What Does 100, 200, and 300 Calories Really Look Like?

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From Atkins and South Beach to Weight Watchers and veganism, there’s no weight loss plan I haven’t tried. My painful years of yo-yo dieting has taught me one powerful lesson: calories in + calories out = weight loss. As scientific and monotonous as it sounds, there’s no more effective way to make that scale move than to count calories.

While it seems overwhelming at first, after you start counting it quickly becomes second nature. You start to memorize your favorite foods and how much they deduct from your calorie bank.

To get you started on counting cals, here’s a peek at what 100, 200, and 300 calories really looks like . . .

What Does 100 Calories Look Like?

1 large apple
1 orange with 12 cashew nuts
1 100-calorie pack snack
3 cups of air-popped popcorn
1 cup of baby carrots with 2 tablespoons of hummus

What Does 200 Calories Look Like?

1 cup of non-fat greek yogurt with 1/2 cup of blueberries
1 cup of oatmeal with sliced bananas
Mixed vegetable salad with leafy greens and 3 ounces of fish
1/2 of an avocado with 6 Wheat Thin crackers
Bagel with fat-free cream cheese

What Does 300 Calories Look Like?

2 eggs, 1 slice of of whole wheat toast with a small fruit salad
2 raw-fish sushi rolls and 1 bowl of miso soup
3 ounces of turkey on two pieces of whole wheat bread with veggies and a side salad
1 cup of bran cereal with 8 ounces of 2 percent milk  and 1 banana, sliced
1 large baked potato with 2 tablespoons sour cream and 2 tablespoons salsa with a small side salad of greens and tomato

Edited by Jody Smith

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We value and respect our HERWriters' experiences, but everyone is different. Many of our writers are speaking from personal experience, and what's worked for them may not work for you. Their articles are not a substitute for medical advice, although we hope you can gain knowledge from their insight.