Deciding how much to eat is an issue for most people in the modern world. With an abundance of food, a lack of discipline, or simply a lack of knowledge, determining the right amount of food for a meal can be difficult. 

The Hand Portion Method 

Portion sizes are simple when you eat with your hands. Mainly because of the Hand Jive method developed by Kazzim Waji, a Zimbabwean diabetes specialist. You may know this method as the Hand Portion method, popularized by Precision Nutrition. 

Portions That Fit Your Body 

Using your hands to measure your portions can simplify eating proper portions for most foods. A big part of why I like this method is that it eliminates the need to measure and weigh your food or meticulously count your calories. Keeping an eye on your caloric intake that way is fine and will work, but it can make eating healthier more difficult and stressful than it has to be. 

Another reason the Hand Method is a viable option for creating adequate portion sizes is that as long as you have at least one hand, you’ll have all the tools you’ll ever need. You’ll always have your hands wherever you go, meaning you’ll always have your primary tool for plating your next meal. 

Lastly, one of the best reasons this method works so well is that it’s customized to everyone’s individual body. One person’s hands may be bigger than another’s, probably because they’re a bigger person than the other. But this is okay because if that person is taller, for example, then they would need bigger portions of food to supply their caloric needs. I would think that it’s safe to say, on average, a 5-foot-2 woman wouldn’t need to eat the same amount of food as a 7-foot basketball player.

The Benefits of the Hand Method

Thankfully, the hand method has some research behind it supporting the claims that it can be a viable way to properly portion your food. Bigger companies, like Precision Nutrition, have articles showing how you can use this method to simplify tracking your nutritional intake. 

They’ve found that a palm-sized portion of protein is roughly 24 grams of protein, 2 grams of carbs, and 5 grams of fat for a total of 145 calories. A fist of vegetables would be about 2 grams of protein, 5 grams of carbs, and no fat, adding up to 25 calories. The protein, carbs, fats, and total calories for 1 cupped handful of carbs would be 3 grams, 25 grams, 1 gram, and 120 calories, respectively. And finally, 1 thumb of fat would be about 2 grams of protein, 2 grams of carbs, 9 grams of fat, equaling about 100 calories. Keep in mind that these are all rough measurements. 

But that’s the point, the hand method lets you make a rough estimate with your food, allowing you to make the right decisions with your diet with much less pressure. Ideally, you’d eat the best options possible, but even if you don’t, it’s still difficult to go overboard with your calories. You could technically eat fried chicken as your protein source. I wouldn’t recommend doing that a lot, but the hand method can really assist you with the proper moderation of food in your meals. 

The best part about this method is that it covers the majority of all foods. Every properly made meal will contain a protein, a carb, a fat, and a fruit or vegetable. As long as you choose one source per category, you’ll largely be alright. At worst, your calories should be predictable and under control.

How You Can Start Portioning Your Food

The easiest way to understand how to use the Hand Method is to get in the kitchen and see the portion sizes for yourself. Take a meal that you normally eat and try to recreate it using these rules:

• 1 palm-sized protein source 
• 1 fist-sized amount of fruit/vegetables 
• 1 cupped hand of carbs 
• 1 thumb of a fat source 

Once you get to see what that should look like on your plate, you’ll begin to understand how much food you should probably be eating at each meal. If you’re missing things, like a protein source or vegetables, that should start to tell you that your meals need to be better balanced. If that’s the case, try to fill the gaps in your meals with what’s needed and remove any redundancies you may have. 

To maximize this method, and more importantly, your health, try to eat mostly whole foods and leaner sources of protein. This means using less fatty cuts of meat and fewer foods that are highly processed. The point of all this is to eat healthier and be healthier. What sense would it make to create a decent plate and have chips as your carb source? You must be sensible with this. 

One possible sticking point with the hand method is that it doesn’t fully account for vegans and vegetarians. What I would recommend is to set certain things as your protein source. This may be beans, tofu, quinoa, or any vegetable source that is packed with protein. It may take some extra time researching what foods you should use, but it may be worth it for you. 

