Size of One Portion

Grain

The food pyramid recommends 6-11 servings from this group.  The minimum of 6 servings are sufficient to fulfill the vitamin and mineral needs provided by this group.  The larger number of servings are recommended for very active individual because this food groups is a terrific source of low fat, high nutrition calories.  However, once you eat 5 or 6 servings of these foods, some might prefer to fill up on starchy vegetables or beans.  Diabetics, athletes and dieters may also want to read about the glycemic index of foods because low glycemic foods help you control your blood glucose level and may reduce sugar cravings.

It's best for everyone to eat whole grains. I used to find it to time comsuming to cook brown rice; my husband and I don't like our rice crunchy!  I solved the problem using a pressure cooker. You'll find good techniques in Express Cooking.

One grain portion provides approximately 90-110 calories.

Typical portions of grain foods are listed below:

• 1 oz of bread, bagels  or breakfast cereals made from wheat, rice, oats, rice, corn or any other grain.  It is best to weigh baked products because commercial slices of bread, bagels range from 1 oz to 4 oz.  A 1 oz bagel is probably labeled "mini-bagel".
• 1 oz of low fat crackers like saltines or pretzels  (Read the label; no more than 10% of the calories should come from fat. )
• 1 oz dry popcorn. (Tally extra fat tips for any added butter, margerine or oil at a rate of 1 tip for every 3.5 grams of fat or 1 tip for every tsp. of fat.)
• 1/2 c cooked or 1/4 c raw oats.
• 1/2 c cooked or 1/6 c raw brown, white or wild rice.

Some grain foods are prepared with added sugar or fat.  Cakes and pastries should simply be tallied under "mixed tips"; fat free versions should be tallied under "sugar tips".

Most breakfast cereals should be tallied here.  However, you should mannually tally one or two extra "sugar" tips per portion if you eat a breakfast cereal with sugar added.  To determine the number, read the number of calories in one ounce on the label.  Tally an 1 "sugar tip" for every 35 calories above 110.  For example, if there are 145 calories in an ounce, subtract 110 this leaves 35.  That's one sugar tip.  For cereals containing fat and nuts added, like granola, use the same formula, but tally the extra calories as "mixed tips".  For convenience, you may use the calculator below, which uses a more complex formula and tells you the exact number of sugar and mixed tips. (Rounding is permitted.)

Remember, if you spread butter or jelly on your bread, or sprinkle sugar on your cereal, to tally any added butter, jelly or sauces added under "tips".

Note: Pastries, cookies, fatty crackers and cakes should be tallied under "mixed tip".  Read the package label and tally one "tip" for each 30-40 calories.

Vegetable

I have classified vegetables into four groups.  I defined the "Low Cal" category to include vegetables that are nearly calorie free; an average portion contains 0-20 calories.  Four to eight portions of foods contain my "Low Cal" group provide the calorie equivalent of 1 portion of a food in my "lean meat" category. I try to include at least one of these with dinner every day. The "Standard" category consists of vegetables with a modest number of calories; an average portion contains bewteen 20-40 calories.  Two to three portions of these foods contain the calorie equivalent of 3 portions of "lean meat".  I work hard to control my weight.  To do so, I eat these as snacks through the course of the day, and I don't worry if I eat any extra portions. I'd feel my stomach was about to explode before I ate 200 calories worth of carrots.

You'll notice that many of the "Low Cal" vegetables are raw versions of the "Standard" vegetables.  It doesn't really matter if you eat y our vegetables raw of cooked. Some vitamines are destroyed by cooking, some are made more accesible to the body. I created the two classifications because many dieters like to eat the raw vegetables as finger foods to have something to chew on during the day.

My "Starchy" vegetable category consists of vegetables like potato.  At 40-70 calories a serving, these foods are still low calorie!  But, you could potentially over eat these because an average portion contains only 20 calories less than a portion of "lean meat" or grain.  If you are watching your weight, you should measure the "starchy" vegetables carefully to make sure you are not underestimating your calorie consumption.  Avocado's are the only fatty vegetable I can think of.  These contain lots of fat; if you are watching your weight, you should measure carefully.  Tally these under "fatty".

Don't forget to tally any added butter, sauces or dressings in the appropriate "tips" section; the number depends on the recipe.  If you are eating a pre-packaged food and don't know how to determine the number of "tips", use the calculator below the listing of vegetable portion sizes.

Typical portions of vegetables are listed below:

Low Cal:

• 1 cup or 3.5 ounces of any green leafy vegetable like lettuce, spinach or kale.
• 1/2 cup raw chopped celery, cauliflower, broccoli, or mushrooms.
• 1/2 cup raw tomato.

Standard:

• 1/2 c raw chopped carrots, eggplant, okra, onion, bell pepper or onions.
• 1/2 cup cooked broccoli.
• 1/4 c cooked or canned tomato, onion, bell pepper.
• 1 oz tomato paste.

Starchy:

• 1/2 cup raw chopped potato, squash, sweet potato or yam.
• 1/2 cup corn kernels or 1 medium corn on the cob.
• 1/4 cup cooked and mashed potato, squash, sweet potato or yam.
• 1 3.5 oz potato.

