Tracking the calorie content of food to see the recommended amounts of each that you should be consuming is time-consuming and often inaccurate as calories vary with different sized items eg. a small banana can have say 85 calories while a large one can have upwards of 150 calories. Packaged items are often calculated on much larger industrial-sized quantities and divided into 'recommended' portion sizes, so whilst a useful guide this cannot be considered 100% accurate; a better and easier way to consider portions is in terms of regular household items, handfuls or number of smaller items in a group.
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Fruit
Small fruit: 2 satsumas. 2 plums, 2 kiwis, 7 strawberries, 14 cherries Medium fruit: 1 apple, 1 banana,1 pear, 1 orange Large fruit: half a grapefruit, one 5cm slice of melon, 1 large slice of pineapple |
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Vegetables
Green veg: 2 broccoli spears, 4 heaped tablespoons of kale, spinach, green beans Salad: 3 sticks celery, 5cm piece of cucumber,1 medium tomato, 7 cherry tomatoes Cooked veg: 3 heaped tablespoons of carrots, peas, sweetcorn, cauliflower etc |
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Starchy carbohydrates: bread, pasta, rice and potatoes
1 slice of bread Handful of rice or pasta Handful of breakfast cereal 1 small-medium potato |
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Meat, fish, eggs and beans
Lean meat the size of a deck of cards 1 large egg Side of fish the size of a chequebook Handful of nuts, seeds or beans |
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Milk and dairy
Small cup of milk 150g yogurt Piece of cheese the size of a small matchbox |
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Food and drinks high in fat or sugar
Limit these foods (recommendation is to limit to <8% of total intake but this is very difficult to judge so concentrate on avoiding and replacing with healthier options where possible). |
Sources:
Active IQ (2016) Personal Training Manual
Active IQ (2016) Personal Training Manual
