Tag Archives: portion control

Top 10 Ways To Prevent Overeating

Overeating has become a huge problem these days and I know we are all guilty of it every now and then. The majority of Americans eat due to boredom or depression. By keeping ourselves busy, active, and out of stressful/depressing situations, we can beat this phenomenon.

Overeating not only causes rapid weight gain, but high blood pressure, diabetes, kidney disease, or even a ruptured stomach can be result. Serving sizes have been blow out of proportion these days and can actually be rather scary. Below are the recommended serving sizes as well as a few helpful tips to prevent overeating. (more…)

Posted on October 28, 2023 by Matt

Thin Friends Can Have Bad Diet Influence

Friends can be your worst enemy when it comes to trying to keep control of your waistline. Even if they aren’t overtly using peer pressure to coax you into eating unhealthily, they can be doing so through their own actions.

Most of us know them: people who can eat and eat and not gain an ounce. That fraternity gets a little smaller after 30 when everyone’s metabolism begins to slow. But, while they still maintain this seemingly impossible dietary feat, they do so at the expense of the rest of us.

That’s because according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research, thin friends who eat a lot may unwittingly make you eat more in the process. Call it subliminal peer pressure. (more…)

Posted on October 5, 2023 by Jason

Eat an Appetizer to Promote Weight Loss

One of the main reasons I recommend having two meals, one of which being a small meal such as an appetizer, is to help avoid overeating. This may sound counter intuitive, but with busy schedules we can tend to eat late or not have much time and therefore end up gobbling up as much food as we can in one sitting. Shortly thereafter we are left having over consumed calories, feeling stuffed and lethargic.

It can take up to 15 minutes for your brain to register with your stomach that food is in your system, a large proponent for overeating. Many times we will keep eating the food that is on our plate waiting for that “feeling of full,” only to have completely surpassed it. Eating a snack or appetizer prior to eating your main meal will help start that communication between your stomach and your brain, so by the time you go to eat your main course you will only need to eat a portion of it to fulfill your bodies’ needs. (more…)

Posted on October 3, 2023 by Amy

TwoFoods: Your Diet’s New Best Friend

How come someone hasn’t thought of this diet tool before? TwoFoods is a free website application that allows you to compare two foods at once to determine which one better fits into your eating plan.

For instance, you can compare a McDonald’s grilled chicken salad to Panera’s grilled chicken Caesar salad, to find that the McDonald’s version is a better choice; or you can compare generic potato chips against Baked Lays and receive a complete nutritional analysis of calories, fat, carbs and protein grams. (more…)

Posted on September 6, 2023 by heather

Be Social Without Blowing Your Diet

Whether it’s a late summer BBQ, wedding, or other life milestone, you’re bound to have your calendar booked with a celebration sometime soon. For people working hard to lose weight, it can be stressful and even cause anxiety that can make you want to skip the event altogether. If this sounds like you, you should know that your uneasy feeling is natural and you shouldn’t think negatively toward it. Instead, how about a solution? I’ll explain why you’re having a difficult time and how you can be social without blowing your diet.

It’s All About Control

The reason social engagements may make you feel uncomfortable has to do with control; how much control you think you have over making “the right” choices so you won’t leave feeling stuffed and regretful of your actions. (more…)

Posted on September 4, 2023 by Rebecca

Watching Your Weight? Start with Portion Control

Watch my video on tips for including nuts in your eating plan. They are a healthy food, but just because a little is good, more is not better. Leave a comment with ideas for ways of adding nuts to healthy foods for all to enjoy!

(more…)

Posted on August 17, 2023 by Rebecca

Serving Size is Not Just a Suggestion

One of the biggest keys to weight loss success is facing the reality of an accurate serving size. Let’s take this morning’s breakfast of cereal as a prime example, shall we? If you are anything like me, I stumble into the kitchen, blearily grab a box of cereal and a bowl, and dump the cereal into the bowl. I fill it most of the way full, and then add milk. I sit down and eat, not paying much attention until I get to the bottom of the bowl. Zzzzzz…

What’s the problem in this scenario? (Other than the fact that I’m eating while just about asleep, that is…) The almost certain culprit would be the way that I poured the cereal. Free form, loose and flowing are great things for art work, but they really play havoc on your diet. Flip that cereal box around, see where it say SERVING SIZE? Yeah, those words are actually there for a reason, not just as pretty filler for white space. (more…)

Posted on April 24, 2023 by Carmen

Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think

Have you ever felt that you were literally beckoned by a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos to buy them? Or if after eating a salad for lunch (dressing on the side, of course) do you reach for a Snickers at 3 p.m. because you were “so healthy” just a few hours ago?

You’re not alone. In fact, most Americans engage in some sort of mindless eating, each meal, every snack, each day.

Author and food psychologist, Brian Wansink Ph.D. talks about how blurry our perception has become in choosing what we eat, how much we eat and when we eat. In his book, Mindless Eating, Wansink helps undue a bit of the guilt that ensues after eating too much. (more…)

Posted on April 8, 2024 by heather

The Joy of Cooking, Super-Sized!

Portion distortion isn’t just exclusive to your dining destinations, be it fast food or otherwise. A study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that it’s spilled over into the recipe books, too!

The study looked at how classic recipes have changed during the past 70 years and found a nearly 40 percent increase in calories per serving for just about every recipe reviewed, about an extra 77 calories.

The study identified the trend in many cookbooks, but it focused on the iconic Joy of Cooking. It was first published in the ’30s and has been regularly updated, most recently in 2006. (more…)

Posted on February 24, 2024 by Jason

Snack Attack Survival

Don’t think you are alone if you have found yourself at a vending machine at about 2:30 in the afternoon with a snack attack that brings out a weakness you never knew you had. The next thing you know quarters are being inserted into the tiny slot and a bag of potato chips or chocolate bar comes tumbling down.

With the new Smart Portion Prep and Pack Tray you can now be prepared for these moments with six individual containers you can fill with your favorite treats from cut up carrot sticks to strawberries and even mixed nuts. You can prep your snacks ahead of time in healthy portion sizes and store in the fridge to take with you on the go or to even snack at home.

Posted on January 21, 2024 by Amy

Know Your Portion Sizes

Portion control and knowing what a portion or serving size looks like is so essential for not only losing weight, but also maintaining your weight. Did you know that there are some basic ways that you can remember what a portion size looks like, or be able to assess how many portions you are about to eat? Too often we eat without measuring, therefore we might think we are eating sensibly, but in actuality we are taking in double or even triple the serving size. Below is a fun and easy guide to refer to for identifying one serving!

Use these comparisons to keep your portions in check. (Nestle.com)

A baseball or size of your fist- would be one serving of vegetables or fruit
Tennis ball- measures to about ½ cup of food (for example, ½ cup ice cream) (more…)

Posted on January 15, 2024 by Kinsey

Tag Archives: portion control

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