In order to lose weight,is it better to measure your portions or count your calories?
Hello Everyone:
I hope that this doesn’t sound like a really stupid question,but here it goes. When you are trying to lose weight and follow a healthier diet,is it better to measure your food,or count your calories? The reason I am asking is because I am currently on a 1600-1800 calorie diet approved by my doctor,and I always measure everything that I am going to drink or eat.
I drink alot of water,and I drink three servings of 1% milk for breakfast,lunch and dinner. I am not diabetic,but I am watching the (bad) white carbs such as bread,pasta,rice etc… I am eating salads,fruits,veggies,lean protein,whole wheat breads,pastas,etc in order to maintain a healthier lifestyle. Thank you for any advice or tips that you would like to share,I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart!! 
watch the calories they r what add up
Check your calories, exercise regimine, etc. If you go to a gym, a trainer will be happy to explain.
”measure your portions” sounds more fun.
Count calories for SURE!
It’s better to count calories than portions. Some portions could be high or low in calories, and also, it’s hard to generalize exactly what a “portion” is, because it’s different for everyone.
It sounds like you’re already eating pretty healthy as it is though, so keep up the good work!
i think it is better to count your calories because this way you ensure that you are on the right track in keeping the amount of calories that you need to have daily intact.
They are actually two different concepts. Some follow one and some follow the other.
I read something about this on dietchannel.com where a few diets were all about calories and others were about portions.
Eating healthy is always great. The old fact still remains: weight loss is about calories in versus calories out. You can eat 1600-1800 calories a day, but if you don’t exercise, you will not lose the weight. I’m not talking about going exercise fanatic, but doing at least 30 minutes cardio a day and 2-3 days a week of resistance training.
when i was trying to lose weight and eat healthier, I just traded in my chips for carrots and celery sticks,I still eat my good food like pizza and burritos but i have half as much as i used to have and have a small salad with it now to help fill me up. I also drink a glass full of water ( at least 8-16 oz.) 15-20 min. before each meal to fill me up a little bit to help with portion control..but to answer your question, i think just cutting down on your portion size and weighing your food will be ok, but if you count the calories after you measure, it will help keep you under the limit for the day.
Everything counts. What you want to do mostly is not see this as a “diet” you are on, but the start of a new lifestyle. Don’t make it too strict or your weight will yoyo. Eat reasonably and enjoy an old treat occassionaly. Weigh yourself everyday for maintenance. There will be some fluctuations.
It is better to count calories. Some small portions of certain foods can contain more calories than larger portions of different foods. For example a hamburger would contain more calories than most large garden salads. Also, I personally never use salad dressings as some of them are very high in calories and I prefer the plain taste of garden vegetables.
Clarence Bass, who I guess would be the grandfather of modern day bodyfat cutting and health…was a large proponent of adding alot of fibrous foods to your meals. They are tough, they thicken in your stomach when you eat them, and give you the sense of feeling full. For example, he would eat a large salad before eating his lunch. Therefore controlling how much he would take in. Also a large salad, no dressing, doesnt come down to alot in calories.
If it helps, give it a try…Ive gotten quite lean in the past using this.
I think what you are doing now sounds great. Your diet sounds perfect. The only thing I would change is to drink less milk, and change it to skim; preferably organic. But honestly, you have a great diet. I have never ‘measured’ my food … I eat a 3 ‘meals’ a day, and let myself have healthy snacks in between.
If you are able to exercise, it’s also a good idea to integrate some cardio and strength training into your daily life. It’ll get you results a lot quicker. Good luck!!!
Measuring portions and counting calories are two different ways of saying the same thing. Like pounds and kilograms.
It’s much better to count calories, since they are the only things that determine whether you gain or lose weight.
Besides, if you can find lots of great-tasting, low-calorie foods to add to your diet so you don’t starve yourself, you won’t care about portions as much!
There’s a diet plan built around this philosophy.
It’s called The Logic Diet.
Learn all about it at:
http://www.thelogicdiet.com
You can Lose 9 lbs every 11 days after you know these facts:
Low Fat Foods DON’T WORK………
You cannot lose weight using Low Fat Diets. Low fat foods have been popular for more than 15 years, but yet our society is getting more overweight as each year passes. This fact alone should tell you that eating a purely low fat menu is not the answer to losing weight.
Low Calorie Diets DON’T WORK……..
You won’t lose weight using a Low Calorie Dieting Plan either. In fact, eating low calories is the worst thing that you can do to your body, since that will only slow down your body’s fat burning engine and ruin all chances of losing weight (low calorie diets may allow a few pounds of weight loss for the first few days, but then after that all weight loss comes to a halt — known as a dieting plateau). You can never get slim by starving yourself.
Low Carb Plans DON’T WORK…….
You’ll probably find it extremely difficult to get slim using a Low Carb Dieting Plan. Low carb diets have recently become popular over the last couple years, but the problem with low carb menus is that they are too strict and TOO HARD TO FOLLOW for average people. Low carb menus tend to rob your body of too much energy (carbohydrates) and make it nearly impossible to remain on the program for very long. This is why so many dieters find it difficult to follow a strict low carbohydrate menu.
In fact,the food that you eat can either make you THIN or FAT!!!
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Realize it’s the same thing
Counting calories means watching your portions and viceversa (a smaller serving will have less calories and lower calorie count will be smaller in size).
In order to count your calories you have to watch your portions