Thank you!  Finally, some awareness of the real problem.  It's taken me 3 years to learn how to eat less.  For instance, I went from eating big plates of pasta to eating only 1 cup cooked (2 oz dry.)  I did it by weighing the portion until I got used to it.  Now, I can't eat more pasta than that. 

Great article. My biggest problem is pushing myself away from the table - the tips provided are perfect starting points.

 I bought smaller plates a while back, and my family said: why do we need new plates? I didn't tell them the real reason, but started serving the food in the kitchen on these new plates. None of them has noticed that they actually eat smaller portions now. So it seems that they get enough like this. If anyone wants more, he or she must get up and fetch in from the kitchen now - works wonders if you're not really hungry anymore 

Obama must be cutting down on some public expenses there as well 

So much for all those years of "Not leaving the table to your plate is empty" brainmoulding, even if it was intended to make you eat your vegies....

That's what I've been doing: cutting calories by having smaller portions. I've lost 8 lbs in 3 weeks.

No all Obama has to do is quit smoking, so he can be healthy and not a hypocrite. 

Someone once told me that when you sigh during a meal, that is your body's way of telling you it is full. I have worked hard over the years to be conscious of when I sigh and that is when I push myself away from my plate.  I lost 40 pounds 4 years ago and have kept 35 of them off by doing this and everything everyone else mentioned too.

I've been eating off my kids plates again for months now, and it really does help! I think the reason a smaller plate works for me, is because it still looks full. Our "adult" plates are HUGE, so the proper servings of food looked like so sad. lol I had done this a couple years ago, and I lost a bunch of weight then too, but for some reason, I got complacent and switched back to the platters. And voila! back at square one.

excellent article. I have been living at a Bible school in Oaxaca Mexico. The servings are small at the comedor, very small. People are expected to fill their stomach with tortillas. Just avoiding the tortillas I lost 3 kg in less than 2 months. Still I can't say I was satisfied. But I realized that I wasn't starving either.

Portion size has always been a the problem. I have come to realized that one of the values that I got from my family was that is was wrong to deny yourself. My grandma's famly nearly starved to death in the blue winter of Montana, and when they came to California their was plenty of food.

They were always obese, had type 2 diabetes, but there was as much food as you could ever want. Huge servings, lots of starch, lots of meat...always dessert!

So I am convinced of the truth. Thank you for the very practice ways of changing my practice!

He's not trying to tackle smoking, he's trying to tackle obesity! One health problem at a time. To stop smoking would not help the obesity problem right now! I guess anything to say something negative about the President. He has already acknowledged his smoking is a problem, just like cutting calories and having smaller portions acknowledges that there is a weight problem. You cannot conquer the world in a day. It took a long time for everybody to mess these things up, it will take a long time to fix them. And who says he isn't working on the smoking thing? The article never mentioned that at all. At least he is doing something. Which is more than the whole lot of nothing done before.

in response to the President serving smaller portions. He should address the issue. Our economic problems are rooted in a belief that we should have all that we want. That it is wrong to discipline ourselves, that it is wrong to deny ourselves.

After many years of being overweight, I have finally received this message loud and clear and I'm finally maintaining my weight.  I feel that the reason we are all so overweight is three fold:  we eat out too much,  restaurants compete for our business by increasing the size of our portions, and we exercise less.  The result is extra pounds.  I lost 80 pounds by taking a really good look at what I was eating and tracking what I eat everyday.  I actually found out that there were three things that were making me gain and retain weight. 

1. Too much milk.  I was drinking a large glass of milk with every meal.  I reduced my intake to 8 oz instead of 16 oz at each meal.
2. Meat portions too large.  I reduced my meat portions serving from  4 ounces at a meal.  I was eating 8 ounces. 
3. Restaurant portions too large.  Restaurants are notorius for advertising the biggest and baddest burger, the largest steak, the best french fries, etc.  They are competing for our business, but they are not doing us any favors.  They are making us unhealthy and fat.  I eat healthy when I go out now.  Most restaurants have healthy choices and I ask the waitress to have the chef put half my dinner in a to-go box before it is served to me.  It's more than enough to eat and I don't miss it at all.    