Fatty:

• 1/2 c. avocado.
• 1/3 medium avocado.

 

Fruit

Whole

• 1/2 cup or 3.5 oz cut up fresh fruit including apples, oranges, pears, bananas.
• 1/2 a small apple, banana or orange.
• 1/3 cup defrosted or canned fruit.
• 1 cup fresh cherries with pits, 1/2 cup pitted.
• 1 cup melon or 1/4 of a small melon.
• 2 T (1/8 cup) dried fruit ( 3/4 oz. )
• 1 oz of coconut should be tallied as 3 "fat tips".

Juice:

• 4 fluid ounces of 100% unsweetened juice.
• Drinks with added sugar should be tallied under "sugar tip".

Protein:

To better estimate your calorie, fat and fiber consumption, I created 5 protein groups.  There are 3 meat groups and two vegatable groups.  Because Tofu has been processed to remove nearly all fiber,  I have classified Tofu under meat.

Meat

Note: it is assumed you add no fat or barbecue sauce when cooking the meats! If you add fat while cooking, tally the added fat under "fat tip"; tally the barbecue sauce as a "sugar tip".

If you are eat a processed food anddon't know how much fat or sugar was added, use the calculator below.  Read the label, and enter the number of calories, fat calories, protein and carbohydrate in the calculator.  Then determine how many of the manufacturers suggested servings you ate. (Remember that many manufacturers suggest ridiculously small servings.)  Click calculate, and the calculator will determine the number of "lean" meat portions, fat tips and sugar tips you consumed.  Add these numbers to your tally for lean meat, fat and sugar tips.
 

Lean:

Tally one for the following portions.

• 3 oz light fleshed fish like cod or flounder,
• 2 oz turkey or chicken breast without skin or
• 4 egg whites.

Standard:

Tally one for the following portions:

• 2 oz cooked dark turkey or chicken without the skin, all fat to drain while cooking.
• 2 oz turkey or chicken breast with skin,
• 2 oz beef sirloin, bottom round or or chuck roast, all fat trimmed,
• 2 oz lamb sirloin chop or leg of lamb, all fat trimmed,
• 2 oz extra lean ham, approximately 5% fat.
• 6 oz of tofu.

Fatty:

Tally one for the following portions:

• 2 oz dark fleshed fish like salmon.  (Choose water packed salmon if canned.)
• 2 oz regular ham, approximately 11% fat,
• 2 oz pork loin, shoulder or sirloin chops.
• 2 oz hamburger, extra lean 17% fat.
• 2 oz beef T-bone all fat trimmed.
• 2 oz cooked dark turkey or chicken with skin, allow fat to drain while cooking.
• 2 oz raw chicken breast with skin used in a recipe that prevents the fat from draining.
• 2 eggs.

Very Fatty:

Tally one for the following portions:

• 2 oz hamburger, lean or regular 21% -27% fat.
• 2 oz pork spareribs, cooked. (Add a sugar tip if cooked with barbecue sauce.)
• 2 oz corned beef.
• 2 oz hot dog.
• 2 oz dark chicken with skin used in a recipe that prevents the fat from draining.
• 2 oz beef brisket.
• 2 oz salmon packed in oil, with oil drained.

Beans:

 Tally your bean consumption under "protein, bean".  When this program tallies calories, it is assumed that you add no fat or sugar when cooking. If you add lots of fat while cooking, tally 1 "fat tip" for every 1 t oil added to a serving, this is 1 "fat tip" for every 3.5 g of fat per serving.  Tally 1 "sugar tip" for every 2 teaspoons of sugar added per serving.  If you don't prepare the beans yourself, and don't have access to the food nutrition label, follow the instructions for tallying additional fat or sugar tips.

Soybeans and nuts do contain fat. You must manually tally extra "tips" to account for the extra fat in eat soy beans or nuts.  You must also manually tally "sugar" tips for recipes including sugar.

Tally 1 bean or soy, dry roasted nuts or nut butters portions for the following:

• 1/2 c cooked beans.
• 1/6 c dry beans.
• 1 oz nuts or 2 Tbs. nut butter. Tally an additional 3 fat "tips".
• Tally 1 additional "sugar" tip for recipes containing sugar, like boston baked beans.
• Tally 2 additional "fat" tip for recipes containing added salt pork, bacon or lard.  (Remember, most refried beans in restaurants are prepared with lard!)
• Oil roasted nuts should be tallied under "fat tip".

Dairy

Some dairy portions include foods with sugar added.  You will need to tally sugar tips manually when noted.  Also, occasionally, the program indicates you should manually tally additional fat or sugar tips.

Non-fat

• 1 c milk.
• 3/4 c (6 fl. oz) plain yogurt. (Tally 2 "sugar tips" for sweetened.)
• 1 c soy or rice milk, calcium fortified.
• 1/2 c cottage cheese or ricotta or sour cream.
• 1/2 c evaporated milk.
• 1 1/2 ounce hard cheese.
• 2 slices American low or non-fat cheese.
• 1/2 c. ice cream frozen yogurt or pudding. (Tally one additional "sugar" tip.)

