I'm thinking about the different ways we can measure for our weight loss success. In this case, not measuring our bodies, but measuring what we take in to our mouths.
You know I Refuse to Diet and that diets don't work, so before you start thinking I'm just talking about a diet by another name, hear me out!
I'm not talking about measuring as a way of limitation--that would be a diet.
I'm saying we should measure because if we honestly look at what we are eating and drinking, most of us don't know what a "serving" is! By measuring we can train ourselves to what a serving looks like in our glass or on our plate, and to what a serving feels like in our bellies!
Of course we do not have to measure every morsel that goes into our mouths for the rest of our lives. On the other hand, it doesn't hurt to double check ourselves once in a while, especially if we find our clothes are getting a bit tighter and yet we feel like we have not changed our eating patterns.
Realize that what a restaurant serves is usually considerably more than a serving's worth, so we don't want to eat restaurant portions all the time. However, restaurants also measure what they serve. That way they know how many patrons they can serve and they can stay on their financial budget.
Measuring what we eat and drink can keep us honest with ourselves. It is another tool that we can use to keep our eating at a conscious level. It allows us to be in control and to make the choices about what we eat, and how much.
Give yourself a chance to have weight loss success by measuring--at least once in a while--to be sure you are heading down the right path and making healthy choices!
Showing posts with label portion control. Show all posts
Showing posts with label portion control. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Monday, May 24, 2010
Curb Emotional Eating Strategy #4
This very simple strategy can really help...it is so simple that you might not believe that it will work, so hear me out...and try it, before you say it won't work. You just might be surprised!
This strategy is about controlling the quantity we eat by controlling portion size.
Think about it...when you go on an emotional eating bender, how do you eat? I know I tend to eat right out of the carton...ice cream by the half gallon, cookies by the box, chips by the bag.
That makes it so easy to eat a lot more...instead serve yourself a dish. Don't eat at the kitchen sink, sit yourself down and make it a real snack, with things you have to wash.
Sure you can always go back for more, but the act of dishing the food up does a few things for you...it controls your initial portion (which might just turn out to be enough, thank you very much!), and by forcing you to return to the kitchen to get more you are buying your brain time to kick in and say, hey...I don't really want more of that.
By making it a more formal event, by sitting down and eating, then you are also using strategy #3, which if you recall from yesterday was making your eating a conscious decision.
In addition, it also reinforces that you have permission to eat this treat because you have given it "meal" treatment, with a plate or bowl and spoon or fork.
So this deceptively simple strategy actually incorporates 3 strategies in 1. Not bad! In fact...it also works in a 4th strategy...strategy #5, which we'll go into more detail on tomorrow!
Strategy #4 Use Small Bowls or Plates
This strategy is about controlling the quantity we eat by controlling portion size.
Think about it...when you go on an emotional eating bender, how do you eat? I know I tend to eat right out of the carton...ice cream by the half gallon, cookies by the box, chips by the bag.
That makes it so easy to eat a lot more...instead serve yourself a dish. Don't eat at the kitchen sink, sit yourself down and make it a real snack, with things you have to wash.
Sure you can always go back for more, but the act of dishing the food up does a few things for you...it controls your initial portion (which might just turn out to be enough, thank you very much!), and by forcing you to return to the kitchen to get more you are buying your brain time to kick in and say, hey...I don't really want more of that.
By making it a more formal event, by sitting down and eating, then you are also using strategy #3, which if you recall from yesterday was making your eating a conscious decision.
In addition, it also reinforces that you have permission to eat this treat because you have given it "meal" treatment, with a plate or bowl and spoon or fork.
So this deceptively simple strategy actually incorporates 3 strategies in 1. Not bad! In fact...it also works in a 4th strategy...strategy #5, which we'll go into more detail on tomorrow!
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Lose 8 Pounds in 2 Weeks with Mayo Clinic: Diet or Life Change?
The Mayo clinic is publishing their first diet book in which they claim you can lose 8 pounds in 2 weeks (average figures).
Of course Mayo does suggest that this isn't really a diet but a guide for healthy living. They break the program into 2 parts Lose It and Live It.
So what's in the Lose It plan?
For two weeks you make a total of 15 changes:
Of course one of the unhealthy habits you can dump is drinking soda--whether it is regular or sugar free this is one habit that should be at the top of your list to discard--you can read some of my thoughts on soda consumption -- and this is coming from a recovered soda drinker--I used to drink a 6 pack a day (of the diet stuff...baaaad habit.)
