UNDERSTANDING SERVINGS

There is a difference between a serving and a portion or meal/food intake. With each meal you may eat numberous servings of one food group. For example, a sandwich with 2 slices of bread may have 2 servings of grains, whereas a large roll may have 4 servings. Also note that a particular meal may have a variety of servings from different food groups. Eg: A chicken sandwich may have 2 servings of grains, 2 serving of meat, 0.5 serving of fat (butter & mayo).

Although the amount you eat in a meal may vary, understanding serving sizes is important in recognising wether you are getting too much, or not enough, of a particular food group. The idea of the diet however isn't that you have to be exact, but on the whole, address the basic nutritional needs from each food group over time. Below is a basic guide to work your coding from. Simply make guestimates based on this guide and code your chart accordingly.

CODING YOUR FAT

When it comes to fat, there is no set guide other than to use it sparingly. This however is a big part of everyone's dietary issues. So, in coding your fat intake for assessment, you will need to determine a process that is easy to understand and follow. You can devise your own assessment of fat however Fit Aussie recommends the following:

  • No need to code fats that are part of natural / raw food produts - unless they are consumed to excess. Eg: If you have more than one serving of cheese a day, count the second as a 0.5 serving of fat. The same with avacado etc.
  • If you eat fast food, sweets, oils, fried products, ice cream, chocolate, alcohol, butter etc, etc, make a guestimate of the calories consumed and around 250 calories could be considered 1 serving of fat. If you only ate part of a serving, then code it accordingly.

Some samples or one serving of fat could include: 1 Big Mac or similar burger, 1 cake, 1 small chocolate bar, 1 large fries, a small bowl of ice cream, 1 beer etc.

For those that aren't quite this size serving you could list it as a fraction of a serving Eg: 0.75 for a glass of wine, 0.5 for some salad dressing etc. You get the idea - or simply personalise your own recording procedure (but keep it consistent).

1 SERVING OF DAIRY (MILK, YOGURT, CHEESE ETC)

  • 1 cup of milk
  • 1 small tub of yogurt
  • 1.5 ounces of natural cheese
  • 2 ounces of processed cheese

As a basic rule with the cheese products, close your fist and extend 2 fingers. One servings basically represents a cheese to the equivalent size.

MEATS (POULTRY, FISH, BEANS, EGGS, NUTS ETC)

  • 2-3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry or fish
  • 2-3 eggs
  • 3-6 table spoons of peanut butter
  • 2/3 to a cup of nuts

As it is highly unlikely that you will be eating 2-3 eggs in a serving or 6 table spoons of peanut butter etc, you can use this as a guide and list 0.5 or .3 of a serving in your guide.

Regarding the lean meat, a handy guide here is the size of your palm (if you don't have a huge hand). Beware of the typical size dished out in most meals, they can often provide a large number of servings in 1 sitting (eg: your 12 ounce steak).

FRUIT

  • 1 medium apple, bannana or orange
  • 1/2 cup of chopped, cooked or canned fruit
  • 3/4 cup of fruit juice

A handy guide here is the size of your fist, a fruit that is equivalent in size equals a serving.

VEGE'S

  • 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables
  • 1/2 cup of other vegetables - chopped, cooked or raw
  • 3/4 cup of vegetable juice

A handy guide here is also the size of your fist, an equivalent size in vegetables is roughly a serving.

GRAINS (BREAD, CEREAL, RICE, PASTA)

  • 1 slice of bread
  • 1 ounce of ready to eat cereal
  • 1/2 cup of cooked cereal, rice or pasta

A handy guide here is to cup one hand. A hand full of grain products is roughly a serving.

OVERVIEW

As stated, there is no need to be precise, a good guess is all that is required. The realities of what we neglect will stand out in no time, regardless of how good a picture you try to present.

Be warned however, try not to underestimate what having too big of a meal can do. 'CLICK HERE' to see how many servings can be in a variety of standard meals.

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