SubscribeWhat Do 300 Calorie Meals Look Like?
Here is a selection of meals that are in the 300-400 Calorie range. The visual representation gives an idea of portion size.
Breakfast - 290 Calories
1 whole wheat English muffin
2 pats low fat butter
1 hard boiled egg
1/2 cup of fruit
8 oz fruit juice
8 oz water
Cereal - 300 Calories
1 cup of cereal
8 oz 2% milk
1 banana
1 coffee or tea
Baked potato - 305 Calories
1 medium baked potato
2 tablespoons sour cream
2 tablespoons salsa
1 cup sliced melon
12 oz water
Oatmeal - 325 Calories
1 cup oatmeal with raisins
1 cup of fruit
1 cup coffee or tea
1 banana
Soup - 350 Calories
1 bowl of soup
1 small tossed salad
2 tablespoons reduced fat oil and vinegar dressing
12 oz water
4 saltine crackers
Chicken - 345 Calories
6 oz of chicken
1 cup of green beans
2 pats of low-fat butter
1 small tossed salad
2 tablespoons reduced fat oil and vinegar dressing
12 oz water
Chicken Salad - 350 Calories
1 large tossed salad
2 tablespoons reduced fat oil and vinegar dressing
6 oz sliced chicken
1 cup of low fat wheat thin crackers
12 oz water
Scrambled eggs - 360 Calories
2 scrambled eggs
2 strips of turkey bacon
1 piece whole wheat toast
1 pat of low fat butter
1 coffee or tea
8 oz water
Fish - 365 Calories
6 oz broiled white fish
1 cup of mashed potatoes
1 pat of butter
1/2 cup of peas
8 oz diet iced tea
Chicken and Rice - 395 Calories
6 oz cooked chicken
2 tablespoons of barbecue sauce
1 cup of mixed vegetables
1/2 cup of brown rice
1 small tossed salad
2 tablespoons reduced fat oil and vinegar dressing
12 oz water
Consumption
It's hard to believe that the average American consumes around 3,800 Calories per day. That's more than all the food shown on this page. Highly processed foods are very easy to overeat.
to me, those are very good portions of filling food. but as portions are so super-sized thesedays in resturants, fast food outlets and even for ready meals people's ideas of what a real portion of food looks like is very distorted.
i had to purchase some kitchen scales to weigh my food and i was surprised at the weight of some foods. now i eat about 65grams of rice (weighed when uncooked) which is about 3-4 tablespoons and the portion seems like a lot of me. however before this i could easily be eating 250grams (uncooked) of rice. a lot of people carry around the notion that unless the meal is big then it wont fill you up. but really i think part of this probably stems from people eating more junk food which lacks fibre and has a high gi so will leave them feeling hungry quicker. not to mention eating healthily is sometimes mocked as "bird food", "bland" etc. it would seem people get away with eating huge amounts of crap more than they do eating to live.
Reply3 to 4 spoons of rice? Are you really serious. Ithink weight hte rice is taking it to far.
The human body is designed to be able to eat a good amount of food.
It took me a long time to realize, it wasn't the amount of food that counts but the quality of the food.
Eat brown riche whole wheat foods and cut out all the processed junk, and you may be suprised at the amount of food you can eat, and still lose weight.
ReplyWhat a great visual representation of the fact that we can eat satisfying meals of a decent size! Good post.
Brian
ReplyGreat post.
Those are great as a reference for portions. I find it so hard to not eat everything in front of me when i go to the restaurant(usually take the other half home) Now I know I really shouldn't even be eating half of the plate as it's still an exagerated portion.
It's so much easier to eat at home.
ReplyLow-fat butter?
http://www.apv.com/us/eng/industryofferings/dairy/milkfat/lowfatbutter/Low+Fat+Butter.htm
No thanks...I'll stick with real butter =)
ReplyMe too, and those concerned with heart disease can just use some real olive oil. The only kind of low-fat anything that is not funky is low-fat milk and yogurt. All other products are loaded with plastic-sounding things.
ReplyThe egg white omelet doesn't seem correct.
2 egg whites = 35 cals (about 17 each)
1/2 c peppers = 14 cals
1/2 c fruit = ~50 cals.
Not even 100 calories! Even if we add an ounce of low-fat cheddar cheese (~ 70 cals), we haven't hit the 200 calorie mark.
ReplyThe original picture on the website above is at
http://myphotodiet.com/diet/sample_menu_2.html
And you are correct....the breakfast has 220-calories...and that's because it's an omelet with eggs, not just egg whites!
This is how the above site lists it:
Breakfast
2 egg omelet
½ cup chopped green and red peppers
½ cup of fruit
1 coffee or tea
8 oz of water
220 | 13 (calories | fat grams)
ReplyNice concept, but I think they'd be more successful if they weren't pushing the low-fat thing. People would be excited to eat real butter, real dressing and egg yolks. It's better not to make people feel as if this is a sacrifice, and to not eat so many processed foods!
