There is a revolution that is going right now, in families especially and individuals as they begin to make their own choices regarding meals. Bento boxes are small lap-top style lunch boxes with dividers that allow you to sort small portions of food into each divider, creating a unique lunch. They got their popularity in Japan, where rice, vegetables, fruits and other foods were nicely packed into Bento boxes not only for portability, but also in restaurants and other applications as well. Now bento boxes are becoming extremely popular in the United States and elsewhere, not only because they are unique and allow for lunch or other meal portability, but also because they allow the eater to exercise portion control which is a vital part of weight loss.
The average bento box is a small plastic box with several tiers and dividers. There are rules to putting together a Japanese bento box, requiring that lots of color be used, and that food be divided in certain ways. The laptop lunch concept is becoming a lot more Americanized however, as now there are a myriad of different portable lunch boxes that have dividers, special cups, tiers and other defining characteristics. The boxes are small and designed to help you implement portion control. When you buy a bento box, you generally make the purchase based on how much space it has within it, based on the principle that the space capabilities in the box will give you a rough estimate of how many calories the meal will hold. Bento lunches generally consist of rice or noodles, vegetables, fruits, a protein, and other small additions.
By fitting a small portion of each of these courses into the bento box, you are making sure that you are not eating too much food, but are rather eating only the right amount with each meal. This is especially useful when putting together a portable lunch, because you only eat what you have brought with you, there is no risk of overeating, or eating beyond the portion size that you are meant to consume based on your diet.
Portion control is an important part of losing weight, though most people have trouble practicing it. The average portion size in restaurants and even at home is much larger than what you should be eating. If you were to follow the suggested serving size for everything you ate at home, you would be surprised to see how little you should be eating to maintain the calories that you need for optimum health. Once you have a better idea of what portions you SHOULD be eating rather than what you are used to eating, you will have a greater idea of how to lose weight, because you will be consuming the right amount of calories per day, rather than the number that you feel is right. Most people can pour a large bowl of cereal, for example, without realizing that they are consuming three servings instead of one. Are three servings of cereal necessarily a bad thing in comparison to one? Only if you do not consider the fact that you're consuming three times the amount of calories, fat, carbohydrates and sugar than you previously realized by not exercising portion control.
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Originally posted 2009-01-13 05:32:29. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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3 comments ↓
This is a great idea. When you travel to other countries, it is often surprising how little food you get. However, it’s usually enough. It’s only in North America where they give you enough to feed a small family on one plate. Eating what you need, as opposed to eating everything on your plate, is a good plan.
- Dave
I’ve been hearing more and more about Bento boxes (a local restaurant even offers one as a lunch option) but this is the first I’ve heard about using them for portion control. It’s a great idea and I hope it takes off! There are a lot of web sites/blogs about making Bento boxes and where to buy the containers- you can check out good old Google for the links.
I’ve lost almost 50 pounds and kept it off for 2 years now and I owe it to portion control, making healthy food choices, and walking (almost) daily, so I can vouch for the validity of anything that helps with the portion control component of a healthy eating program.
Funny timing reading this as I just packed a bento thermos for part of a lunch tomorrow and a couple of days ago I ordered a bento laptop lunch box that should be coming any day now. I need the portion control help that’s for sure!
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