Another way to cut down on portion size in a restaurant is to use the appetizer plate (the small ones that are at the table when you are seated) as your dinner plate. Serve yourself enough to cover the surface of the appetizer plate, and if you are still hungry, then take 1/2 of the amount you took before. Portion control is a gateway to calorie counting. Another neat trick that I've heard of is to bag 1/2 of your entree as soon as it gets to the table. That way you've only got 1/2 of your entree to eat and it's not so much a battle of will anymore.

Good luck!

Thank you Sunnigummi - I will for sure give it a try. And I am going to stop eating out so much too.

I like eating out at ethnic places including Vietnames, and one of my strategies is to research the calorie counts of some of my favorite foods -- like pho -- as they are traditionally prepared. That way I at least have an idea of what I'm getting myself into...

This is probably your best bet! Eating out occasionally is fine, but I think if you're going a few times a week you're going to be hard pressed to lose weight.

Best of luck!!