How to measure chicken calories?

vm007

Hello,

So chicken calories? Do I have to remeasure after I'm done eating the weight of the bones then deduct that out of the entire serving?

Is there any approximation. This seems like a lot of work compared to when I was vegetarian lol - I also eat with the skin on -so does that have additional calories which doesn't account in chicken itself?

Let's say homemade raw chicken with skin and bone- what would be approximate calories?
Homemade chicken with skin and bone- prepared in a pan with just a dab of oil - approximation?
Same thing with pork and lamb?

jennybearlv

I do it the wrong way and just use an average piece of chicken from the USDA database. The accurate way would be to remove the bones from your chicken, weigh it raw, then cook it. No thanks. The reasonable and sort of accurate thing would probably be to weigh it cooked, then subtract the bones when done. Whatever works for your dieting style.

ETA, skin should be mentioned in the database entry you use. I eat skin, so use an entry that reads something like "chicken thigh, with bone and skin, roasted, USDA"

OhMsDiva

There are plenty of entries for meat, with or without skin. If you really are not meticulous about weighing your food you can look up the calories from an official site and then find one that is similar on here.
I would say unless you have been in the habit of weighing your food and at least having some idea of what 2.3. or 4 oz of meat look like you could be way off in guestimating the weight of something. Then how much is a dab of oil?
If you really do not want to count exact calories why stress about it. Just watch what you eat.

vm007

jennybearlv wrote: »

I do it the wrong way and just use an average piece of chicken from the USDA database. The accurate way would be to remove the bones from your chicken, weigh it raw, then cook it. No thanks. The reasonable and sort of accurate thing would probably be to weigh it cooked, then subtract the bones when done. Whatever works for your dieting style.

ETA, skin should be mentioned in the database entry you use. I eat skin, so use an entry that reads something like "chicken thigh, with bone and skin, roasted, USDA"

lol I do weigh everything, I mean I've achieved the weight loss I wanted now I'm trying to figure out life hacks if possible lol because taking out bones and then weighing them later just seems like such a hassle. I do weigh them with bones after they are cooked - also just to learn with guesstimatation process so when i don't have access to a machine on vacation or so -I can keep a check

OhMsDiva wrote: »

There are plenty of entries for meat, with or without skin. If you really are not meticulous about weighing your food you can look up the calories from an official site and then find one that is similar on here.
I would say unless you have been in the habit of weighing your food and at least having some idea of what 2.3. or 4 oz of meat look like you could be way off in guestimating the weight of something. Then how much is a dab of oil?
If you really do not want to count exact calories why stress about it. Just watch what you eat.

I did weigh everything on a scale for 1.5 years- just for life hack now, I'm wondering if there is an easier way -Even now I weigh them with bones just never bothered to re-weigh the bones after lol Dab is I think just so little so chicken doesn't stick haha

I guess i'll take out all the tools. I really thought keeping my 6 pack with me would be much easier.

OhMsDiva

I think it gets a little easier but still requires work. I know for sure there are entries for chicken thighs with skin like 4 oz. Its a guestimate. I think after a certain point you can pretty much know how much you are eating. A chicken leg with skin is like 130 ish calories or so. Like I said earlier, if what you are doing is working then keep doing it and dont stress about it. I do not think all of this should be a heavy burden, as it would get tiring after a while. I do not know that I have weighed chicken bones after eating the chicken, but I will take the meat off the bone and weigh it before eating. Other times I just make a guess and enjoy my food.

Nikion901

There are entries in the food database for chicken with bone and skin on, raw and also for skinless,boneless. It's usual to weight the food raw and then cook it. The cooked weight will be less because water would have evaporated, however the calories will remain the same ... so if you weigh it after it's cooked, you will actually be consuming more calories because it will weight less.

If you really are concerned about it ... make an entry into 'my food' ... but then be certain to always use the same weight chicken breast ... and do some experimentation ... this could turn out into an interesting and educational scientific study of your own, and prove to be lots of fun to do.

vm007

OhMsDiva wrote: »

I think it gets a little easier but still requires work. I know for sure there are entries for chicken thighs with skin like 4 oz. Its a guestimate. I think after a certain point you can pretty much know how much you are eating. A chicken leg with skin is like 130 ish calories or so. Like I said earlier, if what you are doing is working then keep doing it and dont stress about it. I do not think all of this should be a heavy burden, as it would get tiring after a while. I do not know that I have weighed chicken bones after eating the chicken, but I will take the meat off the bone and weigh it before eating. Other times I just make a guess and enjoy my food.

Haha yes, it is tiring. I want to fine tune my guesses but it gets little disheartening after abs become less visible on some days but I think it's cause of natural fluctuations. At least that's what I've been told. First time maintaining. I went from over weight to abs then now up n down. Haven't been able to nail maintenance just yet.

vm007

Nikion901 wrote: »

There are entries in the food database for chicken with bone and skin on, raw and also for skinless,boneless. It's usual to weight the food raw and then cook it. The cooked weight will be less because water would have evaporated, however the calories will remain the same ... so if you weigh it after it's cooked, you will actually be consuming more calories because it will weight less.

If you really are concerned about it ... make an entry into 'my food' ... but then be certain to always use the same weight chicken breast ... and do some experimentation ... this could turn out into an interesting and educational scientific study of your own, and prove to be lots of fun to do.

Yes, I was thinking about making my most common eaten dishes under recipe and then just measure them before eating but then my reliance on mfp would never end. I, however, have no choice but to do that until I'm able to nail approximation.