Menu Analyzer

This page will help you monitor your daily calorie consumption. You can use the page to plan and analyze your daily food choices. This tool is very good at estimating the number of calories you eat in a day. You'll be able to control your calories if you use this tool to decide how many servings of food you are going to eat and then stick to your plan.

(If you have no idea how many calories, you should eat, find more specific recommendations about calories, fat, protein and carbohydrate requirements for someone of your age and size by visiting my NAS dietary guidelines page.)

Important: To use this tool, you need to know the definitions of the different food types, you must also weigh or measure portions. Please click here to read about portion sizes. Note that portions sizes are very small. For example, a typical deli bagel equal 2-4 grain portions; a quarter pound of beef equals 2 protein portions.

If you want more precise calculation you to will need determine the exact number of calories in every serving of food you eat and add them all up. Most people find this impossible. So, try my tool instead!

To Plan:
To plan your meals, first, enter the number of calories you want to eat. Then click "recommend". The program will suggest the number of servings from each category.

Print out the sheet as a reference.

Still planning your menu, create a daily menu plan including breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. Try to match the number of recommended servings. Don't worry if the recommended number of servings contains a decimal. If the program recommends something like 5.4 servings, that means some days you can eat 5 servings, and some days you can eat 6.

When planning for menu, it is best to spread portions from each food category over several meals. For example: if you eat two dairy portions, don't eat both at the same meal. Why not? Your body absorbs calcium gradually, so it's pointless to drink all you milk in one big gulp. There are other good reasons to spread your portions around-- but I don't want to get into them here.

Tally up the numbers of portions from each food group in your plan; then enter the number of portions in the right hand column of the table below. Afterwards click "recommend" or "calculate".

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After you click, the program will refresh the screen. You will be able to read the number of calories in your menu plan.

If you eat the number of servings suggested and select moderate calorie selections from each category, the number of calories you eat will be approximately equal to the number you requested. If you pick high calorie and fat selections, the number of calories will be greater than you requested!

Since your first set of choices may not match your calorie needs, you will probably want to "tweak" your meal plan to reach your goals. Here are some suggestions for tweaking:

If the fat content is too high, pick replace high fat protein choices with low fat protein choices. Remember, all bean choices are lower fat than meat choices; all nut choices are high fat.
If the fat content is too high, replace high fat dairy with low fat dairy.
If the fat content is too low, add "fat tips", selecting unsaturated or monounsaturated oils. These oils are liquid at room temperature and are generally eaten in salad dressings, or used to sauté foods.
If the protein content is too low, add protein or dairy.
If the calorie content is too high, reduce the number of portions in general. (Or decide to eat lower fat diet, and reduce fat. This almost always reduces calories while preserving volume of food.)
If the carbohydrate content is too low, replace meat with beans, or increase the amount of grain, starchy vegetables or fruit.
If the fiber is too low, which is very likely, add vegetables, or whole fruit. Otherwise, replace refined grain with whole grain, or replace meat with beans. If you add low calorie vegetables, you'll increase fiber while adding very few calories. Bear in mind: you can also increase your fiber by eating a high fiber breakfast cereal. My program estimates the fiber in whole grain breads at a "normal" level, which is about 2 grams per 1 oz serving. High fiber cereals often contain two to 4 times this amount of fiber per serving. (By the way, it's always a good idea to eat more whole vegetables.)

To Estimate:
To estimate the number of calories you actually eat, keep a food journal. Note the actual number of servings you eat from each category; it is important to measure and be honest. Be sure to count unplanned foods! At the end of the day, return to the web page, and make any changes to your tally. Click "calculate", and the page will estimate the number of calories, fat and carbohydrate you ate.

Important: To obtain a reasonable calorie estimate, you must weigh or measure portions. Please click here to read about portion sizes. Note that portions sizes are very small. For example, a typical bagel is 2-4 grain portions; a quarter pound of beef is 2 protein portions.

Input For Menu Analyzer for Adults
Target Calorie Level:	Enter your target calorie level, click "recommend". The program will suggest a number of servings from each group to hit your target calorie level. Use these recommendations when planning your meal. If you select moderate calorie selections from each food group, (e.g. "average meat" and "lite dairy" ), your final menu will contain approximately the target number of calories. You can reduce your calorie consumption by eating lower fat selections or eating fewer "tips"; you can increase your calorie consumption by choosing higher fat selections. (You can also eat a larger number of servings to increase your calorie consumption!) Note: Adults will find it very difficult to meet the minimum food pyramid recommendations at consumption levels less than 1400 Calories/day. Also, your resting metabolism will probably drop if you consume fewer than 1200 Calories/day. Consult your physician if you intend to restrict your calorie intake this severely. You may also wish to estimate the number of calories you burn each day using the metabolic rate estimator. That tool will also suggest protein, fat and carbohydrate consumption.
Food Group	Recommended servings to hit calorie target	Food Pyramid Recommendations	I ate:
Grain:		6 to 11	whole grain refined.
Vegetable:		3 to 5	Low Cal Standard Starchy Fatty
Fruit:		2 to 4	juice whole
Dairy:		2 to 3	non-fat 2% or lite. whole
Protein: (My portions are 2 oz. The food pyramid portions are 2-3 oz.)		2 to 4	Lean Standard Fatty Beans Soy Dry roasted nuts & nut butters.
"Tip":		"Sparingly"	fat sugar mixed alcohol

Results:

Nutritional Break Down
Food Group	Calories	Fat (Calories)	Fat (%)	Fat (grams)	Protein (grams)	Carbohydrate (grams)	Fiber (grams)
Grain			%
Fruit and Vegetable			%
Protein			%
Dairy			%
Tips			%

Grand Total	Calories	Fat (Calories)	Fat (%)	Fat (grams)	Protein (grams)	Carbohydrate (grams)	Fiber (grams)
Grand Total			%

You can find more specific recommendations about calories, fat, protein and carbohydrate requirements for someone of your age and size by visiting my NAS dietary guidelines page.

Menu Analyzer

Input For Menu Analyzer for Adults

Results: