Stupid question, but I need to start somewhere

Hi! As the title suggests, I have a stupid question... I was tracking my dinner tonight, which included mussels in a garlic butter sauce. The package said that each serving was 190 calories, and I had both servings so that's 380. Pretty straight forward so far...

Here's the stupid question: is the calorie count for every bit of what was in the package, or just what they assume you'll eat? Its not like I drank every last drop of the garlic butter sauce... In fact, I hardly touched it.

So is the calorie count really 380?

Similarly, if I'm cooking and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan, but theres still oil in the pan when I'm done, does it technically count for the whole amount?

(I'm still below my calorie goal for the day, so it's not super important right now, but I'm wondering for future reference. If anything, I usually tend to overestimate calories.)

Replies

  • sbelletti
    sbelletti Posts: 213 Member
    Keep in mind that calorie counts on packaging are allowed by law to vary a certain percentage. This can add up to a significant amount depending on what you eat and how often you eat it. An extra 20 calories in that cup of coffee that you drink 4x a day, every day, is 560 calories for the week!
  • ErickGuzman
    ErickGuzman Posts: 23 Member
    I tend to count them , because like that it helps me not over eat later on.
  • amayk
    amayk Posts: 42 Member
    I count them, because it's impossible to tell how much to withdraw, and I prefer to note a few extra calories to be on the safe side, then to withdraw to many and eat to much.