The Portion Teller is a must-have weight control book by Lisa Young. Young explains that it is not what you eat, but HOW MUCH you eat that makes you fat. Furthermore, to lose weight, you don’t have to cut calories. She says that knowing what a healthy serving size looks like and being able to correctly ‘eyeball’ the amount of a serving will help you shed pounds and stop you from unintentional overeating.
Growing Portions
The Portion Teller is filled with startling facts and statistics about portions and serving sizes. Knowing this information is important for making better choices and losing weight. Young compares the difference between a serving size now and several decades ago to show how we have supersized, as a nation. We eat 30-50% more now and portions are truly out of control. Young blames these increasing portion sizes for the obesity epidemic we face today.
Overcoming the Obesity Epidemic
The solution to the obesity epidemic is as simple as reversing the things that made us fat. We need to smartsize, not supersize our meals. By doing so, you’ll be able to eat the foods you love without cutting out entire food groups. Simply resist ordering the medium, large and supersized portions when you eat out and measure everything you eat at home until it becomes second nature for you. Avoid overeating and your body will adjust to the new portion sizes.
Be Aware of How Much You Eat
“The first step toward a lifelong change in your eating habits is portion-size awareness, the foundation of the Portion Teller program.” (24)
By learning what a portion really looks like, you will be able to find out exactly how much you have been overeating. Restaurants, for example, serve platters with 3-4 servings and we often finish the entire plate without considering how much food we are really eating. You don’t need to track your calories to tell if you are overeating or not, but you must stop relying on fad diets and yoyo dieting. By becoming aware of what a protion size really is, you'll be able to eat withint your limits and lose weight sensibly.
Visualizing Food Portions
The Porton Teller describes a long lost of food groups and specifics items and pairs them with a relatable item so you can mentally see what size serving you should have.
Portion examples:
- Meat – a deck of cards
- Fish – a checkbook
- Peanut butter – walnut
- Dressing – shot glass
- Butter- stamp
- Cereal – baseball
- Rice or pasta – half a baseball
- Bread- 1 CD
- Hard Cheese – 4 dice
- Mixed nuts – golf ball
Helpful tips for Becoming a Portion Teller
- Increase your daily fiber with whole wheat and veggies
- Realize that carbs aren’t your enemy and they, alone, won’t make you fat
- Eat sweets in small portions to avoid feeling deprived
- Compare foods and make smart trade-offs to feel full longer
- Assess your food personality to make better choices
- Convert portions to serving sizes
- Use a diet diary to track your food portions
Tracy Rose - Tracy Rose is a powerflifter who holds the state record in deadlifting and has had success in her own weight loss journey.
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