Eat Less Eat Often!
jgarciavalenz
Posts: 4 Member
Hello All,
Recently started my journey to a healthier lifestyle, the most important thing for me is to feel good and look better! Hence my search for the right way to stay fit and lean began!
3 things I can comment on:
1. We over order and over eat. Next time you go eat at a restaurant, ask the waiter to put half of your meal to go (place under seat when received) and bring you the other half to dine in. Eat the half, wait 20 mins. That’s how long it takes your stomach to signal your brain that you’re full. If you’re still hungry after this, eat the rest of your meal but you’ll have to pull it from under your seat and serve yourself again
2. Peace Sign Food Portions: draw an imaginary peace sign on your plate, fill each section as follows: protein: 1 handful grains: 2 handfuls veggies/fruit: 2 handfuls
3. Plenty of water and excercise at least 45 mins a day.
Hope everyone has a great day, I’m open to any feedback or pointers! Let’s shed that weight baby!
Recently started my journey to a healthier lifestyle, the most important thing for me is to feel good and look better! Hence my search for the right way to stay fit and lean began!
3 things I can comment on:
1. We over order and over eat. Next time you go eat at a restaurant, ask the waiter to put half of your meal to go (place under seat when received) and bring you the other half to dine in. Eat the half, wait 20 mins. That’s how long it takes your stomach to signal your brain that you’re full. If you’re still hungry after this, eat the rest of your meal but you’ll have to pull it from under your seat and serve yourself again
2. Peace Sign Food Portions: draw an imaginary peace sign on your plate, fill each section as follows: protein: 1 handful grains: 2 handfuls veggies/fruit: 2 handfuls
3. Plenty of water and excercise at least 45 mins a day.
Hope everyone has a great day, I’m open to any feedback or pointers! Let’s shed that weight baby!
3
Replies
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Luckily, calorie counting makes all this redundant.12
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I don't spend 20 minutes at the restaurant after eating. Waiters love my family. I guess that's good for the other half?3
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They say eat less and eat often, every 2 hours! So if you try that method it may help you reduce excessive caloric intake14
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I do IF which already reduces my calorie intake without all of your steps.2
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A calorie deficit is required for weight loss. How people choose to get there, how much they exercise, when they eat, how they handle restaurant food, etc. should all be personal preference and what works best for the person. Eating every two hours doesn't work that well for me. If it works well for you, that's great! Keep it up, but don't try to dictate how others approach this. Generally speaking, "they" -- whomever "they" may be -- say a lot of things that may or may not be necessary. Hearsay, rumor, and speculation is no way to plan a diet, imo.11
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jgarciavalenz wrote: »They say eat less and eat often, every 2 hours! So if you try that method it may help you reduce excessive caloric intake
For some it does. I do better with three regular meals plus dessert (not to mention my job doesn't give me the chance to eat every two hours).1 -
I live in the UK and I can't imagine asking for half my meal to go (before I have even seen the size of the meal) and placing it under my seat. I think I would get some strange looks
The dividing up the plate thing has been around for a while and people certainly can make that work for them.
If this is all working for you and helping you reduce your calorie intake then that is great.6 -
I will ask for half the meal in a to-go box at restaurants where I know the portions are gigantic, like Cheesecake Factory (they have 2,000 calorie salads!) and at Chinese restaurants (who can eat six cups of fried rice in one sitting anyways?) Often, I will have to box up my own food, since many restaurants will not do this for you.
Thankfully since calorie counts are required to be listed on most chain restaurant menus now, I can order appropriately for my needs.1 -
If I put half the food in a box under my seat that means it is on the floor. In a restaurant. I shudder to even think about eating it after that. Guess that could mean I am eating less calories though.4
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jgarciavalenz wrote: »They say eat less and eat often, every 2 hours! So if you try that method it may help you reduce excessive caloric intake
Who's "they"?
May work for some, doesn't work for others. Small, frequent meals leave me constantly hungry and cranky. I'd much rather eat two large meals per day, with a small snack or two in between to hold me over.5 -
I seriously overate because eating small in-between snacks are supposed to stoke your metabolism. Nope, I got fat instead and stayed that way until I started using MFP correctly.7
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I always put half my meal from a restaurant in a to go box. It used to be right away, but after a couple of years I got better at waiting till the end (and not eating all of it). It was a suggestion I got on here years ago, and is great. I don’t do anything else except count calories.1
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“They” is the Human Performance Institue. Google them
What works for me is entirely different than what may work for you, genetics is the biggest factor of them all.
Just some tips I generalized for the community! More power to everyone and their opinion.
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jgarciavalenz wrote: »“They” is the Human Performance Institue. Google them
What works for me is entirely different than what may work for you, genetics is the biggest factor of them all.
Just some tips I generalized for the community! More power to everyone and their opinion.
Wasn't your other thread deleted because you were soliciting for this organization?5 -
jgarciavalenz wrote: »“They” is the Human Performance Institue. Google them
What works for me is entirely different than what may work for you, genetics is the biggest factor of them all.
Just some tips I generalized for the community! More power to everyone and their opinion.
But why generalize for the community? There are some very good posts here and some really knowledgeable people already trying to give nuanced advice. Not everyone can work out 45 minutes a day. Not every restaurant overserves huge portion sizes. Why not post the resources you're using up front and let people see where they come from/what kind of additional context is available?
I'd hate for anyone to read this post and give up before they start because these tips don't work for them. I statements are great. Imperative voice not so much.5 -
If I put half the food in a box under my seat that means it is on the floor. In a restaurant. I shudder to even think about eating it after that. Guess that could mean I am eating less calories though.
I thought the same thing... either that or you're sitting on your food, and little styrofoam containers probably wouldn't hold up very well to butts 😆1 -
L1zardQueen wrote: »I seriously overate because eating small in-between snacks are supposed to stoke your metabolism. Nope, I got fat instead and stayed that way until I started using MFP correctly.
I agree. A bunch of small meals/snacks only worked to make me pile on unwanted pounds
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American portions in restaurants are much bigger than in the UK. I only ever need to order a starter and dessert when in the USA.
My best friend is a grazer and that works well for him, I couldn't eat like that, I have two good size meals which fill me up, possibly with fruit in between.1 -
Thanks... I love your post. I don't calorie count.. I also use rules like yours and I've lost all my weight. I eat have literally eaten my way thin. I did it by changing the rules of how I eat. I eat often ..all day..but the right things.
I don't focus or think of "deficits" "counting". and "restrictions".... food is good and so is life.2 -
It took me an embarrassingly long time to figure out that small meals throughout the day don't work for me. Logically, it makes sense...if you're eating 5-7 times per day, how can you be hungry or have cravings? For me, the problem was the little meals/snacks didn't fill me up at all, and I was pretty much never satisfied. I'd be ravenous 30 minutes after eating and was essentially just hungry all day long. OTOH, if I eat a meal of 600-700 calories, I'm completely satisfied and don't get hungry until it's time for my next meal.3
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I'd never feel like I had eaten more than a snack if I split my daily calories into 6 meals. Talk about grumpy! I eat ~ half my calories for dinner, on average, and that works fine for me.2
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