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Portion size critical to losing weight

  • Published
  • By James Baker
  • 88th Air Base Wing Public Affairs
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFMCNS) --  The health and wellness of the Air Force Materiel Command work force is one of Gen. Bruce Carlson's top priorities.

The AFMC commander's focus is being realized throughout the command. In addition to policy changes, such as civilians working out during official duty time, health and wellness centers are stepping up to the plate with their own ideas.

The health and wellness center at Wright-Patterson started up a new program that emphasizes healthier eating habits and weight control called Portion Off the Pounds. The 10-week program is designed to offer weekly weigh-ins, nutrition education and an ongoing support group.

"The concept of the class is to show how to use portion control instead of always counting their calories," said Nancy Gouveia, HAWC nutrition manager. "Done sensibly, 2,000 calories could be someone's daily intake or just a meal-and-a-half for someone who makes numerous trips to fast-food restaurants."

Gouveia said they show a video of a man frequenting a popular fast-food restaurant for 30 days. Within a week his body fat increased by 5 percent and after 30 days he had gained 25 pounds.

"If people can lose 5 to 7 percent of their body weight, they can lessen the risk of diabetes by 58 percent." she said. "This gentleman was literally killing himself with very unhealthy food choices."

The idea of portion control is to divide your plate into four parts, Gouveia said. An example is one quarter for meatloaf (or healthy meat alternative), one quarter for a whole grain dish and the remaining half for two servings of vegetables. That healthy combination is only around 300 calories.

"Our diets have such an impact on weight control," Gouveia said. "We show them they can practice calorie control that will incorporate less salt and sugar in their diet, which eventually leads to being less hungry."

Some of the topics covered during the duration of the 10-week class include portion control, healthy cooking, shopping sensibly and eating healthy food on the run.

"We are trying to give everyone a lot of different options to help them control their weight," said Gouveia. "The classes are both fun and interactive. "