Portion Control: An Important Key to Weight Loss

Many people may eat the right foods, just too much of them.  Even when you are eating healthy foods, it is still important to pay attention to portion control.  Calories do count, especially if your goal is weight loss.  As a health coach, I find that most people don’t even realize how MUCH they are eating—even when they make healthy choices.
Our bodies need a certain number of calories to function.  Most people get more than their fair share and are surprised when they find out how many calories they should be consuming in order to maintain or lose weight.  We burn calories 24 hours a day, regardless of what we are doing—yes, you even burn calories while you are sleeping.  Taking in the right number of calories often depends on the portion sizes that you have at each meal.
For example, one serving of lean meat is usually said to be about the size of a deck of playing cards.  This is about a 3 ounce size.  Most people will eat three times that amount in one serving.  This will dramatically affect your caloric intake, even if you are choosing lean meats or fish.  If you are going to have a portion of this size, then the amount you eat during the rest of the day will need to be adjusted accordingly so that you take in the right number of calories.
If you exercise, you will need more calories to maintain your weight (or, you will burn more calories and lose weight!).  Depending on your health goals, you will need to adjust your calorie intake and your portion sizes accordingly.  If you are training for an athletic event, you may not be trying to lose weight and you will need extra calories to maintain your strength and build muscle.  If you are trying to lose weight, then exercise will help you burn more calories and shed the pounds.
Once you identify your healthy lifestyle goals, get more information from your health coach about portion size and portion control so that you can more easily stay on track and get where you want to be, whether it is maintaining your current weight with healthy choices or losing some extra weight.