Portion control
Hey Guys, further to my article on Monday about eating little and often I’ve decided to share with you my portion control chart which you can have a “play with” over the weekend.
Let me know how you get on and if you’d like any further advice or tips get in touch.
Portion Sizes:
1. Bread, other cereals and potatoes: Most meals should be based on this food group. They should make up one third of your diet, or 4 to 6 servings a day. One serving of this food group is equivalent to around:
- 1 medium bowl (40g) All Bran
- 1 large (90g) pitta bread
- 1 medium plate (230g) wholemeal boiled spaghetti
- 1 large slice (55g) wholemeal bread
- 1 large (220g) baked potato
- 1 large bowl (290g) boiled rice
2. Fruit and vegetables: Aim for at least 5 servings a day, which should make up one third of your diet. One portion of both fruit and vegetables is equivalent to around 80g, not including pips, seeds, pulp and non-edible skin.
For fruits this means:
- 1 slice of very large fruit, e.g. pineapple, melon
- 1 large fruit, e.g. banana, orange, apple
- 2 medium fruits, e.g. kiwi, plum, apricot
- 5 small fruits, e.g. lychee, passion fruit
- 1 cup of very small fruit, e.g. grapes, raspberries
- 3 tablespoons canned or stewed fruit
- 1-1 ½ tablespoons dried fruit, e.g. raisins
- 1 small (150ml) glass fruit juice
For vegetables this means:
- 2 tablespoons of any cooked vegetables, e.g. broccoli, carrots, parsnips
- 1 small bowl of salad
- 3 tablespoons of small cooked vegetables, e.g. sweetcorn, peas
3. Milk and dairy foods: This group should make up a sixth of the diet, or around 2-3 servings a day. Aim to choose reduced and low-fat versions when possible. One average portion is equivalent to:
- 1/3 pint (200ml) milk
- 1 small (125g) pot yoghurt or fromage frais
- 1 small piece (40g) hard cheese, e.g. Edam
- 1 small (100g) pot cottage cheese
4. Meat, fish and alternatives: This group should make up a sixth of your diet, or around 2 servings per day. Aim to choose reduced and low-fat versions when possible. One average portion is equivalent to:
- 90g cooked meat and poultry, e.g. 3 slices of roast pork, 1 small rib end pork chop, 1 quarterpounder beefburger, 1 chicken drumstick, 2 rashers middle bacon, 2 large sausages
- 100-150g cooked fish, e.g. 1 salmon steak, 1 medium plaice fillet, 1 medium cod fillet, 1 small can tuna
- 1 (60g) cooked egg
- 3 tablespoons cooked beans or lentils
- 2 tablespoons nuts
5. Foods containing fat and sugar: This group should make up no more than a twelfth of your diet.
6. Alcohol: Recommendations are that men should not exceed between 3-4 units of alcohol a day and women should not exceed between 2-3 units of alcohol per day. One unit of alcohol is equivalent to 8g, which translates as:
- 1 small (100ml) glass of wine or 2 glasses of low-alcohol wine
- 1 measure (50ml) fortified wine, e.g. sherry
- 1 single pub measure (25ml) spirits
- ½ pint of standard strength beer, lager, cider
Best wishes Garth
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Well, that looks like a sensible and well-laid out plan. But everyone is different, and people need to know their own dietary needs. For me, that plan is way, way too much food. I probably wouldn’t eat that much even on a food-heavy holiday
One informal way I’ve practiced portion control over the years is by some mental discipline. Using smaller plates at meals means you automatically serve yourself less. Another good way is by serving yourself, cutting the portion in half, and putting half of it back. And lastly, before serving a second portion, mentally ask yourself if your are still hungry or do you want to eat more just because it tastes good? and if you’re not still hungry, don’t eat more.
These are easy techniques anyone can learn.
Doesn’t suit everyone of course and it’s there merely as a guideline to give people an idea.
I’m just trying to educate people that food isn’t the enemy and should be enjoyed, it’s your attitude and beliefs around food that need to change.
[...] Ideally you should also be training yourself to eat small regular meals which will help to make you …The last thing you want to do is have a large meal and then go and workout but you don’t want to be feeling hungry either. [...]
I’m with Mary, I think it is way too much food,I eat nowhere near those amounts especially the carbs!! The amounts for men and women will be different too and it will vary whether you are losing weight, maintaining, there will also be an effect if you are exercising and need more food? Bit misleading for a weight loss person, my feel is that the average person would risk putting on weight with those amounts, I would! I’m a big fan of the smaller plate/reducing approach for losing and maintaining weight too, try reducing the amounts of your normal meals and seeing if you have had enough, my experience is that after a couple of weeks and your stomach reduces in size you will have a clear indication of what the correct portion size is. Cut out the junk food, and make sure you cook the food in the best way, this is the other thing the above plan doesn’t deal with – how you cook the food will have a massive impact on it’s end calorie count. This seems too complicated, also I’m now considering alcohol in terms of calories not units….we’ve been lulled into this, too many people are drinking within the recommended limits of units but are consuming considerable numbers of calories.
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