My thoughts on food storage and serving sizes - we need to learn portion control!

As members of the LDS church, we are counseled to have food storage, in case of emergencies, in case of financial hardships, etc. Provident Living is what it is called. We should be as self sustaining as we can. With all the natural disasters we see happening around the world, it is a bit scary when we think it could happen to us! Wherever we live! Life as we know it could change in an instant.

Let's take hurricane Katrina for example. That natural disaster happened here, on American soil. I have been told that when FEMA and gov't officials told people to head to the SuperDome that they should bring enough food to feed themselves and their families for 3 days. Hardly anyone did. They weren't prepared. Do you have a 72-hour kit in your home? It should consist of basic food (emergency ration bars, at the very least), water or purification tablets, a basic first aid kit, radio/signal lights, hygiene items, emergency blankets, and an extra pair of clothing wouldn't hurt.

As I am doing this diet, I am realizing how much I really eat. I consistently eat over 3,000 calories a day. At least! And during times of hardship or disaster, we may have to rely on what we have stored in our pantry, or in our long term storage (if we even have any!). A serving size is usually about 1 cup, but how often do I eat 2-3 cups of spaghetti at a meal? We all really should learn portion control. Having control of our desires is probably one of the hardest things we can accomplish in this life, as humans. We are of course a society where we want instant gratification. We want to be able to have it NOW. Who cares what the consequences might be later, as long as we are happy now.

For me, I know that if we do have to rely on our food storage, we will have to eat about 1800 calories per day. Of course we can supplement that with all the fruit we want in the summertime when our fruit trees produce. But we will have to ration our food storage. The hunger pains we feel, the cravings... well, it would be easier if we got those under control NOW, before we are faced with an emergency where we don't have a choice.

Once I am off this diet, I am going to try to work on portion control. I won't deprive myself, but instead of taking a HUGE piece of cake, I will take a small to medium piece of cake, and do I really need all that frosting!? When I make a casserole (I LOVE casseroles) I will eat a portion, then save the rest for leftovers. Steve constantly tells me I feed him such huge portions. So I will have to take all of that into consideration.

So here's to a new way of eating! Smaller portion size, less processed foods, more whole grains. That is my plan!