Are you trying to lose weight and having trouble doing so? Here are two tricks you should try when it comes to eating less:
First, use a smaller plate. Have you noticed that over the years, not only have we super-sized our food choices, we’ve also super-sized our dinnerware. If you’ve bought new dishes over the last few years, you know what I mean. The cereal bowls, dinner plates, and dessert plates are all much larger than they used to be.
We tend to fill our plates when we serve ourselves. Use a smaller dinner plate or bowl, and you’ll fill it with less food, thereby eating less. And don’t worry about leaving the table hungry. You won’t miss that extra food. It’s a psychological thing going on. You’ve cleaned your plate; you’ve eaten enough.
According to the Small Plate Movement, you can drop 18 pounds over the course of a year just by reducing the size of your plate.
Another tip that works is to change the color of your dishes. A study in the Journal of Consumer Research found that people ate more when eating food served on a plate of the same color. So if you’re eating vanilla ice cream, don’t put it in a white bowl, and keep that chocolate cake off dark brown or black plates.
First, use a smaller plate. Have you noticed that over the years, not only have we super-sized our food choices, we’ve also super-sized our dinnerware. If you’ve bought new dishes over the last few years, you know what I mean. The cereal bowls, dinner plates, and dessert plates are all much larger than they used to be.
We tend to fill our plates when we serve ourselves. Use a smaller dinner plate or bowl, and you’ll fill it with less food, thereby eating less. And don’t worry about leaving the table hungry. You won’t miss that extra food. It’s a psychological thing going on. You’ve cleaned your plate; you’ve eaten enough.
According to the Small Plate Movement, you can drop 18 pounds over the course of a year just by reducing the size of your plate.
Another tip that works is to change the color of your dishes. A study in the Journal of Consumer Research found that people ate more when eating food served on a plate of the same color. So if you’re eating vanilla ice cream, don’t put it in a white bowl, and keep that chocolate cake off dark brown or black plates.
Great tips, Janice! Readers, what are some of your dieting tips? Let's hear from you. -- AP