So it's my feeling that Obama is has hit the nail on the head.  The reason we are fat is because we've been led to believe bigger portions are better.  I can remember feeling deprived when I first started reducing my intake, but now it feels so natural.  Your body adjusts very quickly.  In a week or two.  So I love the idea of just reducing the size of your plate.  

Have a great day everyone.

That's great that Obama is having the chef's change portion size, and probably cooking healthier meals.  But if the food doesn't taste good, how many of those people are going to leave the White House starving, and stop at a fast food place to get a quick meal?  Obviously that isn't going to help.

As for the smoking thing, I find it interesting that he wants to bring obesity and portion size to attention, but since this isn't something that he struggles with, I find it to be an easy thing for him to tackle.  Most americans that need to lose weight, know they need to lose weight.  Any person that needs to lose weight has to be in a certain mind-set to actually change their eating habits, exercise and stick to it.  Everybody knows it's hard to lose more than a few pounds, so it takes a huge commitment, and a lot of will-power.  It's easy for thin people to tell overweight people to just lose weight, they don't know how hard it is.  Just as a non-smoker can't know how hard it is to quit smoking.  They are all addictions, and they all have different battles.

I disagree with the idea that restaurants make us fat and unhealthy.  They do not chose our meals for us, and they do not shovel it in our mouths.  They also do not take us through the drive thru's.  It is a choice that we have all made, and we need to stop pointing fingers.  Like any business, restaurants are going to advertise, and sell, whatever makes them money.  We have to make the choice not to buy fast food at all, or very rarely.  We have to be the responsible ones, and choose the healthy meals over the meals loaded with fat.  It is up to each individual to take care of themselves.  If we aren't careful, the government will take that choice from us, and determine who gets to eat what and how much.  I know that seems like a stretch, but seriously, who would have thought that we would be dealing with the issues that we are now?  Both health wise and economically.

Just to clarify, so that people don't think that I am some skinny person spouting cr*p about weight loss, and knowing nothing about the struggles... I am overweight.  I have recently gotten into the mind-set that I was ready to lose weight.  I made the choice to eat healthier, smaller portions, no fast food at all and no carbonated beverages at all.  Oh, and for the first time ever, I am exercising 5 to 6 days a week.  I have lost 10 pounds and 14 inches in about 3 weeks.  I know that it won't be easy some days, but, as a single mom and widow, I am doing this to get healthy so that my kids don't lose another parent.  (no my husband didn't die because of a weight problem.  He had a bad heart, family history that we didn't know about)

I wish you all well, and hope that we can all get healthy...

I am a stress eater, so a smaller plate is not really helpful for me... but I do have to make a couple of comments here:

First... too much defense of Obama's smoking habit, because there is NO defense for smoking these days with all the various cessation programs and drugs.  FYI: Obama's very picky eating habits are a bad example. Also note that smoking suppresses Obama's appetite and is extraordinarily unhealthy for him and those who surround him. Yes, he is very hypocritical when he speaks of healthy living styles as preventative health care.

Second...I know this article is about small portions, but one needs to look holistically at eating habits. I grew up having to clean my plate, but I was never overweight until much later in life. The key was that my mother cooked well-balanced meals as well as she cooked just enough for everyone to get a reasonable portion, but not gorge themselves. We ALWAYS ate breakfast, mostly oatmeal. We seldom ate beef. BTW eating potatoes is good for you (e.g. vitamin C), but all the junk people heap on them seems to be the real culprit.

Americans have a history of showing hospitality by serving large amounts of food.  We determine (many times) the quality of a restaurant by the size of the portions instead of the quality of the food.  We are starting to take sturdy take out containers when we dine out and start the meal by putting half of it away for the next day.  This also saves on syrofoam.

