Many diets claim to help you lose weight, but not all of them are healthy or feasibly maintained long-term. Grouping foods can help you healthfully lose weight and can be done using the U.S. Department of Agriculture food guide pyramid or the exchange system, which is commonly used for diabetics. Whichever food grouping method is used, it's important to eat a wide variety of foods from each group to achieve and maintain a healthy weight.
Food Guide Pyramid
According to the USDA food guide pyramid website, weight loss meal plans are based on food groups, including grains, vegetables, fruits, milk, meat and beans, oils, and discretionary calories. The grains group includes foods such as bread, cereal, pasta and rice. The milk group includes milk, yogurt and cheese. The meat and beans group consists of meat, poultry, fish, legumes, nuts, seeds and eggs, and the oils group contains fats such as vegetable oils. Discretionary calories are used to account for daily calories not used by other food groups. They should be consumed in moderation and typically include added sugars and sweets.
Exchange System
The exchange system groups foods into categories similar to the food guide pyramid and is commonly used to create weight loss and diabetic meal plans. According to the American Dietetic Association, food groups, or exchanges, included in the exchange system include starches, non-starchy vegetables, fruits, milk, meat and meat substitutes, fats, and free foods.
One difference in the exchange system compared with the food guide pyramid is that the exchange system places cheese into a protein category instead of in the milk group. Another difference is that the exchange system places starchy vegetables such as peas and corn, legumes and grains into the starch group since they all contain approximately the same amount of carbohydrates.
Portion Sizes
Portion sizes are approximately the same regardless of which food grouping method is used. For example, serving sizes for various foods include one slice of bread; 1/2 cup pasta or rice; 1 cup cold cereal; 1 cup raw vegetables; one small piece of fruit; 1 cup milk; 3/4 to 1 cup yogurt; 1 to 1 1/2 oz. cheese; 1 oz. meat; one egg; two egg whites; 1/4 to 1/2 cup dried beans; 1/2 oz. nuts; 1 tbsp. peanut butter; and 1 tsp. oil, butter, margarine or mayonnaise.
1,200 Calorie Diet
A 1,200 calorie per day diet may be appropriate for overweight or obese men and women. According to the National Institutes of Health, a sample meal plan for a 1,200 calorie diet using the exchange system consists of a daily allotment of seven starch, three fruit, three vegetable, four lean protein, one milk and four fat exchanges.
A sample 1,200 calorie menu includes the following: For breakfast, you could have 1 1/2 cups cold cereal, 1 cup skim milk, one small orange and 1/2 cup tomato juice. Lunch could include two slices of whole wheat bread, 2 oz. of roasted turkey, 2 tsp. mayonnaise, 3 slices of tomato and one small apple. Dinner could consist of 2 oz. of grilled salmon, 2/3 cup rice, 2 tsp. olive oil and 1/2 cup cooked vegetables. For a snack, you could have 1/2 cup fruit juice and 3/4 oz. pretzels.
1,600 Calorie Diet
A 1,600 calorie per day diet may be appropriate for overweight or obese men, overweight women who exercise regularly or women who weigh more than 164 Ib. The USDA 1,600 calorie food pyramid plan consists of 5 oz. of grains, 2 cups of vegetables, 1.5 cups of fruits, 3 cups of milk, 5 oz. meat or beans, 5 tsp. oils, 130 discretionary calories and at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most days. The NIH 1,600 calorie meal plan includes nine starch, three fruit, three vegetable, 1 1/2 milk, six lean protein and six fat exchanges.
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