Portion Creep
Over these last few weeks I have experienced what I call portion creep. Portion creep is just how it sounds - my portions of something, anything, everything, are slowly but surely getting bigger. It is a real, completely normal part of the weight loss and/or maintenance journey, and will become problematic (unwanted weight gain) if not reigned in.
When I started gaining weight about 20 years ago, I can honestly say that I was unaware of how much I was eating. It was not until I started tracking my food that I realized (and was surprised to find) that I was consuming a lot more than I thought I was . I thought my diet was fairly healthy - but it was not. Despite the fact that I was not dining on fast food or bags of junk food, and was vigorously exercising almost daily, I was having too many calories, too much sugar, too little protein, too little produce, and was eating by the clock, not by my hunger signals.
My work as a weight loss and health coach has always included discussions about portions and portion control. What is a portion of any particular food? Why is it important to pay attention to them? Why is accurately tracking portions such an important piece of weight loss? Why is so important to track portions of some foods, and not others (think cookies vs. greens).
Portion creep occurs because we are human. Because we are not always honest with ourselves, because we are tired and distracted, because we are overconfident, because we really wish we did not have to pay such close attention to what we consume.
It’s okay! The solution is simple - start tracking again; use portion control methods like measuring cups/spoons, or a food scale; ask yourself if your meals have been looking different, or if you are snacking more, or eating mindlessly again.
I have changed a lot over all these years, and so has the way I eat. What I know now is that to have continued success in maintenance I have to not take that success for granted. I need to continue to work for it and to pay attention. It is like anything else; sometimes the habits that serve us well can be hard to keep up. All we usually need is a slight course correction and a set of thoughts that are neutral like “this is what I need to do now” or “I understand why this has happened and I know what to do.”
So, I understand why this has happened and I know what to do. I am tracking until I am back at my “set point.” And the next time it happens, I will repeat the process.
