Portion Control and Moderation
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Only allow yourself to eat one course when eating out if you cant moderate.. I always just get a main course and eat it all lol, I'll get a tea or coffee if ppl get dessert0
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I totally get the problem with portion control. Although I have changed what I eat and am making better choices as far as what I eat, I have trouble limiting certain foods to one portion. Like today I came home starving and ate a whole bag of black bean chips (5 servings in a bag) and half a container of hummus. It was just so yummy I couldn't stop myself. Well I am paying for it now, I got like a weeks worth of fiber in one sitting. I hope I will learn my lesson and maybe record one portion in my diary before sitting down to a whole meal of bean filled foods0
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That's what I have to do: log it first, in a specific quantity, and then serve myself only that quantity. The rest of it gets put up, so there's no such thing as seconds. I wouldn't dare sit down with the whole container and hope for the best. If I did that, the decision-making process would become, "Hmm, am I enjoying this?" instead of, "Have I finished the amount I should eat just now? Is it time to move on to something besides eating?"0
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robingmurphy wrote: »Ugh, my willpower is awful though. Is there some way I can build it up?
Stop making excuses for eating more than you should.
You just did it then.
"I'll just have some bread"
"I'll just have one more then I'll be good tomorrow"
"It's only one donut"
"It's not my fault, it's my willpower"
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I had similar problem when I started. I just couldnt stop when something was good. Logging food definitely helps, but what I found most helpful was weighing my food when preparing it and making just enough for 1 meal or 2 meals. I would then put enough for 1 meal on my plate and put rest of it away. Biggest mistake is being able to refill your Plate when you do not need it. Once you learn how to do that at home you will be able to discipline your self outside at the restaurant as well
if you need more tips or help feel free to Message me! 0 -
Multipacks have smaller portions in them than family sized share bags
Buy those instead
Then you have to actually open a new bag to eat over servings allowance
Weigh stuff in the kitchen and put it on a plate then eat in another room so if you want more you have to go get it and weigh it out again
Log everything before eating
Stop being a victim in your own life...the only thing to blame for overeating is you ..it's not uncontrollable emotions, seasons, friends, social life..it's you ...quit the excuses...move more to eat more and stop eating when you run out of calories.
Hunger is an emotion for some people it seems
Oh and merry Christmas
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It's helped me to really pay attention to how my body feels. It doesn't feel good to be hungry, but it sure doesn't feel good to be stuffed either. I feel best when I'm in the middle territory of not hungry anymore but nowhere near stuffed. So when I start getting full/satisfied I start asking myself if another bite or two is going to throw me into uncomfortable territory. Usually when I do that I can put the fork down and push the plate away. I also find that eating lower (not low) carb helps greatly in controlling my appetite.0
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Today I had a tiny, tiny portion of salad that I thought would do nothing for me. Then I also had a 29g slice of Christmas loaf, and now I am feeling very full. Just a tiny salad and one piece of bread can indeed fill me up some. We'll continue learning the right portions for us throughout this journey we're on, I think.0
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Multipacks have smaller portions in them than family sized share bags
Buy those instead
Then you have to actually open a new bag to eat over servings allowance
Weigh stuff in the kitchen and put it on a plate then eat in another room so if you want more you have to go get it and weigh it out again
Log everything before eating
Stop being a victim in your own life...the only thing to blame for overeating is you ..it's not uncontrollable emotions, seasons, friends, social life..it's you ...quit the excuses...move more to eat more and stop eating when you run out of calories.
Hunger is an emotion for some people it seems
Oh and merry Christmas
Maybe, but for most people it's just hunger. Getting macro ratios together really helps a lot of people.0 -
Great advice - thank you! I will try it.0
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Multipacks have smaller portions in them than family sized share bags
Buy those instead
Then you have to actually open a new bag to eat over servings allowance
Weigh stuff in the kitchen and put it on a plate then eat in another room so if you want more you have to go get it and weigh it out again
Log everything before eating
Stop being a victim in your own life...the only thing to blame for overeating is you ..it's not uncontrollable emotions, seasons, friends, social life..it's you ...quit the excuses...move more to eat more and stop eating when you run out of calories.
Hunger is an emotion for some people it seems
Oh and merry Christmas
Maybe, but for most people it's just hunger. Getting macro ratios together really helps a lot of people.
Yup, I'm only hungry right before meals now that I've increased my protein in relationship to carbs. (I'm 40:30:30)0 -
robingmurphy wrote: »Ugh, my willpower is awful though. Is there some way I can build it up?
