Trying to lose weight? Avoiding unhealthy snacks and still getting nowhere? It might be time to look at the portion size of the food you eat.
Weight management is about balancing the calories you eat with those you use up. And losing weight means using up more calories than you eat.
Portions must be big enough to provide all the nutrients you need, but it's all too easy to eat more than you need, even when you're eating nutritious food. For example, wholewheat pasta is high in fibre and a really healthy basis for a meal, but a small second portion could add another 170 calories from the pasta alone, never mind the sauce!
Portion distortion
The size of many standard foods has changed over the years. Thin sliced bread is less common than it used to be, and extra-thick sliced loaves are available now. Normal biscuits have changed little but the fresh cookies baked in-store are much bigger. Scones and muffins from a coffee bar can be twice the size of those in shops. Ready meals tend to be bigger, often as much as 500g where 15 years ago they were 250g.
With all this going on it's no wonder many of us eat more than we need and gain weight. So, eating a varied, balanced diet is absolutely essential for health but remember that the amount of food you eat can have a big impact on your weight.
Measure up
First, try pouring out what you'd usually eat, then weigh it. A portion of pasta for an adult should weigh around 100g before it's cooked - did you get close to that?
Weighing everything you cook isn't always practical so visualising a true portion size can make life easier. For example, how much cheese goes in your sandwich, or on your jacket potato? It should be about the size of a small matchbox.
Remember that this advice is very general - you may need to eat more or less depending on your gender, age and level of activity.
Here are some examples to help you understand portion sizes (they may be smaller than you think!):
- Butter or margarine - half a forefinger
- Medium potato - computer mouse
- Meat or chicken - deck of cards
- Ice-cream - tennis ball
- Dried fruit or nuts - large egg
- Jam or peanut butter - golf ball
Lovefoodhatewaste.com has an easy-to-use portion calculator, which gives a guide to adult and children portion sizes for most foods. The portion calculator will give you a good idea of how much to buy and cook, so not only will overcooking be a thing of the past, it will help you reduce your food waste too. With a little practice, you'll find you can easily adjust the portion sizes to fit your family's needs.
Often it's more economical to cook large quantities but it's important to resist eating it all in one sitting if you don't want to pile on the pounds. Instead, save it and use it for another meal - or two.
Lovefoodhatewaste.com has brilliant recipes for all your leftovers, including ones perfect for lunch! In the UK we throw away one-third of the food we buy, costing UK families £50 every month. Not only does throwing away food have a big impact on your purse, it has a big impact on the environment too. If we stopped wasting good food it would be the same as taking 1 in 5 cars off the road.
Visit www.lovefoodhatewaste.com for more on portion control and cutting your food waste.
