Serving Sizes in Europe Versus the U.S.

In my last post, I talked about how Europeans stay trim by walking everywhere and walking everywhere fast. But walking is only half of the equation. Caloric intake is the other half.

By far, most Europeans eat fewer calories than Americans because in Europe the serving sizes are considerably smaller than what they are here in the U.S. For example:

A Single Serving Container of Yogurt:

In Europe = 4 ounces.
In the U.S. = 6-8 ounces.

A Single Serving of Juice/Soda/Other Bottled Beverages:

In Europe = 250 ml (or about 8 ounces or 1 cup)
In the U.S. = 12 ounces (1.5 cups) for cans, 16 ounces (2 cups) for bottles

I could go on and on. The point is that here in the U.S. we simply eat more calories at every meal and those calories add up fast.

The Solution
European serving sizes tend to be about 1/3 to 1/2 smaller than our bloated U.S. serving sizes. Here's a little trick you can try which will help you quickly and easily reduce your caloric intake.

For each of your large meals, such as lunch and dinner, go ahead and dish up your normal serving size, then simply split your meal into two equal servings: one for today, one for tomorrow. (Don't forget to do this with the calorie containing liquids you consume, too.) Also, if you go out to eat, order a to go box with the meal and immediately split the meal into 3 or 4 equal servings.

Try this for a few days and see what happens. Can you get by on fewer calories? My bet is yes.

* A final note, don't allow your total daily caloric intake to drop below 1,200 per day for women and 1,500 per day for men.