How much do you eat? Do you know that eating too much of even the right food choices can lead to weight gain? Food portions matter!!!! Size it up to maintain your weight goals!!! Use these quick tips to size up your food and maintain a healthy body weight!
Dining out can be challenging…If we all went around with measuring cups and a food scale, we would be able to accurately measure our food and determine the perfect food portions for a healthy meal. There are even travel size food scales available for those of you who want to be 100% accurate even while on the go! But, I do not think carrying around measuring tools 100% of the time is very realistic! If we can visualize what a true portion size should look like by using our hand or common household objects then we can estimate our portions to maintain a healthy weight when we are unable to have our measuring tools. When you are at home,please use the proper measuring tools to guide how much you are putting on your plate.
Think that extra piece of cheese or serving spoonful of pasta will not add up? Think again and remember, food portions matter… Size it up by using these quick tips for portioning your food to help guide you in achieving your healthy weight goals.
***If you have had weight loss surgery, you can use these tips when dining out, but it is VERY IMPORTANT to ALWAYS accurately measure your foods when you can with measuring tools like measuring cups and a digital food scale for long term weight loss success. Remember to always measure your food after it is cooked!***
Portion Control… How To Size Up Your Food
What is a serving??
Protein Foods:
3-4oz Cooked Protein: Poultry,Fish & Meat
What does it look like?
The palm of your hand (fingers closed!!)
Aways be sure to remove fat and skin before serving
Fruit & Vegetables:
- 1 small fruit
- 1 cup of raw vegetables A tennis ball
- A tennis ball
- A baseball
Starches:
½ cup Cooked Starch: pasta, rice,potato, corn,peas,lima beans, winter squash and beans other than lentils – a lightbulb or 1 rounded fist
1 slice of bread or a pancake or waffle-
size of one CD (makes sure they are whole grain!)
Fats/Oils:
1 teaspoon butter or margarine
2 Tablespoons low fat salad dressing
1 Tablespoon Regular salad dressing or oil
The size of a postal stamp or a poker chip
A ping pong ball or 2 poker chips
1 poker chip
Protein Based Snacks:
¼ cup raw or unsalted nuts
1 Tablespoon Peanut butter
1 Ounce of Cheese (cheese stick)
A golf ball
One 9 volt battery or 1 die
Two 9 volt batteries or a pair of dice
