By Lizzie Streit, MS, RDN, LD 

Being mindful of portion sizes can be very helpful when trying to lose weight. Having some sense of how much food you’re eating, compared to what’s recommended, can help you pinpoint gaps in your diet and put together healthy meals. 

Read on to learn more about the differences between portion and serving sizes and how much you need of each food group. 

Portion vs. Serving Sizes 

While the terms are often used interchangeably, portion and serving sizes are not the same. A portion is how much of a food you eat, while a serving size is the amount of that food listed on its nutrition facts label.  

A serving size is not usually the recommended amount that you should eat. It’s intended to be more of a guide for reading food labels, so that people can know the nutrition facts of the portions they eat.  

For example, a pint of ice cream may list the serving size as ½ cup, but maybe you choose to eat a portion size of one cup instead. To figure out how many calories and grams of sugar are in your portion of ice cream, you would have to multiply the amounts listed on the food label by two.  

When it comes to ice cream, the serving size may actually be an appropriate amount to eat, depending on your goals. But for other foods, the serving size may not be the best guide for deciding your portions at a given meal. 

Recommended Servings by Food Group 

Now you may be wondering…what are the recommended portion sizes then? The best portion size for each person varies, but they should generally be based on the number of servings from each food group you need per day.  

Use the following recommendations as a guide for the portions you serve yourself. It may make sense to have more than one serving of a certain group at the same meal. For example, you may actually eat 1 cup of chopped veggies (instead of ½ cup) at dinner or 2 tbsp of nut butter (instead of 1 tbsp) at breakfast. The key is to meet the recommended number of servings per day, spread out over the meals you eat, and not go overboard on any food group. 

The American Heart Association recommends these servings by food group: 

• Vegetables – 5 servings per day, with a serving as 1 cup raw greens, ½ cup chopped veggies, ½ cup beans or peas, or ¼ cup 100% veggie juice 

• Fruits – 4 servings per day, with a serving as 1 medium whole fruit, ½ cup chopped fruit, ¼ cup 100% fruit juice, or ¼ cup dried fruit 

• Grains – 6 servings per day (at least half of which are whole grains), with a serving as 1 slice bread, 1 small tortilla, 1 cup cereal, 1/8 cup uncooked rice, pasta, or oatmeal, or ½ cup popped popcorn 

• Dairy – 3 servings per day (low-fat and fat-free), with a serving as 1 cup milk, 1 cup yogurt, or 1.5 ounces cheese 

• Poultry, meat, and eggs (lean, skin removed) – 8 to 9 servings per week, with a serving as 3 ounces of meat or 1 egg 

• Fish and seafood – 2 to 3 servings per week, with a serving as 3 ounces of fish 

• Nuts, seeds, beans, and legumes – 5 servings per week, with a serving as 1 tbsp nut butter, 2 tbsp nuts or seeds, or ¼ cup cooked beans 

• Fats and oils (mostly unsaturated) – 3 servings per day, with a serving as 1 tbsp 

Note from Healthy For Life Meals: Need help eating healthy portions without going overboard? We can help! Our fresh, healthy meal plans come portioned exactly for you, in 1200, 1500, and 2000-calories-per-day options. Check out our menus here.