Portions: NEED HELP

I'm really trying to find a way to control my portions.  I think I'm exercising fine and eating the right foods but the portions must be part of my problem.  Any tricks and advice people can offer?  Especially at restaurants? 

I've started a 6 month challenge here so feel free to join and offer support  

 

http://caloriecount.about.com/spring-fall-cha llenge-open-update-ft134608

and group:  http://caloriecount.about.com/wonderful-delic ous-delectable- foods-g1158

 

I really need to tackle portion control I think. 

A scale isn't a bad place to start....   You can't take a scale into a restaurant (they'd be telephoning for a strait-jacket if you did) but you can teach yourself to 'eye-ball' portions with practice.   Next time you're cooking supper, take what you think is a 6oz portion (200-ish calories) of cooked pasta  and weigh it... see how close you get.   Put it on the plate and see how big an area it covers.  If you do that fairly frequently with a variety of different foods you'll get a much better idea of portion-sizes.  Then when you go to a restaurant you'll be able to judge whether what's on the plate is similar to your normal size serving or far too big.

Another tip.... visual cues are always handy.  A 'serving' of meat or fish should be about the size of a deck of cards or the palm of your hand.  A serving of carbohydrates should be about the size of a tennis ball.  A reasonable size for a baked potato is the size of a computer mouse.   Vegtables and salads (provided they're unbuttered and without dressing) you don't have to restrict.... fill most of the plate with them.

Hope something there helps.

Use weighing scales at home, I was AMAZED! by how much "a bowl of cereal" my version was bigger than "a portion of cereal" box version!!

I was free-pouring too much, by almost 200%.

Restaurants, I agree... get familiar with what a portion looks like, and also what I did a while back (this was losing my babyweight, not my recent rebound lol!) is agree with myself to leave the restaurant hungry, but have a big salad back home?

Don't be scared to ask for dressings and sauces on the side, and then use them sparingly, and also I know this is SO 1940's, but get used to leaving the table wanting a bit more food. Not hungry, just not quite stuffed to the gunnels!

i agree with gi-jane on everything... i have the same problem and having a scale really, really helps... and it really doesn't take that much time. i just put the meat or cheese or whatever it is in a little tupperware (usually weighs one oz, then subtract that from the total).

there is a tool somewhere on the internet and i can't stinkin find it right now, but it shows you in real-size how big of portions for different kinds of food are using your hand. also, with eating out, i think it's generally safe to just eat half of the meal... unless of course you are at a place that specifically has low-cal meals and all the info is listed. also stay away from drinks of course, and the bread, chips, etc that come before the meal.

great ideas; i think I need to at restaurants learn not to clear my plate.  I've always had that problem...eating everything that I'm served.

My trick for eating out is I either have a salad before I go to the restaurant with my low-cal dressing at home, or eat one there without dressing. (If you absolutely need something on it, try squeezing some lemon juice [or any other juice] on it) Then, when I order, if my meal comes with sides, I always get veggies. Then when the meal comes, I try to eat all the veggies, then move on to the main dish. (usually I am so full by that time, I rarely eat over half of the main dish)

As a general rule, I never eat anything bigger than my fist (for things served out via spoon, like rice) and nothing bigger than my flat hand for protein in a single sitting...

It's worked for me.

Original Post by edspillane:

great ideas; i think I need to at restaurants learn not to clear my plate.  I've always had that problem...eating everything that I'm served.

If you're in the U.S. you have my sympathy.  Restaurants there seem to operate on the mentality that if the diner can still walk at the end of the meal, they haven't had enough to eat.    Can you ask for a child's portion, maybe?  Share with a friend?  Transfer what you don't want into the doggy bag but leave it behind rather than take home congealed leftovers... (brrr)?

 

Original Post by gi-jane:

Original Post by edspillane:

great ideas; i think I need to at restaurants learn not to clear my plate.  I've always had that problem...eating everything that I'm served.

If you're in the U.S. you have my sympathy.  Restaurants there seem to operate on the mentality that if the diner can still walk at the end of the meal, they haven't had enough to eat.    Can you ask for a child's portion, maybe?  Share with a friend?  Transfer what you don't want into the doggy bag but leave it behind rather than take home congealed leftovers... (brrr)?

 

Yes, here, when eating out, if you don't feel extremely fatigued and full, you haven't eaten.

Anyhow, other than what's already been suggested, sometimes I bring what's left on the doggy bag and give it to another member of my family. For example, when out for pizza, whatever's left usually goes home with me and I often give it to my sister because she's as much of a pizza freak as I am. I mean, I may bring it home and have it later in the day if the leftovers are from lunch, but if it's late and my calories are done for the day, I just give it to someone else.

