Vegetarian or Vegan Plate
You must consider legumes (including whole soy), nuts and seeds and dairy (if included) as your "Protein" category.
Type 2 Diabetes or Insulin Resistance Plate
You should consider milk and yogurt with the other higher carbohydrate foods on the whole grain and starchy veggie side of the plate. Consider milk and yogurt as options with whole grains, beans, lentils and starchy vegetables. Cheese is still a part of the "Protein" group.
High Volume Endurance Training
You need more carbohydrate overall. To accomplish this, reduce the proportion of vegetable and protein foods on your plate and increase whole grains, starchy vegetables and beans and lentils.
Weight Loss
To reduce portion size, choose a slightly smaller plate and eat proportionately more fish, poultry and eggs than whole grains, beans, lentils and starchy vegetables.
Be Flexible
These plates demonstrate how flexible your diet can, and should, be. There is no perfect way of eating and your diet should change as your lifestyle changes. Eating well is all about balancing your nutritional needs to meet your athletic and health goals. Using an image of a plate helps with basic meal planning and understanding the general concepts of balance. For your specific athletic and health goals there is much to learn about your body, your food choices and your nutritional needs in order to reach your personal goals.