Have you encountered portion distortion?
Most of us have, says Dr. Michael Mosley and Mimi Spencer in their book The FastDiet, Lose Weight, Stay Healthy and Live Longer with the Simple Secret of Intermittent Fasting.
I like the words “portion distortion.” It’s what happens when you go to a restaurant and you get so much food that you put half of it in a to-go box to eat for lunch the next day. When you go to a fast food restaurant and get the jumbo container of French fries. When you go to a movie and get a tub of popcorn.
Portion distortion, explain Mosley and Spencer, happens when the amount of food on your plate is more than your body needs or more than what you want to eat.
I am not recommending the FastDiet, which involves eating 500 calories for women or 600 calories for men two days a week. However, online comments from nutritionists say that, while it might not be the best approach for everyone, it could work for some as a way to cut calories.
I am going to think about portion distortion the next time I sit down to eat. Is the amount of food on my plate the amount that I need and want?
–Joy