Stop counting green veggies!!?

endlessfall16

I have never heard anyone gaining tens, hundreds of pounds from eating excessive green veggies, eg broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, green beans, bell pepper, zucchini...

I think I am gonna stop counting calories of these items. Does anyone do that?

Please tell if that's a good idea.

amusedmonkey

I can easily eat 200 calories of green veggies in one setting, so it's not an option for me, but if your weight loss is not stalling, and if you don't eat enough of them to make a difference, by all means stop counting them. The best diet is the easiest diet to follow that would still allow you to lose weight. So if not counting these would make things easier for you, go for it! Just remember to start counting them again if you encounter problems with weight loss, and to count anything you add to these veggies like oils, sauces, cheese, dressing...etc.

KorvapuustiPossu

You never heard of anyone getting fat with that is because to eat about 1000 kcal of broccoli you'd have to eat 3 kg of it... and people usually don't... they do however easily eat that much in drinks and snacks during the day. But saying that you will not count them is equally silly because they do have some calories and it's all about CICO. 200 kcal of greens is significant for me on my 1200 kcal diet...it is significant in any diet if we think 500 deficit is about 1 lbs loss...you could easily cut that in half if you don't logg greens...or even wipe out deficit completely.

dave_in_ni

I might stop, I find I can't over eat on them anyway. 100g of Green beans for example and I'm sick of them and thats only around 35 kcal, same with broccoli etc

CollieFit

I can easily eat 200-300 calories of veg in a day. By not logging that it would be easy to blow 50% of my daily deficit.

PS. A carrot isn't a green veg.

suziecue20

I could easily go over my calorie goal (1200) if I didn't count my veggies. For example green legumes have quite a lot of calories. I suppose if OP is on a much more generous calorie allowance it is not so critical to count the veg but I have to.

jandsstevenson887

I don't think it is wise to stop counting anything.

sijomial

It's a mistake to think of certain foods causing, or not causing, weight gain.
It's your total diet that matters.

Seems odd if you decide to calorie count not to count certain items but it's your choice.
It will also mess up your macro and fibre counts but again it's up to you whether you are concerned by them or not.

BTW - Carrots are usually orange, cauliflower is white and bell peppers come in various colours......

mirrim52

I count them, but I am not as picky about weighing them as other higher calorie foods. I haven't had issues loosing this way. If my weight loss stalled though, I would definitely go back to weighing them.

Merkavar

Do they have calories, then why not count them?

So by your logic frozen mint peas aren't high in calories so I shouldn't count them even though I am eating 100-300 calories worth of peas.

But I guess you would think I am mad not to log 100-300 calorie piece of cake?

Calories are calories, I recommend you log them. It would increase your accuracy, less guess work etc

ilex70

mirrim52 wrote: »

I count them, but I am not as picky about weighing them as other higher calorie foods. I haven't had issues loosing this way. If my weight loss stalled though, I would definitely go back to weighing them.

^^^ This.

I do eyeball my green beans instead of weigh them. Since 3/4 cup is only 25 calories a few beans more or less doesn't worry me much. Salad greens too.

amusedmonkey

Merkavar wrote: »

Do they have calories, then why not count them?

So by your logic frozen mint peas aren't high in calories so I shouldn't count them even though I am eating 100-300 calories worth of peas.

But I guess you would think I am mad not to log 100-300 calorie piece of cake?

Calories are calories, I recommend you log them. It would increase your accuracy, less guess work etc

I actually tested this theory, by telling someone (who wasn't logging vegetables) that I eat a 50 calorie cookie but I don't log it because it's only 50 calories. She went crazy on me as if I committed a deadly sin. Yep, I'm a trouble maker!

diannethegeek

When I'm logging I count them. I want my food log to be as accurate as possible,.though, so I can track other nutrients (like fiber,.iron, etc) and so I can refer back to it and see what worked for me and what didn't when I hit a rough patch.

I'm certain there are people who do well without counting their veggies. You can try it and see if it works for you.

Unknown

This content has been removed.

CollieFit

amusedmonkey wrote: »

Merkavar wrote: »

Do they have calories, then why not count them?

