CathyM Weight Loss & Health Blog

One thing I learned on Diet.com
– from the diet personalitly quiz is that one of my biggest problems is portion control – they call me a Hearty Portioner! I have been able to keep my portions in control over the last few weeks. Here’s how I did it:

1. I can eat anything if I only take a bite! There’s a good dessert at the table – if someone will let me taste their’s, I’m good.
2. I can eat unlimited vegetables (of course assuming they are not drenched in cheese or butter). I can still have unlimited vegetables if there are small amounts of butter or sauce – and that small amount can go a long ways towards making them desirable!
3. I eat 2 or 3 fruits per day. This is not unlimited because of sugar. Fruits are highly recommended though because of their antioxidants, vitamins, and fiber!
4. Good fats make a meal tasty. Olive oil is good and if I want to saute, I add a small amount of butter for flavor. Oil is not unlimited. A few teaspoonfuls a day is max.
5. Bread and Pasta are limited. One or 2 small servings a day. Whole grain is best, the less refined the better.
6. Protein is also limited. Lean meat is better than fatty meat. Seafood is excellent. Beans are also great, especially for fiber. Portion control on meat can be done by using the fist as a measure. A fist size portion is about 4 ounces. Two servings is max for the day.
7. Alcohol – has to go. Have it only one night a week.

I have been doing the above for the last couple of weeks and with little exercise I have maintained my weight. I don’t feel bad about being on a plateau for a while because I maintained and ultimately that’s the hardest part – keeping the weight off after loosing it.

When I started this diet my plan was to join one of the online programs to see how they worked and of course to help keep me on track. I have selected diet.com. Why? Because I like the idea that it is personalized, supervised by a doctor, and it’s something new that I have never tried. This banner is pretty close to what I want to do too, 10 pounds in 5 weeks!

Now, their website doesn’t give out all of the program details without joining but you can join for free and then pay for a premium plan to get the full deal. I plan to join tomorrow and will post more details then.

Next Day:

I do the free sign up. It takes a few minutes to answer questions about eating, exercise, and diet habits and attitudes. After the “free” questionaire there are questions about joining other programs like Disney World and Scholastic magazine. Skip through those.

Then a diagnosis:
Your eating personality is Hearty Portioner
Your exercising personality is All-or-Nothing Doer
Your coping personality is Emotional Eater

There is a button to Start Your Program Today! as well as information on Premium Membership which includes an exclusive Diet Personality evaluation and full report prepared by Dr. Kusner, recipes, private online consultation by Dr. Kushner and Registered Dietitians, trackers, and support groups.

The reason I am doing this is to both evaluate the program and loose weight and making that $ commitment is part of the emotional commitment I need. I am a little afraid to pay $ though when I don’t understand the whole program. I don’t like someone else telling me what to do (to eat) and I am hoping that I will be able to follow this program and still do it “my way.”

Now I click on Start Your Program Today! (after reading some of the membership options). Hmm, there really doesn’t seem to be a free option at this point, just a 6 month or 12 month plan. The 12 month plan is a really good price but I believe I will have lost my weight in just a couple of months (unless I up the goal) and a few months of maintenance should do it so I am going with the 6 month plan. It is also very reasonably priced. I know I have spent way more than that for diet programs in the past.

Congratulations… You’re now a Diet.com
Premium Member!

Dr. Kushner has a short welcome explaining that the personality approach brings an unprecedented level of personalization not found in other programs. I’m for that.

Next there are action items: A pledge, lots of reading, places to track food intake, meal plans, and recipes, as well as message boards and buddies for support.

I’ll report more later.

Does the stomach shrink while dieting? It does seem to me that it does. I have been eating less for a few weeks now and I do get full at meals and do not feel the need to stuff myself and go back for seconds. I will do some research to see if there is any truth/science to support this.

The first result on Google is from the European Food Information Council. It looks like a legitimate site/organization that provides science based information. It says about fasting:

When you have not eaten for about four hours your stomach will be relatively empty, looks a bit like a deflated balloon and in this state, holds about 50ml. Once full, however, it can greatly expand and hold up to 4 litres of food and drink. Fasting can not therefore shrink the stomach; it simply remains in the empty, deflated state. As soon as you start eating and drinking normally again, it expands once more.

Next result is from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition and a small study of obese patients, based on 4 weeks of diet for some and no diet for others:

The results demonstrate a reduction in gastric capacity in obese subjects after a restricted diet.

The reduction was 27% to 36% in capacity depending on how they measured it. On another website that refers to this study, they discuss how obese people may have stretched their stomachs with continual overeating at meals. I think this might be true for me. I like to eat and even if not hungry will go back for 2nds and 3rds beyond what most people will eat. Well, I’m not doing that now but when I am overeating, I do. Something to be mindful of.

I find other websites that purport to answer the question but without any scientific basis. Most say that the stomach will stretch when over filled but will not shrink. Some say that the only way to shrink the stomach is surgery.

What matters to me is that I am now eating less and feeling satisfied with what I eat. I am also drinking very little alcohol and have adjusted to that as well. The trick will be to maintain this state.