How much
should
you eat?
Watch your portion sizes! The
amount you eat or drink plays an
important role in your energy
balance strategy. You may be
eating more than you
realize. Some common food
portions can equal the amount
that is recommended for the
whole day. For example, one
bagel may weigh up to 5 ounces,
which equals the entire day’s
allotment of grains for
someone on a 1600 calorie
MyPyramid Plan.
A good
way to see how big your portions
really are is to measure the
size of bowls, glasses, cups,
and plates you usually use. This
can help you choose sensible
portions. To see what 1
cup, ½ cup, or 1 ounce of some
different foods looks like,
visit the food gallery and find
some of the foods in
each group that you eat.
Your MyPyramid Plan
helps you manage your
daily intake by
recommending the amount
of food you need from
each group. Your
portions need not match
individual MyPyramid
amounts — they can be
larger or smaller. But,
to stay within your
energy needs, the total
amount you eat during
the day should match the
total amount recommended
for each group.
The chart below gives a
1-day example for the
grain group. Five
ounces of grain foods
are recommended for the
1600 calorie MyPyramid
Plan.
|
Meal |
Food Item |
Amount |
Counts As |
|
Breakfast |
Oatmeal |
1/2 cup cooked |
1 oz of grains |
|
Lunch |
Sandwich |
2 slices of whole wheat
bread |
2 oz of grains |
|
Dinner |
Spaghetti |
1 cup of cooked noodles |
2 oz of grains |
|
|
|
Total for Day |
5 oz of grains |
Note:
This chart only shows
food choices in the
grain group, it is not a
complete menu for the
day.
