Category: Healthy Living

Lose Weight With These Easy Portion Control Tips

Did you know that the average restaurant meal is now four times larger than a meal in the 1950’s?  It’s no wonder that the average adult is 26 pounds heavier than sixty years ago!

You can lose weight with portion control. That’s one of the most important secrets behind weight loss.  When you cut back on portion sizes and take a balanced approach to healthy eating, you will see your weight drop.

Unlike restrictive diets which can lead to binging, portion control teaches you how to eat the foods you like in moderation. You may be asking how to control portion sizes without scales and various other measuring tools, or what to do when you eat out. Great questions!

Five Simple Tips for Portion Control:

1)  Read the fine print!  Yes! The labels will tell you how many calories, but make sure you read how many servings are in that bag of chips, energy drink, soda, box of crackers, etc.  Most snack size bags are actually two servings — not one!

2)  Are your plates super sized? Over the years it’s become fashionable to have large plates. Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell you to get new dishes! However, a plate that is smaller will appear fuller and may satisfy you more.

If you feel like you need the extra visual help, you can purchase plates that have the portion sizes built into them. Everything from plastic to china. Another way I combat the empty looking plate is to use bowls. They appear fuller and I am able to scoop out the proper portion sizes with a ladle.

3)  Develop a simple visual system. Not all plates are created equal. so it’s helpful to know what a proper serving is. Here are some visual cues/examples to help you with portion size:

  1. Vegetables or fruit: about the size of your fist.
  2. Carbohydrates like pasta, rice, and starchy vegetables: A single serving is 1/2 cup or the size of a cupcake wrapper.
  3. Meat, fish, or poultry: the size of a deck of cards or the size of your palm (minus the fingers).
  4. Snacks such as pretzels and chips: about the size of a cupped handful.
  5. Apple: the size of a baseball.
  6. Potato: the size of a computer mouse.
  7. Bagel: the size of a hockey puck.
  8. Pancakes or lunch meat: the size of a compact disc.
  9. Cheese: the size of a pair of dice or the size of your whole thumb (from the tip to the base).
  10. A tablespoon of food such as peanut butter, salad dressing, hummus:  The size of your whole thumb.

4)  It’s okay to go back for seconds! Try serving from the kitchen counter to avoid reaching mindlessly for a second helping. If after 20 minutes you are still hungry, then go back and load up on veggies or a 1/4 to 1/2 second serving.

Eating out?  No problem. Ask your server about the portion sizes. Start with one or two dishes and then decide if you want more. The kitchen will still be there!

5)  You do not have to finish everything on your plate!  Many of us were raised not to waste. This was a really important thing to teach us as children, and I am grateful for that up-bringing. Unfortunately, this has been linked to overeating in adults.

I give you full permission to leave food on your plate. You will not be sent to your room! That may sound silly. However, so much of our childhood training affects the way we look at food. If you are like me and really dislike wasting food, then simply place whatever is left in a small container. You can have it as a snack or combine it with your lunch.

So there you go! These strategies can be implemented right away to help you with weight loss. Portion control is one of the best ways to begin cutting back on unnecessary calories without depriving yourself.

Have questions or tricks to share?  I’d love to hear from you below!

Blessings to you and yours!

Jennifer

 

How do You Stay Healthy With Leisure Time Activities?

Keep Active with Leisure Time Activity!

 

Want to know a simple way to stay active in your spare time — and burn extra calories without it feeling like a “chore?” It’s easy! Increase your leisure time activity!

Leisure time physical activity is generally considered any exercise, sport or recreational activity that is not job related; is not a household task; and is not fulfilling a transportation need.

Currently, the average adult in the United States spends 90% of their leisure time sitting.  While that statistic sounds a bit scary, it’s very simple to stay active and not fall under the “average.”

Increasing leisure time activity not only helps you stay active — it can help you with your weight loss efforts, and can positively impact heart health and longevity.

Six Ways to Increase Your Leisure Time Activity:

 

1)  Find something you like!  No amount of coaxing, coaching, or fancy accountability programs will motivate you to stick to something in your leisure time that you are not interested in.

Choose activities you enjoy and that rejuvenate you.  Some examples include: playing with your kids, walking your dog, hiking with friends, walking by the water, cycling or strolling through a botanical garden. These can all be considered leisure time activities.

2)  Turn off the screen!  Pay attention to how many hours you spend watching TV and/or surfing on the internet.  Try turning off the screen for one day on the weekend.  Use that time for physically active recreation.

Sometimes it’s difficult to unplug for a whole day.  If that’s the case, decide how much time you need for your task, set a timer, and log off when you’re done.  Then, go do something more physically active.

3)  Exercise with purpose!  Local walks/runs for charities are great leisure activities that also raise money for your favorite causes.

