Taking control in the kitchen

As a Dietitian, I have seen my share of many different fad diets (21 day fix, nutrisystem, etc.) that while being unsustainable in their wholeness, have some excellent underlying aspects – the primary one being portion control.

Before we get into portion control, I’d like to tell you a story...
It was July, right around Independence day, and I had about 7 BBQs to attend in the course of two weeks. Wanting a healthy option to eat at all of these events, I planned to make and bring my own dish – mostly cold salads and soups bursting with fresh veggies and whole grains. My absolute favorite summer pastime is eating huge slices of juicy, dripdownyourchinandyoudon’tmind, watermelon. As is common in the summer time, these green bowling balls of goodness are on sale. So I decided to buy the biggest one I could find. I planned to enjoy post-party as my dessert. Well, wouldn’t you know it, by the time I go home I was exhausted and the last thing I wanted to do was cut into this giant melon. I knew it would be messy, and take more than the 5 minutes I was willing to spend on a snack at that time. So every time I wound up choosing whatever snack food was in my pantry and put off the watermelon for the next day. It was a sad, sad day when I came home and found that my watermelon had shriveled up – I had to throw it away!

Moral of the story – make your healthy choices the easy choice. Your belly and your wallet will thank you. Portion control is not relegated to the dinner table. Read on for my favorite tips on portion control and making healthy easier.

Before grocery shopping:

• Make a list!
• Choose recipes for the week that use common ingredients so you have less waste.
• Always check to see what you already have in your pantry and refrigerator.
• If your budget allows, look for items that are already proportioned at the store. Reduced fat string cheese, 1 oz mixed nut packets, and almond butter pouches are good examples.
• Choose foods that offer a large amount per serving. Try raw veggies like cucumber and bell pepper, and air-popped popcorn.

 
After grocery shopping:

• Divide snack foods into Ziploc bags or Tupperware immediately. Check the number of servings per package – that’s how many containers you will need. This will make taking healthy foods to work or school way easier in the morning. Even if it’s not the healthiest food (chips, cookies I’m looking at you) by eating these from the pre-portioned container rather than the original, larger package you can be more aware of how much you are eating. Take that whole bag of popcorn with you in front of the TV and it will be gone before your FRIENDS re-run is over!
  
• Cut up all fruit and raw veggies. You can’t eat a watermelon whole! Cut up your produce for quick snacks and faster prep at meal time. This is essential when you have little ones looking to feed themselves – it’s got to be prepared and in sight!

At meal time:

• Use smaller plates and utensils. It may seem silly, but our eyes really are bigger than our stomachs! If you are like most people, you inherently want to fill up your plate – but do you really need that much food?  Using a smaller plate allows you to fill up the empty space without going overboard on the calories.
• Slow down. It takes time for your stomach to send a message to your brain to say ‘I’m full now, please stop eating.’ Eat half of your plate, then take a few minutes to see how you feel. Still hungry? Eat another quarter of your plate and stop again. Nine times out of ten, you will realize you are full before finishing your meal.
• Have a strategy. Eat the healthiest thing on your plate first. When you fill up on lean proteins and vegetables, what you are likely to leave on your plate will be those higher calories, lower nutrient foods.
• Make your plate, and then put the leftovers in the refrigerator right away! Eliminate the possibility of second helpings – most of the time those seconds are really for taste sake and have nothing to do with hunger. [This is a great plan for dining out – place half your dish in a to-go container before you even start eating.] Added bonus, you get additional lunches or dinners from cooking once.

A note about ‘healthy’ substitutes, like sugar free cookies and non-fat dairy. These products are healthy on a one-to-one basis. What that means is, you are not being healthier by eating 5 sugar free cookies if you were only going to eat one regular cookie. Everything in moderation - even those foods that are marketed as healthy.


That's all for today! I'll be back soon with multiple posts to make up for my month long hiatus.

Ciao!