The Glycemic Index Diet for Dummies - Meri Raffetto [73]
Watching your portion sizes
Restaurant portion sizes are growing and growing and growing. So much so that you can't even recognize normal portion sizes anymore! They look tiny compared to what your eyes are used to seeing. A normal portion of pasta is 1/2 cup, or enough pasta to fit in the palm of your hand (a small-sized hand, that is). Seeing this size portion served in a restaurant would seem almost shocking. Even bagels have grown in size over the last 20 years. A regular ol' 3-inch bagel has about 150 calories, but modern jumbo bagels measure about 4 1/2 inches across for a total of 300 to 400 calories.
Portion sizes in today's restaurants have become almost comical. Case in point: I recently went out to eat with a group of friends. One of the men with us ordered a plate of ribs. When it came to the table, all eight of us looked at it in astonishment and then began laughing. The server had brought out an entire half of a cow's rib cage in a trough. It looked like something you'd see on The Flintstones. This particular meal was big enough to serve all eight of us!
The average restaurant portion size is large enough to feed three adults. Furthermore, studies have found a direct association between eating out, higher caloric intakes, and higher body weights. (These are important facts to know because obesity rates have doubled in the past 20 years.) Although getting a lot of food for your money is great, science tells us that the more you see, the more you eat (and consequently the more you'll eventually see on your thighs!).
Here are some tips to keep your restaurant portion sizes at bay so you can have better control over your caloie intake and glycemic load:
Don't clean your plate. Your mom may have made you practice this tactic growing up, but routinely cleaning your plate in restaurants will inevitably lead you to gain weight rather than lose it.
Eat half or even a quarter of the regular entree or split the meal with a friend. You can eat the smaller amount and take the rest home for another meal. And if you're dining alone, ask for a to-go box at the beginning of your meal. Then you won't be tempted to eat more than you intended.
Stay hydrated. Many times people feel overly hungry because they're dehydrated. Try drinking a couple glasses of water while you wait for your meal to help you avoid overeating.
Opt for a half deli sandwich with vegetable soup or a side salad rather than a burger and fries at lunch. You can find these items in your local deli or supermarket, as well as at most sit-down restaurants.
Choose an appetizer and side salad as your main meal. The size of today's appetizers represents a more accurate portion size. Combining an appetizer with a side salad can make a satisfying meal.
Avoid specialty breads. Choose whole-wheat bread over focaccia, baguettes, rolls, or other specialty breads. Whole-wheat bread has a lower glycemic load and a lower calorie level than many of the specialty breads out there.
Get your salad dressings, sauces, mayonnaise, and gravies on the side. Doing so puts you in charge of the amount used, which makes for better calorie control.
Skip the extra cheese on anything you order. If you can live without the extra cheese, you can save yourself more than 100 calories.
Avoid bread and chip baskets that come to your table before your meal begins. Can't resist? Tell your server to skip bringing the basket to your table altogether.
Steer clear of burritos. They're often very large, plus many restaurants use a sticky white rice that has a very high glycemic index. (Not to mention they give you way more than the ideal 1/3-cup portion.)
Choose lean meats. These include chicken, turkey, and fish. Eating a turkey sandwich in place of a roast beef sandwich can save you 100 calories and 10 grams of saturated fat.
Hit the salad bar. Doing so allows you to build up a healthy