Half-ing the food on your plate

[Peaceful Isle]

For lack of better words...

 

So, I knew a friends mom, who lost a ton of weight, by literally cutting each meal in half and only eating that half portion. What do you guys think? I mean, I mindlessly put the same portions on my plate, day after day. What would it be like if I only ate half of it?

 

Has anyone ever tried this type of diet? I just get so tired of limiting my choices, counting carbs, or counting fat, juicing, blah blah blah.

 

I need to lose weight and I would love to do it on regular food. I'm sure I wouldn't miss the other half of the meal, if I ate slowly.

I could cut my calories in half each day, if I didn't eat anything extra than my normal routine and only ate half servings!

 

What says the hive?

Edited November 18, 2016 by Peacefulisle

[theelfqueen]

We often will get a box at a restaurant as soon as the food comes and pack half away for another meal.

 

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[Bambam]

I have a friend who lost a lot of weight by purchasing smaller plates and using them vs. the regular size dinner plates. It still looked like the same amount of food on her plate, but it was like a 7" dinner plate vs. a 9" dinner plate. She has kept the weight off too.

 

[Guest]

I've starting doing this at restaurants because I can't stand coming away bloated, but I always do because there is so MUCH FOOD.  

 

Plus, then I have breakfast all ready to go.  :0)

 

Portion control is a good way to make a good start...lots of diets do this.  Most of those I know who have successfully kept off weight have a good idea of how much is going into their bodies. 

[kiana]

Half might be a bit much. I'd be more inclined to just look at smaller plates. 

 

Either that or, if you haven't already eliminated between-meal snacking, start with that. 

[StephanieZ]

It just might work. It'd work for me, I think. 

 

I've lost weight by skipping all meals and only eating dinner. I only eat dinner because everyone eats dinner as a family, so I don't "forget" or get too busy/upset/distracted to eat dinner, as we're all sitting there. The rest of the day, I might have a candy bar or a 100-300 calorie snack of some random thing at one time during the day, but usually, nothing, just drinks all day (maybe low cal, or maybe not, just random liquids)

 

When I've done that, I'm not generally hungry. It has started when I'm really upset about something catastrophic, so I'm not hungry at all. BUT, once this goes on for a few days, then I get even less hungry. Dinners get smaller because I get feeling stuffed after 1/2 - 2/3 of a typical meal. And I get woozy if I eat too much. 

 

SO, point being, that IME, after a few days of restricted food, for whatever reason, hunger is generally not an issue and/or you get used to feeling hungry and don't mind it. You get full more easily, etc.

 

I like "bad" fatty, delicious foods. I can lose weight eating them no problem. I just eat less of everything, and I lose weight. Sometimes, when I've been really distressed, I've also exercised *a lot* and of course that accelerates the process.

 

(FWIW, I am at a healthy BMI right now, thanks to last week's election, lol . . . I've never been obese, but have fluctuated up to about 20# overweight. I realize that what works for me/my body type doesn't work for everyone.)

 

So, anyway, I, personally, totally believe that *I* can successfully maintain or achieve whatever weight I want to be at (if I want it bad enough) . . . while still eating all the bad-for-me-super-high-calorie things I like to eat. Just gotta' eat a bit less, and exercise a bit more. 

 

[Lang Syne Boardie]

I like the NoS diet combined with using smaller dishes. The no-brainer aspect of it is very appealing to me...you aren't cutting out food groups, or weighing or measuring or tracking. You're just fixing a plate, not going back for more, and not eating between meals.

[G5052]

I've done this. Part of it is that I use Nutrisystem five days a week. It's really taught me that I eat way, way too much normally.

 

Today I was mostly away from home, and it was not a Nutrisystem day.

 

For breakfast I had a bowl of oatmeal with a little honey and a small coffee with soy milk. This was at a hospital cafeteria because DH was in surgery.

 

Mid-morning I had a cheese stick and a handful of baby carrots that I brought from home.

 

For lunch I had two small pieces of roasted turkey and a pile of steamed vegetables, also from the hospital cafeteria.

 

Mid-afternoon I had a small protein drink with a lot of ice at home.

 

This evening I had a small piece of pizza (5"x5"), a small sweet potato, and about 1/2 cup of applesauce at home.

 

I've been averaging about 1-2 pounds a week.

 

Frankly seeing how much food you get at restaurants amazes me now. I also routinely ask for a box and split it. At buffets, I pick a healthy protein and then go for the steamed vegetables.

 

I wouldn't say that it's easy, but my reflux is nearly gone and my asthma is actually better. That's a big motivator.

[happypamama]

I could see how it might work just fine, but perhaps you would want to identify one or two "free" foods that you could feel okay about taking a larger serving of or supplementing your meal with if you're truly still hungry. But it seems like a great way to enjoy the foods you like without feeling guilty and without overindulging.

[Greta]

 

Either that or, if you haven't already eliminated between-meal snacking, start with that. 

 

 

I was going to recommend this too.  Personally, I would choose eating less often over eating such small portions.  Small portions mean that I'm still hungry.  Eating normal portions but less often actually results in less hunger for me.  I used to eat five or even six times a day.  I stopped snacking between meals, just eat three (or occasionally only two) times per day, and I lost 7 pounds from that change alone.  And I'm not hungry all the time.  If I ate half portions, I'd be really hungry all the time.

 

 

(Edited for grammar mistake.)

Edited November 18, 2016 by Greta

[Mergath]

I don't know. I think it's better to change what you eat rather than to restrict how much you eat. The average person will get full eating whole, unprocessed foods before they can overeat. I'd rather do that than eat half a sandwich and be starving until dinner.

