FitSugar

Smarter Eats: Use Smaller Plates and Grab It to Go

FitSugar — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:30:34 -0700

I grew up in a house where I was told to clean my plate. Not always a bad thing but it stuck with me for many years, even after serving sizes kept growing. I'm also a fast eater, something I've been working on, but I sometimes overeat before realizing I am full. A few things I've done to help kick my habits are using smaller plates and always taking food to go.

After inheriting some dishware from my grandmother I noticed that the dinner plates used during her era are much smaller than the ones we use today. I now use these dishes at home, which has reduced my portion size - yet I'm just as satisfied after every meal. Scientists confirmed that the brain takes visual cues when it comes to eating. If we see it, we somehow believe that we have to eat it and will end up feeling unsatiated even if we're physically full.

Portion sizes are out of control in restaurants. To remedy this I usually have half of my meal packed up to enjoy as lunch the next day. I don't go out of my way to starve myself, but it's always pretty obvious when you're given too much food at one sitting. If it's a restaurant I frequent a lot and know that the portion is going to be big, I ask my server ahead of time to make me a doggie bag before the plate even gets to my table.

Healthy Eating Tip: Use Measuring Cups Every Time

FitSugar — Mon, 11 May 2009 03:00:00 -0700

You've made the switch to healthy cooking - olive oil instead of butter and whole grains instead of processed carbs - but you're not losing weight. Even if you're loading up on tons of healthy food choices, it won't matter if you are consuming tons of calories.

The best way to make sure you're eating appropriate serving sizes is to be scientific about it. Keep measuring cups and spoons handy when it comes to everything you prepare. Don't just eyeball a half a cup of granola or freely pour marinara sauce over your pasta. Chances are you'll overestimate and not even realize you're eating half a cup of almonds instead of a quarter cup serving. The same goes when you're cooking. Measure out two tablespoons of olive oil instead of just pouring it from the bottle. If you have items that are difficult to measure, such as meat, chicken, or fish, use a food scale instead. You don't have to be anal about it, just be aware. The extra small amounts of food you eat over time really add up, so if losing weight is on your mind, use measuring cups every time you eat.

What Counts Toward Your Daily Fruit and Vegetable Intake?

FitSugar — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 04:30:00 -0700

Several fruits and vegetables come into their prime during the Spring and Summer seasons, making it cheaper and easier for us to reach our daily requirements. Striving to eat five colors a day is a fun way to meet your nutritional needs, but do you know what size portions you should be eating to fulfill your daily five? Take the quiz to find out!

Source

Take the quiz

Visual Reminder: What Portion Sizes Look Like

FitSugar — Tue, 13 Jan 2009 08:01:31 -0800

Serving sizes have grown so much in recent years that we barely remember what an average portion is supposed to look like. When restaurants offer us tremendous amounts of food, it's difficult to put down the fork and say "done," even after you're full. Overeating can sabotage your goals of reaching or maintaining a healthy weight, so here's a visual guideline from ABC showing how big the portion sizes on your plate should be.

Food	Portion Size
3 oz. of meat	Deck of cards
Baked potato	Computer mouse
Bagel	Hockey puck
Potato chips, pretzels, popcorn	Teacup
Rice	Cupcake wrapper
1 oz. of cheese	Roll of film
Nuts	Egg
Pasta	Lightbulb

To see a video clip about portion sizes from ABC, read more.

Fit Tip: Curious to know more about what serving size measurements look like? Then check out this handy chart.

Source

Do You Measure Out Serving Sizes?

FitSugar — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 04:30:00 -0700

When it comes to portion control, it's not a bad idea to measure out serving sizes. This way you know how many calories you are truly eating. It trains you to understand what one cup or ounce looks like. After I started measuring serving sizes, I realized that my previous estimated amounts were always more than the actual portion. This meant that I was eating more than I thought. Now, I've learned and eyeball my portions with an occasional refresher course. So I was wondering . . .

Do You Know Your Serving Sizes?

FitSugar — Wed, 21 May 2008 04:30:00 -0700

We are in the era of super sizing, with food portions growing out of control. Do you know your food serving sizes? Knowing so will keep your portions under control. Take this quiz and test your serving size smarts.

Source

Take the quiz

What Does 300 Calories Look Like?

FitSugar — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 12:30:00 -0700

I've showed you what 200 calories looks like, and I've showed you how you can burn 200 calories, but check out this video. It shows what 300 calorie meals look like. If you're watching your calories, it's great to see visuals, since 300 calories can be a lot or a small amount of food. I'm in no way saying that your meals should only be 300 calories, but it's a great starting point. You can always add 100 to 200 calories with your beverage, condiments, extra snacks, fruit, and dessert.

Label Able: The Basics

FitSugar — Tue, 29 Jan 2008 11:00:00 -0800

Reading nutritional labels can be tough, so it's nice to review the basics every once in a while. I found this little rundown of label basics from WebMD really helpful and simple, so I wanted to share.

