Shelli Thompson's blog is dedicated to assisting others find their way to a healthy life style.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Portion size is directly related to your size.



What's up with portion size?

I sat down and looked at the breakfast menu. I'm really a "lunch Lover" but I do understand the importance of breakfast. It starts your day off with energy and prepares you to face the day ahead.

So I decide on an omelet. I didn't notice anyone else being served an omelet or I would have had second thoughts. So we sip on some coffee, breakfast comes and they sit this omelet in front of me that fills a 12 in plate, see for your self. Don't get me wrong, the omelet was not bad tasting, in fact in was delicious, the 1/3 of the omelet I ate was delicious.

As I looked at the 2/3 that was being wasted because I couldn't eat it (it came with potatoes, on a separate plate) and wondered if it would be enough breakfast for just one other person or if it would actually stretch to another person too. How many people are hungry or kids go to school with nothing in their stomach?

So we decided to put it to the test. The next time we ordered the omelet knowing how big it was and split the thing, there was still some left over, maybe only enough for a child but still if you were a family of 3 this omelet would feed the entire family. We were told that some people come in and eat the entire thing them self.

You can imagine that this got me to thinking again about the biggest problem we have in the United States and that is obesity. WE ARE EATING OUR SELF SICK. The biggest medical costs come from diseases that could be avoided, like diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and complications from these illnesses. Guess what? The illnesses I just mentioned are mostly diet related. WE ARE DOING IT TO OUR SELF, with all of the fast food, large portions, packaged and prepared foods that are loaded with things we can't pronounce.

Write down one of those words that are in the ingredients that you can't pronounce and Google it to see what it is. Then don't just "know" what it is, do something about it and cut-it-out of your diet.

There are some things that you can do to help your self out

1. Always ask for a smaller portion or order from the light eaters menu.

2. Only eat 1/2 of a restaurant serving.

3. Go a little further and ask for a "to go" container and put 1/2 of your meal away at the gate.

4. Make eating out a "treat". Home cooking allows much more control of what is consumed

5. Don't go out to eat when "starving". Make sure and have a healthy snack to curb appetite a bit.

6. Don't eat until you are full. Save 30% of your stomach for digestion.

To find out more read my article: Sick and Eating.

And until next time,

Take Really Good Care of Your Self.

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