You are on a great diet plan, trying your best to eat only the healthiest food available on earth, meticulously weighing your culinary moves and adequately spacing time between your meals, yet you are unable to fit into your favorite sizes. Maybe it’s time to have a keen look at the portions you are gulping each day without realizing that healthy foods too add to your calorie count. Read further to see how you can check food portions and learn the art of controlled eating.
1 . Measure Your Food
Put away all those over-sized serving spoons and bring in new measuring cups, teaspoons, or food scales which allow you to measure both solids and beverages equally well. This portion-control dishware will help you check the amount of food (and extra helpings) you consume each day.
2 . Eat Only When Hungry
Portion control does not mean you have to eat everything in tiny portions. It means you have to eat just as much food you need and only when you are really hungry. Ideally you should stop eating when you feel you are almost 80% full.
3 . Drink Up
Drink water 30 minutes before a meal. This not only cleanses your stomach but also keeps your hunger under control. Many a time drinking a glass of water will ease your acidity symptoms which is what the rumbling in your tummy is; thus saving you from the unnecessary calorie build up.
4 . Estimate Portion Size
Learning what the correct portion for you is and eating exactly that amount is not only tricky but it also requires a lot of control. If you are on a diet, be aware of the right amount you need each day and divide your meals accordingly. Always serve your food from the oven to a measuring bowl before pouring it onto your plate.
5 . Cook Light
Cook with the minimum amount of oil. Choose healthy oils like olive, rice bran, sesame, sunflower. Prefer baked to fried food items. Try to use carbs as the topping rather than the base of your food. Fill your platter with as much greens as you can think of so that an extra helping will fill you only with more fiber and not calories.
6 . Chew Slowly
For a balanced meal, you need to slow down. If you are in a rush all the time, your brain is unable to send signals for when you need to stop. You can set scenes while meal times, say a favorite song or dimmed lights just to make you relaxed while you bite in to savor the flavor.
7 . Appreciate The Quality, Not Quantity
Most of the time, you are eating while doing something else. So you do not get the sense of what you are eating and at the end of it. Eating is one of the rare times, you get the chance to spend quality time with yourselves. Start by seeing how food looks, how it smells and then proceed to chewing on every morsel that you put in our mouth.
8 . Say NO To Emotional Eating
Dangerously, not being in the correct emotional state pushes one towards junk food. Let the mind bail you out. Think about what is on the plate and why do you want it. Food that begs justification is best avoided. We all know that emotional eating will only alleviate our pain or sadness momentarily. So it is actually not worth it.