Diet Tips for Fat Loss

By Craig Ballantyne | 03/26/2009 |

nutrition planTime for some diet tips for fat loss, and these killer ideas come mostly from the TTMembers forum. Very cool group of people on that site.

One day, I read an article about binge eating, and knowing that portion control is a HUGE component of fat loss success, I went straight to the forum with this question…

“How do you control your portion sizes so that you don’t overeat?”

Now I knew one tip…and it was that “Smaller plates are proven to help control portion sizes”. Whether you are at home or at a restaurant, simply use smaller plates and bowls. That was easy.

But what else is there? How can we control portions at meals? Because if we can do that, we can enjoy our favorites a little more often – just in smaller portions.
So here’s what TT members had to say…and if you have a tip, just leave a comment below.
Thanks!
1. Portion foods into bowls rather that eating straight out of the trail mix dietbag. ie. nuts, trail mix, etc.

2. Eat smaller, more frequent meals.
Says member “MGags”, “I know some people view it as a pain, but eating smaller ‘meals’ every 2-3 hours help me keep my portions at lunch and dinner smaller. I’m not nearly as hungry so I’m not tempted to load my plate up with more food than necessary.

Since I’ve started TT and eating more meals per day, I’ve never had ‘seconds.’ I think this was one of my problems that lead to my weight gain. I’d almost always have seconds, especially for dinner, and feel bloated after eating.

3. Fill up on fiber.

Says one member, “Eat a snack that has a good portion of fiber with a glass of water about 30 minutes before a meal.”
And another says, “If I get home from work and am really really hungry, such that I would easily overeat before I would know that I am full, I will first eat either an apple or a big bowl of salad.
“I usually make 1 huge green salad a week and keep it in a stainless steel bowl covered lightly with aluminum foil and it keeps well. This helps a lot to have it pre-made and it is easy to “snack” on.”
lunch-lady4. Have someone else control your portions.

That’s a unique, but cool tip. As member “groteusmaximus” said, “This one ties in with your social support element: Have someone else portion your food at mealtime.
“I talked to my wife and asked her for help. She makes sure to serve me the same amount that she serves herself. Being that she’s one of those skinny chicks who couldn’t gain a pound at a donut giveaway, she likes to eat and serves a decent portion. So I’m never hungry after a meal, but never overfed either.

5. Don’t serve food from serving bowls on the table.

Also from GMax, “Bowls on the table encourage seconds. Fix your plate in the kitchen, and when its gone, its gone.”

6. Pack Your Lunch When You Are NOT Hungry lunch

GMax says, “As for eating during the day, I pack my lunch early in the am, before my hunger kicks in. For those who workout early, make your meals & snacks the night before, right after you eat dinner. When you’re full, you make smaller portions for yourself.”

Very good tip!

7. Measure your foods.

I’m not a big fan of measuring foods, since it’s a little too “controlling” for me, but it works great for a few TTMembers who said, “I try to keep any starchy food to no more then my fist size.”

and…

“I measure certain foods. For instance breakfast is measured out with a measuring cup, I count out my almonds, I occasionally weight foods to better understand portion sizes.”

and…

“And I find logging my food intake on FitDay also makes me more aware of how much of what I am eating.”

Great tip…I’m a big fan of having folks record their food for a while until they get a good idea of how many calories are in certain foods.That’s a huge key to success in a fat loss transformation.

Let me know your diet tips for fat loss success (in comments below) and how you control portion sizes and eliminate binge eating.The simpler the tip, the better!

Diet remains the key to fat loss,

Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS

Click here to “try out” Turbulence Training risk-free

Posted in Fat Loss, Nutrition, Transformation Contest, TT Fat Loss, Weight loss and tagged , , , ,