Today I saw an interesting little post (click here) I would like to explore a bit further in involved portion control plates. Portion control is something everybody should be doing. It helps you divide up your calories and nutritional values. In fact, recently the USDA changed the much beloved food pyramid to a plate just to help assist people.
Although this is a great idea since much of the obesity epidemic is related to how people divide up their plate, what happens at restraunts when you get something like this (hand shown for comparison):
The thing that catches is my eye is the ratio of the food (veggies to grains to protein) is about on par, but it is the volume of food that is rediculous. So how do you combat this? Be prepared to take some home. I have never been to a restaurant that did not have a to-go box. The misfortune of mexican, italian and oriental restraunts usually involves the amount of food they serve, though almost every establishment is guilty of the same trend. Restraunts exist to serve food for a fair price in a portion people desire. The sad thing is these portions will probably continue to inflate with the average persons belt size. Honestly, would you eat at a place that served you only a 3oz chicken breast, 2 cups steamed broccoli & carrots, and maybe 1/2 cup of steamed rice and charged $3.50? The magic of restaurants is that they serve things you do not ordinarily eat at home. They were meant as a treat originally, but now have become a staple. But since we are trying to become healthy, let us remember to dine out only occasionally.
Now, another thing you can which may be more beneficial to vacationers who cannot take a meal back to the refrigerator-less room is to eye-ball your portions.
I prefer the eye-ball aproach (as long as you are being honest with yourself) because few of us carry around food scales and measuring utensils. So here are some standards (and approximate caloric values):
Cheese (1 oz) = a ping-pong ball is 110 cals
Potato (1 small) = a computer mouse is 130 cals
Chicken (3 oz) a deck of playing cards is 95 cals
Hamburger (3 oz) = a mayonnaise jar lid is 265 cals
Nuts (1 oz) = a cupped palm is 160 cals
Salad dressing (2 tbsp) = a full shot glass is 170 cals
Rice (1/2 cup cooked) = an ice cream scoop is 130 cals
Fish (3 oz) = a checkbook is 130 cals
If you follow these portioning guidelines, and order intelligently (obviously deep fried chicken smothered and covered is slightly outside the scope of using the eye-ball method of measurement) then a meal out does not have to be a nightmarish experience, it can still be fun and full of flavor and your scale will thank you!
Although this is a great idea since much of the obesity epidemic is related to how people divide up their plate, what happens at restraunts when you get something like this (hand shown for comparison):
The thing that catches is my eye is the ratio of the food (veggies to grains to protein) is about on par, but it is the volume of food that is rediculous. So how do you combat this? Be prepared to take some home. I have never been to a restaurant that did not have a to-go box. The misfortune of mexican, italian and oriental restraunts usually involves the amount of food they serve, though almost every establishment is guilty of the same trend. Restraunts exist to serve food for a fair price in a portion people desire. The sad thing is these portions will probably continue to inflate with the average persons belt size. Honestly, would you eat at a place that served you only a 3oz chicken breast, 2 cups steamed broccoli & carrots, and maybe 1/2 cup of steamed rice and charged $3.50? The magic of restaurants is that they serve things you do not ordinarily eat at home. They were meant as a treat originally, but now have become a staple. But since we are trying to become healthy, let us remember to dine out only occasionally.
Now, another thing you can which may be more beneficial to vacationers who cannot take a meal back to the refrigerator-less room is to eye-ball your portions.
I prefer the eye-ball aproach (as long as you are being honest with yourself) because few of us carry around food scales and measuring utensils. So here are some standards (and approximate caloric values):
Cheese (1 oz) = a ping-pong ball is 110 cals
Potato (1 small) = a computer mouse is 130 cals
Chicken (3 oz) a deck of playing cards is 95 cals
Hamburger (3 oz) = a mayonnaise jar lid is 265 cals
Nuts (1 oz) = a cupped palm is 160 cals
Salad dressing (2 tbsp) = a full shot glass is 170 cals
Rice (1/2 cup cooked) = an ice cream scoop is 130 cals
Fish (3 oz) = a checkbook is 130 cals
If you follow these portioning guidelines, and order intelligently (obviously deep fried chicken smothered and covered is slightly outside the scope of using the eye-ball method of measurement) then a meal out does not have to be a nightmarish experience, it can still be fun and full of flavor and your scale will thank you!
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