How many people "estimate" their food intake?

lemurcat12

Estimating works for a lot of people, in fact, just writing down what you eat works for a lot of people. I lost 60 lb in my early 30s just tracking what I ate and eating less than I had been before starting the tracking (by tracking I mean basically writing down portions and foods, no calories needed). It kept me honest.

I think logging is more fun and interesting, but if you don't a lot of people can probably manage without it for losing.

For estimating based on entries, I think it makes sense to have a consistent system and then be open to adjusting based on results. If you always take the lowest entry, you are probably underestimating, but if you lose on "1200" and know it's an estimate it doesn't much matter that's it may really be 1500 or 1800 or even 2000. And if you don't lose on "1500" (which could really be 2000 or 2200), and cut back, it doesn't matter that you don't really know the number you are eating.

Same if you always pick the highest version of the dish or a middle version that seems most similar to what you ate or reasonable to you -- just be consistent, watch results, and adjust.

Doing that ended up driving me crazy -- if I was going to log I was going to log as accurately as possible except for an occasional restaurant meal or the like -- but it works for many.

jemhh

tjkita wrote: »

So what about restuarant foods that aren't in the food chart? Say "little anthony" pizza. Would you pick little seasors pizza or pizza hut then? As for a tuna melt, whole wheat bread 2 slices, tuna, mayo, cheese and heat it up in an oven....yummy but high in sodium.

I would use a similar type of pizza. If it's a thinner dry crust, Pizza Hut thin and crispy, a heavier crust, something else.

I size estimate at restaurants if they are not chains with nutrition info. I tend to eat very simple stuff that is easy to break down into individual ingredients. Other than a non chain pizza restaurant, I can't think of any foods that I eat and can't break down. (I don't eat many sauced or cheesed foods or casseroles and definitely not tuna melts.)

butterfli7o

There's no way that tuna melt is 150 calories. Just the tuna itself maybe...
I'm trying to lose weight, so I overestimate or at the very least try to be realistic when I estimate. Lying to myself isn't going to do a bit of good.
If the place I'm eating at doesn't publish nutritional information, I try to pick the closet thing from another chain or "pick apart" what I'm eating and just do my best to estimate that way. I know it's not 100%, but what can you do.

SCoil123

If I have to estimate I go for the higher number to be safe and that has worked or I break it down by ingredient if none of the options look right. My grilled cheese the other night had options of 200-400 calories for the sandwich but I knew mine had around 3-4 ounces of cheese so it would have to be higher, 4oz of Jack cheese is about 400 cals without the bread or the butter so in that case I logged the ingredients....it was just over 600

peaceout_aly

tjkita wrote: »

By this I mean I can pick a tuna melt that has 200 calories or one that has 150 calories. Which one is going to be more accurate? Homemade french bread pizza--roll sauce cheese--how many calories? I tend to pick the lowest ones if I have a choice but am I cheating myself?

I estimate for the most part. Used to weigh everything and measure when I was on a deficit/doing cardio but now that I lift (and basically got adjusted to eyeing out measurements pretty accurately) I figure if there's a little excess it isn't going to do any harm. Especially now that I'm in a bulk. If I'm doing a full on estimate like the examples you used, I'll choose the highest calorie option just to be safe.

savithny

I don't pick other people's "generic" or "homemade" entries in the database because I have no idea what they mean? IS a "tuna melt" one slice of Wonder Bread with a single-serve packet of tuna, a tablespoon of mayo, and a slice of Kraft Single over it? Or is it an inch-thick wedge of challah with a softball-sized dollop of tuna salad and a carpet of cheese?

AnnPT77

I tend to pick the high entries, when I need to estimate, after looking at some that I think are similar foods (like using chain deep-dish pizza to estimate local-place deep dish). Occasionally I exclude the very highest one from consideration if it seems crazy high.

While I don't stress about estimating when I must, I don't estimate unless I must (at home, I do use a food scale).

Here's why:

I started losing weight while estimating calories, not using MFP. I lost 28 pounds, yay! But then I started to level off in my weight loss. That's when I started using MFP. I found out that I'd been eating hundreds more calories daily than I'd thought. Ooops.

Once I started weighing food, and watching my weight-loss results carefully, I could very accurately predict my loss rate, the delay/gain effect of an over-goal day, and more. It became just a big, fun, science fair project for grown-ups, reducing the stress and emotion in the process.

Also, once you learn to weigh food the most efficient ways, it's less time and less agonizing than worrying over estimates of complete dishes.

Then, when I got to my goal weight, I could just add my loss rate (in calories) to my eating, and have a very good, personalized estimate of maintenance calories.

MelanieCN77

The more I weigh and measure at home the better I am at eyeballing when I do have to estimate. Even when you're unsure of a weight you can sort of see what is a half cup or a cup, and then take the ingredients separately and log them. Otherwise yes, you are probably cheating yourself. It's a hard corner to turn, but fudging tracking is so pointless, your diary isn't a puzzle or game that you get any sort of prize for making it look good. A lot the "why am I not losing weight?" posts have faulty tracking as a major issue.

ksenya03

Yes, I estimate. I'm trying to measure or weigh more of my food and beverages, but I certainly don't do it all. I've found that more that I do weigh and measure things though the better my estimates have gotten. In many cases my eyeballing something was shockingly off. Still, I figure it is better to have an estimated record of what I ate than no record at all. Usually when estimating I'll try to break a meal down into a component parts (e.g. 2 slices of bread, 2 slices deli ham, 1 slice cheddar cheese) rather than estimate the whole meal. However for restaurant dishes where I really have no clue I'll put in the meal and then error on the side of a higher calorie entry for the dish.

