When did a Whopper become small?

At our last weight loss support group meeting, we discussed portion sizes, how they have grown over the years and how many calories that extra portion adds to our intake. We saw that 20 years ago, a typical soda had 85 calories. Today, a typical soda has 250 calories. A difference of 165 calories and we probably didn't even notice the size was bigger!

I recently had my own personal experience with increase in portion sizes. Last Saturday, I was on a USO bus trip. We stopped for dinner at an autohof (of of those places on the autobahn that has a cafeteria style restaurant plus either a Burger King or McDonalds) around 9:00 pm. The cafeteria line was closed so our only option was Burger King. I'm standing in line staring at the picture menu when I suddenly realized that the Whopper was the smallest burger on the menu. I remember when the Whopper was introduced 25-30 years ago. It was unbelievable! Who would have thought there could be a burger bigger than the Big Mac? The Whopper was huge! Now it is the smallest item that the German Burger King! When did this happen? Burger King does offer a Whopper Jr. which is smaller than a regular Whopper but you will not find it on the menu. You have to know to ask for it.
So how do you control portion sizes? Here are a few suggestions:

When eating out...

• Ask for a doggy bag as soon as you get your food and put 1/2 of the meal in the container. This may be easier back in the states than here in Germany since take out containers are not as popular.
• Order a large appetizer instead of an entree. This only works if the restaurant actually has healthy appetizers. Many appetizers tend to be fried or high in fat.
• Order from the senior menu which tends to have smaller portions sizes.
• Split a meal between two people so you only eat half of the dish.
• If an item comes in different sizes, order the small size (small fries, Whopper Jr., etc).

When eating at home...

• Separate large containers of snack foods into smaller single size units. For example, split a box of crackers into smaller baggies or other food container.
• Never eat out of a bag. Take out the portion you would like to eat and put the rest away. This works when you want to eat in front of the TV. We tend not to pay attention to how much we are eating when we eat while watching TV.
• When making dinner, dish up the plates in the kitchen and then eat in the living room. The food you may take for seconds is not quite so tempting when it is not in front of you.
• When putting leftovers away, place in individual portion containers so that you will not overeat later.
• Measure your food before putting it on the plate. After a while you can "eyeball" your desired portion.
• Use smaller bowls and plates. This gives you the illusion you are eating more food than you actually are.

In general,

• Before eating, determine if you are really hungry, or are you just bored?
• Eat regularly. Skipping meals and becoming overly hungry makes portion control very hard.

I hope this gives you some ideas on how to control portion sizes. Please feel free to add any ideas that you use that others may benefit from also. In the mean time, Happy Portioning!

More on Calories

In the last post, we looked at what one day on a 1200 or 1800 calorie diet looked like. I found a website that shows what a 300-400 calorie meal looks like. Since visual images are more helpful than just reading a list of food, I thought I would share this site with you. If you are trying to stick to 1200 calories per day, each meal should be between 300-400 calories. If you are aiming for a higher caloric intake, please be sure to add some food to each meal.

http://www.diet-blog.com/archives/2007/04/26/what_do_300_calorie_meals_look_like.php

What Does 1200 Calories Look Like?

At our first weight loss support group meeting, the following question was posed: "What does 12oo calories look like?" What a great question (and a great challenge to Marcia and I to find a 1200 calorie and an 1800 calorie meal plan to compare)!

The results surprised us both. The 1200 calorie plan was more food than we imagined it would be and the 1800 calorie plan was not that much more food. One of the reasons that the 1200 calorie meal plan offered such a quantity of food is that it contained mostly whole, unprocessed or minimally processed foods. Processed foods tend to have more calories due to added fats and sugars. Below you will find the meal plans and pictures of the meals for comparison.

1200 Calorie Meal Plan

Breakfast:1 C oatmeal (cooked in 8 fl oz skim milk), topped with 2 Tbsp golden, seedless raisins and 2 Tbsp chopped pecans1 large hard-boiled egg, seasoned as desiredCalorie-free beverage of choice

Lunch: Tuna salad (mix 4-oz water-packed tuna with 2 Tbsp chopped white onion, 1 Tbsp light mayonnaise, and 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard; arrange 1 C shredded lettuce and 3 slices medium tomato on plate; top with tuna mixture)1 medium orangeCalorie-free beverage of choice

Dinner: 8 large shrimp, grilled1 C steamed broccoli florets, seasoned as desired1 C wild rice, prepared with 1 Tbsp butterCalorie-free beverage of choice

Snack: 10 large baby carrots, served with 2 Tbsp fat-free ranch dressing for dippingCalorie-free beverage of choice

1800 Calorie Meal Plan

Breakfast: 1¼ C oatmeal (cooked in 8 fl oz skim milk), topped with 2 Tbsp golden seedless raisins, 2 Tbsp unsweetened dried coconut, and 2 Tbsp chopped pecans
1 large hard-boiled egg, seasoned as desired
Calorie-free beverage of choice

Lunch: Tuna salad (mix 5-oz water-packed tuna with 2 Tbsp chopped white onion, 1 Tbsp light mayonnaise, and 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard; arrange 1 C shredded lettuce and 3 slices medium tomato on plate; top with tuna mixture)
10 unsalted, dry-roasted whole almonds
1 medium orange
Calorie-free beverage of choice

Dinner: 8 large shrimp, grilled
1 C steamed broccoli florets, topped with 1 tsp butter
1½ C wild rice, prepared with 1 Tbsp olive oil
¾ C fruit sorbet, favorite flavor
Calorie-free beverage of choice

Snack: 10 large baby carrots, served with 2 Tbsp fat-free ranch dressing for dipping
1 part-skim mozzarella string cheese snack
8 fl oz canned vegetable juice, low sodium

The first picture is the 1800 calorie meal plan. The second picture is the 1200 calorie plan.

Welcome!

Welcome to the Schweinfurt Weight Loss Support Group's blog site. We would like to use this site to provide additional information to you between meetings. Future posts may review what we discussed at the last meeting, answer questions from the last meeting or from emails or we may forward any interesting information we hear about weight loss or healthy nutrition.

The weight loss support group meets every second Thursday of the month at 6:00pm and every fourth Tuesday of the month at noon. Both meetings will be in the Yellow Ribbon Room. If we need to change the room for any reason, we will make every effort to contact you before the meeting.

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We're hoping to post a new blog entry at least once per week but this may vary depending on vacations and work schedules, so stay tuned for our next post.