How to Become a Nutrisystem Portion Pro

On Nutrisystem, you know that you should be adding in your favorite fresh grocery additions in the form of SmartCarbs, PowerFuels, Vegetables and Extras. You also know that it’s important to stick to the recommended portion sizes. But unless you’re walking around with measuring cups in your pockets, honing in on healthy portions can be a bit of a challenge.

The good news is, many household items are about the approximate equivalents of common portion sizes. And, by visualizing these items at meal time, you’ll be able to perfect portion sizes without relying on cumbersome kitchen tools.

Read on for some simple comparisons to keep in mind when portioning out your SmartCarbs, PowerFuels and more. And, be sure to print out this great visual aid, which serves as a handy guide for portioning out your foods.

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PowerFuels

For many of the meat, poultry and fatty fish (like salmon, tuna, mackerel, swordfish and trout) PowerFuel options, a serving is two ounces. For less fatty fishes (think white fish), a serving is three ounces. Not sure how to gauge ounces? Three ounces is roughly equivalent to a deck of cards, a checkbook (for thinner portions) or an open palm. So two ounces of the same foods would be two-thirds of these items.

For foods that are recommended in one ounce servings (think cheese), visualize three dice. For PowerFuels like milk and yogurt, which are recommended in one cup servings, visualize a baseball or a clenched fist. For nuts and nut butters, which are recommended in one or two tablespoon servings, picture this: a poker chip is about the size of one tablespoon.

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SmartCarbs

For many of the fruits you’ll be eating on Nutrisystem, one cup or one medium fruit counts as one SmartCarb. That’s about the size of a baseball or a small clenched fist. Dried fruit, which is recommended in quarter cup servings, should equate to about the size of an egg or a golf ball. Half cup servings should be about the size of the large part of a light bulb or a computer mouse.

Extras

For Extra servings, which are often measured in teaspoons or tablespoons, visualize this: one dice is the rough equivalent of one teaspoon and a poker chip is about one tablespoon.

Still not feeling confident about perfecting portion sizes? Check out the Nutrisystem Grocery Guide, which provides the measurements for all your favorite add-ins. Get the guide here! >