In the Live It phase you apply lessons you've learned from the Lose It portion to your life permanently.
One of the tips that I think is helpful if you have trouble with portion control is using visual cues to help remember what a real portion is. I've seen this before with a deck of cards or your palm for a portion of meat, but they offered other tips like a tennis ball as a visual reference for a piece of fruit (think small apple, not jumbo!)
If you want a jump start and can stick to 15 changes for 2 weeks this may be a good book for you.
For me, I'll stick to small changes one or two at a time...because those I know I'll be able to keep! 15 changes to remember and stick to all at once sounds like a diet to me, even if they are good ideas.
Of course Mayo does suggest that this isn't really a diet but a guide for healthy living. They break the program into 2 parts Lose It and Live It.
So what's in the Lose It plan?
For two weeks you make a total of 15 changes:
- Add 5 healthy habits
- Break 5 unhealthy habits
- Adopt 5 bonus habits
Of course one of the unhealthy habits you can dump is drinking soda--whether it is regular or sugar free this is one habit that should be at the top of your list to discard--you can read some of my thoughts on soda consumption -- and this is coming from a recovered soda drinker--I used to drink a 6 pack a day (of the diet stuff...baaaad habit.)
In the Live It phase you apply lessons you've learned from the Lose It portion to your life permanently.
One of the tips that I think is helpful if you have trouble with portion control is using visual cues to help remember what a real portion is. I've seen this before with a deck of cards or your palm for a portion of meat, but they offered other tips like a tennis ball as a visual reference for a piece of fruit (think small apple, not jumbo!)
If you want a jump start and can stick to 15 changes for 2 weeks this may be a good book for you.
For me, I'll stick to small changes one or two at a time...because those I know I'll be able to keep! 15 changes to remember and stick to all at once sounds like a diet to me, even if they are good ideas.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Weight Loss Tip: Eat on Smaller Plates
This is not a new tip, but it is worth repeating...by using smaller plates you can actually reduce the amount of food you eat.
The size of the plate doesn't actually change the amount of food you eat...but what it does do is limit how much you can put on a single plate. This sets you up to eat more consciously because you actually have to add more food to your plate later. If you are a member of the "clean plate club" and you will eat whatever is on your plate even if you are no longer hungry (and who hasn't been there?) then this one tip could result in losing weight.
However if you mindlessly get seconds and thirds then the smaller plate trick won't work for you. Allow the smaller plate to enable you to take a breath and determine if you are still hungry before going for more food. Also take that time to determine, if you are still hungry, what will feed your body.
By taking this small break and actually touching base with your body you may be surprised to find that you really aren't hungry...you might have eaten more out of habit, because it was there, or because other people in the family are still eating.
A new book documents how our plates have grown over the last 50 years...which if you have ever lived in an older home and tried to put contemporary dishes in the kitchen cupboards you have already figured that one out! In The 9-Inch 'Diet', author Alex Bogusky notes that our plates tend to be 12 inches across now, whereas in 1963 plates were only 9 inches!
It may be that by going back to the "good old days" in terms of the size of our dinner plates will help us get back to a better waistline as well!
The size of the plate doesn't actually change the amount of food you eat...but what it does do is limit how much you can put on a single plate. This sets you up to eat more consciously because you actually have to add more food to your plate later. If you are a member of the "clean plate club" and you will eat whatever is on your plate even if you are no longer hungry (and who hasn't been there?) then this one tip could result in losing weight.
However if you mindlessly get seconds and thirds then the smaller plate trick won't work for you. Allow the smaller plate to enable you to take a breath and determine if you are still hungry before going for more food. Also take that time to determine, if you are still hungry, what will feed your body.
By taking this small break and actually touching base with your body you may be surprised to find that you really aren't hungry...you might have eaten more out of habit, because it was there, or because other people in the family are still eating.
A new book documents how our plates have grown over the last 50 years...which if you have ever lived in an older home and tried to put contemporary dishes in the kitchen cupboards you have already figured that one out! In The 9-Inch 'Diet', author Alex Bogusky notes that our plates tend to be 12 inches across now, whereas in 1963 plates were only 9 inches!
It may be that by going back to the "good old days" in terms of the size of our dinner plates will help us get back to a better waistline as well!
Friday, August 21, 2009
Diet Foods Suck
OK...I'm being blunt, but really most diet foods suck.
Why?
Because people think that if they eat/drink them they will lose weight.
Guess what! They don't work!
Some are benign, some are harmful...some are pure junk, some are not bad...but few, if any, actually help you lose weight in the long run.
