A breakfast consisting of three pancakes with two tablespoons Maple syrup and 1/2 cup of fresh blueberries yields 400 calories. So does a whip free Starbuck's grande mocha.
At lunch, 400 calories could be a Taco Bell beef Chalupa Supreme or a six-inch turkey breast sandwich from Subway with Swiss cheese and light mayo.
Heartier dinner foods can be had for 400 calories in the proper portions. One cup meat and bean chili with 1/4 cup low fat cheddar cheese or 1/2 cup pasta with marinara sauce both yield 400 calories.
Four-hundred calories will also get you the sweet stuff, like a dense chocolate brownie, a banana nut muffin, cheesecake with whip, a chocolate chip cookie or a blueberry scone.
It pays to know calorie counts because you can easily make the mistake of a treat that is nutrient dense, meaning small amounts of food for loads of unsuspecting calories. Here's an example:
One cheeseless McDonald's quarter pounder is 400 calories, but so is a regular hamburger with a salad and apples with dip.
So you can have plenty of food to fill you up and satisfy, or not.
