Portion Control + Slowing Down Tips
Since further education on health and wellness I have come to realize that portion control is a lifestyle choice made with conscious thought. For me conscious thought, as in really being awake to what I was putting into my body was life changing. In a typical dinner I used to eat so much more than my body needed. I wasn’t listening to the signals it was giving me telling me to stop eating even though I was already full, I would add food to my plate for the third time. Did you know our stomachs are only about the size of our fist? This means that a meal or snack we eat should not be larger than our fist. How many of us follow that? You can!
Consider opening your mind and change your thought process to eating differently than 3 squares of meat and potatoes we grew up thinking was the right way to eat. Three meals a day eating was based around other people’s schedules at the beginning of the industrial age not your lifestyle. If you want to get serious about increasing your metabolism and helping your stomach feel good you may consider 6 fist size meals a day instead of 3 large portioned meals. It stabilizes your blood sugar so you don’t get such strong cravings in between your 3 meals.
Here are some other tips to help you out with portion control the next time you eat:
-Let the children serve themselves- studies actually show kids will take less food than parents give them.
-Avoid the clean the plate mentality adults and children should both decide when to stop eating based on how their stomach feels not how much food is left on the plate.
-If you or your kids tend to overeat, put the food on the plate at the kitchen counter rather than putting serving bowls on the dinner table.
-Cut up fruits and vegetables to snack on before dinner or while you are preparing dinner.
-Eat a variety of the green and yellow light foods to improve your body with many of the nutrients it needs.
-Avoid asking others “would you like more” if they are hungry enough they’ll ask. We should learn to listen to our own hunger cues.
-Eat slowly the body and the brain have a system that tells us when to stop eating.
I used to eat so fast. I mean if I was hungry I would eat really fast. Since understanding that eating fast and not fully chewing your food makes your body work harder and causes unnecessary inflammation I have slowed down my speed of eating.
A few slow down tricks:
-Take small bites and cut your food in small pieces and chew twice as you do now. I say roughly 20 times per bite I promise this will slow you down and you will enjoy your food more. This requires commitment but more you are conscious and aware you will practice it. It’s kind of fun with kids encourage them to chew their food have them count how many times they can chew each bite.
-Makes meals relaxing or family time. I like to add gratitude before I eat thanking every human that went into making the meal from farm to my plate. This act centers and grounds me back to the moment.
-Put your spoon/fork down from time to time throughout the meal while you are eating to slow your pace.
-Talk during the meal ask each other questions to encourage you to stop eating to answer.
Implementing one or more of these tips into your daily life will get you closer to conscious eating and living. It’s so important to teach our children these lessons while we can have influence on their eating habits so they understand how to feel their very best self. It starts with one.
Love and Light~
Amber