They Don't Address the Real Issue
Diet foods typically will either contain fewer calories or less sugar or less fat...and "less" may not be much less...read the labels, sometimes "less calories" is achieved by decreasing the portion size!
For most people who struggle with their weight the few calories saved by eating diet foods is not the answer. The real issue is our attitude about ourselves, our bodies, being fat...the real issue is in our minds.
Diet Foods Reinforce Unhealthy Eating Behaviors
One of the issues I have faced in my life is using food for emotional reasons rather than for feeding my body. I have stuffed down emotions rather than face them. Food as soother. Food as drug. I know I am not alone in this. I've heard other people also refer to food as their "drug of choice"...even Oprah says this.
One of the biggest changes we can make that will affect our weight is to develop other behaviors to deal with our emotions. Things other than eating. One of the challenges is to develop a HEALTHY response, not to just replace one unhealthy response with another one.
In other words, I don't want to start smoking when I am stressed rather than eating. OK, obvious example in order to make a point. Some other unhealthy habits to avoid...excessive shopping, over-exercising, excessive sex...any "addiction" that you substitute for eating is just that--a substitute. You may become slender by substituting a different addiction...or you may just end up having 2 addictions instead of one. A more permanent solution is to deal with WHY you are eating in the first place.
They Don't Allow Us To Change Our Habits
If we are used to grabbing food because we are bored, lonely, unhappy, stressed (the list goes on...and on) changing the food we grab from cookies to carrots may seem like a good choice. While I would say it is a better choice to choose carrots over the diet cookies on the market, it is still enabling us to maintain the unconscious eating habit...which when the emotions are really strong, or we get tired of munching on carrots, will come back to bite us in the fat behind!
Sometimes our eating is just habit. We're not even thinking about it. It isn't that we are particularly stressed out or unhappy...we just used to having the pretzels or candy or cookies or fruit or whatever it is...and if it is there we eat it.
So we save a few calories now, but don't change our habits. That means when/if we drop the weight we want, we probably will revert to eating foods we prefer...and BAM the weight flies back on!
They Don't Change Our Tastes
Diet foods don't taste the same as the "real" deal, but they generally still taste sweet or like chips or whatever food it is you crave. By indulging in these we never allow our tastes to change. We will continue to think cookies or chips are the best snack. Again, once the "diet" is over we will tend to revert to full calorie versions...and we gain weight back.
They Actually Get Us Wanting MORE Sweets
There is scientific evidence that artificial sweeteners actually increase our desire for more sweets. It is both psychological and physical response. You may feel more hunger and have increased cravings. Hmmm...not a good deal in my book!
We End Up Eating More
This is psychological, but it has been documented...when we see that something has 1/2 the fat or only 100 calories for example, we will tend to eat a larger quantity of the food. Often we will eat significantly more and actually end up consuming more fat and calories than if we had just eaten the original food in the first place.
For me one of the big issues was learning portion control--learning to feel satisfied BEFORE I felt stuffed! Diet foods don't help with that issue.
Ice Cream is my biggest treat. I love it. I also find that when I buy the 1/2 fat variety I want to eat much, much more. It just isn't as satisfying. It's not that it tastes bad...it actually tastes pretty good--at least some do. But it isn't the same. It doesn't have the same richness, the mouth feel...I am not as satisfied with the "diet" version.
I am better off with the full-flavored fully loaded calorie original. I can have a smaller portion and feel like I'm getting a real treat. Then I am encouraged to really savor all the flavors, the full experience. I don't feel like I'm being deprived or short-changed...
Bottom Line--Eat Real Food
Some "diet" foods are more chemical than food. I believe our health is best served by eating as "real" as we can...real food with real ingredients. If I can't pronounce it, I try not to eat it! The scientists may claim our bodies can't tell the difference (or maybe it is just the advertisers' claiming that!) but my experience says otherwise.
Choose real food for real health.
Develop new habits to replace emotional eating.
Get to know WHY you want to eat...and why you want to lose weight.
I know that it is possible...and that there is no "magic bullet", no elixir that melts pounds away, no temporary system that gives permanent results. The permanent fix is between your ears...and it isn't your mouth!
Our minds are so incredible and that is where the real solution resides.
Why?
Because people think that if they eat/drink them they will lose weight.
Guess what! They don't work!
Some are benign, some are harmful...some are pure junk, some are not bad...but few, if any, actually help you lose weight in the long run.
