Try this at home

 

Today's lesson- portion size.

This morning I poured a 'serving' of cereal into a 'small' bowl- see picture at the top. I read the box and noted that one serving was 2/3 cup. I eyeballed this, and would have estimated that I had 2 servings there at most.

I then dumped the bowl into a 4-cup measure and was SURPRISED to see that it was a full 2 cups- see picture at center.

When I took one cup from the measure and put it back into my bowl, I realized what a cup of cereal looks like- see picture at the bottom.

Is there anything wrong with eating the FULL bowl? Well, no- as long as you know what you're getting and calculate the calories accurately. The problem is when you THINK you know, and underestimate your intake.

For those of us who lack the concept of portion control, this is a valuable exercise to get an idea of what a portion LOOKS LIKE. You only have to measure once to get the idea.

I buy frozen blueberries to add to my cereal. I can add a full cup if I want, for 70 calories. That is less than the calories in another cup of cereal, and provides a fruit serving. The berries add texture, they thaw as you are eating and make the milk deliciously ICE COLD! 

Two take-aways today-

 1.) you can flesh out a lot of smaller servings by adding in fruits or vegetables. For example; add one cup of mixed vegetables to a cup of stuffing, a cup of spinach to a cup of mac 'n cheese, or a whole fresh peach chopped over 1/2 cup of ice cream.

2.) As you integrate healthy foods into your life, FIND THINGS THAT YOU LOVE TO EAT. There is  no benefit in crunching on rice cakes or celery sticks if you hate them, or drinking supplements as meals if you will not be able to continue doing so long-term. That LIFESTYLE thing again.  Wise choices are not punishment.