Proper Portion Sizes for a Plate
Today's plate size has increased to 12 inches in diameter, which is about two inches larger than it was in the 1980s. Because of this, it's easy to overestimate the proper food portion size and underestimate the amount you eat. If you can reduce your portions, you may be able to reduce your weight.
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Plate Formula
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The two-third/one-third formula is often associated with proper portion control. Two-thirds of your plate should be devoted to vegetables, grains and fruit, while one-third should be devoted to protein and beans. The two-thirds can be further broken down into one-third for vegetables and one-third for grains, including pasta, and fruit. However, with the current size of plates, even this formula can lead to overeating.
Portion Control
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Food labels can also be confusing when determining a proper portion. As such, you can still end up eating two to three times the proper portion. You can determine the proper size by associating proper portion size with common items. Such associations include baked potatoes the size of a standard computer mouse as a proper portion size. Lean protein, such as red meat, chicken and fish, should be the size of either a checkbook or a standard deck of playing cards. Fruits and vegetables have a general guideline to follow. An apple or a serving of cooked broccoli should be about the size of a baseball. A compact disc is the proper diameter for a pancake.
You can also use parts of your hand for measurements. One cup is equal to a fist, and 1 tbsp. can be measured from the first crease on your thumb to the thumb tip. Similarly, 1 tsp. can be measured from the first crease in your pinky to the pinky tip.
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