They Don't Address the Real Issue
Diet foods typically will either contain fewer calories or less sugar or less fat...and "less" may not be much less...read the labels, sometimes "less calories" is achieved by decreasing the portion size!
For most people who struggle with their weight the few calories saved by eating diet foods is not the answer. The real issue is our attitude about ourselves, our bodies, being fat...the real issue is in our minds.
Diet Foods Reinforce Unhealthy Eating Behaviors
One of the issues I have faced in my life is using food for emotional reasons rather than for feeding my body. I have stuffed down emotions rather than face them. Food as soother. Food as drug. I know I am not alone in this. I've heard other people also refer to food as their "drug of choice"...even Oprah says this.
One of the biggest changes we can make that will affect our weight is to develop other behaviors to deal with our emotions. Things other than eating. One of the challenges is to develop a HEALTHY response, not to just replace one unhealthy response with another one.
In other words, I don't want to start smoking when I am stressed rather than eating. OK, obvious example in order to make a point. Some other unhealthy habits to avoid...excessive shopping, over-exercising, excessive sex...any "addiction" that you substitute for eating is just that--a substitute. You may become slender by substituting a different addiction...or you may just end up having 2 addictions instead of one. A more permanent solution is to deal with WHY you are eating in the first place.
They Don't Allow Us To Change Our Habits
If we are used to grabbing food because we are bored, lonely, unhappy, stressed (the list goes on...and on) changing the food we grab from cookies to carrots may seem like a good choice. While I would say it is a better choice to choose carrots over the diet cookies on the market, it is still enabling us to maintain the unconscious eating habit...which when the emotions are really strong, or we get tired of munching on carrots, will come back to bite us in the fat behind!
Sometimes our eating is just habit. We're not even thinking about it. It isn't that we are particularly stressed out or unhappy...we just used to having the pretzels or candy or cookies or fruit or whatever it is...and if it is there we eat it.
So we save a few calories now, but don't change our habits. That means when/if we drop the weight we want, we probably will revert to eating foods we prefer...and BAM the weight flies back on!
They Don't Change Our Tastes
Diet foods don't taste the same as the "real" deal, but they generally still taste sweet or like chips or whatever food it is you crave. By indulging in these we never allow our tastes to change. We will continue to think cookies or chips are the best snack. Again, once the "diet" is over we will tend to revert to full calorie versions...and we gain weight back.
They Actually Get Us Wanting MORE Sweets
There is scientific evidence that artificial sweeteners actually increase our desire for more sweets. It is both psychological and physical response. You may feel more hunger and have increased cravings. Hmmm...not a good deal in my book!
We End Up Eating More
This is psychological, but it has been documented...when we see that something has 1/2 the fat or only 100 calories for example, we will tend to eat a larger quantity of the food. Often we will eat significantly more and actually end up consuming more fat and calories than if we had just eaten the original food in the first place.
For me one of the big issues was learning portion control--learning to feel satisfied BEFORE I felt stuffed! Diet foods don't help with that issue.
Ice Cream is my biggest treat. I love it. I also find that when I buy the 1/2 fat variety I want to eat much, much more. It just isn't as satisfying. It's not that it tastes bad...it actually tastes pretty good--at least some do. But it isn't the same. It doesn't have the same richness, the mouth feel...I am not as satisfied with the "diet" version.
I am better off with the full-flavored fully loaded calorie original. I can have a smaller portion and feel like I'm getting a real treat. Then I am encouraged to really savor all the flavors, the full experience. I don't feel like I'm being deprived or short-changed...
Bottom Line--Eat Real Food
Some "diet" foods are more chemical than food. I believe our health is best served by eating as "real" as we can...real food with real ingredients. If I can't pronounce it, I try not to eat it! The scientists may claim our bodies can't tell the difference (or maybe it is just the advertisers' claiming that!) but my experience says otherwise.
Choose real food for real health.
Develop new habits to replace emotional eating.
Get to know WHY you want to eat...and why you want to lose weight.
I know that it is possible...and that there is no "magic bullet", no elixir that melts pounds away, no temporary system that gives permanent results. The permanent fix is between your ears...and it isn't your mouth!
Our minds are so incredible and that is where the real solution resides.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think
Author Brian Wansink is a Stanford Ph.D. food psychologist and the director of the Cornell University Food and Brand Lab. He has been seen on Oprah and numerous other shows discussing the ways companies and our families influence our eating patterns.
Dr. Wansink has spent a lifetime studying what we don’t notice: the hidden cues that determine how much and why people eat. Being aware of how much we really are consuming is a key facet to successfully losing weight--and keeping it off!