Replyi want to make an eating diary via a blog. where do you suggest i go to do this. e
ReplyIt can be a great idea if you hate the idea of counting calories to come up with a load of healthy "300 calorie options" based around your normal regime.
After that it's so easy to keep track of your intake.
Book idea for someone?? "The 300 Calorie Diet." Would sell like hot-cakes no? :)
Nice post.
Reply~Mike.
The breakfasts are okay. But the meal with the baked potato (#3) was unappetizing to me. There are hardly any meat dishes; I really don't see this as more than a breakfast and occasional lunch/dinner kind of thing. Only 300 calories at every meal will leave you hungry unless you eat a lot of snacks. But that's a personal preference. I couldn't see these meals as getting me through the day every day. It's a little too spartan for me.
ReplyYour comment did not make sense to me, because dont you want to eat smaller portions to loose weight? This, to me is a great way to start counting calories under 400.
ReplyThank you for this. Great post. I'm submitting it to Reddit.
ReplyI think that second image is one cup of cereal, not two (I looked on the source web page). It depends a lot on the cereal, of course ^_^
Debbie, you're right... their dailiy diets have one larger meal, either lunch or dinner. Take a look at the source web page.
The shock for me when I started being careful about portion size was the number of calories in cooked rice. It's around 200 calories a cup. I can eat two cups of rice without thinking and head back for more.
ReplyI think 300 cals a meal works, cause you can eat 5 or 6x a day and end up in the 1,500-1,900 range, give or take.
I just have a great cookbook rec: "Stella's Kitchen". Best cookbook ever, the food is clean but appetizing, not the old "tuna and brown rice with a side of lettuce".
ReplyYeah, that was sort of what I was thinking, because if you only eat 3 meals a day of 300 calories, that's really not enough food. 900 calories...yikes. Unless you're in a coma or something.
ReplyAnyway, I did look on the website and added up the calories in one of their sample meals (3 meals and 2 snacks) and I got about 1550, which is a lot more reasonable, especially if one is trying to lose weight.
what the heck is low-fat butter? it sounds icky!
ReplyOh, hey. I read the link posted above and it really is icky. No processed foods please!
I eat 6-7 250-300cal meals/day so I make a lot of meals that look like these. Usualy 3-4 ounces of protein, 1/2 cup starchy stuff and a bunch of veggies and/or fruit. It really does make you feel good and I never get too hungry as long as I don't go more than 4 hours without eating.
ReplyI'd rather fast every other day and eat what I wanted the rest of the time.
ReplyAnyway, when I plan 300 cal meals, I still end up at around 2,200 cals, and not 1,900. I always add little things here and there (soy sauce, raisins to the oatmeal, etc.) and I always have a slight carb problem at lunch, making it more like a 450 cal meal. Some days, I have the same problem at breakfast. So it works out in the end.
ReplyVery awesome pictures here -- nice to have something to reference for once!
ReplyBased on those plates which I commonly eat, I'm
getting less than 1000 calories a day.
No wonder I can't gain weight.
ReplyThose are what my meals look like but I can't seem to lose any :( Far worse IMO.
ReplyJesus, I eat way too much.
ReplyGreat pictures! It really does show how much food we've been accustomed to thinking is "normal". I routinely measure my rice when I eat it. It's 170 calories for 1/4 cup of uncooked brown rice and the portion looks a LOT smaller than the massive piles of rice you usually get with Chinese food.
I think Richard Simmon's Deal-A-Meal cookbook from back in the day had photos of all the meals you could make and it showed exactly the portion sizes...it was really similar to this, but it included the recipes for everything.
ReplyWhat's the deal with 8oz vs 12oz water in some of those menus? Does water have calories?
ReplyI think you'll notice Vince, that when they list 8 oz. of water instead of 12, it's because they have another drink listed in the menu (fruit juice, coffee, tea, etc.)
ReplyNice!
ReplyVery nice presentation ... it's probably not a good idea to consume less than 1800 calories a day so you can have five to six of those meals a day and be good to go.
ReplyGreat pictures! It really does show how much food we've been accustomed to thinking is "normal". I routinely measure my rice when I eat it. It's 170 calories for 1/4 cup of uncooked brown rice and the portion looks a LOT smaller than the massive piles of rice you usually get with Chinese food.
ReplyLooks yummy to me!
I love the breakfast. Looks delicious to me, my kind of breakfast. :)
But I have to take these meals at least 2 hours before my yoga classes though!
ReplyAnd what will keep you the most satisfied for a couple hours, keep your blood sugar low, and prevent diabetes?
Yeah, it's the eggs and bacon or the fish. Eat protein and get strong, stop eating sugar and carbs.
ReplyThey all look "Pretty Yummy" to me... Unfortunately I eat out a lot and never eat breakfast since at the time I get up I am off to work in no time...
