Lose weight by replacing the standard American dinner plate with a smaller plate, recommends "The 9-Inch Diet" by Alex Bogusky and Chuck Porter. This method isn't a traditional diet plan -- instead of focusing on what you eat, it provides a strategy to counteract a culture that promotes excessive eating. Nevertheless, following the recommendation to change your plate size also may reduce your clothing size.
How It Works
While dinner plates in the United States have become standard at about 12 inches, as recently as the 1970s they were the size of 2010's lunch or salad plates. During a 2009 interview with "Page Six Magazine," Bogusky said you can lose weight no matter what foods you eat, as long as you eat less; he recommends replacing the standard plate with a 9-inch plate. If you put the same portion of food on a smaller plate, it tricks your brain into thinking you're eating more food, according to The Diet Choices website.
Eating Out
Although this plan makes eating out a challenge, Bogusky offers advice for success. Order from the children's menu if the restaurant allows it, or order a regular meal but ask for a salad plate so you know the suitable portion to eat in one sitting. You can even carry a 9-inch paper plate in your bag to use as a guideline.
Additional Tips
While you can eat any type of food with the small plate diet, items that don't require a plate can sabotage your weight loss goals. Limit your intake of snacks and beverages to improve your chances of success. Eat only healthy snacks in moderation. Replace sodas with water and low-fat or fat-free milk. Limit yourself to one glass of wine with dinner.
Considerations
The idea of eating smaller portions isn't new. Although using a smaller plate adds a psychological twist, there's no limit on how high you can pile the food on a small plate. This could present a significant problem since you can eat anything you want on this diet. The small plate diet won't work if you aren't able to moderate your caloric intake.
Expert Insight
Another small-plate type of diet, called the Small Plate Movement and associated with Cornell University, asks people to use a 10-inch plate for their largest meal every day. This program is based on research by Brian Wansink, Ph.D., director of the Cornell University Food and Brand Lab, and author of the 2007 book "Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think." Cornell says changing from a 12-inch to a 10-inch plate results in consumption of 22 percent fewer calories during a meal.
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