Now that you have an idea of how many calories you could eat and when, do an inventory of all the foods in the pantry. When I did my inventory, I included serving sizes and calorie counts. Then I did the same with the fridge and freezer. Don’t forget to list drinks. I also added a few extra foods that I didn’t currently have in stock, but I like to eat. My thought was; If I only have a limited number of calories, I want them to be from food I really enjoy.
In the past, I would decide to go on a diet and start that day. No plans. I just thought I could eat less and be good. After a few days, I would be hungry and frustrated and quit. This time I wanted to be sure I could come up with enough foods that I enjoyed, that added up to 1300 calories, for at least a week. Then I would start.
To begin, I kept a paper on the table next to my list of food and added up the calories as I went. I would decide for the whole day so when I got hungry, I knew exactly what I would eat next and stay on plan. The foods I prioritized are personal, based on a lifetime of eating. How you space your calories and what you plan to eat will be unique to you.
Not making time to do this list kept me from losing weight for years. This took me a couple of hours, but it was absolutely worth it!
Easy Count
After a couple of weeks documenting my calories, I decided it needed to be easier, I adjusted the serving sizes of the foods I often ate. I rounded the calories to be whole numbers like 10, 50 or 100. Because I have my calories spaced throughout the day, I can document it by blocks of time. For example: 200 calories before lunch, 550 from lunch until dinner, 650 from dinner to bedtime. Making it simple keeps it sustainable.
Your spacing will be unique to your schedule and calorie needs. Be sure to add the foods you love to your list.
Ingredients - Calories - Serving Size
Apple 100 calories for 1 whole
Avocado 70 calories for 1/4 whole
Banana 100 calories for 1 whole
Bell Pepper 10 calories for 7 raw strips
Blackberry 10 calories for 5 berries
Blueberries 20 calories for 20 berries
Broccoli 10 calories for 3 florets
Butter 50 calories for 1.5 teaspoons
Butter spread 20 calories for 1 teaspoon
Cabbage 10 calories for 1/2 cup
Cantaloupe 50 calories for 1 cup
Carob 50 calories for 1 heaping teaspoon
Carrots 50 calories for 1 cup
Cauliflower 10 calories for 1/2 cup
Celery stick 2 calories for 3 inches long
Cereal Grape-nut flakes 70 calories for 1/2 cup scant
Cheddar 100 calories for 1/4 cup
Cheese stick low-fat 50 calories for 1 stick
Cherries 5 calories for 1 cherry
Chicken, cooked and diced 75 calories for 1/3 cup
Chicken, canned 100 calories for 5 oz. can
Corn sweet 75 calories for 1 cob
Cucumber 1 calories for 1 slice
Dinner roll 140 calories for 1 roll
Egg 70 calories for 1 whole large egg
Egg white, boiled 35 calories for 2 large eggs
Grapes, 3 calories each 50 calories for 15 grapes
Greek yogurt low fat 10 calories for 1 tablespoon
Green beans canned 15 calories for 1/2 cup
Grilled chicken breast 125 calories for 3oz. deck of cards
Ham or turkey 60 calories for 4 thin slices
Hamburger bun 180 calories for 1 bun
Hidden Valley dry mix 2 calories for 1 teaspoon dry mix
Honey 20 calories for 1 teaspoon
Hot dog bun 150 calories for 1 bun
Jalapeno in a jar 5 calories for 1/4 cup
Ketchup 20 calories for 1 tablespoon
Kiwi 40 calories for 1 whole
Lettuce, Iceberg 10 calories for 1 cup
Mango 60 calories for 1/2 cup
Maple syrup 15 calories for 1 teaspoon
Mayo Best Foods 30 calories for 1 teaspoon
Medjool date 70 calories for 1 date
Milk Almond vanilla unsweetened 2 calories for 1 tablespoon
Milk Almond vanilla unsweetened 30 calories for 1 cup
Molasses 10 calories for 1/2 teaspoon
Mozzarella cheese 30 calories for 2 tablespoons
Mozzarella slice 50 calories for 1 slice
Mushrooms sliced 25 calories for 7 oz can
Mustard, yellow 5 calories for 1 heaping teaspoon
Oatmeal, dry 70 calories for 1/4 cup scant
Okra - unbreaded 30 calories for 1 cup
Onion 16 calories for 1/4-inch slice
Onion, raw 60 calories for Whole large onion
Onions 30 calories for 1/4 cup cooked
Orange 40 calories for 1/2 whole
Papaya 40 calories for 1/2 cup
Parmesan 20 calories for 1/4 cup grated
Peach 60 calories for 1 whole
PB fresh ground 20 calories for 1 teaspoon
PB fresh ground 60 calories for 1 tablespoon
Peas - 8 g protein 60 calories for 1/2 cups
Pickle, dill stacker 5 calories for 1 slice
Pickle, bread & butter 10 calories for 1 slice
Pineapple, canned 30 calories for 1 slice
Potato 150 calories for 1 medium
Pretzels 100 calories for 24 sticks
Provolone 70 calories for 1 slice
Raspberry 10 calories for 10 berries
Romaine 15 calories for 2 cups
Spinach 10 calories for 1.5 cups
Squash, yellow 10 calories for 1/2 cup
Steak 230 calories for 3 oz.
Strawberries 5 calories for each berry
Street Tacos flour tortilla 35 calories for 1 small tortilla
Sweet Potato, cubes 75 calories for 2/3 cup
Texas Toast garlic bread 140 calories for 1 slice
Tomato 20 calories for 1 whole tomato
Tomato 5 calories for 1 slice
Tomato, cherry 10 calories for 3 tomatoes
Watermelon 50 calories for 1 heaping cup
Whole Wheat bread, low calorie 45 calories for 1 slice
Yogurt Greek low fat with fruit 80 calories for 5.3 oz.