When it comes to body composition goals and different diet phases (weight loss or weight gain), portion size is like a dial. What I mean by this is that you simply turn up or turn down the portion sizes of your food choices/macros depending on your current goal.
Weight Loss:
During my fat-loss diet, I opt for smaller meal sizes with nutrient-dense choices and utilize calorie-free options as much as possible, such as hot sauces!
I make sure I’m getting enough protein per meal. For me, that’s around ~30g of protein for each meal depending on how many meals I eat that day (usually 5-6 meals a day for me). Now if I am being honest, bland food will likely help in fat-loss diets to reduce cravings, overeating, boating, and increase mindfulness.
TIP:
Struggling with hunger? Drink a glass of water before each meal and fill your plate with lean protein, and lots of veggies! Protein and fiber from veggies will be what keeps you feeling the fullest.
Weight Gain:
Building muscle and gaining weight simply means you’ll need to increase your portions. These bigger meals provide the extra fuel your body requires to build muscle and grow.
Simply incorporate larger servings of proteins, complex carbs, and healthy fats into your meals.
TIP:
Struggling with fullness? Consider adding some calorie-dense foods such as nuts or olive oil, use fun sauces/dressings, or snack on quick digesting carbs such as cereal post-workout.
For example:
My meals tend to look pretty similar regardless of the diet phase I’m in – If I am dieting my portions look smaller, if I’m focusing on gaining weight and muscle mass my portions look larger. Right now I’m in a gaining phase, so my plates look almost double the size they did in prep a few months back.
You can see I still have my veggies in a similar portion size. However, my carbohydrates during a bulking phase are exceptionally larger portions. I also added a balsamic sauce to sneak in even more calories, since I haven’t been feeling as hungry as I do during my fat loss diets!
