Week 3 - Nutrition: Portion Sizes and Control

Portion Sizes - confusing at times, isn't it? Some labels as you roll down the grocery store isle read that something like a container of cottage cheese has four serving sizes or that a box of bran flakes has up to 8 to 10 servings per box. Rarely do we ever have that spare time to go out of our way to measure all the ounces or cups to get the right serving size and count our calories up right? 

The question that's probably grinding your gears...

Can serving size actually make me lose weight faster?

ABSOLUTELY!

There are fast easy tips you can go ahead and do as you prepare your meals each and every day that can help you get close with portion control and serving size. You eliminate extra calories and maintain your specific calorie average each week. 

Make this change in preparing your meals and you will only accelerate your weight loss.

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/patientinstructions/000337.htm

"Use your hand and other everyday objects to measure portion sizes:

• One serving of meat or poultry -- the palm of your hand or a deck of cards
• One 3-ounce serving of fish -- a checkbook
• One-half cup of ice cream -- a tennis ball
• One serving of cheese -- six dice
• One-half cup of cooked rice, pasta, or snacks such as chips or pretzels -- a rounded handful, or a tennis ball
• One serving of a pancake or waffle -- a compact disc
• Two tablespoons of peanut butter -- a ping-pong ball"

"To control your portion sizes when you’re eating at home, try the following tips:

• Don’t eat from the bag. You could be tempted to eat too much. Use the serving size on the package to portion out the snack into small bags or bowls. You can also buy single-serving portions of your favorite snack foods.
• Serve food on smaller plates. Eat from a salad plate instead of a dinner plate. Keep serving dishes on the kitchen counter so you’ll have to get up for seconds. Putting your food out of easy reach will make it harder for you to overeat.
• Substitute lower-fat varieties of food. Instead of whole-fat cream cheese, sour cream, and milk, buy low-fat or skim instead. Use half the amount you would normally use of these products to save even more calories.
• Don’t eat mindlessly. When you snack in front of the television or while doing other activities, you’ll be distracted enough that you may eat too much. Eat at the table. Focus your attention on your food so you’ll know when you’ve had enough to eat.
• Snack between meals. If you’re hungry between meals, eat a healthy, high-fiber snack such as a piece of fruit, small salad, or bowl of broth-based soup. The snack will fill you up so that you don’t eat too much at your next meal."

http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20405321_7,00.html

Portion Control, What are they?

"What are they? These are handy plates with painted lines that help measure carbohydrates, proteins, cheese, and sauces.

In a June 2007 study, researchers at the University of Calgary randomly assigned 130 people with type 2 diabetes to use those plates or regular ones. 

Overall, 17% of those who used the plate lost 5% or more of their body weight, while only 4.6% of the control group did; 26% of those who used the plate were able to cut back on diabetes medication (because they lost more weight), compared with 11% of people who did not use the plate."

Week 3: Nutrition - Role of Fiber in Maintaining a Healthy Weight

You've probably heard the idea of a high fiber diet, it's almost always a point of emphasis also on breakfast cereal commercials. Well, don't always doubt what you hear on TV.

http://www.webmd.com/diet/fiber-weight-control

Webmd - a great source. This specific article on fiber is a valuable source that I definitely recommend as a read. 

"Eating healthy high-fiber foods makes you feel full, so you can resist eating more food than you need. Fibrous foods also can take longer to chew, giving your brain time to get the signal that you have had enough to eat."

"A 2009 study in the journal Appetite compared the satiety or fullness factor of apples, applesauce, and apple juice with added fiber before lunch. People who ate an apple before lunch ate 15% fewer calories than those who ate the applesauce or drank apple juice. This suggests that the fiber in the whole apple was more filling even when compared to the juice that had added fiber." 

"Most women should get at least 25 grams and most men 38 grams each day to gain all the health benefits of fiber, according to the Institute of Medicine’s Dietary Reference Intake. The problem is that most Americans get only about half that when not on a diet and even less when dieting, especially on low-carb diets." 

"Tufts University researcher and professor of nutrition Susan Roberts, PhD, has shown that people who eat 35 to 45 grams of fiber a day are less hungry when losing weight and lose more weight than people who eat less fiber. (But beware of consuming fiber as a bulk laxative; it can sap your body of needed nutrients and vitamins.)"

 

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/fiber/art-20043983

Another great resource - check it out!

Benefits of a high-fiber diet

• Normalizes bowel movements. Dietary fiber increases the weight and size of your stool and softens it. A bulky stool is easier to pass, decreasing your chance of constipation. If you have loose, watery stools, fiber may also help to solidify the stool because it absorbs water and adds bulk to stool.
• Helps maintain bowel health. A high-fiber diet may lower your risk of developing hemorrhoids and small pouches in your colon (diverticular disease). Some fiber is fermented in the colon. Researchers are looking at how this may play a role in preventing diseases of the colon.
• Lowers cholesterol levels. Soluble fiber found in beans, oats, flaxseed and oat bran may help lower total blood cholesterol levels by lowering low-density lipoprotein, or "bad," cholesterol levels. Studies also have shown that fiber may have other heart-health benefits, such as reducing blood pressure and inflammation.
• Helps control blood sugar levels. In people with diabetes, fiber — particularly soluble fiber — can slow the absorption of sugar and help improve blood sugar levels. A healthy diet that includes insoluble fiber may also reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
• Aids in achieving healthy weight. High-fiber foods generally require more chewing time, which gives your body time to register when you're no longer hungry, so you're less likely to overeat. Also, a high-fiber diet tends to make a meal feel larger and linger longer, so you stay full for a greater amount of time. And high-fiber diets also tend to be less "energy dense," which means they have fewer calories for the same volume of food.