American Portions

What is the deal with the huge portions of food and drinks in America!!?? It is absolutely mind- boggling. A couple of days ago I was with someone who went through the drive-thru at Wendy's just to get a medium-sized soda. Can you believe it was 32 ounces!!?? 32 ounces for a medium! This amount of regular soda is the equivalent of nearly 27 teaspoons of sugar and is devoid of nutrients. I was in shock. It seems that unrealistically-large serving sizes are everywhere. I realize it has been this way for some time but after being in Asia where serving sizes are much smaller, I am now more aware than ever at how big our portions truly are.

In my life I am thankful that I have finally learned how to eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full. I have learned that if I listen to my body, it tells me that I need to eat relatively small amounts in order to nourish my body. But I must say it is more difficult to do this when eating out and a large portion is put in front of you. Even today at Panera bread, I felt full after eating 1/2 of my turkey sandwich but despite the clear message my body was giving me, I kept going just because it was in front of me and I didn't want to waste it. Hours later I am regretting this because I still feel stuffed.

This is a big problem for our culture whose level of busy-ness requires eating on the go and spending very little time in the kitchen where portions and ingredients can be controlled. I realize that doing what it takes to truly care of ourselves (which goes far beyond healthy eating but must start here) is counter-cultural. In order for us to make healthy choices we end up having to go against the grain of our busy society.

I love travelling but I do not enjoy how difficult it is to maintain a healthy lifestyle while travelling.