ReplyI am really curious about this. First how do you aquire accurate measure for the caloric content of fresh foods ? Second is 900-1000 calories a day safe/sufficient ? I thought normal was 2000-2500 calories ?
I am 6'3" Built large and way over weight. before I got fat I was slim at 210-220 I am 398 now (lost 6 more pounds from 2 weeks ago :-) yippee :-) Started at 430+ not sure scale lost accuracy so high :-(
I want to get as close to 250 as I can !! and quickly but safely!
Suggestions?
I love the atkins style diets and they work like a dream but they are not sustainable. IE they are too expensive the types of food I must eat just cost to much. Veggies I love. I can sit down and eat several pounds of broccoli or green beans or a salad (very little dressing though I must have dressing it takes very little to please me) without batting an eye :-)
but again they are expensive :-(
Would love any suggestions on a VERY effective diet or dietary guidance (nothing funky or special I want it to be sustainable IE a way of life kind of thing)
ReplyThanks!
Chris,
ReplyI have just recently embarked on my weight loss mission. What has helped me is setting low goals. My mile markers are 15 pounds every three months until I make my goal (you can probably set yours higher or wherever is healthy for you). Also, I write down weekly goals. These are just baby steps that keep you focused. For example, last week my goal was no fast food at all. I cooked dinner on Sunday and cooked enough to hold me through the week and bought fresh food instead of just eating out. It was pretty tough, but I found that I can do it.
Food journaling has helped me realize what I eat and typically when I eat it, which helps me figure out why and how to counderact my over eating. Shaking up my work out routine helps also so I am pushing myself at the gym and not getting stuck in a rut or bored.
I hope this helps you.
Here is an idea, since your obviously eating WAY over your daily needs, cut down what you eat to 2500 calories A DAY, DOES NOT MATTER WHAT YOU EAT, as long as you keep the calories under that number! you should be dropping a couple lbs a week. It is very easy to do, i have managed amassing weight loss using this method, use this method and you will definitely lose the weight. Eat what you like, workout as much as you can and keep those calories to a certain number. At your weight u can probably do 2500-3000 to start so try that and see if you drop any pounds, if not cut down a little more. The more you workout the less u have to cut on the food :)
ReplyChris, I'm right there with you.
I was always a trim if large girl until an illness screwed up my body. Fastforward several years and an unhappy marriage and suddenly I'm 335 pounds at 5 ft 9 and was literally off the scale when I tried my parents scale.
I weighed in at 320 this morning and I'm a determined little bunny. My goal is also 250 and then, depending how I look/feel at that point perhaps a little more.
So lets plan a party for when we get to 250 *grins*
Cat
ReplyThis seems crazy to me.
I'm on a diet, and I eat much more than this, and I'm losing at a steady rate of 1-2 pounds per week.
I think the key is weighing out the good with the bad. I eat a lot at meals, but that is because I pile my plate with vegetables.
ReplyWhat is your secret to losing the weight I have tried every diet, every pill and still can't lose
ReplyDear Pumpkin, if you had try a lot of weight loss diet way even diet pill but still cannot lose weight , you reason may is CONSTIPATION.
After clear your constipation problem,you will lose some weight.People who claim no constipation but still have 2-3kg of undischarged stool inside the stomach.surprisingly a weight of a bowling ball,it cause us a big tummy.
you can try to drink more yogurt,eat more fruit to help.
if you urgently to clear your constipation. you can try to eat this diet plum @ www.kenkodietplums.com .It's really work for constipation.
ReplyGreat article and website! Excellent representation and breakdown of healthy meals around 300 calories.
I posted a web link article for Diet-Blog.com on my front page for 4/27/07. My readers will love the content your site have to offer!
My website is http://www.AbundanceTips.com
Thank you!
LM
ReplyI'm hungry ;)
ReplyBtw there was a link to pix of 200 calorie meals for those on a diet :P
It's things like the 300 calorie meal that make dieting suck and failing inevitable. Anything less than 1000 calories a day is just setting yourself up for a yoyo cycle.
Here's what you do:
Use a Base Metabolic Rate calculator to find out how many calories you use in a day. Then, create a calorie deficit. If you want to lose a pound a week, you need a 500 calorie a day deficit. Two pounds, 1000 calories. You need to keep a food log for this. There is some great software out there to make this painless.
If you want to speed up the process, get off your ass and do something. Two weeks ago I had a 16,000 calorie deficit and I never ate less than 2000 calories a day. I've lost 12 pounds while putting on muscle (at least 10 pounds) in the past month and I haven't been hungry a single day.
If you really, seriously are motivated to shed fat crazy fast, check out Tabata Intervals. It does insane things to the metabolism ans only takes 4 minutes (plus warm up/cool down).
Replythis is what I call a fat free, sugar free, healthy tasteless food... :-)
Reply