Thursday, June 11, 2009

Measuring Portion Sizes is an important part of your Weight Loss Program


Measuring portions sizes is an important aspect to the success of a weight loss program. Even the best diet plans will fail if you regularly overestimate portion sizes.

We have become somewhat desensitized to consuming massive quantities of food as servings in restaurants have increased dramatically in the last 50 years. The meals we indulge in when dining out are anywhere from two to eight times the standard recommended serving sizes based on the Food Pyramid and the guidelines provided by the FDA. This has led to an exaggerated view of what a normal meal should look like and gigantic portion sizes have spilled over into what we serve in our homes.

Consequently our waistlines have expanded, Type 2 diabetes has become somewhat of an epidemic and we consume upwards of ten times the amount of sugar than we did 50 years ago.

In the 1950s a serving of French Fries was 2.4 ounces compared to 7.1 ounces today. Fountain soda was typically 7 ounces and today has increased to anywhere from 12 to 64 ounces! A serving of pasta used to be 1.5 cups (cooked) but now we consider almost 3 times that amount to be 1 portion size.

It's no wonder we are getting fatter every day! To see success in your weight loss program, re-evaluate what a serving size should be. Measure food and beverages in weight and/or volume with scales, measuring cups, tablespoons, etc. Don't rely on eyeballing your meals. You may be quite shocked by how many calories are in your 'guesstimation' of your meals.

9 comments:

  1. That's a great reminder!

    Have gotten out of the habit of weighing and measuring, and it makes a big difference. It's good to at least check in now and then to prevent "portion creep."

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  2. That's seriously great advice and probably one of the biggest shocks when starting any healthy eating plan!

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  3. thanks for your reply on my blog... i may just choose both!

    cant believe i come and read and i am greeted by the picture lol. That was really interesting what you wrote about the portion sizes- you know you cant buy a happymeal at mcdonalds if your not a child?? i think thats discusting.

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  4. I want to know who has a bladder that's actually big enough to drink 64 ounces of anything? Those things always amaze me.

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  5. Crazy isn't it?

    I'd been eyeballing for a few weeks & finally said to heck with it & bought a scale. I was surprised to see what I was on target with (meat & pasta) & waaay off on (cheeses, veggies).

    Great post - makes one realize this 'portion stuff' is a forever thing.

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  6. Thanks for the post on my fat site. :) I go to "cutestblogontheblock" to find my templates. I make my personalized headers on scrapblog.com

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  7. Very true. With portion control, nothing is off limits so you can have a little of your favorite food (e.g. chocolate) without going nuts or denying yourself.

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  8. Portion control is the best advice anyone can give when it comes to losing weight. I try to tell my friends and family all the time.

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  9. Another tip I learned somewhere is that, since we can't take our scales and measuring cups to restaurants (unless we want to look like jerks), when we go out to eat, we should immediately set aside about half the food on the plate and plan to take it home. Unless we're at one of those fancy, high-end restaurants where we look at the plate and think, "Is that it?"

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