Portion Control

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pamsdish
pamsdish Posts: 30 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Hi I joined yesterday and am already struggling.:blushing:

The problems I have is first I need to use all the high calorie items up . Why did I bake that fruit cake last weekend ? :frown:

Then get into not cooking so much for my husband and myself. My husband also needs to lose weight so when we serve our meal he puts what he wants then piles the rest on my plate.:grumble:

So portion control, what is a portion ,I don`t want to weigh everything ,but how else to do it. :huh:

I am trying to have nothing after 7pm and find that helps as we have our main meal at 5,45 pm and dessert by 7pm ,

Then I have the occasional glass of wine or spirit for a nightcap10576467.png
Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Calorie Counter

Replies

  • ConnieSG
    ConnieSG Posts: 376
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    Please feel free to add me!!
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
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    I'm not a food weigher either, so I just ball park things. I consider a portion to be about the size of my hand/fist for a main course, and about half that for a side. So I'll have a chicken breast that is about the size of my palm, then a side of corn about half that size.

    It's not exact by any stretch of the imagination, but it's consistent and has worked reasonably well for me.

    Sticking to those portion sizes is a whole 'nother thing, lol.
  • msmayor
    msmayor Posts: 362 Member
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    here's my story - I purchased this rinky dinky scale at the supermarket for $5 with a plastic scal and a bowl on top - I leave it on the counter to make it easy but when the bowl is dirty or in the dishwer I don't weigh and I know I do not have the eye for proper portions.... I finally purchased the biggest loser digitial scale for $20 at Bed Bath & Beyond with a 20% off coupon and it so easy I can weigh in the plate I'm going to use - any way yesterday I was making my lunch for work and I had 2 grilled chicken legs that I wanted to take the meat off the bone and put into a pita - 4oz is normal portion size - the meat with out the bone was 5.8oz I would have never guessed so I took some of the meat out until it was 4oz ......and swore I must ALWAYS use the scale because my eyes don't know portion control.....
  • greatginew
    greatginew Posts: 39
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    I've found the ideal way for me to control my portions is to only eat half of whatever it is on my plate. I pull a tupperware container out & put 1/2 into it right away so it is out of site (out of mind). I also drink a glass of water prior to my meal in hopes of it helping "fill me up".

    Hope this helps! Good Luck
  • inotnew
    inotnew Posts: 218 Member
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    Eating right when those around you don't is very tough. Try using a smaller (desert) plate, or leave some on your plate. Eat very slow, putting your fork down after every bite. Drink lots of water. Buy foods that are healthier, insead of standard pasta, buy whole wheat. If it is the only thing in the house, everyone will have to eat it, and it will fill you up with smaller portions. Fill the frig with veggies for snacks. I know it is hard. Find the place inside you that motivates you to make that change. Good Luck.
  • AdAstra47
    AdAstra47 Posts: 823 Member
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    As far as the using up of high-cal items: when I made my lifestyle changes, I went through all my cupboards and fridge and freezer and got rid of *everything* that didn't fit with my plan anymore. I hate being wasteful, so I brought it all to share with my friends at work or donated the canned goods to my church. But I got it out of the house right away, to start with. I'd recommend doing that.

    For portion control, there are a couple of websites out there that will help you with guidelines... I don't worry about it too much, myself, but there are some sites that relate portion sizes to your body parts. For example, an ounce of cheese is about the size of your thumb, and four ounces of meat is about the size of the palm of your hand... I don't know if that's exactly right, but you get the idea. Look it up and learn that, and you should be able to guesstimate portions much easier.
  • Painten
    Painten Posts: 499 Member
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    I find i NEED to weigh anything that isn't already portioned out. Even breakfast cereal i never even realised that the reccomended portion size was under half what i was using and even now i find that if i don't weigh it at least once a week then the portion size increases.

    My OH is like that with food he'll have a smaller portion and chuck the rest on my plate. I swapped plates and when told him why. He doesn't do it now.

    Mix some of your high calorie stuff with lower calorie stuff to eek it out, freeze some too. The price of food these days i can totally understand not wanting to throw it out.
  • MrC138
    MrC138 Posts: 3 Member
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    In my experience, weighing really is the easiest and quickest way to go with the least amount of guesswork. Digital kitchen scales are usually under $20. Just throw a small plate or bowl on it, level it out, and weigh your ingredients - no fuss, no mess. I was resistant to it, but really - it's simple and quick.

    There are other ways - a lot of books say a serving of meat is the size of your fist for example, but there's so much variation there it's easy to mess up.

    After a few weeks you'll train yourself to know what portions look like and won't need to weigh things as often.
  • pamsdish
    pamsdish Posts: 30 Member
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    Just quickly read all your suggestions thank you all ,

    Things I can see I must do straight off ,glass of water with my meal,I KNOW I don`t drink any where near enough,

    Eat slowly I can get to the table after O.H. and finish before him, I hate cold food and think thats why I fast eat before it gets cold.

    And the fist seems a good rule of thumb.

    Let you know how I go

    10576467.png
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  • jbootman
    jbootman Posts: 145 Member
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    you may not WANT to weigh everything, but I sooo recommend it,

    I got myself a fancy *kitten* glass top kitchen scale, it measures oz and gms, it zeros out, it also weighs liquids,

    now this is the deal, those of us who need portion control education NEED to measure, measure and then measure

    we need to recalibrate our mind, our eyes, our mouths to what a portion is,

    example, last year I would have an apple for lunch, one apple right, count as one apple, then I got my scale and weighed my apple one day and it weighed what was really 2 apples on the calorie data bank,

    all those extra calories!!!! if I had planned for it, well then fine, but this was not good news,

    now I weigh EVERY mouthful of new food, I can estimate my daily foods, like the almond milk I put in my frother for my coffee, my previously measured portion goes up to a certain unmarked area of the vessel,

    it gets easier,

    the scale is great for measuring ingredients for a new recipe too,

    I use gms now, its more accurate to my mind, 100gms of blueberries, 135 gms or blueberries, none of that 1/2 cup stuff,

    but them I am a scientist and it all seems so much more sense,

    calories in calories out calories lost,

    another note, unlike you I almost never eat hot food, in fact I do not really cook, the less I am in the kitchen the easier it is for me to lose weight,

    when I have gotten closer to my goal I will start really cooking but for now my portion education is extremely important

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