Personal Training Blog with Douglasville Personal Trainer David Hansey

Ok — This is part 3 of my series on weight loss. I get a lot of my clients here at the Gym in Douglasville and at home who are very confused about food and losing weight.

Well we have covered a few things and now here comes a very critical one — portion control. You need to spend some time getting comfortable with how much you are eating. A morning bagel can have up to 5 of your grain servings so if you count that as one or two because you are guessing, you are going to shortchange yourself.

Here is what I have found. Most people do not need to worry about portions of fruits or vegetables. It is with the grains and the proteins where we go off the tracks. A portion of ice cream is 1/2 cup. Yet most people in a small bowl will put 2 full cups.

So here is what I like people to do. This week now that you are used to keeping a diary, do some measuring. Pour your regular bowl of cereal. Then dump it into a large measuring cup. Is it the 1 cup or 3/4 cups or whatever it is on the nutrition label? I bet it isn’t. Do this with at least a few of the things you eat this week. Yes, the lettuce you eat is probably ok if you eat 2 cups instead of 1 — lol — nobody gets fat from eating too much lettuce. But the steak you eat might be 10 oz when 4 is a portion. The spaghetti you eat might be 3-4 cups when a portion is 1/2 cup.

See where I am going? Get a handle this week on things you eat daily or a few times a week and learn what a real portion is.

And check back soon for part 4 — Empty calories

Yes, I will be earning that turkey dinner with family and friends by running the Atlanta marathon on Thanksgiving morning — the full 26.2 miles

So check back here — or come out and watch!!

Earlier this week, I wrote about getting honest with yourself and writing down what you put in your mouth as a way to start an effective weight loss program.

Now I want to talk about another big one — RESTAURANT FOOD

While everyone loves going out to eat, you really have to be careful if you eat out on a regular basis. Restaurants have enormous portions, use large amounts of fat and sugar and are generally lacking on being a balanced meal.

Not to pick on any restaurant in particular because a lot of them are bad – but many burgers are over 1000 calories — Douglasville examples of these fat attack burgers include Burger King, Ruby Tuesdays and Five Guys to name a few. Many pasta portions from restaurants are not only 1 serving of grain — but most of the time, at least 5 and sometimes as many as 8-10 — yes, more than a day’s worth.

Even vegetables at restaurants are soaked and cooked in butter to make them attractive and tasty and salads are full of fat and extras like cheese.

So what do you do? First, determine if you are eating out as a treat, a necessity or because you are not interested in cooking. If it is a treat, then watch your portions and enjoy. If it is a necessity (like you are on a business trip etc) then make very wise choices, ask for dressings on the side, order small portions if they are available, ask for green salad instead of fries, avoid fried anything and opt for more fresh and whole foods like fruit, vegetables, chicken and fish.

Now for the category that is tough — the “I don’t wanna cook” gang. You really should look at reducing your meals in restaurants. It will make a major impact on your diet. Anyone can learn to cook if you can read so not knowing how is sorry – a lame excuse for not doing it. There are lots of recipes on my sister site, Douglasville Weight Loss, where you can get started.

If you are truly at a loss for cooking, then I suggest trying a meal service such as Dinner Afare or Dream Dinners to get your calories and portions under control. Home cooking helps you control the ingredients and content. So it is always the first choice and will make the biggest impact on your weight loss so really give it a try.

Check back in a few days for the next part in this series from the personal training blog – Portion Control

Effective Weight loss is not a myth — it is possible and it just takes a bit of science and math and a LOT of determination from you.

First you need to really look at your food and exercise habits. Exercise and strength training will really help but your food is a MAJOR key to losing weight.

And the biggest food issue is really not WHAT foods usually, it is HOW MUCH.

A serving of grain is really a slice of bread — but not a giant slice of bread, not a thick slice of bread, not a muffin and not a bagel. A bagel can be 5-6 servings depending on where you buy your bagels. So see where I am going here?

Portion control is extremely important. And getting a handle on exactly what you are eating is another.

I always suggest people keep a diary — at least for the first week to get an honest look at your food. Are you putting in a giant full fat latte every morning — hello!! The more stuff you add to your coffee, the more it becomes a rare treat as opposed to a daily thing. A tall non-fat latte, even a grande, has under 200 calories. But you need to keep in mind those are 200 calories that you need to take from the rest of your day. Many of the chocolate chip or caramel or mocha drinks have as many as 800 calories in them. That is a half day’s calories for many people.

So, first step — WRITE IT DOWN — do an honest analysis of your diet by writing down everything (food, drinks, gum, candy, snacks– EVERYTHING) that you put in your mouth.

Start there — I will add more details here on the Personal Training Blog about step 2 later this week.