Arch said:
It's portion control I struggle with, especially stuff like spaghetti and rice. I do little stuff like opting for the tuna that comes in 185g tins, not 200g, because I know I use half a tin per dinner portion, no matter what size the tin....
I've just started doing the half-a-tin thing. Not for tuna though - I always eat a full tin but it's good stuff so that's okay. I always buy tuna-in-brine because it's got far less fat/calories than tuna-in-oil.
I buy baked beans in the 415 g tins because the smaller tins are very expensive by comparison, but I now save half a tin for another time (in a sealed jar - it's not good to keep things in opened tins). I got a bit distracted last night and ate a whole tin without thinking about it!
I've been using a measuring scoop for things like cous-cous and rice to exactly control how much I cook, but I've realised that it is too big (250 mL). My next smaller one is 125 mL which is a bit small for me so I need to find something which holds about 175 mL. That would be a good reduction. I'd have thought that 100-125 mL would be a good portion for you.
Arch said:
And of course, comfort eating is my main demon. Some people loss wieght under stress, I never do....
I've gone both ways on that! Stress really disrupts my lifestyle and I either end up eating far too much or far too little.
The first time that I got fat, it was through stress-induced snacking. I eventually got the food intake under control, but I was still drinking too much beer and that has been the cause of another two or three periods of fatness.
I'm now rationing my beer intake to a healthier level, but I'm so used to drinking beer when watching TV late at night that I start getting restless without a glass in my hand. I now drink a rather tasty alcohol-free substitute - I squeeze a lime and half a lemon into a large jug. I add a couple of tablespoons of concentrated ginger 'syrup', and about 250 mL of orange juice and top that up with about 1.5 litres of water and a couple of trays of ice cubes. Mmmm! That's probably equivalent to just one beer in calories (about 150), but much healthier.
I think being slightly dehydrated can you make think that you are hungry, so keeping yourself well topped up with low calorie drinks (ideally just plain water) is a good way of avoiding the munchies.
Make sure that you have only healthy things to snack on! If I had biscuits or cake in the house, I Know that I'd end up nibbling away at them so I never buy them. I always have a container filled with mixed nuts, seeds and dried fruit for those times when I really do want to eat something between meals. Okay, there are quite a few calories in nuts and seeds, but they are full of goodness, and I find them quite filling so I only eat a small portion at one time. I have a couple of fruit bowls which are always stocked up with apples, bananas etc. I make sure that I have 2 or 3 items of fruit a day between meals.
Anyway, I've seen 'worse'.
)