And for those with a bigger appetite, when you feel a little hungrier, I would recommend adding another serving of a fruit or vegetable. That way, you’ll fill up on a lower-calorie food. Not to mention the filling effects of the fiber you’ll get from this.

The Key Takeaway: Eat With Your Hands and Live A Little 

In conclusion, portion sizes don’t have to be complicated. Thankfully, you can use the Hand Method with most foods for your meals. Occasionally, you may find it difficult to neatly use this method for certain meals. Examples like soups, casseroles, pasta, or rice-heavy dishes can all be a bit tricky to fit within this structure. I’d still argue that with some creative thinking, you’d be able to figure out how to make these portion sizes work.

Even if you can’t fit every meal into the Hand Method’s portions, the point is to give you structure for your meals. You don’t need to be 100% dialed in. Just try your best to stay mostly on track. Remember, you’re allowed to live a little. You just stay in control of yourself.

What You can Do Today

You can wait for your next meal or head to the kitchen and play around with your regular meals to put these portion sizes to the test. Compare your normal portions to the portions you’d be making while using the Hand Method. If you have enough food, make two plates. The first plate using your normal food portions and the second with the same foods using the Hand Method. You might be surprised at how different these two plates may look. Also, take a look at what food groups you usually have on your plate versus what the hand method recommends you should have (i.e., a plate full of carbs versus a balanced plate). 

Start slow; however, take 1 meal at first and build it using the hand method. Make it a habit to create this 1 meal using the method, and then add a 2nd meal and make that a habit in your routine. From here, keep adding meals portioned with your hands until all or most of your meals are made using the hand method.

Remember to still live a little; cake will not fit this structure, and that’s okay. Most desserts won’t and probably shouldn’t work within this structure, as they aren’t viable meals. But that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy ice cream. The whole point of the Hand Method is to create balance through proper portioning and moderation. The same goes for pizza; you may never get pizza to fit the Hand Method. But if you do, then let me know immediately because I absolutely love pizza.

The post Portion Sizes Are Simple When You Eat with Your Hands appeared first on TheKeysToFitness.com.

Everyone knows that fiber is good for your health. In fact, we’re told to eat more fiber all the time. The problem is that nobody really explains why. The truth is, the benefits of fiber go far beyond just digestion. 

At The Keys To Fitness, we simplify fitness for everyone and help heavier people who are ready to get fit and stay fit. 

Today, we’ll go over 3 surprising benefits of fiber that can change your health for the better. 

Fiber: The Nutrient Everyone Overlooks

Weirdly enough, most people are pretty aware of how great fiber is for your health but it’s still grossly under-eaten. Only about 5% of the American population eat enough fiber every day. 

Yes, you read that right. 

This means that 95% or roughly 323 MILLION people don’t get a healthy amount of fiber each and every day. Jeez. 

If this many people aren’t eating enough fiber, you’d think we’d be going through a pooping pandemic or something.

But then again, if this many people are getting in such little amounts of fiber, I could see why this “pooping pandemic” hasn’t really budged. 

Moving on. 

If you take a look around your local grocery store, you’ll see plenty of items claiming to be high-fiber or good sources of fiber. You ever wondered why these high-fiber foods are always recommended for good health?

Most people think that fiber is what helps you digest food better and to keep your bowels from being backed up. And they’re right. 

But wait, there’s more! – Billy Mays

For instance, did you know that fiber plays a role in heart health and fat loss? Probably not. 

Luckily, you’re in the right place. We’ll break down 3 of the top benefits of fiber (backed by science and real-world health outcomes) that you should know. 

After today, you’ll walk away with a new level of respect for this underrated nutrient. 

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Fiber Supercharges Your Gut Health

Soluble vs Insoluble Fiber 

There are actually two main types of fiber: Soluble and Insoluble fiber. Both play different roles in your digestion. 

