by Haven Logan PH.D

        
Scene One – Your Local Fast Food Restaurant
It’s 7 p.m. and the fluorescent lights are blindingly bright as you make your way to the counter through crowds of exhausted parents and whining children. The smell of French fries emerging from the depths of boiling oil greets you when you finally place your order with the counter person. She informs you that for a small amount of additional money, “You can get your fries, burger, and soda super sized.”

Scene Two – Café Right Size
The last rays of summer daylight and a gentle breeze fill the restaurant as you are seated at a small table brightened by a vase of multi-colored fresh flowers. As you scan the menu, you notice that some of your favorite dishes are being served and that the prices are very reasonable. After you place your order with the smiling waitress, you ask her to “Right size it, please.” You know that not only will your dinner be delicious, but it will come with the exact number of servings of each food group that you need to satisfy your day’s nutrition.

Scene One has been going on across the nation and the globe for some time. If you haven’t yet seen the documentary film Super Size Me, head on down to your video store and rent it. Make sure your kids watch it, too. Film maker Morgan Spurlock interviewed experts in 20 cities about the financial and physical cost of America’s “hunger for fast foods.” He also put his own health on the line by living on only McDonald’s food for a month.

Super Size Me makes for an entertaining and informative film. Public reaction since the film’s 2004 release appears to have influenced fast food chains to include some healthier items, such as salads, on their menus. Super sizing seems to now be keeping a lower profile. When I asked a local fast food restaurant this week what I could get super sized, the only item was a super-sized soda (42 ounces at 385 calories). Still, considering that the normal soda serving 20 years ago was 6.5 ounces at 85 calories, you see can easily see a major reason why we are dealing with an epidemic of obesity. For more information visit these websites: www.supersizeme.com and www.mcdonalds.com.

Scene Two, regrettably, is only a figment of my imagination. Until there is such a restaurant as the Café Right Size, we will be left to our own devices when monitoring our food intake. The effort is well worth it! Making a commitment to “right size” what you eat and drink is the simplest, longest lasting, and most significant step you can take in creating a healthy weigh management program.

To lose weight or maintain your ideal weight, you don’t have to continually diet or give up your favorite foods. One of the most effective strategies you can undertake is to begin eating “normal” portions. The trouble is that we have forgotten or never learned what “normal” means when it comes to food servings.

Right Sizing at Home

Since we’re so accustomed to ever increasing portion sizes, we need to start with education. The first thing to do is to understand what is considered a single serving of each food group and then to learn how many servings of this group are recommended for a person of your weight each day. An excellent source for recommended food group daily servings is the website of the U.S. Department of Agriculture: www.mypyramid.gov. To keep track of what you are eating and the number of servings from each group you can download a Daily Meal Plan Form from my website: www.californiawinecountrydiet.com. [Plan A is for 1200 calories, Plan B for 1600 calories, and Plan C for 2000 calories.]

Next, take out your measuring spoons, measuring cup, and a food scale. Use them! After you have practiced measuring out serving sizes with these tools for a while, you will be able to visually estimate them. My recommendation is that you start with a focus on those food groups which are the most energy (or calorie) dense. Since one cup of romaine lettuce is only 8 calories and one cup of vegetable oil is as much as 2,160 calories, it is obviously more important to measure the oil.

• Lean Meat (lean meat, poultry, and fish) 

A serving size of lean meat weighs one ounce and contains 55 calories. Three ounces of lean meat is about the size of a deck of playing cards. Instead of thinking of meat as the center of your meal, learn to make it a complement to a plate of vegetables and grains as the Asians do.

• Plant oils (olive, canola, sunflower)

The serving size for plant oils is one teaspoon and contains an average of 45 calories. Be sure to read the labels and serving sizes of salad and other dressings. Then carefully measure. Pouring dressing over your salad is a sure way to turn a healthy light meal into a high calorie one.

• Whole grains (bread, cereal, rice, pasta)

Serving size for whole grains is 1 slice bread, 1 ounce cereal, ½ cup rice or pasta. This serving contains approximately 80 calories. Exact calorie counts can vary greatly in this group, so be sure to read package labels.

• Beverages (juice, soda, wine, and beer)

A serving of fruit juice is ½ cup and contains approximately 60 calories. Eating an orange will be more filling and satisfying than drinking ½ cup of orange juice. Be aware that many beverages contain added sugar, so always read beverage labels because it is so easy to drink your way to too many calories. Instead of a glass of juice, drink water to quench your thirst and add a small amount of juice to it for taste.

• Packaged Goods (crackers, chips, boxed and frozen meals)

Attention to servings is more important with packaged goods than with any other category because of the fat and sugar they inevitably contain. Fortunately, we can read the contents on the labels. Just make sure that you understand what they count as a serving.

Right Sizing When You Are Eating Out

When you go out to eat, assume that in most restaurants your portions will be too large. Here are a few ways you can right size your meal and still enjoy yourself:

• Share an entrée.
• Order a salad or appetizer as your main dish.
• Ask for a take-home container and bring home half of your meal for tomorrow’s lunch.
• Ask for salad dressing and sauces to be served on the side so you can control how much goes on.
  
  

The Joys of Right Sizing

The most important change you can make to transform from being a “super sizer” to being a “right sizer” is in your attitude. We have been deluded into thinking that large portions are wonderful treats for us and that we are getting a great financial “deal” when we get larger portions. However, feeling bloated and stuffed after too large a meal is no treat. And the billions of dollars we are spending on health problems related to obesity show us that in fact we are paying a very high price for super sizing. So each time you are about to eat, think “Right size me” and then enjoy each delicious mouthful!