{"id":3306,"date":"2025-03-14T18:20:15","date_gmt":"2025-03-14T18:20:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movewithnicole.com.au\/blog\/recommended-portions-for-each-food-group.html"},"modified":"2025-03-14T18:20:15","modified_gmt":"2025-03-14T18:20:15","slug":"recommended-portions-for-each-food-group","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/health\/recommended-portions-for-each-food-group.html","title":{"rendered":"Recommended Portions for Each Food Group"},"content":{"rendered":"

Between the likes of Big Gulps, foot-long subs, and trenta-sized lattes (31 ounces!), we\u2019re living in a super-sized world. The proof?<\/p>\n

So, if portion sizes are completely out of whack these days, then how can you tell how much you\u2019re\u00a0really\u00a0eating, and how much should you be eating every day, anyway?<\/p>\n

To help make it easier for people to eat the right amount of servings from each food group, OzHelp created the Portion Fix Eating Plan, a container system designed to manage your portions, calorie intake, and macro distribution without doing any math or weighing ingredients. (Get the complete lowdown on the container system\u00a0here.)<\/p>\n

(Pro tip:<\/strong> Want ideas on how to eat right and get fit? Download our free \u201c100 Ways to Lose Weight\u201d<\/strong> guide\u00a0here!)<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of fad diets encouraging low-fat intake or low-carb intake have faded in and out of popularity, but the pendulum in research always tends to swing back to the center, stressing\u00a0moderate carbs and an equal split of healthy fats and proteins,\u201d says Paige Bent\u00e9, M.S., R.D., C.S.S.D.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

What Are the Food Groups?<\/h2>\n

Remember the food pyramid from elementary school? If you paid attention in health class, you\u2019ll recall the\u00a0Food Guide Pyramid\u00a0divided food into five groups. At the bottom of the Pyramid were grains (6\u201311 servings), then fruits (2\u20134 servings) and vegetables (3\u20135 servings), then protein and dairy (2\u20133 servings of each), then at the top were fats\/oils\/sweets.<\/p>\n

It was useful in letting people know what foods to focus on, but there were significant gaps in key information: \u201cThe food pyramid gives you an idea of what foods to eat, but it doesn\u2019t tell you how many servings of each group you need for your weight,\u201d says Bent\u00e9. \u201cIt\u2019s not specific to you and your body on an individual level.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Pyramid also\u00a0didn\u2019t distinguish\u00a0between types of fat, simply recommending that fat be consumed \u201csparingly,\u201d and there was no specific guidance on grains.<\/p>\n

\"MyPlate,<\/p>\n

What Is MyPlate?<\/h2>\n

The USDA replaced the Food Pyramid with\u00a0MyPlate, which is a bit more accurate, but overlooks an important detail: weight.<\/p>\n

\u201cMyPlate is great because it shows you how to create a plate with half of it full of fruits and vegetables, and the other half split between grains and proteins, but it still doesn\u2019t take into account the body weight of the individual,\u201d says Bent\u00e9. \u201cThis is an important factor in determining proper portion control.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re having trouble hitting your daily target for vegetables, whether it\u2019s because you just don\u2019t like greens or you don\u2019t have access to a wide variety, it\u2019s good to have a Plan B. A greens supplement like Power Greens can help you fill in the gaps in your diet.<\/p>\n

Even better? Add Power Greens to a daily Shakeology and you\u2019ll be well on your way to meeting your target.<\/p>\n

\"portion<\/p>\n

The Portion Fix Food Groups<\/h2>\n

Portion Fix is similar to the USDA\u2019s food groupings, but it doesn\u2019t have a specific category for dairy, opting for three additional groupings: healthy fats; seeds and dressings; and oils and nut butters. Here are the food groups in Portion Fix, with examples:<\/p>\n

Veggies:<\/strong>\u00a0kale, collard greens, spinach, string beans, artichokes, eggplant (green container)<\/p>\n

Fruits:\u00a0<\/strong>berries, watermelon, oranges, apples, apricots, grapefruit (purple container)<\/p>\n