To spare you the details of the duty, I’ll keep things brief:

• Soluble fiber dissolves in water and will form into a gel-like substance that helps with lowering cholesterol and regulating your blood sugar.
• Insoluble fiber doesn’t dissolve. It gets digested and adds the bulk to your stool, which will promote regular bowel movements. 

The Benefits of Fiber for Your Gut and Digestion System

Soluble fiber acts like a prebiotic. In short, a prebiotic feeds the beneficial bacteria in your gut. With this prebiotic, the good bacteria will improve the lining of your gut and can reduce inflammation. 

With reduced inflammation in the gut and a healthier lining of the gut, you improve your immune system. Bet you didn’t know that!

The improvement in your immune system is from the strengthening of your gut lining. This bolstered barrier helps to prevent harmful microbes from entering the bloodstream. And because it does this, it really helps your body fight off illnesses more effectively. 

And as we noted earlier, the insoluble fiber adds bulk to your stool. It also softens your poop and helps with preventing constipation. 

So with a healthy gut microbiome and healthy bowel movements, your stomach can digest food more efficiently. And having this healthy gut microbiome actually reduces bloat and gas over time. 

A high-fiber diet can also prevent common GI (Gastrointestinal) issues like diverticulitis, hemorrhoids, and IBS (irritable bowel syndrome). 

This is because the main symptoms of diverticulitis (inflammation pouches in the colon), hemorrhoids (swollen veins from straining during bowel movements), and IBS (bloating, cramps, and irregular bowel movements) can be helped with the benefits that fiber provides. 

But this is only the first benefit of increasing the fiber in your diet. Gut health isn’t the only area that fiber helps you with. 

Fiber Supports Sustainable Weight Loss

Did you know that fiber has an impact on satiety (fullness), cravings, and calorie control?

Not only does a high-fiber diet improve your gut health, it also slows down your digestion and suppresses your appetite. This means that you’ll feel fuller for longer!

And because you’ll feel fuller for longer, you’ll eat fewer calories when your meals are higher in fiber. 

Simply put: fewer calories per meal = fewer calories per day = weight loss. 

And with feeling fuller for longer periods of the day, you’ll be able to curb your cravings a lot easier. Part of why is because your blood sugar and energy levels will be more stable. 

You don’t get the crashes and dips in energy because you won’t have spikes in your blood sugar because of the fiber slowing down the rate of absorption of the nutrients from your food. 

Remember how fiber slows down digestion? Because it’s slowed down, this means that you won’t get a massive rush of sugar into your bloodstream, which causes the spike and then the crash. 

And because an adequate amount of fiber in your diet slows down the absorption of food (and by proxy, sugar), this means that the pancreas doesn’t have to work as hard to pump insulin into the bloodstream to counterbalance the influx of sugar. 

Or in English, eating more fiber helps to prevent insulin resistance. Crazy, isn’t it?

By the way, that spike in your blood sugar is what causes your body to experience food cravings. That’s because that dump of insulin usually leads to an overcorrection for the sugar in the blood, which leads to a drop in sugar levels. And because there’s a drop in sugar in the bloodstream, your brain starts to send signals of hunger to try to balance the sugar levels again. 

And due to the hunger signals turning into strong cravings, this usually drives people to overeat (usually fats and carbs) and spike the sugar in the bloodstream again. Leading to a cycle of spikes and drops. 

Essentially, adding more fiber to your meals will help you reduce your cravings. 

But cravings and weight loss aren’t the only benefits of fiber in your diet, there are even more long-term advantages. 

Fiber Protects Your Heart and Lowers Disease Risk

Did you know that fiber can lower your cholesterol? Specifically, soluble fiber. Like we detailed earlier, soluble fiber turns into a gel-like substance when it’s been digested. This “gel” is what binds to your LDL (bad cholesterol) and gets excreted from the body when you poop, thus lowering your bad cholesterol levels.

