Let Your Plate Size Help Shrink Your Waist

Weight Loss Tip 56 – Reduce Your Plate Size

Shrinking your plate is a simple method to make you perceive your portions are larger than they are.  Cornell University has been doing studies on plate size and color for years, and their researchers have found that using a smaller plate is a simple way to cut calories. In one such study, Brian Wansink discovered that a simple 2-inch shift from 12–inch plates to 10–inch plates resulted in a 22% reduction in caloric intake. If you look at a 2000 calorie intake per day, this change will reduce your intake to about 1600 calories per day.  This simple change would reduce your weight by about 0.8 pounds per week.  

When food is placed on a smaller plate, it will appear to be larger than it is.  Your mind will artificially inflate the portion size and make you think you are eating more than you are.  If you use a larger plate, we tend to eat more food than we would with a smaller plate.   We also tend to fill the empty plate with additional food.  

For more on these studies, go to my article on the research of weight loss through plate size.