Sharing with a friend is ideal, but sometimes you're eating alone, or eating with someone much bigger who can handle more calories, or just eating with someone that doesn't eat what you do. If that's the case, split it in half anyway and share it with someone who isn't necessarily there at the moment, like a roommate or a sibling or whoever you live with. Hey, you can give it to a homeless person or a stray dog.

Many of us can't handle the idea of wasted food, so we clear the plate. But you can always come up with ways to make that food not really be wasted.

Scales are definitely a good idea but I also found another great way that works for me--I bought smaller plates.  Instead of the giant dinner plates we used to use at my house we now have a smaller Correlle plate.  It's full with very little food on it and somehow seems like more than it is (I think it almost tricks your mind into thinking you have more than you do).  Restaurants tend to bring food on giant platters and I have asked for a smaller plate in several places and transferred enough to fill the plate and tossed the rest.  It REALLY works.

Another idea for eating out is to share a meal.  Many people don't realize you can do it, but 2 people can order together and they will split it in the kitchen for you.  It doesn't work if I'm going with someone that wants their whole meal but about 80% of the time I have someone to split with.

Thanks for the advice---I definitely need to split meals and the eating the salad idea I also have done before.  It's not going to kill me to leave half the entree there on the plate.  Psychologically it's hard but I need to do it.  Thanks again for the advice.

I usually split a dinner with my son.  Funy enough neither of us ever finish!

I`ve seen this advice somewhere else on the forums: ask for a doggie bag and package 1/2 or 2/3 of your meal before you even start eating. That way you are sure not to overindulge.

Original Post by ily51:

package 1/2 or 2/3 of your meal before you even start eating.

Does it never strike anyone in the US catering trade that it would be better all round  to just serve smaller 'normal-size' portions rather than enough to feed two?  Really hungry customers could order a starter, a dessert and empty the bread-basket.   Less food + less fuel used to cook it + less thrown away + quicker customer turnaround = cheaper prices on the menu.   Plus they'd have customers that can keep coming back well into their old age rather than ending up on defibrilators before they turn 40.    Strange...

I just left half the pasta and appetizer on the plate.  It is amazing the size of the portions people serve!

Original Post by gi-jane:

Original Post by ily51:

package 1/2 or 2/3 of your meal before you even start eating.

Does it never strike anyone in the US catering trade that it would be better all round  to just serve smaller 'normal-size' portions rather than enough to feed two?  Really hungry customers could order a starter, a dessert and empty the bread-basket.   Less food + less fuel used to cook it + less thrown away + quicker customer turnaround = cheaper prices on the menu.   Plus they'd have customers that can keep coming back well into their old age rather than ending up on defibrilators before they turn 40.    Strange...

Geez, I wish! I think it would definitely make things easier and healthier for everyone. Who came up with putting 2.5 servings or so on a plate for one person?

I only know what I`ve heard about US restaurant serving sizes, with calorie counts through the roof and whatnot. I have a hard time visualizing it though, I mean I know what a pound of pasta and a pound of cheese look like, but I can`t fathom the specific image of it spread out on a plate (or rather, a platter). I am also unable to bring my head around to getting a 1.5 or 2 liter soda with a fast food menu. That`s the family sized plastic bottle over here!

I very seldom eat out, and the only trouble with portions over here is that for a main course you will most likely get 4+ servings of meat along with 1-2 servings of veggies.

Anyway, I`m guessing the whole portion size thing started out decent, until some restaurant had the brilliant idea to get the edge over its competitors by increasing quantity rather than quality (always easier). Of course the others had to match or top that, and the story quickly snowballed until it got to where it is now.

Honestly, I think the best idea for an American chain restaurant business right now would be one that serves regular sized meals. With proper advertising, I`m betting it`d be a huge hit.

Found this on another forum:

"For example, you can go to Primi Piatti and get a plate of pasta that could feed three people but you’re not allowed to share at certain times of the day. And if you want a “half a serving” they still make you pay 85% of the price."

If it`s true that restaurants do this, then that is downright nasty, rude, dumb, and plenty of other things which I`m too much of a lady to write down.

 

OK i have found that it is easy for me to do portion control like this, and it works wherever you are. EAT HALF! Put w/e you normally would put on your plate and then remove half or a little more. This way you are eating a lesser portion and you can save the rest and have another meal out of it. This is particularly true when you're at a restaraunt because the portions when you go out are typically REALLY large! try that and let me know what u think!

eating half makes so much sense..and it's a consistent rule that's easy to follow.

well i am so glad u like the idea. The only think i have to say is this rule only applies if u eat like the rest of america (with bigger proportions). I don't reccommend this if u are already eating pretty good sized proportions. But typically if u have any questions about how much is correct, I just stick with whatever the package says is a serving. But if you are out at a restaraunt, unless its a super fancy one, where they only put a couple peices of w/e u order on the plate, then half is about right! I hope that helps you in your everyday life!!