Learning the Art of Portion Control with Food

We live in a culture where we are taught over and over to “clean our plate.”  We have a belief that since people are starving (which saddens me) elsewhere on Earth that we need to not “waste” our food. However, the food that you just consumed in excess is not hurting you and is not helping the children who are hungry.  I am hoping we can shift this belief system with the next generation. I always advise my children to only eat when they feel hungry and to stop eating when they fell satiated. What a concept!!  I love helping all of my HCG Diet patients to gain control over the way in which they choose food and eat it!

Eat when you are Hungry and Stop Eating When you Feel Full

What would happen if every time you went to the fridge or the pantry you asked yourself first, “Am I really hungry?”  I bet that most of the time, the answer would be a clear NO!  I also like to take that a step further … when you do feel hungry and you are about to take a bite you could ask yourself, “will this food nourish me?”  If the answer is no, maybe you should reconsider and begin to shift the pattern!

Most of the time in today’s developed nations, we do not actually eat because we feel hungry or have a physiological need for food. We eat because we are bored, we eat for entertainment, we eat for every emotion that makes up the human landscape. This takes awareness but we can work with it and begin to change it.  Soon enough, it will become second nature to eat when hunger strikes and to put the food down once we feel comfortable.

Tips for Maintaining Portion Control

When you eat, use a small plate or a small container. Fill your plate/container with healthy fare first. After you eat the plate of food as yourself the question, “am I still hungry?”  If the answer is NO then get up and move on from food. If you are truly hungry then enjoy another portion of food on your small plate.

Some people that I know use the “bite method” to help with portion control. With this method, you can put food on your plate and allow yourself a certain number of bites. After you have slowly had your bites, you can then ask yourself … “am I still hungry,” and proceed with a good decision from there.

With snacks, put the popcorn or chips or whatever you are going for in a very small dish and go for more if you really want to (we all know you do not “need” to).  All too often, it is easy to open the bag and just keep mindlessly eating!

Take time to savor the taste of your food. The goal of eating should never be to get stuffed.

Categories: Body Composition, Eating Well, food addiction, Food Information, HCG Weight Loss, Meal Prep and Recipes, Mindful Eating, Weight Loss