If you’ve ever tried to cut your calories, you’ve been met with the sad truth about food. A serving of most foods is pretty small. Even worse, that small portion can have a lot of calories. Research is backing up one of the best tricks most successful dieters tend to pick up on: the idea that eating big portions of the right foods will lead to more satisfaction and weight loss success.
It takes time, but once you start to see that one small granola bar contains the same amount of calories as a huge plate of fresh veggies, your snack time choices start to get easier. Most would choose to have more food versus a small portion, high-calorie option. It’s all about volume. If you eating large portions of low calorie foods, your success rates will go up immeasurably.
Celebrity chef Ellie Krieger reported for ABC News on the topic, relying on studies conducted by Barbara Rolls of Pennsylvania State University.
Rolls is the author of “The Ultimate Volumetrics Diet,” and suggests that regardless of calories, people tend to be satisfied by the same volume of food. If this is true, loading plates with high-volume, low-calorie options will fill you up without causing you to gain weight.
One example of foods that will help you fill up volume without packing in major calories is purees. It’s suggested to blend in vegetable purees and add them to dishes like pasta. Doing so adds bulk and nutrition while keeping the calories much lower than adding creams and oils.
Another option is to simply add chopped vegetables to a dish. A pot of chili can be stretched much further by adding fresh vegetables like squash or peppers, or any other vegetable you may prefer. Instead of adding more meat or beans, the vegetables will allow for a larger serving with fewer calories.
This idea can be carried out with so many other dishes, like soups, crock pot roasts, or even sandwiches. No need to pile on cheeses and dressings, layer on fresh vegetables for a great flavor and crunch.
The report also mentioned the benefit in cutting food into smaller servings instead serving them whole. For example, if a potato is diced, people are less likely to consume the whole item. It also suggested slicing meat into thin pieces and spreading them out on the plate to make the plate appear more full and appetizing instead of just serving one large portion.
Since there are no calories in air, you can have all you want! OK, that’s a no brainer. But if you go for the puffed grains or popcorn instead of dense chips or crackers, you’ll naturally be consuming less. The same principle is true for spreads and butter. If you opt for the whipped versions, there’s more air and less calories.
It seems most dishes found on typical menus have a lot of meat and grains. If those plates were just as full of veggies and fruit, we might see more satisfied and perhaps slimmer people walking around.
Also Read:
5 High Fiber Foods You Should be Eating