There is no magic, or even rocket science, to using The Diet Plate ® ™ ! This is the great thing about this system – it is so easy to use. Here are the basics of how it works:
1. Use the plate for the biggest meal of the day, every day. For most people, this is supper time. Take note that there is a male plate and a female plate (yep, it"s a down side to being a woman – men get to eat more!! Truthfully, men generally burn more calories in a day than a same-sized woman, mostly because men have more lean body mass (ie muscle, which is more metabolically active), and less fat mass (less metabolically active), than women. )
2. The plate has 4 portions on it: protein, carbohydrate, a sauce circle, and a cheese square. Choose what you would like to have to eat, and simply portion it inside of the boundaries on the plate! The boundaries for protein and carbs are the areas outlined by the tape measures on the plate, and at the edge, where the white meets the blue on the plate.
3. There is no height restriction to the plate’s portions, with the exception of the cheese square, which is a cube. Yes, you could technically build the Leaning Tower of Mashed Potato in the carb section, but some might consider that defeatist. :) The carb and protein portions should stay inside of their boundaries without being held in there by your hand. So, if you ladle up some pasta and it slips outside of the boundary, put some back until it stays inside the boundaries on its own.
4. You can use the protein or carb part of your meal to hold the sauce inside the sauce circle. For example, if you are having spaghetti with tomato sauce, portion the noodles into the carb section first, then move them so that they surround the sauce circle. Finally, pour the sauce into the circle!
5. Once you have portioned out your meal according to what you have desired to eat that day, push it to the side, and fill the rest with vegetables. Veg are unlimited and can go anywhere on the plate, as long as they are Free Veg and devoid of sauces. Watch out for the Sneaky Veg: peas, corn, carrots, potatoes, and yams. These veggies are actually quite high in carbohydrates, therefore they are not free, and they should be portioned in the carb section.
6. You should only portion food once per meal - no second helpings – except for Free Veg, of which you can take as much as you like!
That’s all there is to it! The beauty behind this portion control system is two fold: It is simple to use, and it allows you the freedom to choose what you like to eat. There will be no falling off the wagon of this diet because of the temptation of forbidden foods, because nothing is forbidden! I always recommend making healthy food choices, but once in a while it is ok to have that special treat. This plate also has great success because it is an attractive plate – it is something that you can be proud to put on the dinner table!
The female plate will provide approximately 650 calories at one sitting (of course this depends upon what you eat, but this is the average figure, averaged over many different types of meals). The male plate wil provide an average of 800 calories per meal.
Bon appetit!
:) Dr. Sue
http://www.drsue.ca/ © 2009 drsuetalks@gmail.com