This book, published in 2007, helps us become aware of outside influences that sabotage our efforts and why willpower is not enough.
Some of the questions the book asks include:
Reviews
“[Mindless Eating] does more than just chastise those of us guilty of stuffing our faces. It also examines the effectiveness of such popular diets as South Beach or Atkins, and offers useful tips to consciously eat nutritiously.”—Boston Herald
"Entertaining... Isn't so much a diet book as a how-to on better facilitating the interaction between the feed-me messages of our stomachs and the controls in our heads."—Publishers Weekly
Mindless Eating will change the way you look at food, and it will give you the facts you need to easily make smarter, healthier, more mindful and enjoyable choices wherever you decide to eat--at home, school, work, a restaurant or even a vending machine!
If you want to read Dr. Wansink's blog, click here!
Dr. Wansink has spent a lifetime studying what we don’t notice: the hidden cues that determine how much and why people eat. Being aware of how much we really are consuming is a key facet to successfully losing weight--and keeping it off!
This book, published in 2007, helps us become aware of outside influences that sabotage our efforts and why willpower is not enough.
Some of the questions the book asks include:
- How does packaging influence how much we eat?
- Which movies make us eat faster?
- How does music or the color of the room influence how much we eat?
- How can we recognize the “hidden persuaders” used by restaurants and supermarkets to get us to mindlessly eat?
- What are the real reasons most diets are doomed to fail?
- How can we use the “mindless margin” to lose–instead of gain–ten to twenty pounds in the coming year?
- Does food with a brand name really taste better?
- Do you hate brussels sprouts because your mother did?
- Does the size of your plate determine how hungry you feel?
- How much would you eat if your soup bowl secretly refilled itself?
- What does your favorite comfort food really say about you?
- Why do you overeat so much at healthy restaurants?
Reviews
“[Mindless Eating] does more than just chastise those of us guilty of stuffing our faces. It also examines the effectiveness of such popular diets as South Beach or Atkins, and offers useful tips to consciously eat nutritiously.”—Boston Herald
"Entertaining... Isn't so much a diet book as a how-to on better facilitating the interaction between the feed-me messages of our stomachs and the controls in our heads."—Publishers Weekly
Mindless Eating will change the way you look at food, and it will give you the facts you need to easily make smarter, healthier, more mindful and enjoyable choices wherever you decide to eat--at home, school, work, a restaurant or even a vending machine!
If you want to read Dr. Wansink's blog, click here!
Friday, February 27, 2009
Food Addiction: Cured or In Recovery?
Hi. My name is Laurie. I'm an ice cream-aholic.
Food has always been my 'drug of choice'. Specifically ice cream. Even more specifically, chocolate ice cream...or just about any ice cream with chocolate in it.
The higher the fat content the better.
I could literally eat several quarts at a sitting.
Of course I would then wonder why I had a headache!!!
It is a wonder I'm not diabetic or have cholesterol through the roof.
That has all changed now...I actually bought a pint (one!) of ice cream on Sunday because it sounded good. Then I forgot I even had it in the house!
On Wednesday night I decided to have some. I voluntarily stopped part way through because I was done! It no longer was satisfying or tasting good, so I put it back...
If you notice I said I put it back, that means that I was eating right out of the container, I had not dished it out. That had been my method of portion control before. Dish some out. And go back for more. Again. and Again. Or not--sometimes I just ate right out of the quart container.
I am excited at the prospect that I have a normal relationship with food!
I know that it is important to keep my awareness up and not slip into bad habits--but this is a very good day...
Maybe I'll celebrate! Rocky Road, anyone (I'm joking!)
Food has always been my 'drug of choice'. Specifically ice cream. Even more specifically, chocolate ice cream...or just about any ice cream with chocolate in it.
The higher the fat content the better.
I could literally eat several quarts at a sitting.
Of course I would then wonder why I had a headache!!!
It is a wonder I'm not diabetic or have cholesterol through the roof.
That has all changed now...I actually bought a pint (one!) of ice cream on Sunday because it sounded good. Then I forgot I even had it in the house!
On Wednesday night I decided to have some. I voluntarily stopped part way through because I was done! It no longer was satisfying or tasting good, so I put it back...
If you notice I said I put it back, that means that I was eating right out of the container, I had not dished it out. That had been my method of portion control before. Dish some out. And go back for more. Again. and Again. Or not--sometimes I just ate right out of the quart container.
I am excited at the prospect that I have a normal relationship with food!