Adding to this, because fiber helps to stabilize your blood sugar levels, fiber becomes a vital part of preventing your risk of developing type 2 diabetes. That’s due to the fact that you put yourself at risk of becoming insulin resistant when you constantly spike your body’s blood sugar.

And because fiber helps to blunt these spikes, it plays a pivotal role in preventing your body from becoming resistant to insulin.

In addition to diminishing your risk of developing type 2 diabetes, extra fiber in your diet helps with preventing other diseases by lowering chronic inflammation in the body, namely in the gut as we described before.

Heart disease usually shows up when plaque builds up in your arteries, slowing blood flow and making heart attacks and strokes way more likely.

On top of that, fiber can help lower your blood pressure and improve circulation, which just gives your heart less work to do overall.

Chronic inflammation is a major contributor to a whole host of problems and diseases, prominently diseases like heart disease and some forms of cancer.

Am I selling you on how powerful fiber actually is? If not, then check this out:

An increased intake of fiber is also related to a lower risk of not only heart disease but also strokes.

And if you’re getting your fiber from whole, natural foods (like fruits and vegetables), you’re probably getting the added benefits of the antioxidants and phytonutrients that come with them.

In short, antioxidants and phytonutrients work by neutralizing free radicals and calming the immune response, which reduces cell damage and chronic inflammation. And we’ve already described the effects of chronic inflammation.

Also, if you’re getting that fiber from actual food instead of powders or bars, you’re also cutting out more processed junk (aka, another win for your gut, energy, and long-term health).

Key Takeaway: Don’t Sleep on Fiber. Your Body Notices When You Do

The benefits of fiber span far greater than just better bowel movements. Although, that is a big deal, the improvements in your gut health, heart health, reduction in inflammation, reduction in diseases like diabetes or heart disease create an overwhelming amount of benefits. 

You’d be crazy to leave all of the benefits on the table. At this point, it’s not optional, it’s essential for overall health. 

By now, you should be able to see how a lifelong intake of a higher fiber diet correlates with longevity and a better, healthier life. 

All you need to do now is just start with simple changes.

 Add some fruit to your breakfast or as a snack during the day. Munch of vegetables like celery or carrots as a quick snack. Beans and oats are also easy to add to almost any dish. 

There’s no reason why you can’t add a handful of vegetables to every meal you make to get an extra boost in fiber. Especially when you know how impactful that added fiber is for you. 

As long as you’re within a healthy range for your daily fiber intake, you’ll be good to go. For most adults, 25-38 grams of fiber a day is a great place to start. 

Now your next step is to audit your meals, are you getting enough fiber everyday? 

Let me know how much fiber you’re getting on a daily basis and tell me how you’re getting your fiber in for the day. 

The benefits of fiber are far too important to overlook. Especially now that you know how some small dietary tweaks now can help to prevent major health issues later down the road. 

The post 3 Major Benefits of Fiber That Transform Your Digestion, Weight, and Health appeared first on TheKeysToFitness.com.

 How much exercise per week do you really need for good health? If you want to live longer, lower disease risk, and feel more energetic, the amount of exercise you need each week is surprisingly manageable.

Spoiler: It’s less than you think, but probably more than you’re doing. Let’s cut through the fitness noise and get you a clear answer.

At The Keys To Fitness, we simplify fitness for everyone and help heavier people who are ready to get fit and stay fit. 

Why It’s Hard to Know How Much Exercise Per Week Is Enough

How much exercise per week do you need to be healthy? It’s a common question for the average person looking to improve their health, and for good reason. 

Most people just guess or go by feel. In doing so, you risk overtraining or training too little. Both of which can derail you from your health and fitness goals. 

Even more people simply do nothing. But that’s not you, that’s why you’re here. Your problem isn’t laziness, it might be confusion. With so many options, guidelines, and trends, the average person is left guessing.

