Lose weight by using a smaller dinner plate.

            Losing weight by eating less might be as simple as using a smaller dinner plate.  Not long ago I purchased a new set of everyday dishes.  My old set was 27 years old.  The first time I put my new dishes in the dishwasher I realized they were bigger than my old set.  I didn’t think anything of it until I read an article in Today’s Dietitian magazine (April 2010) and learned that the average dinner plate’s diameter increased 36% between 1965 and 2005.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that the bigger your plate the more food you’ll put on it and the more you’ll eat.

            I discovered a great website www.smallplatemovement.org that reports scientific research proving that we eat more when we serve ourselves on bigger plates.  If we consistently ate from smaller plates and bowls we would lose a significant amount of weight without having to give up our favorite food or feel deprived.  Their research shows that how much we put on our plates is environmentally controlled and when we use smaller plates less looks like more and we feel just as satisfied.  Yet we consumed fewer calories.   

            I have battled over eating for as long as I can remember.  When I over eat I always get stomach pain, yet I’m ashamed to admit it, but I still over eat choosing to eat through the pain because the pleasure in the mouth is so good.  I have decided to take the small plate movement’s challenge and eat off smaller plates for one month.  I’ll report back a month from now on July 14^th and let you know what happened.  In the mean time go check out their website.  You'll be amazed.  

Cooking is easier than you think and you and your family are worth the time and effort it takes. 

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