I know that it is important to keep my awareness up and not slip into bad habits--but this is a very good day...
Maybe I'll celebrate! Rocky Road, anyone (I'm joking!)
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Weight Loss Tips: Business Trips and Booze
Alcohol on business trips can be the biggest trip up...set your limit BEFORE you get to the restaurant or bar. Make it a business decision and then stick to it, like you would any business decision.
Know what you like to drink BESIDES alcohol, so you don't have to think about it.
If you are out with a client or co-worker with whom you have partied heartily on previous trips, they may be surprised at the change. But don't build it up in your mind to be more than it probably is.
Be fun, be jovial and let others drink as much as they want...
No matter what, be confident in your order. Don't apologize or make excuses for your order. If you don't make a big deal out of it, chances are good no one else will either.
Remember you are doing this for YOU and your health. And don't let anyone bully you into drinking beyond the limit you established for yourself. Keep in your own mind (even though you are not announcing this to your colleagues) that by keeping your health promises you are demonstrating personal strength, power, control and integrity. These are all excellent business skills!
My plan is to have one drink with dinner. I don't have cocktails before hand...I find that even one drink without food loosens my resolve and makes it much harder to stick to my health goals.
Rather than fighting with myself, I know that I want to have a nice glass of wine with my meal and really enjoy that, so if I'll be at the bar before I'll have a seltzer or mineral water with lime.
I have friends who love iced tea or coffee so they choose that. For these purposes, don't worry about the sugar...unless you are diabetic...but that's a whole different subject... the sugar is less of a demon for the night than the alcohol which is sugar AND relaxer!
Know what you like to drink BESIDES alcohol, so you don't have to think about it.
If you are out with a client or co-worker with whom you have partied heartily on previous trips, they may be surprised at the change. But don't build it up in your mind to be more than it probably is.
Be fun, be jovial and let others drink as much as they want...
No matter what, be confident in your order. Don't apologize or make excuses for your order. If you don't make a big deal out of it, chances are good no one else will either.
Remember you are doing this for YOU and your health. And don't let anyone bully you into drinking beyond the limit you established for yourself. Keep in your own mind (even though you are not announcing this to your colleagues) that by keeping your health promises you are demonstrating personal strength, power, control and integrity. These are all excellent business skills!
My plan is to have one drink with dinner. I don't have cocktails before hand...I find that even one drink without food loosens my resolve and makes it much harder to stick to my health goals.
Rather than fighting with myself, I know that I want to have a nice glass of wine with my meal and really enjoy that, so if I'll be at the bar before I'll have a seltzer or mineral water with lime.
I have friends who love iced tea or coffee so they choose that. For these purposes, don't worry about the sugar...unless you are diabetic...but that's a whole different subject... the sugar is less of a demon for the night than the alcohol which is sugar AND relaxer!
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Smaller Plates = Smaller Waists
This is an old tip, but it deserves to be recycled--use smaller plates and you will eat less. This can be especially helpful for those of us who are "members of the clean plate club" and worry about the starving children in Africa/China/wherever they are at the moment. Like my over eating is going to help them. Never did make sense.
I actually use my salad plates for most of my meals. Except, ironically, when I am having a salad for my meal. Then I usually use the dinner plate!
We tend to have the "Thanksgiving Dinner" syndrome--cover every inch of the plate surface, and pile it up high. Big plates allow for much bigger piles of food. Like we're never going to eat again. Or all we have to do after dinner is veg out in front of the television watching the big game.
That is not how real, day-to-day life is. We all have loads to do after our meals. Eating too much makes us feel sluggish. That's true whether or not we had turkey. It really is not the turkey that's the culprit--it is the amount of the turkey (and fixin's)!
Use smaller plates and then start to reduce the pile of food on the plate. Get to know the color of the plate, not just the rim, but in the middle, too!
I actually use my salad plates for most of my meals. Except, ironically, when I am having a salad for my meal. Then I usually use the dinner plate!
We tend to have the "Thanksgiving Dinner" syndrome--cover every inch of the plate surface, and pile it up high. Big plates allow for much bigger piles of food. Like we're never going to eat again. Or all we have to do after dinner is veg out in front of the television watching the big game.
That is not how real, day-to-day life is. We all have loads to do after our meals. Eating too much makes us feel sluggish. That's true whether or not we had turkey. It really is not the turkey that's the culprit--it is the amount of the turkey (and fixin's)!
Use smaller plates and then start to reduce the pile of food on the plate. Get to know the color of the plate, not just the rim, but in the middle, too!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
