I don’t mean the kind where your tongue hangs out. I mean when your belly hangs out!
The weekend is here and you are going to get those temptations again. Go ahead. Eat out. Enjoy your meals. Just don’t eat it all at one sitting. The reality is that food portions in the US have increased over the past 20 years. It’s helped to contribute to the obesity epidemic. Or it’s an excuse for it. But either way, restaurant portions are often much more than you should eat at one sitting. So here’s a trick. Order what you want. But have them splt it in the kitchen before it’s sent out to you. Have them go ahead and put half in a to-go box. You’ll have a filling meal and then have another one with your favorites later in the week. Just take it home and pop it in the freezer. That way you won’t waste anything and you won’t WAIST anything either.
TODAY: HAVE HALF OF ANY RESTAURANT MEAL PREPARED TO GO.
Have you ever read the instructions on the shampoo bottle? Or do you already follow the “wash, rinse, repeat” mantra? Well do you know how that came about? The truth is that you only need to wash once. The concept of doing it twice came from the P&G marketing department decades ago. Why? Well it’s simple. Because you use twice as much, it doubles their shampoo sales!
What does that have to do with dieting? Eating seconds does the same thing to your calorie intake. You really DON’T need seconds after you finish a plate. The logic continues that if you eat twice, you get twice the calories. YOU DON’T NEED THOSE CALORIES!
So if the urge to go back for more hits you, step away. Go take a shower and wash your hair… ONCE.
TODAY: STOP HAVING “SECONDS”.
Tags: calorie reduction, diet advice, diet and calories, diet portions, eat smaller portions, eating healthy, eating less, how many calories to eat, Reducing Calorie Intake
Daily Nag, Food Choices | Diet Nag | 
October 25, 2010 6:32 am | 
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If you really want to keep yourself on track to lose weight, you need to reduce the temptations. Start by putting your pantry on a diet. Do a quick inventory of the high calorie temptations that are there waiting for you to indulge.
TODAY: ELIMINATE THE HIGH CALORIE SNACKS IN THE PANTRY.
The American Institute for Cancer Research found that 67% of Americans eat everything on their plates, regardless of size. So you could use a smaller plate! I know you’ve heard that trick before. But the fact is that by watching portion sizes you can cut the most calories the quickest. That means you literally lose weight by doing nothing more than eating single servings of your favorite foods instead of eating as much as you can.
TODAY: ERASE THE TERM “ALL YOU CAN EAT” (AYCE) FROM YOUR VOCABULARY.
You may think that by eating only a couple of times a day you are “dieting” and should lose weight. Well, that’s not how our bodies work. If you starve yourself your body goes into survival mode and actually stores energy the next time you eat. Now how do you suppose it “stores energy”. It recharges your fat batteries, that’s what it does. It slows your metabolism to use less food and puts some away for later.
You should eat five or six small meals a day that are no more than three hours apart. It will kep your metabolism in high gear, your hunger in check, and your blood sugar even. Your mood will be better and you won’t be tempted to overeat at the meals. In other words, eat more (often) to eat less.
TODAY: START EATING SEVERAL SMALL MEALS A DAY.
In many families, Friday is pizza night. Yes you can have pizza and still stay under 500 calories! Just keep the portions reasonable and add a salad. Here’s how it adds up.
You can have one slice of a large Thin ‘N Crispy Supreme pizza and a tossed salad with low fat dressing for just 410 calories. If you go for the stuffed crust pizza you’ll add 150 calories. But remember, you can burn 250 calories by taking that brisk walk some time today for a half hour. I think it’s a fair trade to get that extra special pizza. Just make sure you eat it slowly, (2o minutes… remember) drink your diet soda and enjoy it all.
Conversely, if you usually eat three pieces of stuffed crust pizza, just eat two. You will have cut 500 calories from your meal.
TODAY: KEEP ANOTHER 500 CALORIES OUT OF YOUR MEALS.
Losing weight is a state of mind. You have to make some changes to see some changes. (In your weight) Little things can add up. Like mayonnaise. Some people cringe at the thought of adding mayo to a sandwich. It will get you kicked out of some delis. But if you use it, cut it out or cut back. A serving on a sandwich can be 50 to 100 calories. Mustard, on the other hand is only 11. I know, they’re not the same, but with some adaptation, you won’t miss the mayo.
Then take it a step further and look at what other small things you can do to reduce calories. Then some small exercises too. Remember… “eat less, exercise more.”
TODAY: MAKE SOME SMALL CHANGES.
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