The premise of the calorie-counting, or calorie-controlled, diet is to stay within a target number of calories each day. Although this diet works well for some, most registered dietitians recommend a more individualized eating plan.
Following a calorie-counting diet can help you manage your weight and blood sugar levels. If you are overweight, reducing the number of calories you consume will help you lose weight, thereby also lowering your risk of several health conditions, such as diabetes and high blood pressure . If you are underweight, increasing your calorie intake will help you gain weight.
The calorie-counting diet breaks food into different food groups and allots a certain number of daily servings from each group. This method helps ensure a balanced diet and also makes it easier to keep track of calories.
A balanced diet includes a variety of foods from each of the main food groups: grains, fruits, vegetables, milk, meat and beans, and oils. Based on your calorie needs, a dietitian can help you determine how many servings you can have from each of the groups. Depending on your situation and calorie requirement, you may also be allotted some discretionary calories that you can use for foods not in these main groups (eg, sweets, desserts, and certain beverages). Alcohol, if permitted by your physician, should be limited to one drink per day for women and two drinks per day for men.
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 |
Type | One Serving |
Cooked vegetables | ½ cup |
Raw vegetables | 1 cup |
Tomato or vegetable juice | ½ cup |
Type | One Serving |
Canned fruit | ½ cup |
Dried fruit | ¼ cup |
Fresh fruit | 1 small or 1 cup (eg, cut up or berries) |
Fruit juice | ½ cup |
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 |
Type | One Serving |
Very lean | |
Egg substitutes, plain | ¼ cup |
Egg whites | 2 |
Fish: fresh or frozen cod, flounder, haddock, halibut, trout, tuna | 1 ounce |
Nonfat or low-fat cottage cheese | ¼ cup |
Poultry: chicken or turkey, white meat, no skin | 1 ounce |
Shellfish | 1 ounce |
Lean | |
Beef: round, sirloin, flank, tenderloin, roast, steak, ground round (trimmed of fat) | 1 ounce |
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 five 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 (eg, American, cheddar, Monterey Jack, Swiss) | 1 ounce |
Hot dog (beef, pork, or combination) *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 (eg, Italian, bratwurst) | 1 ounce |
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 |
Mayonnaise, regular | 1 teaspoon |
Mayonnaise, 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 |
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 |
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 |
Mayonnaise, 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 | — |
If your goal is to lose weight, researchers have found that reducing your caloric intake is the key to success, not reducing a particular nutrient (like carbs).*¹
To become more aware of how many calories you are consuming, follow these tips:
RESOURCES:
American Diabetes Association
http://www.diabetes.org/
American Dietetic Association
http://www.eatright.org/
CANADIAN RESOURCES:
Canada’s Food Guide
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/food-guide-aliment/index_e.html/
Dietitians of Canada
http://www.dietitians.ca/
References:
American Diabetes Association website. Available at: http://www.diabetes.org/ . Accessed March 20, 2007.
Powers M. American Dietetic Association Guide to Eating Right When You Have Diabetes . Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc; 2003.
*¹ 4/14/2009 DynaMed's Systematic Literature Surveillance http://www.ebscohost.com/dynamed/what.php: Sacks FM, Bray GA, Carey VJ, et al. Comparison of weight-loss diets with different compositions of fat, protein, and carbohydrates. N Engl J Med. 2009;360:859-873.
Last reviewed May 2008 by Dianne Scheinberg, MS, RD, LDN
Please be aware that this information is provided to supplement the care provided by your physician. It is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. CALL YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER IMMEDIATELY IF YOU THINK YOU MAY HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
Copyright © 2007 EBSCO Publishing All rights reserved.