What's in a Hand?

My husband is on a real health kick. And of course, as both a dietitian and his lovely wife, I am excited and supportive of all of his efforts. He is logging his meals, and making time to get on the elliptical every day. One thing he's been asking a lot of questions about is portion sizes. I've engrained into his head that there are no bad foods - its just how much and how often we eat them. That being said, he wants to learn how much of everything he should be eating.

One great trick I've learned is that your hand can be an excellent measuring tool. This comes in especially handy when dining out, when there are no measuring cups and scales available - just your eyes.

Here are a few general hints on how to measure with your hand:

• a serving of protein (meat, fish) is the size of the palm of your hand
• a cup is the size of your fist
• a serving of nuts is one handful
• the tip of your thumb is 1 oz

With these tips, it is much easier to log your meals accurately, which is vital when you want to know how many calories you are taking in versus how many you are using.

In my husband's case, we are loading up on fruits and vegetables, which helps you to feel like you're eating more but actually taking in less calories. After all, it's all about mind games...