NO defense of smoking habit! I do not smoke nor do I condone it! As I said before---He's not trying to tackle smoking, he's trying to tackle obesity! One health problem at a time. Maybe the next thing to go will be smoking, drinking, drugs etc. Like was said above, everything is our choice, no one else's anyway. They are all addictions, also like above and your choice. I grew up in the same kind of household and hardly ever eat fast food (don't like it). I think it's my pickiness that is my problem. I eat salads, no dressing, just seasonall. I limit mayo  to fat free (homemade sandwiches) and exercise. I lose small amounts of weight, very slowly over time. I stress eat which is another problem I need to tackle. Like I said "One problem at a time" Dieting and exercising all at once can be overwhelming. I have decided to lose it for good. Istarted out exercising 4 weeks before changing my eating habits. I ate the same amount and same things and lost weight with just the exercise, now it's time to jump on the "calorie restriction" band wagon.

How difficult something is to do i.e. losing weight, stop smoking, large portion control is all equally difficult. It's like telling a light weight boxer that it's easier for them to box than a heavy weight boxer. Both are equally difficult.

We have become a nation of blame. It takes sacrifice to loose, to gain, to stop, to change whatever unhealthy aspect we have in our life. Bottom line, you have to be willing to sacrifice whatever it takes to change. Until then, it's a temporary attempt.

I see the good intentions here, but really... is it the president's job to decide how much food is enough for people?

It is one thing to serve tasty food and not serve "humongous" portions, it is another when it is bad enough that people start complaining that they are hungry and the food is nasty.

If the guests are not used to eating such small portions, they WILL be hungry and they WILL be unfocused on the goals of the state. They will be focusing on their stomachs growling and they WILL be unhappy.

There is such thing as balance, and it sounds like this is not it.

I think this sounds more like an extension of the nanny state and reminds me of my mother who constantly hassled me if she thought I was eating a bite too much. It just made me mad because it was none of her business.

Portion control is one thing. This sounds more like just "control".

Back to the topic of plate size:  I have found some beautiful, small, square plates for sale at the Asian market along with other small to tiny dishes. They are so attractive,  and makes small portions feel like a party.  Treat yourself to a feast for the eyes as well as the stomach.

I think people might try to think of dining when they eat a meal.  To me, dining is an experience that involves the  whole environment and the company you have, nice presentation and good conversation.  Having a good conversation in a pleasant situation just make a good meal more satisfying.  How much you eat diminishing in importance in a "dining" experience.

Drinking water in the middle of food is not a good idea. In ayurveda it is believed that drinking water while eating food dilutes the stomach's juices and prevents the proper digestion of food. The nutrients present in the food are not absorbed well. So we should not drink water while eating food.

The article is informing us of how one person who just happens to be our President has decided to take one small step towards tackling obesity but more importantly the article is informing us that training your brain to accept smaller portion sizes can be just as fulfilling as stuffing your face until you get to a point where you need to unbutton you pants, or adjust your car seat, or pull out your fat pants the following day because you didn't know when to stop the day before.

What I didn't expect was for some of you to turn this into political conversation. There was what 2 sentences about the white house? I mean really. This site is about gaining information about not just weight loss but obtaining and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. It most certainly is not a place for your partisan, ignorant, uneducated political views. Now if we can get the religious fanatics out...

Hattieai, you are no different than those you just criticized. Your caustic remarks are better placed in a different forum than here.

I, personally, think that Obama would be more of a role model if he battled an addiction that he struggled with, instead of one that millions of other people battle.  It's easy for him to eat small portions, because the nicotine supresses his appetite.  My dad is a smoker, so I know how it goes.

