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Dear World’s Fittest Man,

I’m always eating out or grabbing snacks on the run because I’m so busy, but I’m trying to eat better. Whether it’s fast food or at restaurants, it seems like servings are getting bigger and bigger. What’s up with portion sizes? I feel stuffed when I eat everything on my plate these days, but I hate to waste good food. Plus, I just checked the nutrition info on a little bag of pretzels when I was throwing it away and couldn’t believe I’d polished of nearly 3 portions! This is really confusing me. What makes a portion a portion?

Dear Too Much Too Soon,

Controlling your portion size is one of the easiest ways to control your calories and fat. When I was overweight, I had a real problem with portion control. I could easily eat an entire plate of chicken wings when just a few is considered a normal portion. And guess what, that entire plate with the sour cream dip had a day’s worth of calories. To lose weight I really learned how to cut those portions.

But sometimes it isn’t so easy. First of all, you’re right to be confused about what makes a portion a portion. It’s great that you read the food label. You’re way ahead of the game. You should always read the food label before you eat anything. My friends hate to go shopping with me because I spend so much time looking at the label to figure out what’s in the food I’m buying.

When you look at the food label the thing you should look at, even before calories, is the number of servings per container. Many people think that a portion or serving is the size of the container, whether it’s a bag of pretzels or a can of soup. In most cases, that bag or can has more than one serving, so watch out! The calories on the label indicate how many calories for each serving. Multiply the calories by each serving and you get the total calories. For that bag of pretzels, you’d have to multiply the calories by three or four if you ate that entire bag. What was once a healthy snack, a serving of pretzels, may now be more calories than you bargained for.

But to control your portions, you have to do more than read the label. Take it from me, eating out at restaurants can be a real calorie disaster. More and more restaurants have increased the size of their meals, a trend called super-sizing.

A recent study from the Journal of American Medical Association found that we’re eating on average:

• 49 more calories from soft drinks
• 97 more calories from hamburgers
• 68 more calories from French Fries
• 133 more calories from Mexican food such as burritos, tacos, enchiladas

Remember, every calorie counts. An extra 100 calories per day translates to 10 pounds gained per year. So when it comes to eating out here are some great tips to control your portions without having to waste food:

• Speak up. Tell the waiter exactly what you want on your plate. Don’t be afraid to order half portions. In many cases, a “half-portion” is actually a normal amount.
• Order from the kids menu. Don’t be embarrassed about this. Kids meals are generally smaller. You’ll also save a little money too.
• Avoid Buffets. All-you-can eat menus are an invitation to overeat because your portions are unlimited.
  Downsize your portions and you’ll be on your way to downsizing your waist!

© Joe Decker 2003

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