What Does a Serving of Candy Look Like?

Who would want to skip the chocolate and sweethearts on Valentine’s Day? Not me. I’m all about candy-driven holidays (I love candy!) but there is one key phrase I always keep in mind when I’m about to indulge:

Portion Control.

Not earth-shattering, but it is absolutely key to enjoying a holiday without ruining your health goals. There is just no other way to have your cake and eat it too, so to speak.

Rather than relying on will power or “eyeballing” your portions, commit to measuring out what you plan to eat this Valentine’s week. You’ll see that servings are quite a bit smaller than you may have thought, so you’ll be glad you measured. Putting whatever you eat on a plate or in a bowl is also a great way to avoid mindless nibbling.

Serving sizes of popular candies:

• Peanut M&M’s – 18 pieces = 250 calories (pictured above…doesn’t look like much because it’s not!)
• Reese’s Mini Peanut Butter Cups – 5 pieces = 220 calories
• Necco Sweetheart hearts – 40 pieces = 160 calories
• Red Vines licorice – 5 pieces = 140 calories
• Red hot hearts – 20 pieces = 60 calories

So eat up, but make sure you know how much you’re eating so you can still button your pants on Friday 😉