Estimating calories when you can't weigh foods

HM2206

I prepare most of my foods by myself and weigh the items, so that's fine.

What I struggle with a little bit is lunch. I don't always have time to prepare it at home, and when I buy something at the grocery store I usually end up with youghurt or some bread.

A salad place recently opened up right next door to my office, and their salads are super tasty and very filling. Problem is...I don't know the calories. If it was once in a while, I could afford some "error", but I am afraid of miscalculating heavily if I eat there often.

I tried logging the different ingredients because they're all 'clean' but I don't know the amount!

What would you put for something like this:

http://www.lettoslo.no/produkt/feta-salat/

ladyreva78

Is it a take away? Do you eat there regularly?

If yes to both, could you buy one and take home once and weight the different ingredients individually to get a idea of what their serving sizes look like? That way you could make yourself a recipe or meal that you can log when you eat there without having to think so much about it. Granted, the salad may vary somewhat every time (will probably depend on who prepares it etc.) but it would give you a general idea.

BTW: that looks extremely yummy and I will have to try and recreate that at home this summer!

chrismellor01

Good question and thanks for the web site:) I'm in Oslo next week and that salad place is right around the corner from where I'm staying

But - back to an answer...

THere are two ways I can think of:
1. If you know the total weight and the proportions of ingredients in the bowl then you can guess a little as to what the total calories are and add them as a total. Not very efficient but at least it's something.
2. Ask the staff for the weights of ingredients or if they know the calories. If they don't, explain to them that it would be really good for customers to know this sort of information (even if it's approximate) as many take salads instead of pizza for lunch because of weight health/fitness reasons. I'd like to think the folks in the store would find out for you.

Maybe thats of use?

HM2206

ladyreva78 wrote: »

Is it a take away? Do you eat there regularly?

If yes to both, could you buy one and take home once and weight the different ingredients individually to get a idea of what their serving sizes look like? That way you could make yourself a recipe or meal that you can log when you eat there without having to think so much about it. Granted, the salad may vary somewhat every time (will probably depend on who prepares it etc.) but it would give you a general idea.

BTW: that looks extremely yummy and I will have to try and recreate that at home this summer!

It's take away, but I bring it back to the office (for lunch).

It's illustrated like that in the photo to show what it's containing, but it's all mixed together when you buy it.

I know they weigh some of the ingredients - coincidentally, the high calorie ingredients are also the expensive ones. I ordered the serrano salad and asked how much she put in, and she said 25 grams. So maybe that's the standard for the ham, feta etc.

Maybe I can just weigh the salad in itself and divide by six...? Still not accurate though.

rainbowbow

It's hard to tell from the image what the quantity is, but, i would probably log it like this:

Taverna Salat Ost - Salat Ost I Tern, 100 gram
205 3 15 15 0 0
Kartoffel - Sød Kartoffel, 200 g
160 38 1 3 5 0
Frugt - Granatæble, 1 stk
77 17 0 1 0 0
Linser - Grønne, 75 g
263 38 0 20 7 49
Spinach - Baby Spinach, 25 grams
20 3 0 2 2 15
Løg - Løg, 1 stk
46 10 0 1 2 0
Priano - Pesto, 2 Tbsp
150 2 14 2 0 4
Hummus - Commercial, 0.25 cup
104 9 6 5 4 8

Total: 1,025 120 36 49 20 76

Just from looking at the salad i would immediately think 700-800+ calories or so, but logging with generic entries based on the image i see shows around 1,000 or so.

I would probably go with the higher range just to be safe. I know you're probably thinking "but it's just a salad!", but those are pretty calorie dense foods packed on there. Lentils, feta, hummus, pesto, these things are all pretty high in calories on their own and in the portion they look to be on the salad (1/4 to 1/2 cup) that adds up quickly.


p.s. i really like the idea of buying one just for *kitten* and giggles to weigh at home. The generic entries above could be corrected to the right amounts.

LivingtheLeanDream

^^ great reply @rainbowbow

HM2206

rainbowbow wrote: »

It's hard to tell from the image what the quantity is, but, i would probably log it like this:

Taverna Salat Ost - Salat Ost I Tern, 100 gram
205 3 15 15 0 0
Kartoffel - Sød Kartoffel, 200 g
160 38 1 3 5 0
Frugt - Granatæble, 1 stk
77 17 0 1 0 0
Linser - Grønne, 75 g
263 38 0 20 7 49
Spinach - Baby Spinach, 25 grams
20 3 0 2 2 15
Løg - Løg, 1 stk
46 10 0 1 2 0
Priano - Pesto, 2 Tbsp
150 2 14 2 0 4
Hummus - Commercial, 0.25 cup
104 9 6 5 4 8

Total: 1,025 120 36 49 20 76

Just from looking at the salad i would immediately think 700-800+ calories or so, but logging with generic entries based on the image i see shows around 1,000 or so.

I would probably go with the higher range just to be safe. I know you're probably thinking "but it's just a salad!", but those are pretty calorie dense foods packed on there. Lentils, feta, hummus, pesto, these things are all pretty high in calories on their own and in the portion they look to be on the salad (1/4 to 1/2 cup) that adds up quickly.


p.s. i really like the idea of buying one just for *kitten* and giggles to weigh at home. The generic entries above could be corrected to the right amounts.

Thanks! I asked for the small version and the total weight of the salad is 300 g, so I might have to adjust it a bit.

rainbowbow

HM2206 wrote: »

rainbowbow wrote: »

It's hard to tell from the image what the quantity is, but, i would probably log it like this:

Taverna Salat Ost - Salat Ost I Tern, 100 gram
205 3 15 15 0 0
Kartoffel - Sød Kartoffel, 200 g
160 38 1 3 5 0
Frugt - Granatæble, 1 stk
77 17 0 1 0 0
Linser - Grønne, 75 g
263 38 0 20 7 49
Spinach - Baby Spinach, 25 grams
20 3 0 2 2 15
Løg - Løg, 1 stk
46 10 0 1 2 0
Priano - Pesto, 2 Tbsp
150 2 14 2 0 4
Hummus - Commercial, 0.25 cup
104 9 6 5 4 8

Total: 1,025 120 36 49 20 76

Just from looking at the salad i would immediately think 700-800+ calories or so, but logging with generic entries based on the image i see shows around 1,000 or so.

I would probably go with the higher range just to be safe. I know you're probably thinking "but it's just a salad!", but those are pretty calorie dense foods packed on there. Lentils, feta, hummus, pesto, these things are all pretty high in calories on their own and in the portion they look to be on the salad (1/4 to 1/2 cup) that adds up quickly.


p.s. i really like the idea of buying one just for *kitten* and giggles to weigh at home. The generic entries above could be corrected to the right amounts.

Thanks! I asked for the small version and the total weight of the salad is 300 g, so I might have to adjust it a bit.

yes, good to know! it's hard to tell in the image,