So what are you Ps and Qs, I hope you’re all asking!
Portions; Proportions; Quantity; Quality
Sounds easy but not quite as easy as you’d think!
Portions
First a short history lesson: since the 1980’s typical serving sizes have increased dramatically. A few examples: crisps (aka chips to American friends) were 25g bags and are now 40g or sometimes even 55g; the most popular bottle size of drinks is now 500ml, when it used to be 330ml; plates used in restaurants are bigger – usually 12” now.
Why does size matter? Well, in portions it directly relates to calories. A couple of simple equations illustrate this:
Bigger portions = more calories!
More calories in than out = weight GAIN!!
But research has shown confusion between portion and serving. The result? People underestimate calories consumed by up to 25% each day.
A portion is the amount of food we actually consume which may be more or less than a serving. The easiest way to make sure our serving size is correct is to read the food label.
I was originally quite shocked at how little a serving of pasta or rice is supposed to be compared with what I had been eating but now I’ve got used to it I find it more than enough! So the lesson is to weigh it out or measure it.
Proportions
I’d like you to all hold your hands out and then cup your hands together….. .that’s the size of your stomach! Now hold your cupped hands over a plate and you’ll see how much of the plate you should be filling and not piling up. I finally understood the old saying “your eyes are bigger than your stomach”.
I aim to mentally divide my plate into four and to have ¼ of a plate protein, e.g., lean meat, chicken or fish, ¼ of a plate healthy carbohydrate, e.g., wholemeal pasta, couscous or rice, wholemeal bread (wholemeal pitta bread is a good choice) or sweet potato, and ½ a plate of vegetables and/or salad. I find it a good idea to have a small (even basic lettuce and tomato) salad with each meal as this really helps the cleansing and digestion process. I use dark salad leaves, such as mustard leaves and watercress, wherever possible.
How much are you trying to squeeze in?
Quantity
One of the most important skills you can master is being able to read a food label in order to figure out exactly what you are getting from your foods.
Pay close attention to where the label says “per 100g and per portion”. It’s easy to assume that small packages of biscuits or cheese or medium-sized drink containers are single servings. But this may not be the case. An “official” serving of a beverage is 250ml, but many drinks are packaged in 500ml containers or larger. All the nutrition facts on the label are for one serving. If you drink a 500ml beverage, you will be drinking twice the number of calories on the nutrition facts panel as you’ll be taking in two servings. You will need to double all the information on the label to determine exactly what you are taking in.
I find the following useful to visualise when I’m looking at a food label:
- Every 4 grams of sugar is a teaspoon
- Every 5 grams of fat is a teaspoon (or a pat of butter)
Quality
The closer you are to nature, the closer you are to health! Upgrade to colourful foods and enjoy delicious, fresh food!
Look at the positives:
- Colourful foods have no preservatives, no added colour!
- Provide an abundance of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fibre
- Have a high water content – an excellent source of hydration
- Are visually appetising
- Their firm textures demand a good chew, so we eat them more slowly
- Quickly and easily processed by the body – less work for the digestion
- Are as nature intended (unlike processed, pre-packaged modern fast foods!)
kimatfitnslim 