Five Grams Net Carbs: What They Are and How Much to Eat

I recommend you limit your food portions to no more than five net grams of carbohydrates per food item.  That makes it a lot easier to keep your insulin from spiking from a single food item.  In order to help you achieve this, I made a list showing how much food five grams of net carbohydrates is for a lot of foods.  I do not recommend eating five net carb grams of spinach in one sitting.

I have arranged the food groups in the general order in which they should be added to your diet when following the Atkins Diet OWL plan.

Vegetables

Amt            Item                     Notes

1 1/2 cups OR  Asparagus Spears         Raw or cooked

(12 medium)

13 cups        Lettuce                  Raw, Shredded

49 cups        Spinach                  Raw, About 0.2 net carbohydrates per cup

2 3/4 cups     Spinach                  Cooked, from canned

4 cups         Turnip Greens            Raw

3 1/2 cups     Turnip Greens            Cooked

2 1/4 cups     Cucumber                 Raw

1 cup          Jicama                   Raw

1 3/4 cups     Yellow Summer Squash     Raw

2 1/2 cups     Green Summer Squash      Raw

2 1/2 cups     Broccoli                 Raw

3/4 cup        Sweet green/red pepper   Raw

1 cup          Cherry tomato            Raw

3/4 cup        Tomato                   Raw, Chopped or sliced

2 1/2 cup      Mushrooms                Raw

1/2 cup        Onion                    Raw

7 medium       Green onions             Raw

1 1/4          California Avocado       Raw, Black skin

3/4            Florida Avocado          Raw, Green skin

Dairy

Amt            Item                     Notes

5 oz OR        Hard cheese              Cheddar, Provolone, Swiss,

5 slices                                Mozzarella etc.

2 cups         Goat cheese              Crumbled

1 cup          Fresh cheese             Cottage, Farmer’s, Pots

1/2 cup        Ricotta

6.4 oz OR      Cream cheese

4/5 cup

6 oz           Heavy cream              Fluid

4 1/2 oz       Light cream              Fluid

3 3/4 oz       Half-and-Half            Fluid

1 1/2 cup      Heavy cream              Whipped, Unsweetened

1 1/3 cup      Light cream              Whipped, Unsweetened

2/3 cup        Cream                    Whipped, pressurized container

1/2 cup        Sour cream

Seeds and Nuts

Amt            Item                     Notes

3 3/4 oz       Macadamias               Dry Roasted

2 1/4 oz       Almonds                  Dry Roasted

1/4 cup        Peanuts                  Dry Roasted

2 tbsp         Peanut Butter            Natural, no sugar added

1 cup          Coconut meat             Fresh, shredded

1/4 cup        Sunflower seeds          Hulled

2 1/4 oz       Sunflower seeds          With hulls

3/4 cup        Walnuts                  Shelled

1/2 cup        Pistachios               Roasted

4 1/2 oz       Pecans                   Dry roasted

Berries

Amt            Item                     Notes

3/4 cup,       Strawberries             Raw, 1 to 1 1/4” diameter

or 9 medium

1/3 cup,       Blueberries              Raw

or 32 berries

1/2 cup,       Blackberries             Raw

or 2 1/2 oz

3/4 cup,       Raspberries              Raw

or 55 berries

1/2 cup        Gooseberries             Raw

1/2 cup        Watermelon               Raw

1/2 cup        Cantaloupe               Raw

1/3 cup        Honeydew                 Raw

Alcohol

Amt            Item                     Notes

Legumes

Amt            Item                     Notes

0.075 cup      Cranberry Beans          Raw