Portion sizes (rant)

[skibum]

Following in the Scottish tradition of frying things, some Americans came up with The Deep Fried Twinkie. Apparently, it's quite popular at state/county fairs. My arteries harden just thinking about it.

[Kitsune06]

It's an interesting study in diet vs. lifestyle.

For awhile, my roommate and I in Eugene would bike *everywhere* (not a car between us) but eat out for virtually every meal. Red Bull and a bagel every morning for breakfast, super-oily quesadillas with chicken, salsa, sour cream and soda, some kind of snack, then chinese or some kind of salad, soup or lasagne for dinner, in relatively large portions. I had a regular checkup with my Dr. (blood tests and the works) and my cholesterol levels were low, my blood pressure on the low end of 'normal' and my 'resting' heart rate around 74 (It's always been a little fast)

Fast forward a few months, when I move and start taking my car everywhere, eating the same stuff, but just driving- sadly never taking my bike to work because I had the car.

I gained 15#, lost all my endurance, and though I don't have any way to 'prove' it, I'm sure my cholesterol/bp went up as my heart started skipping beats again.

I'm back to my pre-move weight and muscle mass, but it really 'laid it out' for me... the traditional bacon 'n eggs, sausage, gravy, biscuits 'n fried tatties came about and were very practical for those getting up and feeding/milking the cows as the sun rose, then having breakfast before heading back into the field to sow/bale/fork/fertilize/harvest. It was a time when people worked HARD and burned enough calories to be thin and wiry despite the huge caloric uptake...

Now, with our sedentary work and home lives, we find ourselves craving the soul-mending foods of our predecessors (come on, what's more soothing than a creamy thai soup with coconut milk and ginger or a morning-after breakfast of biscuits and gravy, with eggs and bacon?) but our lifestyles just can't process it...

I'm a person who will order the biggest entree I can for the lowest price and just take what I need/want and box the rest. I'm with Mimi- if I'm trapped at work, darn straight I'll want a good lunch.

[DarcyInOregon]

I'm a person who will order the biggest entree I can for the lowest price and just take what I need/want and box the rest. I'm with Mimi- if I'm trapped at work, darn straight I'll want a good lunch.

Kit, I think you have the attitude of most people, but the majority of the people who order in restaurants eat it all and they don't bike a zillion miles. That is why you are healthy and they are not, because you have portion control and you are an athlete.

Years ago I gave myself an attitude change about how I select food when I am eating out. Yes, the majority of people order restaurant food so as to maximize calories for the lowest cost. Instead, select food using the criteria of health so as to eat wisely from the food groups, and don't use cost as a consideration unless you are really broke. For example, I like small portions and a variety, so I might make several selections from the apptetizers along with a dinner salad, perhaps a shrimp cocktail, Asian salad rolls, a cup of soup and the dinner salad. That is more than enough for me and I don't have leftovers. I have also gotten very aggressive over the years about the side dishes that may come with a sandwich. French fries are empty calories, so I refuse to eat them. I ask for a salad or soup instead of the fries. If the restaurant can't make the substitution, I leave the fries on the plate untouched.

The original poster mentioned her purchase of asparagus. Here is my contribution regarding asparagus. Cook it in the microwave or steam it. Pour a vinaigrette of your choice over the asparagus and chill overnight. Serve the chilled asparagus on a plate with fresh sliced tomatoes, a portion of fresh cut fruit, and a selection of healthy protein, such as a grilled filet of fish.

Another fantastic way to cook asparagus is to cut it up, add it to low-sodium chicken broth, and add a bit of garlic, a splash of lemon and a bit of olive oil. Simmer for 10 minutes. Using a stick beater, puree the cooked mixture. Serve hot or cold.

Everyone who loves to eat fresh vegetables and fruit should own a stick beater. Right now is when winter squash is in the produce markets, and this year there is an incredible variety. Peel and cut the squash of your choice, and cook in low sodium chicken broth. Add some other items of your choice, like a sweet potato, or an apple or pear, or garlic, or an onion, or nutmeg, and so on. Simmer until done. Get out the stick beater and puree right in the pot. Serve hot. This soup is like the asparagus soup, exceptionally low calorie, and extremely delicious and nutritious.

You can use the stick beater on almost any vegetable or bean. For example, garbanzo beans puree nicely into a soup, or carrots.

By the way, the fried chocolate in Scotland, I think that has to be the most disgusting food choice ever, worse than anything at the burger fast food restaurants in North America. The only thing that comes close is if you get caught in a buffet type of restaurant and you look around you and everyone is eating plates piled high with nothing but fried food, and you are the only one eating from the salad bar. Ever been there? I have.

Darcy

[Raindrop]

Portion sizes have been quickly enlarged over the last twenty years. Just google what a serving of french fries was in 1983 vs 2006. Likewise, the huge increase in high calorie drinks and I'm not just talking about carbonated beverages, but the high-energy and smoothy drinks that come across as "healthy".

Add to that our "time saving" devices (garage door openers, remote controls (for EVERYTHING!), light vacuume cleaners (We wouldn't want to actually work at our housework!), dishwashers, clothes dryers, automatic sprinkler systems etc. etc.

Then, we drive to work, drive to the store, drive our kids to their organized sports and/or play dates, school etc. etc.

I know most of us here try to commute by bike when possible, but for many, unsafe neighborhoods and busy streets mean our kids can't just play outside like we used to do and we can't just walk down to the store or send our kids down when we need a quart of milk or even just get on our bikes and ride to the store without carrying our u-locks and chain cables to keep our bikes safe while we're inside.

For most of us...it's been an easing into our current soft life with a slow degeneration of our formerly active, safe and productive lives.

What's the answer

[Kitsune06]

I call for the complete downfall of all society. Folks will certainly lose weight when farming for themselves, pounding and drying corn/acorns/wheat and steel-cuttinog oats etc etc.

Anyone with me?
...anyone?
**Crickets**

[CyclChyk]

Anyone with me?
...anyone?
**Crickets**

Um.... count me out cuz that would take time away from me Riding my Bike......

[chickwhorips]

I call for the complete downfall of all society. Folks will certainly lose weight when farming for themselves, pounding and drying corn/acorns/wheat and steel-cuttinog oats etc etc.

Anyone with me?
...anyone?
**Crickets**

here here!!!! its how i grew up! hated it then, but miss it now.

[Kitsune06]

Woohoo!
Oh- D'oh~ I hijacked the thread. Back on topic, though,
After thinking about it a little more, there's such emphasis on 'eating until you feel full'.
Two separate thoughts come out of that...
1. If you do that often enough, wouldn't the stomach stretch to accomodate more and more food, so you need more all the time to get that sensation?
2. If you're eating until you 'feel full' (and I don't mean 'sated' I mean 'if I eat anymore I'm going to burst', because that's were a lot of people go) and then hop on your bike to get home, you'll hurl. (pardon the graphic speech) but it's alright to eat that much, then waddle out to your car, sit down, and drive home, then take a nap while you wait for things to digest (and go straight to your butt and thighs- thank you, Thanksgiving dinner...) so maybe biking to/from restaurants for meals isn't such a bad thing, either. Certainly enforces the take-out box mentality.