4)  Ditch the car.  Take advantage of any opportunity to leave your car parked and walk.

5)  Track your progress!  Step counters are a great way to measure an increase in activity.  Seeing the effects of walking to the movies, throwing the ball with your kids, or taking the dog to the park will inspire you to keep it up.  Whether you are athletic or not, a monitor can also motivate you to be competitive with yourself — which can lead to an increase in activity.

6)  Try something new.  Have a desire to try a new activity?  Commit to trying it one time.  Who knows? You may hit the jackpot and find something you want to keep up regularly.

Some examples would be horseback riding, a golf lesson, visiting the museum, hiking in a park you haven’t been to and having a picnic, or strolling at a mall you’ve never been to.

No matter what you choose, keep it fun.  It is leisure time after all!

Here’s to staying active!

Jennifer

 

 

How to Get Enough Water, Even If You Hate Water

Everyone tells you to drink more water– and  it’s life threatening if you don’t get enough.

But what if you really hate to drink water?

First of all, I get it.  Some people really don’t like drinking water.  It’s normally not because they “hate” the taste of water. It’s usually because water doesn’t have any taste at all.  Simply put, water by itself can be boring!

However, not only is it important to stay hydrated for health reasons, being properly hydrated also helps you lose weight.  

Let me explain.

Water does help you lose weight! Here’s how:

  • Two glasses of water prior to a meal helped middle aged and older adults feel full longer, research studies found.
  • Water cuts out a ton of calories when you replace your regular beverage with water!
  • Guess what? A hydrated body looks leaner. Why? Because when you’re dehydrated, you retain water. Yikes!
  • I bet the magazine rack has at least one headline screaming “Rev up your metabolism with this one trick!” Well, here’s a good one. Just drink enough and your body will be able to metabolize properly. When you’re dehydrated, your metabolism may slow down. We all know what that means for weight loss!

So how much water should you be drinking?

It depends.  The suggested guidelines for water consumption used to be sixty-four ounces per day.  While it is still a good amount of water for some, others may need more. Here are some guidelines to help you decide:

Drink more fluids when you are in situations where your body loses water:

  • in warmer climates,
  • during more intense exercise,
  • at high altitudes.

Try to be more aware of your water intake:

  • if you’re the type of person who usually doesn’t notice thirst; or
  • when you are very busy and likely to forget to drink.
  • If you talk for a living.  Water is lost though saliva.

Five tips to increase your fluid intake:

1) Try naturally flavored waters.  Flavored water and various other “hydrating” drinks usually have some type of sugar in them, pay attention to the calories on the label.

An alternative to buying flavored waters would be making your own.  The possibilities are endless.  Cucumber, mint, ginger, lemon, lime, strawberries, and raspberries are all examples of natural foods and herbs you can flavor your water with.

2) Eat food that’s mostly water.  Choose foods high in water like oranges, watermelon, yoghurt, grapefruit, pineapples, and broth-based soups.

(3) Replace still water with sparkling water.  If you discover sparkling water  works for you, consider getting an in home soda machine. They take up very little counter space. You also save money and there are less bottles to recycle. This helped my husband Matthew go from not liking water to drinking plenty of it!

4)  Coffe and tea can help.  Coffee and tea count as fluids, but the caffeine is a diuretic which can leave you dehydrated if you don’t follow up with other non-caffeinated beverages.  Choosing naturally caffeine free herbal teas and decaf coffees will help you get the fluids without losing as much water.

5) Have a hydrating beverage with every meal.  Tacking a new goal on to an established habit is usually less daunting than trying to develop a new habit on it’s own.  For example setting a goal of drinking a glass of sparkling water at dinner seems more manageable than a goal to drink 64 oz. of water every day.

How do you know when you’re getting enough water?

  • The best way to tell if you are hydrated is the color of your urine.  Clear to pale yellow is ideal. Yellow to dark yellow means you need water, and if it looks like tea or beer you are dehydrated!  Supplements can also cause urine to be dark yellow. So keep that in consideration.
  • Avoid allowing yourself to get “thirsty”.  If you are getting a thirst signal then the body is already too low on water!

At first it may seem like you have to go to the bathroom a lot. This is normal when you up your water consumption. It is not uncommon to have to use the restroom every hour.

If you sit at a desk, this will encourage you to get up and move every hour. It also allows you to monitor your progress!

Here is a fun recipe for Raspberry water courtesy of Face Magic in Albany, CA.

Raspberry Water

  • 1 Pitcher of Water
  • 1 bag of Frozen Organic Raspberries
  • Place the raspberries in the water and allow it to turn the water a pinkish red color.  Pour in nice glasses and enjoy!

Have a question or a comment?  Leave a note for me below.  I love to hear from you!

Blessings!

Jennifer Ledford