PORTION PLAN

PROTEIN Portions of chicken, beef, pork, lamb and eggs for each meal should be about the size and thickness of the palm of your hand. Portions of fish can be a little larger for both men and women.

While fatty meats are approved for an LCHF lifestyle, eating too many could result in excess calories being consumed. On the other hand, don’t eat too little protein, as it’s important for retaining muscle mass and satiety. If you’re very active, pregnant, injured or elderly, you could benefit from a little more protein.

FATS AND OILS The easiest way to measure fats and oils is with a tablespoon. Women should add about 1 to 2 tablespoons of fats and oils to each plate of food, while men can add 3 to 4 tablespoons. This could be the olive oil drizzled over your salad, melted butter over your veggies or the coconut oil you cook your scrambled eggs in. The rest of your daily fat intake should come from foods that contain fats such as meat, eggs, olives, avocado or nuts.

If you don’t see any weight loss results or you stop losing weight after a few weeks or months, lower your fat intake slightly to allow your body to access more of your stored body fat for fuel. Eating too much fat can be a major hurdle to effective weight loss as it is high in calories. Consume enough fat to feel satisfied between meals, but not too much that you negate the calorie deficit that you require to lose weight.

CARBOHYDRATES The amount and type of carbohydrates eaten at each meal depends on how well your body tolerates them and how active you are. Some people can consume more carbs than others without it affecting their weight or health. If you have blood sugar issues such as insulin resistance or type 2 diabetes, it’s best to keep your carb intake low and to get them mainly from green leafy and cruciferous veggies, salads and other lowcarb vegetables. If your blood sugar and insulin are normal, you can experiment by including a portion of starchier vegetables such as carrots, sweet potato and butternut a few times a week (half a cup for women and usually a little more for men).