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How To Learn Portion Control...

...A Guide To Quickly Teach You The Basics Of Portion Control



By PEERtrainer Founder


Learning portion control is something that we think is very important, and pretty easy once you get the hang of it. For those of you following the new PEERtrainer Cheat System we are seeing that people who know how to do basic portion control are doing incredible out of the gate. Those who have not learned this are struggling a bit. Keep in mind that a "Cheat" is simply 100 calories. You just need to think in terms of 100 calorie increments, count the food on the right and go nuts with the food on the left side of the list. Click here to download the list if you have not yet.

How To Learn Portion Control

The first thing you need to really get a grasp on is that your stomach is about the size of your fist. Most plates of dinner served at a restaurant are twice, sometimes three times the size of this. Make it a buffet and you could be eating a portion that is 6 times the size of your stomach.

An appetizer is usually a sensible portion size for your stomach. Use the palm of your hand to get a good sense of how much protein you should eat at any given meal. Make the rest of the plate full of vegetables.

Here is a quick reference list of popular foods:
  • 1 cup of cereal = a baseball. For example, a cup Cheerios has about a 110 calories.

  • 2 Tbsp of salad dressing = a shot glass. Most salads in restaurants have 2 LADLES of dressing on them; 2 Tbsp is a relatively small amount and will average about 240 calories. Adding lemon or mustard or something like balsamic vinegar can make your salad "moist" without adding extra fat and calories.

  • 1 Oz of Nuts = a cupped palm. For example, an ounce of Cashews has 163 calories and they're so good it's hard to stop at a "cupped palm". ping pong ball in comedian mouth

  • 1 Oz of Cheese = a ping-pong ball. An ounce of Cheddar has about 110 calories. The picture is of comedian Mister PP and gives you a reasonably good visual idea of the size of a ping pong ball relative to your mouth!

  • 3 Oz of Hamburger = a mayonaise jar lid. To get a good idea of how big that lid is, move your fingers into a "grab and open a lid" position. It's a full one ounce smaller than a quarter pounder. Some higher end restaurants serve 1/2 pound hamburgers.

  • 1 Tbsp of Peanut Butter = three dice. Most peanut butter labels have 2 Tbsp as a serving, which is 200 calories. You can make a decent "sandwich" with 1 Tablespoon. Peanut butter is also delicious with bananas and celery.

  • 1/2 a Cup of Rice = an ice cream scoop. A 1/2 cup of white rice has about 205 calories, and if you're in a restaurant it's easy to have at least 3 servings. Just put one "ice cream scoop" on your plate.

  • 1 Potato = a computer mouse. A potato only has a 100 calories. It's the stuff you put on the potato that makes the "portion" get out of control.

  • 1 Dinner Roll = a yo-yo. A dinner roll has about 66 calories. Unfortunately, it's hard to stop at one when a basket of 6 arrives at your table. Here are tips about how to eat out and still lose weight.

  • 1 Tsp of Butter = a Scrabble tile. Usually about a Tablespoon of butter is used at about a 100 calories and 2 Weight Watchers Points. It's virtually all fat. Better alternatives to butter are olive oil or avocado.

  • 1/2 a Cup of Cooked Pasta = a golf ball. There are roughly 200 calories in a full cup of pasta (2 golf balls). You'll find information about every kind of pasta here.

  • 3 Oz of Fish = a checkbook. A serving of cooked salmon has about 175 calories. Calories and Nutrition Facts in other kinds of fish. Be mindful of mercury when selecting your fish entree.

  • 3 Oz of Beef = a bar of soap There are roughly 200 calories in a Serving of Steak and most restaurants are serving a much larger portion than a "bar of soap". Also be sure to ask if the steak has been marianated or other hidden additives that cause food sensitivities.


Portion control is critical for long term weight loss, and is a very important first step. Staying on track is difficult and you will need all the help you can get. You need to start finding ways of keeping yourself on track. PEERtrainer has developed a free Tip Of The Day email program that helps to remind and motivate you each day.

You can sign up by entering your email below. The program is designed to make sure you know the basics of weight loss, and gives you simple action items each day. Sometimes you'll get a motivational message, other times you'll be asked a question that is designed to get you thinking. The program has been around for 4 years, and is one of PEERtrainer's best free offerings:



[Editorial Note: For maximum weight loss results and overall better health, cleanses are often used. This aids the body with detoxification and balance, but also helps with weight loss reduction. But there are some things to be aware of before you cleanse. Nutrition, health and weight reduction expert, JJ Virgin PhD, has spent the last 15 years educating doctors and patients on how to cleanse properly.

She recently held an extremely popular webinar for the PEERtrainer community, sharing the "real deal" on cleansing to overcome weight loss resistance and more. To have this webinar sent to you, plus a free report containing JJ's top tips for cleansing, detoxifying, and dieting as well as the free PEERtrainer Cheat System, illustrating which foods to avoid when cleansing, enter your email address below:]





Next: The Three Bite Rule- How To Eat Dessert And Still Stay On Track