Lose Weight with Portion Control

If you have tried many diets but have not had any long term success you are not alone. Many people try different diet or nutrition plans but cannot seem to lose weight or at least keep it off over the long term.

Portion control is an area that many failed dieters overlook but it could have a substantial impact on their dieting success or failure. Portion control is the amount of food being eaten during snacks and meals.

Everyone understands that eating can lead to weight gain and over eating almost surely will yet most of us do not take the time of effort to ensure that we eat the correct amount. It is important to set daily eating limits and to records daily consumption to ensure those limits are maintained.

Without this basic step it is difficult to know what is happening on a diet and how your body is reacting. If you are trying to lose weight or cut fat you should take the time to set a daily goal for food intake and keep a record of what you actually eat.

If you do set a daily limit your food intake but do not keep detailed records you should start. You may be surprised how your actual eating compares to your perceived consumption.

There are many diets, such as Weight Watchers, that understand the importance of portion control and make it an integral aspect of their programs. These diet systems often have specific calorie guidelines for the foods and meals they permit to help users plan their day.

Many of these plans also require a food journal or diary as a means to track what is being eaten. This step really helps many people lose weight by understanding what they are eating.

Many people who have failed in diets before do not realize how much they were actually consuming while on “diets” in the past until they began keeping accurate and detailed records of their eating.

The other reason journals are so important for dieters is that they can help people understand how foods and diets effect their weight specifically. Not everyone reacts the same way to all diet plans or foods. In fact people or more different than alike, maintaining a journal can help you know exactly what you have been eating.

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A Note from the Editor of Health & Balanced Diet:

I remember the perfect Portion Control Plates from my days and years of Weight Watchers. Like the photo above, half of the plate should consist of fruits and vegetables, a quarter of the plate is protein, and the other quarter is for grains. And of course the large dinner plate is out. Use a smaller plate than you are used to!

Daily journaling is a habit that Weight Watcher’s encourages. I wrote down what I ate, how much exercise, and what was going on in my life and it really helped me to see the problem areas I had and where I could make improvements. My short term goals changed every week when I reviewed that journal! I wrote them down too, and as I documented my progress and failures I noted the trends and what my barriers to healthy eating were. The journaling was definitely a major part of my eventual weight loss success and helped me to reach my long term goal.

Here is a great journal from Amazon, by Weight Watcher’s and it will work well if you are counting points or calories, as long as you write everything down.

This Diet & Fitness Journal looks awesome, and as a reviewer states, the striped cover comes off, and it’s a plain black book, no one will know you are dieting unless you tell them! You can track calories or fats or fiber and whatever you want, and also keep track of your exercise and fitness goals. There are pages to document your weekly progress and your notes. I like it, and there are quite a few 5 star reviews for it!

The truth is any kind of journal will help you work toward your goals. It’s true that if you faithfully write down what you eat, you find that you are actually eating a lot more that what you remembered you ate. Any notebook will work, but a really nice journal will motivate you towards your goals too!