Monday, June 09, 2008

Portion Control

I know I have talked about portion control, but I’m going to talk about it again in depth… Why?  Because it is one of the most important aspects of losing weight. 

I got on my scale this morning again - and yes, I realize that it is only 3 days after I got on last time - but I have been feeling great lately… I’ve been doing everything right, I walked Friday, Saturday, and today.  Before that though I’ve been working on my portion control - and I mean seriously working on it.  And it’s paying off in a huge way!  I lost another 2.8 pounds since I weighed myself on Thursday.  That seems excessive and it is - but you have to remember, I am a lot larger than most of you skinny minnies out there, LOL.  I’ll give you the big number on Friday (because I have 4 more days to lose more) but let me tell you - I’ve dropped 8.2 pounds now since my weigh in a couple of weeks ago.  All because of portion control.  Up until this weekend I wasn’t exercising - not for any reason in particular, but I just hadn’t.  I decided that I would focus on my eating and see how I could do with that.  I actually found a list that I have taped to my refrigerator that I find very helpful in reminding me my tips for portion control.  I am indeed eating 5 small meals a day as we all should but more importantly, I’m making those meals even smaller.  That sounds so simplistic but the fact is that I’m not hungry and I’m not feeling deprived. 

If you remember my post on what happened at the movies that is what spurred me on to stop making excuses and start making the most of my life - and that is what I’m doing.  So, I got out my cookbooks, made my meal plan (all of which I have stuck to by the way) and made a grocery list that consisted of small healthy snacks and healthy dinners.  I went a step further and started to make a list of what I was eating per day so that I wouldn’t have any decisions to make.  Sure, I splurged - today for instance… there was a birthday party for one of my sons friend and I had 2 slices of pizza and half of a cupcake.  But I knew that and ate light for breakfast, lunch, and my snacks.  I also only had a banana for my nighttime snack.  That is what it is all about - making healthy decisions everyday regarding portion control.  I could have eaten 3 pieces, or heck even 4 because I do love my pizza… but I stuck to 2 of the smallest pieces and only half of my cupcake.  Not bad I think! 

Anyhow, back to my portion control list - this is the exact one I have hanging on my fridge -

1. Break Leftovers Down
Instead of using one large container to store leftovers such as casseroles, side dishes, or pasta, why not separate them into individually-sized containers? 

That way, when you reach in the fridge to find something to reheat, you’re retrieving just enough for one helping. Breaking down meal-sized servings into single servings will help you limit your food intake with no additional effort.

2. Say Yes to Salads
Eating a salad before lunch or dinner is a sure-fire way to keep from overeating.

It will help curb your appetite and give you a sense of satiety sooner.  Of course, we’re not talking a little bit of iceberg lettuce here. To reap full portion control benefits from rabbit food, load up your salad with veggies or even lean meat like turkey cubes. The fiber in the veggies will help you feel fuller and lean meat’s protein will give you an instant energy boost.

3. Single out Trigger Foods
Buy snack foods in single serving sizes or divvy up full size packages into smaller, individual bags. 

It may be difficult to stop eating your favorite foods - like Cheetos which is my personal favorite (I think I only mentioned this like 100 times on this blog, lol) so instead of not getting them and depriving myself, I first got the 100 calorie bags of the baked Cheetos but that didn’t work because I ended up eating like 2 or 3 bags, lol.  So, instead I bought the baked Cheetos large bag and spent the time to put them into individual baggies.  For some reason that stops me from eating more than one baggie of them - mainly because they are larger than the 100 calorie packs so I feel like I’m getting more.  It’s about 14 cheetos per 130 calories which is perfect for lunch. 

4. Master Mini Meals
You can make sure your blood sugar stays at an even keel and keep hunger at bay by eating healthful small meals throughout the day.

Mini meals help you to maintain your weight and keep her energy level up. Mini meals are by far the best way to prevent overeating because you’ll get never too hungry and lose control of your portion intake.

5. Keep Seconds Out of Sight
Don’t serve family meals family-style. Keep pots and dishes away from the table where it’s all too easy to go for seconds.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve rethought my second helpings as I’ve made my way from the table to the stove top. I’ve often told myself to sit back down and wait it out. Remember, it takes about 20 minutes to feel satiated. By giving myself that “breather” I’ve realized I wasn’t hungry enough for another helping after all.

6. Make Meat a Side Dish (Sorry Queenie!! But you know just ignore this one)
Treat meat or meat-based entrees as a side dish rather than the main part of your meal.

By loading up on veggies and healthy grains as the bulk of your meal instead of using them as sides, you’ll feel full sooner and get extra vitamins and fiber. Experiment with new vegetables and preparation methods to keep things interesting.

7. Meet Yourself Halfway
Make lunch a two-fer. Your mid-day meal can work double duty by being shared or serving as dinner.

At work, why not split take out with a buddy? At a restaurant, pack up half of your meal before you even start eating: Voila! You have an instant dinner!

8. Be a Kid at Heart (or Tummy?)
Order a kid’s size meal when you go to fast food places to automatically control portions (and save money!).