SiegfriedXXL

I estimate 100% of the time. I haven't used a food scale yet. Like others have said, I choose an entry with more calories that comes from a restaurant and stay away from things like "Mary's amazing tuna melt" type entries. I also tend to not eat the whole thing. If I order a delicious tuna melt and choose an entry for 700 cals, I'll eat 3/4 of it and keep the calories the same to account for a margin on error. Sometimes I end the day hungry and know that I probably ate 525 calories instead of 700 for that meal, but better safe than sorry. :-)

paperpudding

I dont think it matters how accurate your counting is - it is results that matter.

So, if you are consistently losing at around your expected rate, then what you are doing is working for you and keep doing it.

I dont estimate 100% of the time - but I certainly practice what I call "lazy logging" - I measure calorie dense things like dried fruit and cheese and I have a scale and use it for things like mashed potato etc as I serve my dinner.

But in my diary, every mandarine is a medium one, every tin or packet has how much it says it has and if I have half and my husband has half, I assume our halfs were equal, every slice of bread and egg is same size, every cup of coffee has same amount of milk as the one I first measured, I guestimate when I eat out.......

But my results are what I expect them to be, so this is working fine for me.

I do get that people who are not losing/gaining/maintaining as expected should tighten their logging and check their numbers are what they think they are - but if what you are doing is working and it aint broke - don't fix it.

try2again

tjkita wrote: »

So what about restuarant foods that aren't in the food chart? Say "little anthony" pizza. Would you pick little seasors pizza or pizza hut then? As for a tuna melt, whole wheat bread 2 slices, tuna, mayo, cheese and heat it up in an oven....yummy but high in sodium.

Assuming a full can of tuna, "regular" bread, and a full serving of cheese, that sandwich would probably be in the neighborhood of 400 calories (amount of mayo would be critical). If you log for a while, you'll be in a better position to make accurate estimates.

lynn_glenmont

WinoGelato wrote: »

tjkita wrote: »

By this I mean I can pick a tuna melt that has 200 calories or one that has 150 calories. Which one is going to be more accurate? Homemade french bread pizza--roll sauce cheese--how many calories? I tend to pick the lowest ones if I have a choice but am I cheating myself?

A tuna melt meaning a whole sandwich with two slices of bread, tuna fish, Mayo and/or cheese? With some butter or oil on the outside like a grilled cheese (sorry I don't eat tuna fish so I've never made one but this is what I assume it is). Yeah I can't imagine that sandwich being 150-200 cals unless using low cal bread, cheese and butter.

You are cheating yourself by choosing the lowest option if that is the wrong option and it falsely leads you to believe you are in a calorie deficit when you actually aren't. Inaccurate logging is what prompts almost all of the "why am I not losing I'm only eating xx calories" posts here. You don't have to have a food scale to be successful (I didn't use one) but you do have to be realistic and have a good idea of what the basic calorie counts of certain ingredients/foods would be. I highly recommend the food scale though for optimal accuracy and success.

Just FYI -- all the tuna melts I've ever seen have been open-faced (one slice of bread), and yes, cheese, because that's what makes it a melt, but not generally butter or oil on the outside because you cook them in an oven or under a broiler, not on a grill. Of course, if you get it at a restaurant, you're often served two tuna melts -- that is, two open-faced sandwiches. And the bread is often something fairly thick, or even half a bagel, because a standard slice of white commercial loaf bread is not going to hold up well to tuna salad and a broiler. So I'd say you're probably looking at 400 calories for one open-faced tuna melt at a restaurant--they tend to have a huge mound of tuna salad, and about an ounce of full-fat cheese.

apullum

I try to measure accurately, but in situations where I have no choice but to estimate, I try to estimate high. If I'm eating in a restaurant, I usually assume that the food has more added fats than I'd use at home. I am very short and close to my goal weight, so my calorie deficit is pretty small. It only takes a few little logging errors to put me out of a deficit.

SlothLady_97

There is no estimation for me. I know all the calories of everything I eat. I have to or I go crazy.

paperpudding

Sloth lady what do you do when you eat out?

Also curious - how long have you been doing this? - as you get further along, you will probably find you can estimate some things from previous experience and as you get a feel for what they usually are.

sijomial

100% of people estimate!

It's impossible to know the precise amount of calories in food without destroying it.
Then your ability to absorb all the food that you eat will vary.
Foods naturally vary - ripeness of fruit, different varieties, leanness of meat, cooking methods etc...

You can decide to attempt to be very accurate with food measuring if you really want to or alternatively just be consistent but with a feedback loop. Not getting the results you want over an extended period of time? Just make adjustments to your base calorie goal.

I decided that there are some things worth being precise about (breakfast cereals for example) but for convenience I was happy to go with package weights, estimation of proportions, picking generic but reasonable database entries. One benefit of measuring my porridge ingredients on a food scale is that it's perfect every time and never explodes in the microwave.

A period of using a scale and attempting precision is educational about portion sizes and calorie load but it's not compulsory to become obsessive about it.

sijomial

SlothLady_97 wrote: »

There is no estimation for me. I know all the calories of everything I eat. I have to or I go crazy.

@SlothLady_97
How do you know the precise calories in your egg, pizza roll or slice of bread?
They are all average estimates.

BTW - do you not drink anything with calories?

noobletmcnugget

I estimate all my dinners since I don't actually make them. I just make a conscious effort to err on the side of caution and overestimate calories. It's worked so far.

Samarisa

I can eyeball it or mostly ignore it entirely (as long as I stay out of the cheese) on low carb until I hit the low 120s. Then I have to weigh and measure just like anyone else trying to lose weight with a tiny deficit.