He shouldn't be making a big deal about portion size and weight, when it's not an issue that he knows anything about.  And like one person said, by suddenly changing what is prepared and portion size in the White House, he is making choices for those that are a guest in the White House.  IMO that's rude.  Options need to be given to the guests, and they can make up their own minds what they want to eat, and how much they want to eat.  By not giving his guests the freedon to make their own choices, he is telling them that they ae a bunch of fat idiots.

Why can't he deal with more than one health issue at a time?  He is supposedly dealing with numerous issues on a daily basis that don't relate to health, so he shouldn't restrict his attentions to only one health issue.  I think he is one of those people that would rather focus on other peoples faults/issues and not look at himself.   

I agree with not drinking anything with meals.  I did a lot of research before starting my weight loss/change of lifestyle thing, and I read that drinking with meals affects the enzymes that process the food we eat.  It was odd at first not to be drinking with my meal, but after a few days, it didn't bother me.  I think that we were raised with a glass of something in front of us, so that's normal.  It's a hard habit to break, but it can be done.

Have a good day everybody!

I just saw the comment from hattieai, and I had to respond...  Do you think that Obama is the first person to bring portion size to our attention?  Uhhhh, nope.  Is he the first person to talk about eating healthy?  Again, no.  Just because he got himself into the White House does not mean that we all have to be a bunch of brainless idiots, and sudenly realize that we eat too much food, and probably most of it is not healthy.  I knew that I was overweight before he was elected, and I also knew that I made poor choices on what I ate and how much.  Him deciding to get involved changes nothing for me.  Well, as far as my weight goes anyway.

You know nothing about any of us, so for you to toss insults at us shows your true character, doesn't it?  If you want to express an opinion without bashing somebody, I don't have an issue with that at all.  We are all entitled to our opinions.  Obviously you love Obama, so anything said about him that isn't good, is going to make you mad.  Well, I have a feeling that you might be having some anger issues over the course of his 4 years in office.

I'm not a religious fanatic, but I do believe in God.  Does that affect how you read anything I say?  I think that you are a wee bit intolerant of anybody that doesn't believe everything that you believe.  Maybe I'm wrong, but that's how your post came across to me.

Sounds like Obama doesn't believe in the CHOICE of his guests to eat large or small portions. He is anti-choice in this matter. Shocking!

Excellent article! I couldn't agree more! Once I started realizing WHAT an actual portion was my comment of "I don't know why I'm fat! I don't eat that much" went out the window!

Goes to show you that Congress is oblivious to reality in more ways than one! LOL

Original Post by: freshstarter

So much for all those years of "Not leaving the table to your plate is empty" brainmoulding, even if it was intended to make you eat your vegies....

Brilliant :)

Re: it is another (thing) when (the food) is bad enough that people start complaining...

Sorry to be misleading about the White House food.  While the portions were small, the food was not horrible.  The first line of this article comes from an old Catskill’s joke, sort of from the era of Henny Youngman’s, "Take my wife—please".  I guess you had to be there.

I ordered The Portion Dr. plates online and love them.  They come in a variety of small sizes and show you on the plate how much vegetable, meat, and grain to eat.  They have made such a difference for me.  My kids think they are so cool and want to eat off of them too.

I ordered The Portion Dr. plates online and love them.  They come in a variety of small sizes and show you on the plate how much vegetable, meat, and grain to eat.  They have made such a difference for me.  My kids think they are so cool and want to eat off of them too.

Thanks for your opinion Irene and that is all I will say about that.

Now Becky; my comment was short and to the point. I didn't linger on about my political views and I hardly think that just from reading my two small paragraphs, you can determine what my political views are.