Don’t be embarrassed about asking for a child’s meal. It’s really no big deal. I’ve even got a trick for places that have a “12 and under sign” I order it to go and then plop right down in the kitchen, eat my meal, and give the toy to my son - works like a charm and keeps me from being depraved on eating out as well.  It’s like a double tip!! 

9. Serving Standards
Learn to “eyeball” standard portion sizes and stick to them when dining out or dishing up meals.

Keep these tips in mind: 3 oz. of meat is the size of a deck of cards or an audio tape; 1 oz. of meat is the size of a matchbook; 1 cup of potatoes, rice or pasta looks like a tennis ball.

10. Treat Yourself
And last, but not least ... indulge!

Treating yourself once in a while to a “forbidden” food will keep you from feeling deprived; a sense of deprivation can easily lead to overeating. Stop a binge before it starts by indulging every now and then.  As you can see, I have learned to indulge and still stick to my portions.  It is a lot easier than even I have ever thought! 

This list allows me to remind myself that I am human and I make mistakes (obviously or I wouldn’t be this big to begin with!) but when I forgot my portion control rules I just look at the list and pick one or two to follow for the meal, or the day.  Again, this may all sound simplistic but for me, I have to start somewhere.  I can’t commit to running a mile in 10 minutes; I can’t commit to never eating ice cream again; I can’t even commit to eating only 1500 calories per day… but what I can do is commit to controlling my portions which will allow me to drop weight as I build up my motivation in other ways.  I’m telling you - the more you lose the more you are motivated to lose… because today I feel like I can actually lose it all I know, I know.... baby steps

Saturday, June 07, 2008

Queenie and the Bean Sprouts

See Queenie’s sprouter. See Queenie’s sprouter grow delicious fresh sprouts. See Queenie happy and healthy.  This is my sprouter. I purchased it for 19 dollars on Amazon. I had no idea at the time, how addicting this nice little appliance was going to be for me. Otherwise, I would have purchased 2 or 3 of them. This handy little gadget grows me three different types of sprouts, fresh in my kitchen in only 4 days. I love my sprouter almost as much as I love sprouts. Beneficial little things too. They are a famous health food. But they are also getting some good press as being disease fighters too. Sprouts contain plant compounds that can help protect us against diseases. Alfalfa sprouts have an amino acid in them that has shown to protect against pancreatic, colon and leukemia cancers. Plant estrogens increase bone formation and density and prevent osteoporosis. They are also helpful in controlling hot flashes, menopause, PMS and fibrocystic breasts tumors.

Alfalfa sprouts also have another compound, saponins. Saponins lower the bad cholesterol and fat but not the good HDL fats. In English, this helps the fight against heart disease.  Saponins also stimulate the immune system by increasing the activity of natural killer cells such as T- lymphocytes and interferon. Lots of technical speak just to say that sprouts are a whole lot of power, packed into a tiny little food.

My kids compare this to eating grass. As a matter of fact, that is what they call it. “Could we have some grass on that sandwich?” Creative aren’t they? The fact is, sprouts are versatile little foods. I add mine to salads, sandwiches, tacos, eggrolls. Anything that would normally be a good place for lettuce...I add sprouts. I have just recently begun to sample the larger rooted sprouts. Sunflower sprouts are amazing. You can make entire salads with them. Yumm. With sprouts being so easy to grow yourself, there is no reason why you should not be eating them either. 

Friday, June 06, 2008

Weigh In Friday!

Quite frankly, lately I have been up and down about weighing in but this week I kicked some ass!  I lost 3.4 pounds I could have even lost more by now because I weighed in early, because you know, I just felt… lighter, lol.  I wish I could say that it was all that exercise but nope - it was better food choices.  I really made a very conscious effort to watch everything I ate.  I worked very hard at my portion control and not snacking mindlessly.  I did walk 2 days but it wasn’t anything to write home about… about 30 minutes each time.  But I felt good that I made that effort as well as constantly checking my food intake.  I ate home this week all except one day which I’m sure made a huge difference as well. 

My water intake is something to be desired though - normally I’m a 6 bottle a day water drinker but I admit to doing something I haven’t done regularly in 3 years plus… I bought a bottle of soda this week, and I drank it.  The whole thing.  A couple of months ago I had a soda at my friend Millie’s house (yes Millie - I’m talking about you and your diet coke, lol) and I just couldn’t stop thinking about.  Occasionally I would get a soda while going out rather than getting unsweetened ice tea which I normally do.  Then it became a little more than occasionally - like a soda every 2 weeks.  Now I actually bought a bottle.  I’m doomed! OMG when you stop drinking soda so long you forget how wonderful it tastes - the bubbly fizz, the super taste, and just the thrill of seeing it in my refrigerator made me realize that just like an alcoholic can’t have just one drink, I can’t drink even one soda. 

So, I’m going back to sodas anonymous and giving it up yet again.  Granted I surely am not as bad as I used to be I can feel the need to get more soda than before, and that is pretty scary.  So, I’m officially committing to all of you that I will not even drink one soda - not even at Millie’s house

So, enough about me… how did you all do this week?  I predict big weight losses - so c’mon and tell me how you did already!!