Eating Healthy Portions

Dieting is no easy task, but you can begin to find the right path to losing weight and feeling healthier by eating healthy portions.

Why We Overeat

Overeating can be traced back to the reason why many of us are overweight. It is no secret that eating is an unavoidable evil. We have to eat to live, and let us face facts, for most of us the old adage remains true that our eyes are much bigger than our stomachs. When we were young we would get scolded by grandparents or parents to finish the food on our plates, that money didn’t grow on trees and waste not want not. This is a much different world than that time. We now know the fate we face when we hold true the “eat it all” idea our parents instilled in us.

Tips and Tricks for Eating Healthy Portions at Home

Being able to eat at home has several great perks you may or may not have realized:

1. You can save money by buying food and making meal plans that suit your lifestyle
2. You can ensure you are eating healthier by preparing meals yourself
3. You have the ability to easily portion control your meals
4. You can make meals ahead and freeze them for later

In a world of gigantic food portions, nipping the trend in the butt at home is the beginning step to becoming healthier and losing weight. The thing to do is to measure, measure and measure. Buy a nice set of measuring cups and spoons and a kitchen scale that measures ounces.

Eating healthy and trying to maintain proper portion control is not all that easy, however, if you don’t know what a proper portion actually is. The following constitutes a healthy portion as set by the FDA:

• 1 serving of pasta is 1/3 to ½ cup
• Red meat, poultry or fish is 2 to 3 ounces (if it can fit in the palm of your hand that is about a 4 ounce size)
• Milk and yogurt is 8 ounces or 1 cup
• Natural cheese is about 1 ½ ounces but processed cheese is 2 ounces
• Fruit is about 1 medium-sized variety but keep in mind that most sizes we find in the grocery store are large to extra large and diced the serving size is about ½ cup
• Grains are 1 cup cooked or 3/4 cup to 1 cup uncooked

There are other interesting products to help with measuring out on the market other than measuring spoons, cups and scales. These tools can help you learn to eat healthy portions:

Portion Doctor Kit: The portion Doctor Kit makes portion control idiot proof. You are given 2 plates, a bowl and a cup. Each item comes imprinted with lines and numbers that you fill up to the proper portion. Also included are recipes and a manual for realistic use of the product.

Portion Pal: Portion Pal makes portion control at home easy. You get 5 translucent discs that show you correct portion size for meat, fruit, sides and even desserts. You simply place the food you are preparing on the corresponding rectangle and if it’s bigger than the rectangle simply trim to fit.

Portion Plate: Much like the portion doctor product the portion plate is exactly what it sounds like – a plate that tells you the correct portions in a visual sense so that you can easily set your portion sizes.

Several Tips to Avoid Portion Control Mishaps

Being able to maintain portion control can be difficult and you may slip up once in a blue moon, but have no fear because, if you follow the five tips below, you may have a better understanding of the pitfalls that can lead to portion mishaps:

1. Look at the nutritional chart on the product you are buying and be sure to take special note of the serving size because the calorie counts and fat counts etc. are rarely for the entire package and mainly for each portion
2. When you eat out, have your waiter or waitress bring a box right away and package up half your meal to take home
3. Train yourself to know how certain sizes look by using your measuring cups to measure out water and dry beans or even play dough – a great visual aide
4. When eating out, order off the kids menu or senior menu
5. Always use a smaller plate at home and, even if you may feel a little silly, take one with you when you go away

Eating healthy begins at home with teaching yourself what to eat and how much.

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