Here are highlights:

Serving Size. Serving sizes are based on the amount of food people typically eat, which makes them realistic and easy to compare to similar foods. This may or may not be the serving amount you normally eat. It is important that you pay attention to the serving size, including the number of servings in the package and compare it to how much you actually eat. The size of the serving on the food package influences all the nutrient amounts listed on the top part of the label. For example, if a package has 4 servings and you eat the entire package, you quadruple the calories, fat, etc. that you have eaten.

There's a lot more great info, so read more.

Calories and Calories From Fat. The number of calories and grams of nutrients are provided for the stated serving size. This is the part of the food label where you will find the amount of fat per serving.
Nutrients. This section lists the daily amount of each nutrient in the food package. These daily values are the reference numbers that are set by the government and are based on current nutrition recommendations. Some labels list daily values for both 2,000 and 2,500 calorie diets.
- "% Daily Value." Shows how a food fits into a 2,000 calorie/day diet. For diets other than 2,000 calories, divide by 2,000 to determine the % Daily Value for nutrients. For example, if you are following a 1,500 calorie diet, your % Daily Value goal will be based on 75% for each nutrient, not 100%.
- Fat, saturated fat and cholesterol. Choose foods with a low % Daily Value. For total carbohydrates, dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals, try to reach your goal for each nutrient.
Ingredients. Each product should list the ingredients on the label. They are listed from largest to smallest amount (by weight). This means a food contains the largest amount of the first ingredient and the smallest amount of the last ingredient.

Label claims can be misleading as well, so be sure you've got those figured out too!

Source

What Does a Serving Size Look Like?

FitSugar — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 11:45:00 -0800

When it comes to maintaining a healthy weight, there is so much talk about portion size. Since we're living in the age of Super Size Me, bottomless this and all-you-can-eat that, we've really lost sight of what an actual serving size is.

I made a chart to help us get a handle on what a serving size of most foods looks like. Want to see it? Then read more

Food	1 Serving Equals...
Breads, pasta, cereal, cooked grain, etc.	1 slice of bread (looks like a CD case) 1/2 a bagel (the size of a hockey puck) 1 cup cereal (looks like two hands cupped together) 1/2 cup cooked grain or pasta (one cupped palm)
Fruits	1 piece of fruit (the size of a tennis ball) 1/2 cup cut up fruit, raw, cooked, frozen, or canned (looks like 7 cotton balls) 1/4 cup dried fruit 3/4 cup 100% fruit juice
Veggies	1/2 cup cut up veggie, raw, cooked, frozen, or canned (looks like the bulb part of a light bulb) 1/2 cup cooked, canned or frozen legumes 1 cup leafy greens 3/4 cup 100% vegetable juice
Meat, chicken, or fish	3 ounces (looks like a deck of cards or a checkbook) 1 egg
Dairy	1oz. of cheese (1 oz. looks like 2, 9-volt batteries) 1/2 cup ice cream, cottage cheese or pudding 1 cup milk or yogurt
Nuts	1/3 cup (a small handful) 1 tbsp nut butter (size of both your thumbs)

Source

More From Amy's Kitchen: Organic Vegetable Barley Soup

FitSugar — Tue, 07 Aug 2007 11:00:00 -0700

Amy's Kitchen is one of my favorite brands since many of their products are made with whole organic grains, veggies, and herbs, with NO bizarre fillers you've never heard of. The ingredients in their products are always simple, straightforward, and things you'd use if you had the time and energy to make a meal yourself.

I've already tried (and loved) Amy's frozen entrées - the Vegetable Lasagna and Stuffed Pasta Shells are delicious, low in saturated fat and calories, and very filling. So I decided to venture into Amy's array of canned soups.

I tried the Organic Vegetable Barley Soup and it was surprisingly flavorful. You know how canned soups can be pretty bland or way too salty, right? Well this soup had a delicious onion, garlic and leek-based broth. When I stirred it around, I could see whole pieces of cooked peas, carrots, tomatoes, celery, yellow squash, and barley. This soup has a very soft consistency, which I loved, but some people might like soups with a bit more firmness.

Want to see the nutritional info and what this soup actually looks like? Then read more

As I was sipping my soup, I took a closer look at the nutritional info and was pleased by the low amount of calories, sugar and fat. I was NOT pleased to discover that there were actually 2 servings per can. I did feel full after eating half the can, but seriously, who only eats half a can of soup? I guess if I bring this soup for lunch, I should pack a reusable container along with it to store the other serving.

I should only eat half this can of soup considering 1 serving contains 580mg of sodium! That seems a bit high, when you consider that the RDI of sodium is 2,300 mg a day. If I ate the entire can, I'd be getting 1,160mg of sodium which is more than half the amount I should be getting all day, but it's just in one meal!

Fit's Tips: Canned soups and pre-made meals are often high in sodium, so if you have high blood pressure, be extra vigilant about checking labels and serving sizes.