Portion sizes when you were young

suki1964

dandy-candy wrote: »

Something really useful I have learnt from a few replies on this thread is tha 1lb of meat was recommended for four people.
I had already bought at the weekend a small beef joint (490g) which I thought was the right amount for two people. I cooked it last night i served it to four instead, with lots of veg. Everyone got three skinny slices and were still hungry. DS2 said "Right, what can I eat now?" !!

And this is why we ate yorkshire pudding :rotfl:

Ive always done the 1lb of meat for four people rule, and if mince can make it stretch to 6

Pollycat

suki1964 wrote: »

And this is why we ate yorkshire pudding :rotfl:

My Grandad had quite a few Yorkshire puds with his Sunday dinner then had some more for 'afters' with jam.

FairyPrincessk

The historical reasons for the lack of snacking make perfect sense--I have heard the milk snatcher line and I'm a great fan of food history..;) The calories in 1/3 pint of whole milk would probably be around 100, which is about what one of my snacks would have been as a child. I was fortunate to grow up with choice though and could have a slice of cheese and an apple as I don't care for milk. Interesting that in the 'obesity crisis' there is a move to bring back universal school dinners which were used to ensure children were healthy in times past. Of course the content would have to change, but I've heard that it is possible to be both obese and malnourished and I believe it if you subsist on a steady diet of crisps, chocolate etc.

I'm more wondering why people seem to think that going back to not snacking now would have a positive effect on our health. But then I'm gobsmacked that McD's would be used as a 'snack' so perhaps that is why! My snacking is very much a legacy of my childhood and tends to be in response to hunger and make use of small portions of real food. Perhaps it is the portion sizes of snacks that have gotten out of hand rather than the habit itself--I think it was the OP who mentioned the change in the number of biscuits eaten in one sitting.

Out,_Vile_Jelly

I grew up in the 80s and my memories of food are that the portions were nearly always too big for me- I guess I've always had a small appetite and struggled to clear my plate. I'm genuinely amazed at the size of platefuls I see people demolish these days.

We had a 10p mix bag on Sundays, and fizzy pop occasionally. Biscuits were supposed to be rare treats, but my brother and I dared each other to sneak them out of the tin when our parents were out of the kitchen. When a biscuit was a rarity, you savoured it more. I used to bite off the top half of a custard cream, lick off the custard, and then eat the other half. Anything to make it last longer.

monnagran

What really makes my blood boil is the Sunday Carvery. I have seen so many people (of both sexes) pile up their plates until there is a veritable mountain of food, often topped with one or two yorkshires, and then leave a sizeable amount. I don't think that anyone who lived through the forties could do that.

money is too short: many thanks for your concern. Actually, although scientifically obese, I am probably one of the healthiest people. I have never been in hospital, go to the doctor about once a decade, rarely get a cold - 2 in the 16 years since I retired and left the classroom - have had 'flu twice in my life once in 1958 and once in 1998. I have no trace of arthritis or any of the conditions usually associated with old age and am still active in my daily life. I believe my trouble is genetic. The doctor who delivered me told my poor mother that I looked 3 months old already. I was 10lb and mum was 4ft 10 and 6 stone before she had me. Dad's first words on seeing me aged ten minutes old were, "Oh dear. She'll never be able to wear silk stockings with those legs.". Both parents and my brother were slim and sporty. I was neither, but a photograph of one of my greatgrandmothers shows where I got my unfortunate physical build.
Thus began my 76 years of dieting and hating my body and I don't think that I am the only one. Doctors don't allow for people who do all the right things and get all the wrong results.

However, having read all about people in this country lacking Vitamin D I swallowed my sceptism about supplements and started taking a VitD tablet every day. Coincidence or not I have lost 5 lbs since doing this, without any other change in my lifestyle. Much too early to get excited and I am not advocating this as a weightloss answer, but am quietly hoping.

Back to the subject in hand. Mindful eating helps control portion sizes. It is so easy to keep on eating when you have already been satisfied just because the food is there.

Sorry. this is a bit me, me, me.

x

moneyistooshorttomention

Hmmm....I'd not heard about Vitamin D as a possible weight loss tool. It may well be...I shall have a google on that...

