potion sizes!!!

[hadley1979]

Hi all, I have just started to weigh out my food as I found that guesstimating my food weight values left me gaining weigh instead of loosing weight.

OMG! Recommended portions are SO small. I am now surprised that I didn't gain more than 2 lb. Loosing weight is going to be a lot harder than I thought. Does anyone else struggle with option sizes and self control?

[Tave · Accepted solution]

I am a volume person when it comes to eating.  When I started analyzing calories by weight of foods I liked, I was also disappointed.  But, I also love veggies (always have) and realized you get a lot of bang for what you eat in veggies.  Now, veggies comprise the larger portion of what I eat, and I don't get upset at eating smaller portions of the other calorically dense foods. 

---

@hadley1979 wrote:

Hi all, I have just started to weigh out my food as I found that guesstimating my food weight values left me gaining weigh instead of loosing weight.

OMG! Recommended portions are SO small. I am now surprised that I didn't gain more than 2 lb. Loosing weight is going to be a lot harder than I thought. Does anyone else struggle with option sizes and self control?

---

[hadley1979]

Thanks for the reply Tave. I am a vegetarian so veggies make up a good portion of my intake, as do fruits. I have a very sweet tooth though and carbs are like my oxygen, lol. Tbh I think I am just greedy and need some self control. Portion sizes have come as a shock as I eat with my eyes and they are not bigger than my belly

[Cindy_Phyfer]

I try to weigh everything when I'm at home so that when I do venture out to a restaurant, I have more educated guesses on portion sizes. As for sweet-tooth, I am a certified carbohydrate monster (bread, cookies, cake, etc.). Fruit tends to curb this craving. One of my favorite snacks now is an cut-up apple and a 1.5 oz container of natural Jif peanut butter. I also let myself have hot cocoa some nights if I still have enough calories left at the end of the day (I like Swiss Miss Dark Chocolate Sensations).

Self control is just that, controlling or setting boundaries with yourself. You have to decide which foods are calorically worth eating and which foods you should only have on special occasions. You should also decide which foods are what I call "red flag" foods (those foods that you tend to go crazy or out of control with, like the carbs).

Fruits and non-starchy veggies typically give me more bang for my buck. I also tend to feel better about myself after eating them. I make a mental note of some things, like cheese pizza, that got me to where I started at 420 pounds. I used to love pizza and it used to be a go-to food when I didn't feel like cooking. I have decided to let myself have it now, but on rare occasions.

I don't profess to have all the answers; these are just some things that have worked for me so far. I've been counting calories since Dec. 28th, 2015 and so far I'm down to 402 pounds. I'm eating at a 750-calorie deficit, so I've been losing roughly 1.5 pounds per week.

[emili]

@Cindy_Phyfer- awesome work!!

I myself never did portion sizes - it doesn't work for me. I work in calorie totals. I have this many for the day, this is my daily requirement of protein, carbs, fats, etc and I work it into my calories. Its probably the same thing, but I rather eat 200 calories of shrimp, than what will fit in my palm kind of thing. I eat with my eyes too and three shrimp is not going to cut it. 3 oz of broccoli won't either- 70 calories on the other hand- that will do just fine.

[Cindy_Phyfer]

@emili: thanks! I agree with you as far as quantity is concerned. Three shrimp won't cut it for me either. 🙂 That's what I meant when I said that I wanted to get the biggest bang for my buck, as well as getting quality food in every day.

I have been using the food log part of fitbit.com to track my calories. I've been trying to find out which food combinations satisfy me longer as well as take care of cravings. It''s an ongoing journey. 🙂

[hadley1979]

Thanks all. I think I am starting to get the hang of it. I am learning what will fill me on little calories (Veggies, fruit, etc) and am planning my meals better to give me 3 meals plus 3 snacks in a day without going over my allocated calories. I will getthere eventually

[Seanter]

When I first started watching calories and portion sizes, I did it gradually so that it wasn't such a shock when I got to my daily calorie goal of 1200 calories. For example, if you're currently eating 2000 calories a day, cut out 200. Do this each week until you get to the portion sizes/daily calorie goal you want to set for yourself. I never felt like I was starving myself.

[fitteacher929]

i initially weighed my portions too but found it to be hard, especially when i was eating on the run or not eating at my house.  i am using portion controlled containers now and LOVE IT.  i count the number of containers i eat but don't count calories or weight.  for ex, the carb container is smaller than the protein container.  and i am supposed to eat 2 carb containers a day, but 5 protein containers a day.

[fitteacher929]

i initially weighed my portions too but found it to be hard, especially when i was eating on the run or not eating at my house.  i am using portion controlled containers now and LOVE IT.  i count the number of containers i eat but don't count calories or weight.  for ex, the carb container is smaller than the protein container.  and i am supposed to eat 2 carb containers a day, but 5 protein containers a day. have lost 19 lbs since jan 2!

[Ukase]

Containers? Different containers for different macros? Interesting. Never have heard of such a thing. 

[fitteacher929]

@Ukase yes, there are different containers for carbs, protein, veggies, fruit, healthy fats, and dressings/seeds. it's been great to not have to weigh anything or count calories!