No where in my comments did I accredit our President with being the first President or the first political figure to tackle obesity. If I recall, I said "he is just one person." I don't remember "bashing" anyone but I did state my opinion on how this article has turned political. Nor did I claim to know anyone personally who is contributing to this forum. I  just find it odd how some of us are overweight and doing something about it but others got so upset when they found out that The President was cutting portion sizes."Oh no!" And for the record, The President has gone on the record several times and has admitted to his daily struggles with his addiction to cigarettes. Plus I hardly think that the President would know he has guest going to bed at night hungry. I can't relate to people who are "addicted" to food but I have seen with my own two eyes how some people struggle with their addiction to Nicotine. Losing weight is not easy, trust me I know but it seems like quitting smoking is even harder, but that is just my opinion. Plus you are right Becky, some and I repeat some people on here are not "brainless idiots" but those that are not, utilizes the spell check. I mean, it is free.

hattieai,

  I don't think that this has turned political.  Some people were just stating an opinion about how Obama is tackling something that he doesn't struggle with, that's it.  I suppose that the few comments about food in the White House could be considered political, but I really don't think it is.  But if it makes you feel better, then what the heck. 

  Oh no!  I mispelled a word or two!  How terrible.  I guess I could be pathetically anal like some people.  Since we're being picky about little things, shouldn't it be: utilize the spell check?  

When I quit smoking 4 years ago, (and my taste buds came back to life) my love for good food and the fact that I'm not a too bad a cook, have resulted in a weight gain of 26 kilos (around 58 lb if my conversion site is correct). I can only say honestly that I have no one to blame for any ounce I gained but myself. Even healthy food is bad for you if you eat is by the truckloads. My only excuse is…. it all suddenly tasted sooooo good. So now since I am (pretty) safe in my own mind that I will not take up smoking again, I have decided to tackle my weight gain.

I have been living in China for almost a year now teaching English and in this time I have lost 16 kilos (approx 35lbs). Most of this loss happened slowly on its own, without any major changes on my side. That said, I think that the food itself and the way it’s consumed here have played a big role.

Most dishes are stir-fried. I’m also eating mostly rice and noodles, hardly any bread or bread products. In any restaurant the food comes out in big serving dishes and the whole table shares in all the different dishes. In the area in China I am in, most people eat about every 3 hours (usually 3 main meals and “snacks” in between).  Also drinking green tea and hot water are considered the holy grail of staying thin.

So now that I have lost so much weight in the last year, I have put the pressure on to lose the last 10 kilos (22lbs) to go back to where I was before. Right after that I stumbled across this site and all the tools here have helped me immensely

It’s hard to count calories in dishes I eat outside the house here, as mostly I have no idea what’s in them. It has been quite a challenge so far to guess what I am eating and how much it’s worth in my daily calorie allowance. I’ll just keep doing what I’ve been doing so far: eat loads of the things I do recognise and know are good for me, and try a little bit of everything else that comes across my plate (and believe me, sometimes it’s better NOT to think about what it could be )

Go portion control!!

No Beckys,  a period goes at the end of statement, not a question mark but all in all, whether you believe me or not, I do respect your opinions.

I was asking you a question, not making a statement, that is why there is a question mark.  If I was meaning it as a statement, then I would have put a period.  But if it makes you feel better to correct everybody here, then get out your little red marker and correct all the spelling and punctuation marks.  Don't touch the grammar mistakes though, since you would have to correct yourself.

It's funny that you say that you respect my opinions.  Or anybody else's, I'm assuming.  It is you that wrote... "It most certainly is not a place for your partisan, ignorant, uneducated political views. Now if we can get the religious fanatics out..."  IMO that comment does not make one believe that you respect what others have said, especially since none of us have gone on a rant about politics or religion.

Beckys, even mentioning religion is a little too much for me but that is just me. We are all hypocrites and we all contradict ourselves and I am not above that. There are things that we all say we wont do and we do them anyway, e.g overeating. In my first blog, making that statement does not mean I don't respect the fact that some people attempted to turn this into a political conversation but it is in my opinion, Calorie Counter.com is not a place for such conversation but with that being said, I stated my opinion on their opinions of the matter. The religious fanatics quote was just some sarcastic satire. Anyway good luck in all of your endeavors.