Cognitive behavioral techniques I learned when I drank too much also help me with food, mostly Addictive Voice Recognition Technique - recognizing that voice trying to lead me astray for what it is helps me ignore it.0 -
The first 3 weeks I was doing myfitnesspal, I ate only frozen prepackaged meals (like leancuisine or healthychoice) so I would get used to the portion size I should be eating, and wouldn't go over my calorie goal. After about three weeks of what I originally thought were small meals, once I started adding normal foods back into my diet, I would be hungry enough for only a lean cuisine sized portion.0
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kshama2001 wrote: »robingmurphy wrote: »Ugh, my willpower is awful though. Is there some way I can build it up?
Cognitive behavioral techniques I learned when I drank too much also help me with food, mostly Addictive Voice Recognition Technique - recognizing that voice trying to lead me astray for what it is helps me ignore it.
@kshama2001 You haven't used CBT with sweet treats (IIRC?)?0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »robingmurphy wrote: »Ugh, my willpower is awful though. Is there some way I can build it up?
Cognitive behavioral techniques I learned when I drank too much also help me with food, mostly Addictive Voice Recognition Technique - recognizing that voice trying to lead me astray for what it is helps me ignore it.
@kshama2001 You haven't used CBT with sweet treats (IIRC?)?
Sure, used it last week a lot! This is not to say I didn't have treats - I did, but I logged them all and did not have as many as I would have.
I also had a major, roaring craving for the first time in a really long time, recognized the Addictive Voice for what it was, and didn't give in.0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »robingmurphy wrote: »Ugh, my willpower is awful though. Is there some way I can build it up?
Cognitive behavioral techniques I learned when I drank too much also help me with food, mostly Addictive Voice Recognition Technique - recognizing that voice trying to lead me astray for what it is helps me ignore it.
@kshama2001 You haven't used CBT with sweet treats (IIRC?)?
Sure, used it last week a lot! This is not to say I didn't have treats - I did, but I logged them all and did not have as many as I would have.
I also had a major, roaring craving for the first time in a really long time, recognized the Addictive Voice for what it was, and didn't give in.
@kshama2001 Excellent, I think!
What was the craving for? Could you have made room for a moderate amount?0 -
I've come back and re-read this thread a few times because although doing better, I still struggle with this. I've come to see what you mean when you say it's just about excuses. Any time my brain is coming up with some reason (beyond perhaps actual physical hunger) why I should eat a bigger portion than planned, it's just an excuse. I have to stop accepting excuses. Lately since using MFP, for example, my brain tries to come up with excuses like, "Oh, you should go ahead and eat a little bit more ... you can just eat less later. It's all calories-in-calories-out, so it doesn't really matter if you eat them now, or then .... " Although that's technically correct (and may work for some), for me this is a disastrous excuse that sets me up for failure. I overeat at one meal, then feel deprived when I have fewer calories later for dinner. And then I'm more likely to eat over my calorie goal. I'm trying to train myself to not overeat, even if I can come up for some rationale why I can "make the calories work" later.0
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robingmurphy wrote: »I am terrible at managing my portions and exercising moderation. When I've lost weight in the past, it's been because I change my diet so I'm eating a lot of very low calorie foods (like veggies), but my portions are still huge, and I eat until I'm overfull. How can I learn to eat appropriate portions? My problem is that it's hard for me to stop eating when comfortably full. I keep picking at leftover food or will go wander into the kitchen for a few more bites, and if I'm at a restaurant I eat every thing on my plate, and will continue snacking on leftover appetizers or bread until we go. How do I stop when I've had just enough?
Your diet is awesome! I just checked out your diary.
I have a suggestion, you don't eat a lot of fruit, and your diet is low in sugar, but try this for three days:
For three days, instead of tracking sodium, track sugar. Omit added sugar and omit fruit from your diet, and keep your sugar intake to 15g or less.
This is supposed to "reset" the hormones of appetite, leptin/ghrelin, and it only takes 3 days. Fructose in particular stimulates appetite.0 -
I measure out portions and then put the leftovers away and have a plan for them (for example, I might put them into lunch containers, so am eating my lunch if I eat them). Really, I've found if I trust to the portion I'm fine -- I never want more. I also do eat large servings of vegetables to fill out my plate, but I also have reasonable servings of the meat and starch. I just don't allow myself to consider getting more or having seconds as an option. Doing this it was pretty easy to change my understanding of the things I had distorted ideas about.
Restaurants can be harder, but I decide before I start eating what a proper serving is and then eat that amount. If possible I will plan to take home the extra.0 -
robingmurphy wrote: »I've come back and re-read this thread a few times because although doing better, I still struggle with this. I've come to see what you mean when you say it's just about excuses. Any time my brain is coming up with some reason (beyond perhaps actual physical hunger) why I should eat a bigger portion than planned, it's just an excuse. I have to stop accepting excuses. Lately since using MFP, for example, my brain tries to come up with excuses like, "Oh, you should go ahead and eat a little bit more ... you can just eat less later. It's all calories-in-calories-out, so it doesn't really matter if you eat them now, or then .... " Although that's technically correct (and may work for some), for me this is a disastrous excuse that sets me up for failure. I overeat at one meal, then feel deprived when I have fewer calories later for dinner. And then I'm more likely to eat over my calorie goal. I'm trying to train myself to not overeat, even if I can come up for some rationale why I can "make the calories work" later.