So by your logic frozen mint peas aren't high in calories so I shouldn't count them even though I am eating 100-300 calories worth of peas.

But I guess you would think I am mad not to log 100-300 calorie piece of cake?

Calories are calories, I recommend you log them. It would increase your accuracy, less guess work etc

I actually tested this theory, by telling someone (who wasn't logging vegetables) that I eat a 50 calorie cookie but I don't log it because it's only 50 calories. She went crazy on me as if I committed a deadly sin. Yep, I'm a trouble maker!

LOL!!!! Yes, my friend who has been doing Slimming World unsuccessfully for years keeps harping on about "free foods" versus things like cookies. I guess some people just don't twig that 2 carrots have the same calories as a cookie.

MynameisChester

I stopped counting veggies. I even stopped couting fruits. I continue to lose weight and I have a lot more energy (maybe it results in more NEAT). Veggies/fruit for me are a guilt free food. Some people will tell you it's not wise to stop counting while others tell you otherwise. The most important thing you do is try it, assess your progress, and make the appropriate adjustments accordingly.

kshama2001

When I was on MFP in 2012 and did not have a food scale, I didn't count low calorie veggies like that. Now that I have a food scale, I just count everything. I lost weight both times. I've also lost weight without counting any calories. Whatever works for you.

You could get their calories from the last few weeks and give yourself a calorie allotment reduced by this much.

One reason I weigh my veggies now is to encourage me to eat more of them. For example, if I'm weighing broccoli, I'll go for 100 grams, and when eyeballing, am closer to 75.

CollieFit

I think it'll depend where you're at in your weight loss and how much you have to lose.

If you're 300lb, if you generally eat at a deficit, a potato more or less or another carrot or a bit more broccoli won't make a difference, you'll still lose weight.

When you're 130 wanting to drop to 120, then you have much less wiggle room and 50 calories here there and everywhere will matter a lot more.

Lounmoun

You should try to be as accurate as possible with your logging including everything. It all adds up.
Let's say you eat carrots, broccoli, peas, zucchini and green bell pepper today.
100 g of carrots is 41 calories.
100 g of broccoli is 34 calories
100 g of green peas is 81 calories
100 g of zucchini is 15 calories
100 g of green bell pepper is 20 calories
That is 191 calories you would not be logging. You are eating other food too so maybe you go over your calorie goal every day. It could keep you from losing weight at the rate you want.

Also, when you look back at your diary maybe you'd want to know if you were getting enough protein, fiber or how much sodium or sugar are in your diet. You won't have that information if you only log some foods.

fenharels

I eat four or five cocktail tomatoes with my breakfast. 100 g of cocktail tomatoes have 19 calories, so I'm not worried about logging them if I'm in a hurry. Everything else I always log.

caurinus

I count em because I want to see that number for fiber go up. I'm aiming for high fiber and high protein (because they're filling), while getting as close as possible to my calorie goals.

arditarose

No. I eat about 200 calories worth of lettuce and zucchini in a day sometimes. If I stopped counting them I would have to lower my calorie goal to compensate. I eat a lot of 5-10 calorie things as well, at the end of the day that can add up to 50 calories, plus 100 or more calories from greens...150-200 calories with a 250 calorie deficit=no deficit.

I very often weigh my leafy greens as well.

macgurlnet

I weigh my fruits and veggies, unless I'm just putting a little lettuce/spinach on a sandwich or wrap. It barely registers as 1g, so I just add a couple leaves and call it good.

If I'm building a salad, though, I'd weigh it.

~Lyssa

ziggy2006

It might be a good idea or it might not be a good idea - you really don't give any detailed information about your situation.

What are you hoping to accomplish by not counting green vegetables? What problem are you hoping to solve?

I can't think of any scenarios in which I would determine that is the best course of action to take, but I don't want to make any assumptions about your particular circumstances.

GMAC2016

If they are a major part of my meal such as a stir fry or veggie stew I count them. If they aren't a major part (small tomato slice on a sandwich and/or leafy (i.e. Spinach or lettuce), I may choose to skip them or estimate rather than being exact. I think the % error is much smaller if I overestimate. However, your nutrient levels tracked may not be right but it depends if you care or not.

