Using your Portion Planner Disc

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Use the Portion Planner Disc to prepare enjoyable, portion controlled lunch and dinner.

The Portion Planner Disc is a practical tool to help with the implementation of the Australian Dietary Guidelines.

This helps alleviate a common mistake people make with the evening meal - not including enough tasty, low energy density foods (which are usually high in fibre and water, such as salads and vegetables; and too many more energy dense foods than we need, such as meat, rice, bread, pasta and creamy sauces.

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The Portion Planner Disc is divided up into segments:

  1. Protein e.g baked beans, chicken, eggs, fish, lean red meat, lentils, pork, seafood, tofu
  2. Carbohydrates e.g bread, corn, couscous, noodles, pasta, potato, quinoa, rice, sweet potato (view detailed information)
  3. Salad and vegetables e.g artichoke, asparagus, baby spinach, beetroot, bok choy, brocoli, brussels sprouts, cabbage, capsicum, carrot, cauliflower, celery, cucumber, eggplant, green beans, leek, lettuce, mushrooms, onion, peas, pumpkin, radish, rocket, shallots, snow peas, spinach, tomato, zucchini

It is designed to fit over your dinner plate and assist you with choosing the correct portions for your main meal’s ingredients, covering all the essential food groups.

Fill each segment of the Portion Planner Disc with items according to the specified segment (this is written on the rim of the disc). The protein and carbohydrate segments should be filled no higher than the top of the disc.

The salad and vegetable segment can be stacked as high as you would like (remembering that potatoes, sweet potatoes and corn belong in the carbohydrate segment).

If you usually eat your main meal in the middle of the day, please use the Portion Planner Disc to prepare lunch, and use the KicStart™ shake or soup to replace breakfast and dinner.

Please refer to the Recipes and Ideas section of your Healthy Weight For Life Week by Week Guide Book for recipe ideas or view the online recipe resources (view).

Dinner - general guidelines (when your Portion Planner Dics is not available)

Click here for some delicious portion planned dinner recipes

To help when shopping for and preparing your meal, or when your Portion Planner Disc is not available, here are some general guidelines to follow:

Salad and Vegetables - up to 5 serves

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1 serve equals one of the following:

1 cup of salad

½ cup cooked vegetables (except potato)

Carbohydrates (bread, rice, pasta or potato) - 2 serves


1 serve equals one of the following:

½ cup of cooked cous cous

1 slice of bread

½ lavash bread or other flat bread or wrap

½ bread roll

½ cup corn kernels or 1 medium cob

½ cup mashed potato


1 medium potato

1 medium piece of sweet potato

½ cup cooked pasta

½ cup cooked noodles

½ cup cooked rice

½ cup cooked quinoa

Protein (lean meat, fish, chicken or meat alternative - 3 serves

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1 serve equals one of the following:

50g of lean meat (eg. chicken, pork, red meat,fish or seafood)

2 slices of lean deli meat

1/3 cup of salmon or tuna in spring water (or brine)

1 medium egg

1 tablespoon nuts

½ cup baked beans, legumes or tofu