Proteins:\u00a0<\/strong>sardines, boneless and skinless chicken or turkey breast, fish, eggs, tempeh, tofu, Shakeology (1 red container)<\/p>\n

Carbs:\u00a0<\/strong>sweet potato, yams, quinoa, beans, lentils, edamame, brown rice (yellow container)<\/p>\n

Healthy fats:<\/strong>\u00a0avocado, most nuts, hummus, cheese, coconut milk (blue container)<\/p>\n

Seeds & dressings:\u00a0<\/strong>pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, olives (orange container)<\/p>\n

Oils & nut butters:\u00a0<\/strong>extra-virgin olive oil, nut butters, seed butters (teaspoon)<\/p>\n

Do Food Group Servings Differ for Men and Women?<\/h2>\n

Body mass is the biggest reason to account for\u00a0dietary differences\u00a0between men and women. \u201cThere\u2019s definitely a difference between a 120-pound female looking to maintain her weight and a 250-pound male who\u2019s trying to bulk up \u2014 and as such, they\u2019ll need very different amounts of food,\u201d says Bent\u00e9.<\/p>\n

For example, the first step of the Portion Fix program is to calculate your \u201cCalorie Target\u201d to determine the portion plan that works best for you and your body type \u2014 and weight plays a big role. Multiplying your weight by 11 will give users a caloric baseline, which you can then use to calculate your maintenance calories, or the number based upon your exercise regimen.<\/p>\n

Now that you have your Calorie Target, you can determine the portion plan that best suits your body\u2019s needs and goals. There are six plans in the Portion Fix program, and the range between Plans A and F are substantial for those reasons.<\/p>\n

Do Food Group Servings Change When You\u2019re Working Out?<\/h2>\n

Once you\u2019ve calculated your caloric baseline, it\u2019s time to honor all that hard work from your workouts.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really important to restore the calories you\u2019ve lost after working out,\u201d notes Bent\u00e9. \u201cIf you\u2019re doing really intense workouts, you\u2019ll burn a bunch of calories, and you\u2019ll need to make sure you\u2019re getting enough protein and fat to maintain muscle mass, cellular function, and brain function. And you\u2019ll need enough carbs for energy and to replace muscle glycogen.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s especially true with those looking to seriously build muscle mass; research shows that\u00a0optimal protein intake\u00a0for bodybuilders during periods of intense training are significantly higher.<\/p>\n

To ensure you\u2019re meeting your body\u2019s needs, here are some guidelines :<\/p>\n

For a moderately challenging workout <\/strong>(e.g., jogging, yoga,\u00a021 Day Fix, or\u00a0Rockin\u2019 Body):<\/strong> Add 400 to your caloric baseline.<\/p>\n

For an extremely challenging workout<\/strong> (e.g., long-distance running,\u00a0SHIFT SHOP, or\u00a022 Minute Hard Corps): <\/strong>Add 700 to your caloric baseline.<\/p>\n

From there, it\u2019s all about the goal:<\/p>\n

To lose weight:<\/strong>\u00a0Subtract 750<\/p>\n

To gain weight:\u00a0<\/strong>Add 350<\/p>\n

To maintain:\u00a0<\/strong>Leave your number as is<\/p>\n

What Do I Do If I Eat Too Much of One Food Group?<\/h2>\n

While it\u2019s only natural to have some days where you don\u2019t meet your daily intake needs, Bent\u00e9 says it\u2019s important to do everything in your power to stick to your individualized food group plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cEach day is a fresh start, so it\u2019s best to avoid undereating one day and overeating the next \u2014 a practice that only sets up a cycle of bad habits.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Between the likes of Big Gulps, foot-long subs, and trenta-sized lattes (31 ounces!), we\u2019re living in a super-sized world. The proof? So, if portion sizes are completely out of whack these days, then how can you tell how much you\u2019re\u00a0really\u00a0eating, and how much should you be eating every day, anyway? To help make it easier […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3307,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health"],"blocksy_meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3306","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3306"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3306\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3307"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ozhelp.org.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}