LC107

jandsstevenson887 wrote: »

I don't think it is wise to stop counting anything.

This. I count the 4-5 sticks of gum I chew (5 cals a piece) a day along with my gummy vitamins at 25 cals. Those two things are only 45-50 cals but not counting that feels like I'm cheating myself or something. I also probably consume 200-300 cals of greens a day anyhow. So I guess it's just whatever you feel comfortable with but they are calories nonetheless and they (along with all the other foods) add up.

cwolfman13

endlessfall16 wrote: »

I have never heard anyone gaining tens, hundreds of pounds from eating excessive green veggies, eg broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, green beans, bell pepper, zucchini...

I think I am gonna stop counting calories of these items. Does anyone do that?

Please tell if that's a good idea.

They still have calories...if you're not accounting for them, you cans till go over your calorie targets. No one particular food item makes anyone fat...it's the accumulative effect of too many calories from all sorts of food items.

That said, I guess it would depend on how much you eat...my lunch alone usually has anywhere from 60-100 calories of veggies...so does my dinner....I also eat veggies with my breakfast, etc...I can pretty easily eat 200-300 calories per day in veggies. If my calorie target is 2300 calories and I track 2300 calories of other food but not my 300 calories of veggies, guess what...I haven't eaten 2300 calories, I've eaten 2600 calories...so you see, my body is still counting them and doesn't give a *kitten* if those extra calories came from veggies.

KassiesJourney

ALWAYS COUNT EVERYTHING!!
It's all about CICO!

Noreenmarie1234

Always count. My salads are just veg (not counting dressing and meat) and come to about 200 calories, then I eat about 200 more of veg throughout the day. I guess it depends if you only eat small amounts. If I just ate a small side salad with dinner and raw celery and small portion broccoli I probably wouldn't count.

Francl27

Totally failing to see the point of counting calories at all if you're not counting everything (well, things that are more than 10 calories at least).

MynameisChester

endlessfall16 wrote: »

I have never heard anyone gaining tens, hundreds of pounds from eating excessive green veggies, eg broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, green beans, bell pepper, zucchini...

I think I am gonna stop counting calories of these items. Does anyone do that?

Please tell if that's a good idea.

I think this might be the answer you're searching for. A lot of the responses in this thread say to count everything. I think it's good to count everything initially so you can understand how many calories are in certain ingredients. By now I am assuming that you know that vegetables are quite low in calories compared to other energy dense foods so counting them seems trivial.

I want to highlight why I stopped counting fruits and vegetables. I love eating a huge quantity and variety of fruits and vegetables on a daily basis, and logging each vegetable and fruit for me is a total pain in the *kitten*. Hell, if I ever felt a "binge episode" coming on, I simply binged on celery, romaine lettuce, or really any other leafy greens as these were quite hard to overeat. I mean eating 12 celery stalks is like a whopping 100 calories. I'd be so full from the water and fiber content that I wouldn't want to eat anything else. This is why fruits and vegetables are ALWAYS included in any weight loss diet. By eating fruits and vegetables, you fill yourself with so much fiber and water that you naturally tend not to consume any more excess calories.

Additionally, vegetables contain insoluble fiber. INSOLUBLE FIBER CANNOT BE ABSORBED, THUS IT DOES NOT CONTRIBUTE CALORIES. I am not saying that vegetables do not contribute calories, BUT IT IS THE INSOLUBLE FIBER COMPONENTS IN VEGETABLES WHICH ARE THE PARTS THAT DO NOT CONTRIBUTE CALORIES. There are also studies that support that insoluble fiber may block calorie absorption. So if you ate 100 calories of fat, consuming insoluble fiber may only allow you to really consume like 85 calories instead, the other 15 comes out as poop (these aren't real numbers, they are for illustration purposes only). Also, eating fruits and vegetables uses more calories for digestion compared to like a candy bar. I doubt anyone logs in "digestion" to their exercise category. As a result, counting calories are never truly accurate, which gives basis as to why I don't really pay too much attention to the actual calorie numbers.

And here are some literature to support my stance. Fun reading!

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3257631/

http://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpa/nutrition/pdf/rtp_practitioner_10_07.pdf