It's not all about bootstraps and self-control, for sure. See my comment above.
Also, looking again at your diary, your carbs are pretty high. I looked at your exercise diary for today, is it usual for you to have high carbs even when you don't exercise a lot? I'd also suggest you drop your carbs down. It doesn't feel comfortable to drop carbs for the first few days, but your body will adjust after that. If you drop carbs, this means protein and fat will increase....use lentils/beans instead of brown rice. Use chia/flax for fiber. The increased fat intake won't hinder bodyfat loss.0 -
Eat lots of veggies like broccoli, cauliflower. The calories are negligible and it actually still filling. Drink water before eating.0
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Good topic. The only thing I've found that works is telling myself over and over "No food tastes as good as weight loss feels!" Repeated ad nauseum.
Have had to retrain myself not to hoover up the leftover's on the kid's plate (we try really hard to not waste food as a family), and to take smaller portions to start with, and completely refrain from getting seconds.
Hope you find a system that works for you!0 -
Lovee_Dove7 wrote: »robingmurphy wrote: »I am terrible at managing my portions and exercising moderation. When I've lost weight in the past, it's been because I change my diet so I'm eating a lot of very low calorie foods (like veggies), but my portions are still huge, and I eat until I'm overfull. How can I learn to eat appropriate portions? My problem is that it's hard for me to stop eating when comfortably full. I keep picking at leftover food or will go wander into the kitchen for a few more bites, and if I'm at a restaurant I eat every thing on my plate, and will continue snacking on leftover appetizers or bread until we go. How do I stop when I've had just enough?
Your diet is awesome! I just checked out your diary.
I have a suggestion, you don't eat a lot of fruit, and your diet is low in sugar, but try this for three days:
For three days, instead of tracking sodium, track sugar. Omit added sugar and omit fruit from your diet, and keep your sugar intake to 15g or less.
This is supposed to "reset" the hormones of appetite, leptin/ghrelin, and it only takes 3 days. Fructose in particular stimulates appetite.
That is not how it works
In fact leptin is carb responsive eg increases with carb loading
Some do refeeds to restore levels of leptin after long term defecit ...weeks at maintenance0 -
Have you read the original thread question? She's not asking about carb loading. It's about appetite. That's the question I'm answering.Lovee_Dove7 wrote: »robingmurphy wrote: »I am terrible at managing my portions and exercising moderation. When I've lost weight in the past, it's been because I change my diet so I'm eating a lot of very low calorie foods (like veggies), but my portions are still huge, and I eat until I'm overfull. How can I learn to eat appropriate portions? My problem is that it's hard for me to stop eating when comfortably full. I keep picking at leftover food or will go wander into the kitchen for a few more bites, and if I'm at a restaurant I eat every thing on my plate, and will continue snacking on leftover appetizers or bread until we go. How do I stop when I've had just enough?
Your diet is awesome! I just checked out your diary.
I have a suggestion, you don't eat a lot of fruit, and your diet is low in sugar, but try this for three days:
For three days, instead of tracking sodium, track sugar. Omit added sugar and omit fruit from your diet, and keep your sugar intake to 15g or less.
This is supposed to "reset" the hormones of appetite, leptin/ghrelin, and it only takes 3 days. Fructose in particular stimulates appetite.
That is not how it works
In fact leptin is carb responsive eg increases with carb loading
Some do refeeds to restore levels of leptin after long term defecit ...weeks at maintenance
It worked for me.
You can manipulate carbs (or any of the macros) according to your own body's needs or personal goals.0 -
kshama2001 wrote: »kshama2001 wrote: »robingmurphy wrote: »Ugh, my willpower is awful though. Is there some way I can build it up?
Cognitive behavioral techniques I learned when I drank too much also help me with food, mostly Addictive Voice Recognition Technique - recognizing that voice trying to lead me astray for what it is helps me ignore it.
@kshama2001 You haven't used CBT with sweet treats (IIRC?)?
Sure, used it last week a lot! This is not to say I didn't have treats - I did, but I logged them all and did not have as many as I would have.
I also had a major, roaring craving for the first time in a really long time, recognized the Addictive Voice for what it was, and didn't give in.
@kshama2001 Excellent, I think!
What was the craving for? Could you have made room for a moderate amount?
Sorry, just seeing this now and do not remember what the craving was for. I'm sure I had the calories to make room for a moderate amount, but when it's the Addictive Voice wanting it, it's better to just not give in. "I can have a little" is true, but it can also be a Sabotaging Thought.
I have plenty of treats, but I have them when I'm in control.0
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