Figuring how much food you can eat based on your body size isn’t easy, and sometimes people get too greedy. But then again, weighing your food is restrictive and feels like a punishment. Fortunately, the secret to working out the right amount of food for every meal is close at hand!
1. Five Meals A Day
Take a look at your hand, how many fingers do you see? Five, including the thumb, and that’s exactly the number of meals you need to eat. Your thumb represents breakfast, your forefinger the morning snack, the middle finger stands for lunch, ring finger for the afternoon snack and the little finger for dinner. The amount of food for each meal should be proportional to the size of the fingers: it’s better to eat well for breakfast and have a lighter dinner.
2. Fistful of Carbohydrates
Pasta, rice, semolina: a fist-sized portion of carbs is enough to satisfy your appetite. And yes, the same is true for fries!
3. Palm of Protein
Meat, fish or tofu: a palm-sized amount of protein is enough to fulfill your needs per meal.
4. Two Fingers of Cheese
When cheese is on the menu, food lovers are used to eating a lot! But you don’t need to eat more than two fingers of cheese to please your palate and get all the calcium you require.
5. Fingertip’s Worth of Fat
It’s not a lot, but it’s enough. You don’t need more than the amount of butter or oil per meal than it takes to cover the tip of your finger — whether it’s the butter for a slice of breakfast toast or the dressing on your salad.
6. Two Handfuls of Fruit & Vegetables
An easy way to measure the amount of fruit and veggies you need for each meal!
7. Thumb-Sized Portion of Sweetness
Whether it’s jam on your bread, honey in your yogurt, or a square of chocolate — a thumb of it is enough.
8. Clenched Fist of Dessert
For dessert lovers, this is the best way to measure how much of a sweet course you can eat, whether it’s ice cream, a piece of cake or something else. Now you know how to check if you’re eating the correct portion sizes for you. But be aware: these guidelines do not apply to children because they have a greater need than adults for fruit, vegetables and meat. And remember, when it comes to food, quality is always better than quantity. Enjoy your meal!
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