingAChoice
    MakingAChoice Posts: 481 Member
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    I'm still having challenges accepting what a real serving of pasta, ice cream, and chips, etc. is. What helps you to stick to smaller servings and still feel satisfied?

    To start with I do no eat pasta often and when I do it is whole wheat pasta. I do not eat ice cream chips or anything else in the 'crap' category. Those product will sabotage your goals of being healthy/fit and/or losing weight. Refined sugars and white flour make you crave more carbs making you 'feel' hungry'. It is MUCH easier to maintain proper portion control with the right foods such as whole grains, lean protein, good fats, and fruits/veggies.
  • sgeorgia
    sgeorgia Posts: 66 Member
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    for me there is no way i could stick with a plan unless i ate a lot! I now choose foods that are low calorie so that i can eat more. I need to feel full or i know i will buckle.
    I eat lots of brocolli, scallops, chicken...really the key has been to go easy on starches and dinner is usually a big piee of chicken with heaps of broccoli and then i have 2 cups of strawberries for dessert.
    good luck and think low calorie and small size!
  • Barelmy
    Barelmy Posts: 590 Member
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    Bulking up meals with other things. Ie, having a cup of steamed broccoli with 50g (dryweight) of pasta.

    I also have snacks rather than proper meals, so the portions seem fine for that. That really depends on schedules, though.

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