Now things are coming together more after my recent move - I'm probably spending more time outdoors than I did before retirement and this may be one reason why I think my excess weight seems to be starting to "fall off me" gradually. I've gone from 3 sizes too big to 2 sizes too big I think. I shall give that some thought:think:

dandy-candy

monnagran wrote: »

. It is so easy to keep on eating when you have already been satisfied just because the food is there.

I find this when I stay in a hotel. They charge an extra £10 for breakfast and while at home I only eat a small bowl of cereal, because I've paid a tenner I end up having the full works! Needless to say I always put on weight when I go away....

Pollycat

monnagran wrote: »

What really makes my blood boil is the Sunday Carvery. I have seen so many people (of both sexes) pile up their plates until there is a veritable mountain of food, often topped with one or two yorkshires, and then leave a sizeable amount. I don't think that anyone who lived through the forties could do that.

That also goes for all-inclusive hotels & eat-as-much-as-you-like.restaurants.
We go to a place like that and it's really disgusting to see people with plates piled high with with all sorts of food that doesn't go together?
pizza, noodles, roast potatoes & gravy?
Really?
I like to take a small plate & choose regional food, then go back for a different taste.
There's no limit to the number of times you can go back to the buffet. :wall:

And wedding buffets leaving nothing but broken quiches and squashed sandwiches but half empty plates strewn on tables.

It just demonstrates selfishness and greed.

lushlifesaver

dandy-candy wrote: »

Something really useful I have learnt from a few replies on this thread is tha 1lb of meat was recommended for four people.
I had already bought at the weekend a small beef joint (490g) which I thought was the right amount for two people. I cooked it last night i served it to four instead, with lots of veg. Everyone got three skinny slices and were still hungry. DS2 said "Right, what can I eat now?" !!

I'm a 90's kid; it was always 1lb of meat in stews etc for us, 500g of mince, 1 sausage whilst little then 2 once we got to 9/10 years old. Whilst small it was a chicken breast between two, later becoming a whole one each - I think chicken is probably the main meat we still over eat. My partner and I now buy in bulk (makro or musclefood) and I cook 2 - he has the majority of 1, I have the smaller mini fillet/bit I cut off, I then give our little one (17months) the mini fillet from the other and shred the rest for salads/sandwiches/soup.


We (as in everyone it seems) seem to have come to expect plenty of meat on our plates when in fact we probably need the opposite! I am trying to re-work my own thinking about this currently. Though I have to serve measured amount of meat to OH as he's a pro athlete so that's dictated by the team nutrionists.


When I was younger: we had cheese not sweets, grandfather gave us each a small bag if we were going on a day trip whilst at theirs in the holidays. Drinks were water or squash, we got a sodastream one year and thought that was amazing but it was only used once a week or so. We used to make and bottle our own ginger beer and lemonade too, so much fun! cakes/biscuits were all baked by us with mum, we ate a lot of eggs (dad is an agriculturist by training so we always knew people with hens) any other snacks were fruit and after a meal it was fruit and yogurt or jelly. Ice cream was a small serving once a week (apart from in the holidays when we made our own).


When I was in primary school mum was a childminder so we all did lots of cooking etc and playing outside.


Now we have a little one of our own I'm trying to get a grip on appropriate serving sizes. Bf always expects masses on his plates as that's what his mum always did however he's now learning the whole little an often thing as before he used to go without until tea then eat his evening meal followed by binging on chocolate and crisps! little on gets cheese or fruit as snacks primarily, maybe a biscuit if I'm having one with a cuppa. I can't wait for her to be just a little bigger and to start learning about food etc

poorly_scammo

If you want to gauge how portion sizes have changed look at dinner plate sizes. I was given some old dinner plates and they looked at least an inch smaller than the ones I currently use and that you see now in shops.

Ditto recipes. I have Farmhouse Kitchen books from the 70s and the recipes often are supposed to feed four but to modern eyes, the portions seem small.

When I was young, people ate less generally, ate far less processed food and moved about more. Many do the exact opposite now and of course, companies have made some items smaller but more expensive (err, Wagon Wheels) while others are bigger (bags of crisps) so you're eating more without thinking than you would have say, twenty years ago.

The other modern demon is snacking which combined with the above and the increased sugar content in foods means the population is bigger.