Original Post by: ribbon

After many years of being overweight, I have finally received this message loud and clear and I'm finally maintaining my weight.  I feel that the reason we are all so overweight is three fold:  we eat out too much,  restaurants compete for our business by increasing the size of our portions, and we exercise less.  The result is extra pounds.  I lost 80 pounds by taking a really good look at what I was eating and tracking what I eat everyday.  I actually found out that there were three things that were making me gain and retain weight. 

1. Too much milk.  I was drinking a large glass of milk with every meal.  I reduced my intake to 8 oz instead of 16 oz at each meal.
2. Meat portions too large.  I reduced my meat portions serving from  4 ounces at a meal.  I was eating 8 ounces. 
3. Restaurant portions too large.  Restaurants are notorius for advertising the biggest and baddest burger, the largest steak, the best french fries, etc.  They are competing for our business, but they are not doing us any favors.  They are making us unhealthy and fat.  I eat healthy when I go out now.  Most restaurants have healthy choices and I ask the waitress to have the chef put half my dinner in a to-go box before it is served to me.  It's more than enough to eat and I don't miss it at all.    

So it's my feeling that Obama is has hit the nail on the head.  The reason we are fat is because we've been led to believe bigger portions are better.  I can remember feeling deprived when I first started reducing my intake, but now it feels so natural.  Your body adjusts very quickly.  In a week or two.  So I love the idea of just reducing the size of your plate.  

Have a great day everyone.

 

Awesome!

Mr bobama is nothing but a clown giving acting lessons and screwing my country, I didn't think this type of POLITICAL ADVERTIZEMENT for a man who has with his friend send us into a debt for 50 plus years should be the forum for people on a weight control website, should this become a political site for advertisement of crooks let us know so we don’t have to read trash and come back to it.

Scroll down below where you post your comments and uncheck email notification. 

Have a great day.

Less food good.  Economy Bad.  Smoking bad.   Obama nice man.  Extremists very bad.  CC very good.  Deep cleansing breaths good.  No more posting very good.  Bye Bye.

I agree with the person on page 1 who said that this is more like control than portion control.  Also, it's much, much easier to tackle something with no personal significance.  Why it shocks anyone that someone should choose the easy way out, I have no idea, because lots of people do it every day.  President=human.  Me=human.  Please note that me (is not equal to) president. 

"Apparently, President Obama is tackling the problem of obesity".

Well, it's about time. Let's reduce the portion size and also change the FDA, so for once they approve healthy and no preservative/no numbered colors/no hydrogenated oils food!!

I'm on my way out to get smaller plates!  One of my misfortunes with food comes from being raised by depression aged parents.  "Clean your plate" was the motto, and to this day, at the age of 53, I still can't leave food on my plate, without guilt. 

I was raised the same way, Botterbein. I grew up in Argentina, we couldn't waste food. We were middle class but my parents worked very hard to keep food in our plates. My husband (american) can eat half his plate and not worry like I do. I cant's stand the sight of that so I finish it sometimes, or save it so *I* eat it the next day for lunch. Terrible!  I wish I could be like him!!!

I quit smoking completely two years ago.  As a former nicotine addict, and having gone through the withdrawal a couple of times, I would say when Obama chooses to quit is a personal decision.  It might be better to have him steady state than stressed by nicotine withdrawal in the present moment. 

oh, and I like what he's doing as far as setting an example with obesity...

I was told the same thing.... that it is not good to drink while eating.  It's a hard habit to break though.  I have digestive issues at times and sip some ginger tea or oolong tea while eating.  I wonder if that is ok or still disrupts the proper digestion of food. Any thoughts?

Great article on portion control. I had no control until I started a program called Smart For Life cookie plan. This is a 1200 calorie program. I eat the six cookie squares that are organic, every 2 hours with my sugarfree beverage and a healthy dinner meal of which I prepare, eat out or get frozen. I started exactly 1 month ago today and have lost 15 pounds and have never felt better. I found them at www.smartforlife.com