Need a 'hand' with nutrition?
Alright, alright, I promise this is my last bad pun blog title, but I just couldn’t resist.
You’ve probably been told before,
“You should be eating 4 servings of fruit and 5 servings of vegetables everyday.”
Okay got it.
I should eat fruits and veggies…
but how much is 4 servings of fruit?
Is 1 serving of an apple the same as 1 serving of a banana??
and How do I measure leafy green vegetables?!?*
You’ve got questions and I’ve got answers! And I’m not talking ‘4 servings of fruit’ or ‘go buy a kitchen scale’ kind of answers. I’m talking about using something you always have with you to help measure out serving sizes: your hand. Before we jump right in let’s talk about macronutrients: carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.
*Oh and if you’re still stuck on the how to measure leafy greens thing, you typically should put them into a measuring cup and gently pat them down to get your measurement amount.
Foods are made up of a combination of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. A well-rounded diet should include all three of these elements in varying amounts.
Carbohydrates and proteins = 4 calories per gram and fats = 9 calories per gram. Like the graphic above says, carbohydrates should make up the majority of your diet (45-65% of calorie intake), protein and fat should make up the rest (protein: 10-35%, fat: 25-35%). The percentage of each is specific to you and what you need and is determined by things like your activity level and body composition.
Now that we’ve gone over the basics of what macronutrients are, let’s look at how to use your hand to build a meal and incorporate them all!
Take a look at your hand.
If you look at your open, flat hand, your palm represents about 3 oz. Start making your meal by adding a serving of protein that is close to the size of your palm.
Now make your hand into a fist, that represents roughly 1 cup. Add a fist-sized serving of a vegetable to your plate.
Open your hand back up and cup it slightly. This cupped hand can be used as a reference for your serving size of a carbohydrate and equates to about 20-30 grams.
And last, let’s use your thumb to measure out your fat portion of your meal. The size of your thumb is close to a tablespoon, so when preparing your food aim for a thumb sized serving of oil or butter. If you’re not using either of those fats to prepare your meal, consider adding a thumb sized serving of nuts, seeds or a nut butter.
Using your hand as a reference for serving sizes is a basic, convenient method that can help you build a meal. Next time your assembling your plate, try it out and see how it differs from what you usually do. Keep in mind the examples of macronutrient servings listed above would best represent someone who is eating 3-4 meals a day and is aiming for 1200-1500 calories total. For someone who is eating 3-4 meals a day and aiming for 2300-3000 calories total, all of the portions listed about would be doubled (2 palms of protein, 2 fists of a vegetable, 2 cupped hands of carbohydrates and 2 thumbs of a fat).
Thanks for dropping by today! I hope you’re leaving this post having learned something new and understand how it can be beneficial to you on your unique fitness journey. If there’s a topic you’re interested in learning more about, please leave me a message here so I can add it to my list!
CITATIONS
“Dietary Guidelines.” ChooseMyPlate, 2015, www.choosemyplate.gov/eathealthy/dietary-guidelines.
St. Pierre, Brian. “[Infographic] The Best Calorie Control Guide. Estimating Portion Size and Food Intake Just
Got a Whole Lot Easier.” Precision Nutrition, 7 May 2019, www.precisionnutrition.com/calorie-control-guide-infographic.