Surprises when logging ??

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  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,070 Member
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    nutty cereal yoghurt bar, more calories and fat than I imagined

    A lot of those bar type snacks are silent danger LOL

    You're definitely just as well off having a snicker :D

    Biggest shock I've had was a side plate of my own homemade carbonara - weighs in at around 1600 cals! I knew it was bad but not that bad (did try it once with creme fraich instead of double cream but it's just not the same)!
  • Raasy
    Raasy Posts: 972 Member
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    Corn dogs is a big one, you think "i have corn dogs bought frozen at the store all the time for roughly 180 cals". So when spur of the moment hits and pull up at the drive thru and think corn dogs are probably the "Cheapest" calorie wise and then get home and see that its practically double what your at home corn dogs are :grumble: :angry:

    Also nuts, they are supposed to be good for us in limited quantities but the calories on them are crazy!!!!
  • dswolverine
    dswolverine Posts: 246 Member
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    I think it was portion size more than anything that shocked me once I bought a food scale. The alleged "half cup" of oatmeal when weighed didn't come close to an actual half cup. And It scares me to think how many calories i've eaten in cereal in the past! The measly 3/4 cup serving on many cereals is like a third of what i'd add to my bowl. Yikes. I LOOOOVE my food scale
  • sullrico18
    sullrico18 Posts: 261 Member
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    Before I started paying attention to calories, I used to eat a muffin from work every morning (I believe Otis Spunkmeyer), and it was around 250 calories per serving --- there were 3 servings in the muffin! Yikes!

    When I began counting calories, I figured out my favorite McDonald's meal (2 cheeseburgers, fries and a drink) was well over 1100 calories. No wonder the weight piled on! (McDonalds is a lot less frequent now :-)).
  • arrseegee
    arrseegee Posts: 575 Member
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    My biggest surprises have come in the form of how little of something there is:

    -Years ago when I joined to get healthier and started logging food, I was shocked to find that I was only consuming 700-900 calories on an average day. (I should have ~1400 w/o any exercise.) I knew my no-breakfast way of life wasn't healthy, but jeez!

    -A while later, I discovered the 'reports' section and discovered how little calcium I was getting, despite my new habit of eating yogurt every morning.

    -About a week ago (in reports again), I discovered that there is barely any potassium in my diet at all, despite taking a multi every day and eating fairly healthy.

    I have resolved to check the reports regularly instead of as a novelty to make sure my nutrition is on track.

    My iron is always low in the reports on here, and I was scratching my head trying to work out how I had eaten only 11% of my iron after a 200g steak... and iron wasn't listed for the steak. Worth being aware of!
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
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    At a business lunch at PF Chang's, got the appetizer lettuce wraps thinking, no bread should be low carb. I left my iPhone in the car and boy was I upset after. There is NOTHING worth eating at PF Chang's anymore.

    Flip side,this weekend my son was at a birthday party so my Wife, and I took our 7 year daughter out for lunch. She wanted Panda Express... which made me concerned after PF. SURPRISE!! There are things there that aren't bad. Oh the sodium is high but I worked it in to my daily and was good. I endorse their bowls and replacing noodles or rice with mixed veggies. Panda will be a healthier choice for a treat in the future.

    Also, Papa John's THIN crust pizza. If you go with a medium and stick to 2 slices and a good size salad on the side and work within your daily numbers you won't be sorry either (40 carbs for the day but hell it's pizza). MFP has really opened my eyes.

    PF Changs!! I love those lettuce wraps, I usually get brown rice with pepper steak.. Yea it was enough to cover me for 2 days LOL
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
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    That my favorite restaurant salad, which I'd choose over a burger to be "healthy", actually had MORE calories than the burger AND fries! Yikes!

    I've become a pre-logger. Only way to make sure I stay on track.