The other problem is that everyone is built differently. What may work for one may not work for another. There is always going to be an individual variance, but there is a minimum amount that has been backed by science to be healthy for most adults. 

Once you understand how much exercise per week supports real health benefits, you can stop wasting time and start making progress.

It’s not about chasing perfection but more about hitting a sustainable target each week that supports your physical and mental well-being.

And now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, let’s break this down in a way that’s practical, sustainable, and science-backed so that you can start taking care of your health properly.

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Follow the Proven Baseline—150 Minutes of Moderate Activity

So, how much exercise per week do you really need? 

The American Heart Association recommends at least 150 minutes of heart-pumping activity a week for adults. 

This includes brisk walking, dancing, swimming, cycling, hiking, or basically anything that gets your heart rate up but doesn’t leave you breathless. 

Preferably, you’d spread your 150 minutes throughout the week. This is where the amount of exercise you actually need begins to look easy. 

150 minutes may look daunting, but it’s actually just 2 and a half hours a week. 

Furthermore, that’s simply 22 minutes a day of any exercise you like. That’s under 2% of your entire day! 

You don’t have to do 22 minutes a day either, it’s completely okay to exercise for 30 minutes a day 5 times a week or any other combination of time that still adds up to 150 minutes a week. 

20-30 minutes is nothing. If you have a dog, take Buster for a walk. If you have children, go to the playground and play with them for a bit. Yard work counts as physical exercise, you know you’ve got a few weeds that need plucking. 

Even if 150 minutes per week of exercise is hard to attain, the American Heart Association also recommends 75 minutes of vigorous exercise a week instead. 

This would look more like intense training. Activities such as running, High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), or sports could be your answer. 

This baseline of activity reduces your risk of heart disease, diabetes, stroke, and even certain cancers. 

150 minutes of exercise a week also improves your memory, energy, sleep, and mood (even more than some medications!). 

Don’t view this as the bare minimum for exercise, it’s actually a smart starting point for your long term health. 

And in addition to setting the starting point for your health improvement, consistency matters more than intensity at this stage. 

If you can walk 20 minutes a day for the rest of your life versus running a few days a week for a month and then never again, which outcome do you think would lead to a long and healthy lifestyle?

Strength Training: The Underrated Health Multiplier

For optimal health, strength training is not optional. 

Resistance training will help you maintain your lean muscle mass, bone density, joint health, metabolic rate, and more! 

It’s one of the most powerful tools to prevent age-related decline, even cognitive decline!

All you need is about 2 days a week of resistance training to reap its benefits. Bodyweight, resistance bands, machines, or free weights all count.

Making sure to train your major muscles helps to get the biggest returns, namely your legs, back, chest, and core. 

For health, aim for 2–3 sets of 8–12 reps per exercise and look to progressively overload your workout over time to build strength. 

Which exercises should you use? 

There are a few movements that every strength training should have:

• Push – Push the weight away from you
  
• Pull – Pull the weight toward you
  
• Hinge – Bend at the hips, not the knees
  
• Squat – Bend at the knees and hips together
  
• Core – Stabilize or resist movement through your torso
  
• Carry (optional but great) – Hold weight while walking
  

An example of all these movements would be:

• Push – Push-Ups or Overhead Press or Bench Press
  
• Pull – Dumbbell Rows or Resistance Band Rows
  
• Hinge – Glute Bridges or Romanian Deadlifts
  
• Squat – Bodyweight Squats or Goblet Squats

• Core – Planks or Dead Bugs
  
• Carry (Optional) – Farmer’s Carries (hold weights and walk)
  

With strength training, you’ll also improve your posture, insulin sensitivity, and injury resilience.

Muscle is your metabolic currency. It keeps you strong, lean, and independent as you age.

Total Daily Movement Matters, Not Just Workouts

Exercise and activity are often used to describe the same thing but they are not actually the same thing. 

Exercise is structured, intentional movement with a goal (like a workout), while activity is your general movement throughout the day—like walking, cleaning, or taking the stairs.