2%

 
• 1 c milk.
• 3/4 c (6 fl. oz) plain yogurt. (Tally 2 "sugar tips" for sweetened.)
• 1 c  calcium fortified soy or rice milk.
• 1/2 c evaporated milk.
• 1/2 c cottage cheese, or ricotta.
• 1 1/2 ounce 2% fat hard cheese.
• 2 slices American cheese.
• 1/2 c. ice cream frozen yogurt or pudding. ( Tally one additional "sugar" tip.)

Whole

• 1 c milk.
• 3/4 c (6 fl. oz) plain yogurt. (Tally 2 additional "sugar tips" for sweetened.)
• 1 c  calcium fortified. soy or rice milk with fat
• 1/2 c evaporated milk.
• 1/2 c  cottage cheese, or ricotta.
• 1 1/2 ounce hard cheese.

• 1/2 c sour half and half. (Tally an 2 additional "fat" tips.)
• 1/2 c. ice milk, frozen yogurt or pudding. ( Tally one additional "sugar" tip.)
• 1/2 c sour cream. (Tally an 4 additional "fat" tips.)
• 1/2 cup ice cream. (Tally a 2 "fat" tip and an additional "sugar" tip.)

Tip

I could lump all the "tips" into one category.  However, to better estimate your fat consumption, I've classified these into three groups: "fat", "sugar", "alcohol" and "mixed".  I've defined a "tip" portion to provide roughly 35 calories, which is approximately equal to the number of calories in 1 tsp. or butter or oil. To determine the number of calories you eat, it doesn't matter which category of "tip" select to tally your food.  However, placing the tip in the appropriate categorie will provide a more accurate estimate of your fat consumption.
 
 

 In many cases, a "tip" is  portions is much smaller than a serving of a typical food.  So, refer to the list to identify the number of portions in a typical food.

Fat:

The following portions are equal to 1 "fat tip".

• 1 tsp. oil, butter, margarine, lard, mayonnaise or any other pure fat. (1 Tbs.. = 3 tips; 1 cup = 48 tips.)
• 1/2 oz animal products that are too fatty to tally under meats.
• 1/5 oz bakers chocolate. (1 oz = 5 tips)
• 2 tsp. salad dressing. (2 Tbs.. = 3 tips; 1 cup = 24 tips.)
• 1 Tbs. cream cheese or 2 Tbs. "light" cream cheese.
• 2/3 rd slice cooked drained bacon. (2 slices = 3 tips.)

• 1 slice cooked drained bacon = 3 tips.

Sugar:

• 2 tsp. sugar, honey, corn sweetener, maple syrup or corn sweetener. (2 Tbs.. = 3 tips; 1 cup = 24 tips.)
• 2 tsp. jelly or jam.  (2 Tbs. = 3 tips, 1 cup = 24 tips.)
• 3 pieces of hard candy or cough drops.
• 12 oz soft drink = 4 tips.

Mixed:

The following values are estimates for common foods.

• 3 Animal Crackers = 1 tip.
• 1 oz pound cake = 3 tips.
• 1  small cookie = 2 tip.
• 1 toaster pastry = 5 tips.
• 1/6^th. of a fruit pie = 9 tips; 1/8^th. of a fruit pie = 7 tips
• 1 oz potato chips = 5 tips.
• 1 oz pound cake = 3 tips.
• 1 oz pate (about 2 Tbs.) = 2 tips.
• 6 chocolate kisses = 5 tips.
• 1 oz chocolate chips = 5 tips. (This is smaller than most candy bars.)
• 1.6 oz chocolate candy bar = 7 tips.

Alcohol:

It is very easy to accidentally consume many calories when drinking alcohol. If you are trying to control calories, I advise serving sparkling water along side every glass of wine.  Do not refill your wine glass until both the wine glass and water glass are empty.

• 6 fl oz table wine = 4 tips. (Medium glass of wine.  A bottle contains roughly four 6 oz servings.)
• 6 fl oz wine cooler = 2.5 tips
• 2 fl oz sweet wine like muscatel = 4 tips.
• 12 fl oz beer = 4 tips.
• 12 fl oz light beer = 3 tips.
• 1 fl oz hard liquor = 2 tips.
• 1 fl oz sweet liqueurs = 2 tips.

Since most tip foods are highly processed, and recipes vary, I created a calculator.  If you have access to the nutrition label, can also calculate the exact distribution of "fat, sugar and mixed" tips in a typical snack food. Use it for chips, cookies, pastries and assorted other "treats". (The calculator doesn't work well for alcoholic beverages.)  To use the calculator, read the nutrition lable.  Then enter the the total calories, fat calories, grams of carbohydrate and protein in the appropriate boxes.  Then enter the number of portions you actually eat. For example, if the lable says a portion is 2 cookies and you eat 3, enter 1.5 portions.  Then click "calculate".  The calculator will estimate the number of tips of each type. (When you do this on your own, it is sufficient to calculate total tips, and list them under whichever category you consider most appropriate.)

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References

The NutriBase Complete Book of Food Counts,