Tips to Control Your Portions
By Sara Butler
If there is one thing that can thwart the good intentions of healthy eaters everywhere, it's portion sizes. If you're trying to reach or maintain a healthy weight, the portion sizes are where a lot of your focus should be. People tend to eat what is in front of them. So, if they have three servings in front of them, they'll end up eating all three. Don't fall victim to the ever-growing portion sizes in the world today. Instead, commit these tips to memory to help you control how much you eat in a sitting.
Tip No. 1: Shrink Your Dinnerware
One of the best ways to feel like you're getting more is to use smaller plates, glasses, or spoons. Researchers have consistently found that the size of your dinnerware can have an impact on how much food you eat.
So, swap out your usual bowls, plates, and spoons for smaller ones and see how it impacts how full you feel after a meal!
Tip No. 2: Let Your Plate be a Portion Guide
If you don't want to spend a lot of time weighing or measuring foods, then you can still control portion sizes by using your plate as a guide.
A rough way to portion your plate out is:
- Half the plate should be filled with vegetables or salad
- One-quarter of the plate should have a high-quality protein
- One-quarter should have complex carbohydrates such as whole grains
- Half a tablespoon should be reserved for high-fat foods such as butter or oil
This is a very rough guide, but it'll put you on the right track!
Tip No. 3: Use Your Hands
Your hands can also help you understand your serving sizes. Here's how to utilize your hands to gauge your portion sizes:
- Your palm - Women should eat one palm-sized serving of protein while men need two palms worth.
- Your fist - Salads and vegetables should be one fist-sized portion for women and two for men.
- Your cupped hand - High carbohydrate foods such as whole grains should be one cupped-hand portion for women, two for men.
- Your thumb - For high-fat foods such as butter and nuts, one thumb-sized portion is right for women while two will do it for men.
Portion sizes are one factor of your health that you have total control over. So, make sure you're eating the appropriate amounts of food to help you maintain a healthy weight.
To learn more about your health, wellness, and fitness, see your local chiropractor at The Joint Chiropractic in Mukilteo, Wash.