    Pre-logging definitely helps me too
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,742 Member
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    French toast (especially homemade) surprised me in a good way. Same with a single pumpkin pancake from IHOP...pecan waffle at Waffle House. Those aren't things I eat regularly, but I would have imagined them having around 700 calories and a lot more fat and sugar...they're in the neighborhood of 290-400 with relatively small amounts of both :-)

    Subway surprised me in a bad way because of the sodium. I still eat it, but not as often as I would if it had less sodium...I'm not obsessed with limiting that in my diet, but it just seems unnecessary (especially when I get a veggie and/or egg white sub and the sodium is still nuts)

    When I FIRST started MFP I was stunned by the calories and sugar in my daily milk and Greek yogurt. At the time, I was eating Oikos blueberry or Chobani pineapple etc. I never realized how I could cut back by getting plain Greek yogurt and putting a little of my own fruit in.
  • bperkins88
    bperkins88 Posts: 357 Member
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    yeah ive noticed a lot more things that have a lot of sodium! :-O
  • DonaldChadDavis
    DonaldChadDavis Posts: 89 Member
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    I was happy when I logged Mugshot's SGT. Pepper Jack and fries and it fit my macros. I'm sad by the amount of sodium in most breads, though. :sad:
  • LokiOfAsgard
    LokiOfAsgard Posts: 378 Member
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    Actually, My reaction to a subway sandwich was quite the opposite! 240 calories for a turkey, cheese and lettuce sandwich on white Italian and it keeps me full for a LONG time
    MMM Making me want one, just talking about it
  • simplythebaz
    simplythebaz Posts: 33 Member
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    Breakfast cereals surprised me. I used to grab the biggest bowl on the house and dump what I thought was 1 or 2 servings. Turned out to be 5 or 6 servings. AHHHHHH!

    This!
  • rustyguy
    rustyguy Posts: 51 Member
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    I've been surprised by two things, the first is how little peanut butter is in an actual serving. I used to spread that stuff on bread like it was grout on a tile. The second is how much sodium is in a Green Giant Broccoli Steamer. I usually eat the whole bag because the calories are so low and filling up on vegetables keeps me from being hungry but man, there's a lot of sodium in there.
  • DjangoAndDeadlifts
    DjangoAndDeadlifts Posts: 36 Member
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    I've been logging long enough that no food on its own actually surprises me. However I am often surprised what I'm able to eat in a day. I've got a few 10000 calorie days logged.
  • ricki011
    ricki011 Posts: 89 Member
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    thanks for starting the dialogue. Great information from everybody; i myself was surprised at how many calories i eat when i go to see a movie. Those are the days i exercise more, but i need to find another way to have a good time at the movies, seriously.
  • denny712
    denny712 Posts: 14 Member
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    When I started paying more attention to my macronutrients, I found a lot of surprises. Like exactly how little protein is in some items. For example, I have celiac's disease and can't eat gluten without getting sick. So finding portable food I can keep in my purse for surprise hunger pangs can be challenging. Every time I see a new snack bar I get so excited! And then I read the label and say "Only 1g of protein and 25 carbs? That's not worth eating!"
  • reebs1229
    reebs1229 Posts: 2 Member
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    Subway was a surprise for me too. I used the build your sub calculate thing on their website and it came out to 920 cal and 90 carbs (it was a footlong).

    The other random thing that surprised me was finding out that a serving of ramen noodles is half of the noodle block. Who eats only half a pack of ramen?? :(
  • misschoppo
    misschoppo Posts: 463 Member
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    Little things - like a bagel is a LOT of calories......................! Now, MAYBE I'll have a half of a bagel - I hate to 'blow it' on ONE food item..........!

    Yes and I used to eat tons of bagels :(

    definitely BAGELS. I still eat them though because they are awesome :)

    Nice surprise was my favourite honey mustard salad dressing from hellmans which is actually only 27cals a serving, that makes me quite happy :)
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,742 Member
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    I did not realize salmon (baked/broiled) was so low calorie. Nice surprise.

    Also, there's a salad my husband and I like to make with shrimp, lettuce, cabbage, red onion, and a sauce made from mixed-up olive oil mayo, Sriracha & Thai chili sauce. It seems indulgent but has like 260-270 calories.

    I do not even eat granola or cereal at all anymore, though...just not worth it to me. I get SO much more satisfaction from a slice of wheat toast, a multi-grain Sandwich skinny, or a tiny portion of nuts.

    Another recent "pleasant" surprise is 1 TBSP (measured exactly) of Nutkao is 80 calories. Yum.
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
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    thanks for starting the dialogue. Great information from everybody; i myself was surprised at how many calories i eat when i go to see a movie. Those are the days i exercise more, but i need to find another way to have a good time at the movies, seriously.

    Oh yea that will get you LOL

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