The goal of the calorie-counting diet is to stay within a target number of calories each day. It works well for some people. But most dietitians advise a more individualized eating plan.
Why Should I Follow This?
This diet can help you manage your weight and blood sugar levels. If you are overweight, lowering the number of calories you eat will help you lose weight. This will also lower your risk of health problems like diabetes
and
high blood pressure. If you are underweight, then raising the number of calories you eat will help you gain weight.
The Basics
Foods are broken into groups. You can have a certain number of daily servings from each group. This results in a balanced diet. It also makes it easier to keep track of calories.
A balanced diet has a range of foods from each of the main food groups: grains, fruits, veggies, milk, meat and beans, and oils. Based on your calorie needs, a dietitian can help you find out how many servings you can have from each of the groups. Depending on your situation, you may also be given some calories that you can use for foods not in these main groups, such as sweets, desserts, and certain drinks. Alcohol, if allowed by your doctor, should be limited to one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men.
This table shows the main food groups and the calories per serving for foods in them. You should work with a dietitian to find out how many servings of each group you can have per day.
Grains (includes starchy veggies)
One serving = about 80 calories
Type
One Serving
Bagel (varies), 4 ounces
¼ of a bagel (1 ounce)
Bread (white, pumpernickel, whole wheat, rye)
1 slice
Bread, reduced calorie or “lite”
2 slices
Broth-based soup
1 cup
Cooked beans, peas, or corn
½ cup
Cooked cereal
½ cup
Crackers
4-6
English muffin, hot dog bun, or hamburger bun
½
Muffin, 5 ounces
1/5 (1 ounce)
Pasta, rice
1/3 cup
Popcorn, air popped, no fat added
3 cups
Potato
1 small (3 ounces)
Pretzels
¾ ounce
Sweet potato or yam
½ cup
Tortilla
1 small
Unsweetened, dry cereal
¾ cup
Veggies
One serving = about 25 calories
Type
One Serving
Cooked veggies
½ cup
Raw veggies
1 cup
Tomato or veggie juice
½ cup
Fruits
One serving = about 60 calories
Type
One Serving
Canned fruit
½ cup
Dried fruit
¼ cup
Fresh fruit
1 small or 1 cup (for example, cut up or berries)
Fruit juice
½ cup
Milk
Calories in one serving varies as listed below
Type
One Serving
90 calories per serving
Nonfat or low-fat milk
1 cup
Plain, nonfat yogurt
¾ cup
Nonfat or low-fat soy milk
1 cup
120 calories per serving
2% milk
1 cup
Soy milk
1 cup
Yogurt, plain, low-fat
¾ cup
150 calories per serving
Whole milk
1 cup
Yogurt, plain (made from whole milk)
¾ cup
Meat and Beans
Calories vary as follows:
One
very lean
serving = about 35 calories
One
lean
serving = about 55 calories
One
medium-fat
serving = about 75 calories
One
high-fat
serving = about 100 calories
Type
One Serving
Very lean
Egg substitutes, plain
¼ cup
Egg whites
2
Fish: fresh or frozen cod, flounder, haddock, halibut, trout, tuna
Fish: herring, salmon, catfish, tuna (canned in oil, drained)
1 ounce
Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons
Pork: lean pork, such as fresh ham, Canadian bacon, tenderloin, center loin chop
1 ounce
Poultry: chicken or turkey (dark meat, no skin); chicken (white meat with skin)
1 ounce
Tofu, light
½ cup or 4 ounces
Veal: lean chop, roast
1 ounce
Medium-fat
Beef: most beef products (ground beef, meatloaf, corned beef, short ribs, prime rib)
1 ounce
Cheese with 5 grams or less of fat per ounce: feta, mozzarella
1 ounce, (Ricotta 2 ounces)
Egg
1
Lamb: rib roast, ground
1 ounce
Pork: top loin, chop, cutlet
1 ounce
Poultry: chicken (dark meat with skin), ground turkey or ground chicken, fried chicken (with skin)
