The Scale You Should Consult Every Day

There is a reason to weigh every day.

There is a scale that is your friend.

A food scale

should be part of any healthy kitchen. My food scale sits on the kitchen counter, under the cabinet that holds the bowls and plates. Every morning I place my bowl on it and measure out my cereal. I know if I don’t I will give myself too much. This is especially true on mornings when I get up at 5 am to write. I’m barely awake enough to make tea much less accurately eyeball a cup of cereal.

When starting a fitness journey most people have no idea what a serving of pasta or cereal actually looks like. It’s part of the reason we go overboard with food. We’re used to the supersize portions we get when dining out. Most people are shocked to learn that an actual serving of pasta is about the size of their fist.

I do use common items (deck of cards for your protein!) to help clients learn proper portion size but nothing works better than the food scale to get in touch with how much food you’re actually serving yourself.

• The scale is more accurate than measuring cups.
  It’s easy to overload a cup. I am guilty of it with oatmeal, letting it ever so slightly round over the top. I also swear my newest set of cups is bigger than ones we inherited from Brian’s grandma.
• Some things don’t fit well in measuring cups.
  I find it much easier to weigh edamame, baby carrots and grapes on a scale. I place my Tupperware container on the scale, measure what I need  and put it into my lunch bag for the day. Or I can measure out multiple servings in snack bags for travel or to grab and go later.
• Weighing is handy for recipes that don’t say what a serving is.
  I hate it when a recipe says how many it serves but not what a serving size is. I will place the whole pot or dish on the scale (after weighing the empty container prior), subtract the container weight and divide by number of servings. Then I notate the serving size in the book or magazine.

You don’t have to weigh all of your food forever. Eventually you do get more in touch with how much a serving is. For example, I’ve gotten pretty good at estimating a serving of edamame or nuts. I do know myself however and will always place my cereal bowl on the scale.