They are two different things but you do need both. 

For instance, a 1 hour workout doesn’t undo 10 hours of sitting all day. Similar to going to work for 1 day out of the month doesn’t earn you a full-time paycheck. 

If you want results, whether it’s a healthier body or a bigger paycheck, consistency matters more than isolated effort. 

[RELATED: How Bad is Sitting All Day for your Health? How Sitting is the New Smoking.]

Movement throughout the day is essential. 

Walking, standing, stretching, yard work, doing chores, it all adds up. NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) can account for hundreds of daily calories burned. In fact, NEAT can account for about 15-30% of your total calories burned for the day!

So try to break up long periods of sitting (about 30-60 minutes) with a few minutes of activity. 

Track steps if you need to. Tracking your daily step count is one of the easiest ways to get a clear idea of how active you truly are. At the bare minimum, you’ll want to get around 5,000 steps a day. Ideally you’d get to at least 7k to 10k and above for health benefits. 

Daily movement will boost your circulation, focus, blood sugar control, and longevity. 

Think of movement as fuel for your body, not punishment.

Adjust Based on Lifestyle, Age, and Goals

So, how much exercise per week do you really need? 

It depends. 

150 minutes per week is the floor for health benefits, not the ceiling. 

If you want weight loss, improved conditioning, or stress relief, you may need more. This all depends on your own personal situation. 

Older people may need more balance and strength work while younger individuals may thrive with more intensity. Or if you sit for most of the day, you will probably need more movement and general activity overall, even if you workout. 

If you’re highly active, with your job or parenting perhaps, you might need less structured exercise than you think. 

Training should match your lifestyle and be sustainable, not extreme. Stress, sleep, and recovery all affect how much exercise you can handle on a daily basis. 

Listen to your body but don’t let comfort be your guide. There’s a difference between needing to recover and putting off your exercise. 

Your workouts should not only compliment your lifestyle but make your life better. 

Build a Weekly Plan You Can Stick With

What’s the point in exercising if you can’t stick with it long enough to gain the health benefits?

If you don’t know where to start, the best thing to do would be to start simple. Maybe that’s 3 days of cardio and 2 days of lifting with plenty of walking in between. 

You don’t need a crazy routine to start getting fit. Start with adding exercise to your weekly routine 1 day at a time. That might look like lifting 1 day a week and then the next week you lift 1 day and do a day of cardio. After that week, you start to add more days of exercise to your lifestyle as time goes on.

Maybe your step count is low, the same tactic can be used here. Try adding a thousand steps to your daily count each week until it gets closer to 7k-10k a day. A thousand steps is only about 10 minutes of walking, in what ways could you add an extra 10 minutes to your daily activities?

Short on time? Try combining your strength training with cardio by hitting the treadmill after your workout or give HIIT a try to save some time. 

What about your weekends or days off? What if you used this for longer sessions or got outside for some recreational activity? 

You probably have plenty of opportunities to get up and stay active. 

Just don’t chase your motivation, motivation comes and goes. Chase momentum. Consistency is the key. 

Your consistent effort will always beat perfection. If you miss a day, just pick up where you left off. And to make consistent exercise easy, change your environment. 

Put your running shoes at the door, keep your gym bag packed and in your car, put your workout clothes out on your dresser the night before. Make your habit easier to do by having your equipment ready to go. 

Key Takeaway: Build Health and Energy with Just a Few Hours a Week

In the end, how much exercise per week is ideal for health, longevity, and energy? 

The answer is less complicated than you might think: just 150 minutes of moderate activity, two days of strength training, and staying consistently active throughout the day. 

You don’t need perfection, just consistent, intentional movement that fits your lifestyle. 

Start small, stay consistent, and let your momentum build. 

What’s one step you can take this week to get closer to that ideal?

The post How Much Exercise Per Week Is Ideal for Health, Longevity, and Energy? appeared first on TheKeysToFitness.com.