1 ounce
Sausage with 5 g or less of fat per ounce
1 ounce
Tofu
½ cup or 4 ounces
High-fat
Cheeses: all regular cheese (for example, American, cheddar, Monterey Jack, Swiss)
1 ounce
Hot dog (beef, pork, or mix) *count as 1 high-fat meat plus 1 fat exchange
1 ounce
Peanut butter
1 tablespoon
Pork: spareribs, ground pork, pork sausage
1 ounce
Processed sandwich meats: bologna, salami
1 ounce
Sausage (for example, Italian, bratwurst)
1 ounce
Fats
One fat serving = about45 calories
Type
One Serving
Monounsaturated
Avocado
2 tablespoons (1 ounce)
Oil (canola, olive, peanut)
1 teaspoon
Olives
9-10 large
Peanut butter
2 teaspoons
Tahini paste
2 teaspoons
Polyunsaturated
Margarine
1 teaspoon
Mayo, regular
1 teaspoon
Mayo, low-fat
1 tablespoon
Salad dressing, regular
1 tablespoon
Saturated
Bacon, cooked
1 slice
Butter, stick
1 teaspoon
Coconut, sweetened, shredded
2 tablespoons
Cream cheese, reduced fat
1½ tablespoons
Cream cheese, regular
1 tablespoon
Cream, half and half
2 tablespoons
Shortening or lard
1 teaspoon
Sour cream, reduced fat
3 tablespoons
Sour cream, regular
2 tablespoons
Sweets and Desserts
These foods tend to be high in sugar and fat, while give you little nutritional value. They may or may not be in your diet plan.
Type
Serving Size
Angel food cake, unfrosted
1/12 cake (2 ounces)
Brownie, small, unfrosted
2 inch square (about 1 ounce)
Cake, frosted
2 inch square (about 2 ounces)
Doughnut, plain
1 medium (1½ ounce)
Gingersnaps
3
Honey
1 tablespoon
Ice cream
½ cup
Ice cream, low-fat
½ cup
Milk, chocolate, whole
1 cup
Pudding, sugar-free (made with low-fat milk)
½ cup
Sports drink
8 ounces
Sugar
1 tablespoon
Syrup, regular
1 tablespoon
Yogurt, frozen, low-fat
1/3 cup
Free Foods
These foods have less than 20 calories per serving.
Eat as much as you want, unless a serving size is given, then limit to three servings per day.
Type
One Serving
Bouillon, broth, or consommé
—
Candy, hard, sugar free
1 candy
Carbonated or mineral water
—
Coffee
—
Cream cheese, fat-free
1 tablespoon
Creamers, nondairy
1 tablespoon
Diet soft drinks, sugar-free
—
Drink mixes, sugar-free
—
Garlic
—
Gelatin dessert, sugar-free
—
Herbs, fresh or dried
—
Horseradish
—
Jam or jelly, light
2 teaspoons
Ketchup
1 tablespoon
Lemon or lime juice
—
Margarine spread, fat-free
4 tablespoons
Mayo, fat-free
1 tablespoon
Mustard
—
Nonstick cooking spray
—
Pickles, dill
1½ large
Salad dressing, fat-free or low-fat
1 tablespoon
Salsa
¼ cup
Soy sauce
—
Spices
—
Tabasco or hot pepper sauce
—
Tea
—
Vinegar
—
Whipped topping, light or fat-free
2 tablespoons
Wine, used in cooking
—
Worcestershire sauce
—
Tips
If your goal is to lose weight, then lowering your calories is the key to success, not avoiding one food.
Follow these tips:
Read food labels for calories per serving.
Focus on serving sizes. They impact your calorie intake.
Spread out your calories during the day. Find what works for you, whether it is eating your calories in three meals a day or spreading them out into six small meals.
Work with a dietitian to make a calorie-counting plan that takes into account your lifestyle and what you like to eat.
Eat a variety of foods from each of the groups. This will make sure that you get all the nutrients you need and will also leave you feeling full.
Diets for weight loss. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at:
https://www.dynamed.com/management/diets-for-weight-loss. Accessed February 4, 2021.
Just enough for you: about food portions. National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases website. Available at: https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/weight-management/just-enough-food-portions. Accessed February 4, 2021.
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