Your Easy Guide to Portion Size: Lose Weight by Eating Proper Portions

You may know the calorie count (per portion) of every food in your cupboard, but if you don't know the correct portion size, you may still be consuming way more calories than you think.

Here are some visual cues and helpful tips to help you dish up the proper portion sizes for you and your family.

Visual Cues

Meat: One portion is 3 to 4 ounces, which is roughly the size of a deck of playing cards or the palm of your hand.

Cheese: One portion is about the size as a pair of dominoes.

Grains/Rice/Pasta: One portion is one-half cup, which is roughly a handful.

Tips for Eating Proper Portion Sizes

1. If you are new to judging portion sizes, try weighing the food on a quality food scale or actually scooping rice and pasta with a half-cup measuring cup before you put it on your plate. You'll get better at estimating portion size in no time, but it really helps to measure things out at first.

2. Be particularly careful when dining out. Restaurants tend to serve two to three times more than you should be eating in a single sitting. Try dividing the meal in thirds before you even start eating and plan to take ½ to 2/3 of the meal home for the next day. Or plan to split the meal with someone else at the table.

3. Use a smaller plate when dining at home. We really cut down on portion sizes in my family when we started doing this. It was like everyone was accustomed to eating a plate full of food, regardless of the size of the plate.

4. Start each meal with cut vegetables. As a family, we eat far less of the fat-laden salad dressing when, instead of a salad, we simply nibble from a large plate with sliced vegetables and fruit. We don't offer a dipping sauce. We simply put out a plate of finger foods such as bell peppers, carrots, celery, tomato wedges, and whatever else happens to be in the house. When you can fill up on healthy, low-calorie fruits and vegetables, you might find that you reduce your portion sizes without even trying.

5. Portion out your snack foods ahead of time. Instead of eating snack crackers from the box, for example, always measure out a serving size in a bowl or cup so you're not eating more than you think.

If your goal is to lose weight, once you know the correct portion size, the next step is to stick with those portion sizes (and not eat two or three portions at one sitting.) It might help you to embark on a diet that focuses on portion sizes or even one that has prepackaged foods in proper portion sizes.

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