[Farrar]

I don't have much diet knowledge, but I am glad that we have and use mostly small sized plates so that would also be a good first step. The literal small size actually helps everyone have good portions (except my mother, who always says with the most disgust possible, "Can I have a grown up plate?" whenever she eats with us... sigh...).

[gardenmom5]

start with a smaller plate.  it will trick the eye as to portion size.

 

when I avoid sugar like the plague - I automatically eat less. 

[Kassia]

I was going to recommend this too.  Personally, I would choose eating less often over eating such small portions.  Small portions mean that I'm still hungry.  Eating normal portions but less often actually results in less hunger for me.  I used to eat five or even six times a day.  I stopped snacking between meals, just eat three (or occasionally only two) times per day, and I lost 7 pounds from that change alone.  And I'm not hungry all the time.  If I ate half portions, I'd be really hungry all the time.

 

 

(Edited for grammar mistake.)

 

I'm the opposite.  I'd rather eat small amounts more frequently.  It helps me with portion control if I know I'm eating again soon and it also helps to prevent me from eating the wrong foods.  If I know I have a healthy snack planned in an hour or so, I won't eat something I shouldn't.  

[porque]

I did this! I thought I had invented it- the half diet! I didn't lose a ton of weight (didn't have a ton that I needed to lose) but it was easy and I didn't feel deprived because I was eating what I wanted- just less! Good Luck!

[meena]

I read a book years ago that addressed the idea of using smaller plates, as well as similar issues of the psychology behind how we eat--Mindless Eating by Brian Wansink.

[VaKim]

Sounds worth trying, if that is the way you eat. It wouldn't work for me because the only meal I eat on an actual plate is supper. My problem is running to the kitchen and grabbing a granola bar, or a cookie, or a hunk of cheese, or a container of yogurt, etc., all day long. I had to cut the snacking.

[HomeAgain]

We did smaller dishware.  It worked wonderfully. 

We also made the rule that all food had to be eaten at the table, and it wasn't allowed to be from the container.  You want chips?  Put some in a bowl.  You want a slice of pie?  Here's your seat at the table.  It cut the random noshing considerably and made us more aware of what we're eating (and getting to enjoy it, instead of mindlessly putting things in our mouths). 

 

I don't know if putting half on my plate would benefit us.  There'd be too much negative space, leading me to want to put more on or keep me from feeling sated.  The new dishes helped feed the eyes as well as the belly.

[J-rap]

We have started splitting meals at restaurants.  Sometimes we might get a small salad on the side, extra, to supplement.  Surprisingly, it is almost always enough!

 

At home, the meal I can half most easily is lunch.  Sometimes I still feel hungry after I eat my half of an egg salad sandwich and half an apple, but within 5 minutes (after the food reaches my stomach maybe?) I realize I'm full afterall.

 

So, I can definitely see some truth to that.

 

 

[Arcadia]

My dad (in his 70s) halved the amount of rice and bread he eat when he retired. As a teacher he does quite a bit of standing and walking, as a retiree he is mostly sedentary. He lost around 10kg that way but he was never overweight. He had high blood pressure and high cholesterol so dietary changes makes more sense than for him to cut portion size across food groups.

 

My hubby and I share a plate when we eat out anyway. The portions are too big for us. We just ask for an extra plate and split the food.

[Night Elf]

I use portion control. I can have anything I want, as long as it's a decent serving which is sometimes even less than the container recommends as a serving. For example, in desperation last week, I bought a prepared meatloaf. They said the serving size was 5 oz. I never eat that much meat! I eat 2 oz. at one meal along with a side or two and that is plenty for me. I do measure and track everything. When I joined weight watchers and started doing this, it was like taking half of what I used to eat. After eating that way for a couple of weeks, it got easier. Now it's just second nature. I simply cannot eat a lot with a meal because I feel sick afterwards.

 

Also, I have learned that being a little hungry doesn't hurt me. I suppose half meals might keep a person hungry, but they may adjust after a while.

[KungFuPanda]

What do you do with the other half? Put it back? I'm thinking a half-sized serving spoon or luncheon-sized plates (or even large saucers) would accomplish the same thing without shuffling food on and off your plate.

[Alexigail]

I recently lost 25 lbs and a big part of my strategy is eating half of what I want and then waiting 10 minutes to see if I'm still hungry. I hardly ever am. I'm tracking wright watchers points, and this had really helped me to understand how much I need to eat rather than how much I want. I still eat small portions of stuff I really like.

[HSmomof2]

I did this successfully 15 years ago when I did Weigh Down diet. I lost 55 lbs and kept it off for quite a few years....until fertility treatments, two pregnancies, Hashimotos and fibromyalgia. I need to lose weight again, and should do this. It is the only way I've successfully lost in the past.

[Alexigail]

Posted to quickly...

Weight watchers has portion plates and serving spoons. The designs are subtle. I'm sure you could try those or try something similar.

[SparklyUnicorn]

Another tactic I've read about is focusing heavily on when you are full.  Which might seem like a no duh, but there are a lot of reasons we may not do this enough.  Stuff like feeling guilty about finishing all the food, eating while distracted (mindless eating while watching TV,etc.), or eating too quickly (years and years of being trained to rush through meals).  This makes the most sense to me rather than halving what is on the plate.  What would be half of an amount that you have never probably measured?  And should you necessarily under eat?  If you do you might just get too hungry too quickly and resort to less healthy food or give up from feeling miserable.