Do you log zero calorie foods in your dairy?

eldeezo
eldeezo Posts: 19
in Getting Started
I haven't been logging zero calorie foods like pickles and hot sauce. I figure it shouldn't make a difference since they are essentially "free" items. Just wondering if any of you log them in.

EDIT: Diary*

lol you'd think they would allow you to edit the subject line, not just the body of the post :ohwell:
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Replies

  • FaerieCae
    FaerieCae Posts: 437 Member
    Yes. There are no "zero" calorie foods...pickles and hot sauce may only be small calories, but if you eat enough of them they add up. All vegetables and fruits have kcal amount, even if its only 5.
  • eldeezo
    eldeezo Posts: 19
    Yes. There are no "zero" calorie foods...pickles and hot sauce may only be small calories, but if you eat enough of them they add up. All vegetables and fruits have kcal amount, even if its only 5.

    I had a sneaking suspicion, but I wasn't completely sure. I'll start adding logging them, just to stay on the safe side.
  • BigTireFlipper
    BigTireFlipper Posts: 116 Member
    I haven't been logging zero calorie foods like pickles and hot sauce. I figure it shouldn't make a difference since they are essentially "free" items. Just wondering if any of you log them in.

    Consider this. One 4" Dill Pickle may have 24 calories, but it also contains over 1,700 mg of Sodium. A lot of hot sauces follow the same route. Sodium is a big deal when it comes to weight loss.
  • Blokeypoo
    Blokeypoo Posts: 274 Member
    Chutneys and similar are high sugar so can add up to a fair amount. I guess it's the trickle effect, if you regularly eat things but don't log them then they really will add up. Choose strong things which you need less of if needed.
  • eldeezo
    eldeezo Posts: 19
    UGH!
    Why don't they list these on the labels?
    I haven't ever abused "free" foods because I felt like calories or no, it was going into my body so it was having an effect on it. I always come in well under my goal, even sometimes on cheat days, but I feel like I've really been doing myself a disservice by not logging them.
    Thanks for the straight talk on the issue. I'll definitely change things up.
  • Slim_strategy
    Slim_strategy Posts: 199
    Well I don't add spices like cinnamon, cayenne, pepper , ginger etc, because they're so low in cals and you only use a small amount so xD never really effected my weight loss :p but I do pretty much log everything else, even pickles :p
  • eldeezo
    eldeezo Posts: 19
    Sodium is a big deal when it comes to weight loss.

    Nothing I've read has warned me about limiting my sodium intake. I'll look into it. Thanks for the tip.
  • BigTireFlipper
    BigTireFlipper Posts: 116 Member
    Sodium is a big deal when it comes to weight loss.

    Nothing I've read has warned me about limiting my sodium intake. I'll look into it. Thanks for the tip.

    Contributing to high blood pressure and whatnot aside, it is a major contributor to water retension.
  • Blokeypoo
    Blokeypoo Posts: 274 Member
    I think it depends a little on what stage you're at. When I was losing steadily I didn't add the rare latte I drank and it made no difference on loss. Now I'm maintaining I do log it.

    The overall change is often enough to get results at first but refining your knowledge/approach for the longer journey never hurts :o)
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
    I don't bother. I don't log things like sodium so I'm not going to waste my time with zero calorie stuff.
  • blisser99
    blisser99 Posts: 122 Member
    I log everything. The main reason is because later in down the road if I am super stuck, I can go back and see what I ate. Secondly, things you think don't have calories actually do. I put cumin, red pepper flakes, garlic salt, and pepper in my egg whites. The combo of just the spices is about 15 calories. Chewing gum has 5 calories a stick. Those add up.
  • chelstakencharge
    chelstakencharge Posts: 1,021 Member
    I log it all!
  • khoshgeleh16
    khoshgeleh16 Posts: 150 Member
    I'd log things like pickles and I always log sauces, but there's no way I'm going to log every individual spice I use a dash of, or every mug of tea (which is literally just hot water with leaf flavor!). It's impractical and likely to make logging even more tedious than it needs to be, and it hasn't caused any problems for my losses!
  • lovelayla
    lovelayla Posts: 123
    I don't log spices,unless they have sugar/carbs in them like a BBQ rub. I rarely log sugar substitutes,but I will made a note of it in the note section.I would definetly log pickles and low cal condiments...5 calories here and there can equal a lot at the end of the day....
  • toshtip
    toshtip Posts: 14 Member
    This thread has taken an unexpected turn (I guess that just goes to show how much I have to learn!) ... as I was thinking the same way, "... it's ONLY 5 calories.... who cares?!?!" But now I can see some value in tracking sodium, etc.

    I am a little concerned that tracking every piece of gum, 0 calorie soda / lemonade, etc. could become laborious...
  • AFWXDUDE
    AFWXDUDE Posts: 53 Member
    In regards to soda, it has so much sugar it might as well have calories. Your body turns excess sugar from things like soda and lemonade into fat... I suggest cutting that out all together.
  • trisH_7183
    trisH_7183 Posts: 1,486 Member
    I keep a bag of shredded lettuce,carrot ,cabbage in the fridge to use as salad or on a sandwich that I don't log.
    Salad dressing of oil & vinegar is logged,plus anything added to the base salad.
  • pseudomuffin
    pseudomuffin Posts: 1,058 Member
    When I'm logging regularly* I even log vitamins! I like to think if I needed to look back and see specifically what I've been putting in my body I'll have a very clear and detailed record, even down to the fish oil capsule.

    *hi my name is Pseudomuffin and I'm an intermittent food logger :cry:
  • mitchiejo
    mitchiejo Posts: 179 Member
    I log everything I eat. I didn't know until yesterday that pickles were zero calories.
  • wannakimmy
    wannakimmy Posts: 488 Member
    I log everything as well. Even the occasional diet coke. zero calories sure, but I want to be completely honest with myself as to what I am consuming.
  • robin52077
    robin52077 Posts: 4,383 Member
    I log everything.
    Even coffee gets 3 separate line items, one for the Kcup, one for the splenda, and one for the soy milk.

    Did you know that every pack of splenda is 4 cals and 1 carb?

    Almost nothing is really zero. The law says you can call it zero if it's less than 5.

    So if a serving is "one" of something that SAYS zero but is really 4, and you eat 5 servings, and think that's 5 times zero, it's really 20 cals, and 5 carbs in the case of splenda. Cals come from SOMEWHERE, so anything that has ANY calories MUST have a macro included.
  • Meggles63
    Meggles63 Posts: 916 Member
    I don't bother. I don't log things like sodium so I'm not going to waste my time with zero calorie stuff.
    ^^This. I don't even log the small amount of butter I use to fry my eggs. Gets way too OCD for me!
  • David_AUS
    David_AUS Posts: 298 Member
    Born mainly out of laziness I do not log everything. If I know something is high in salt I do. Nutrient dense food I weigh and log. Salads I just usually underestimate. I am a bit of a grazer so I may bundle guess something things like mixed nuts. It is all a matter of whether you are going to use the information if you are not then the data is not worth much to you. I have never logged gum or Stevia tabs and rarely put tea in unless I add milk.
  • ekz13
    ekz13 Posts: 725 Member
    No.. too tedious.. plus those "free items" unless they are tons of something else (eg - sodium) then it's not value added for me.. The -2-3-4 kcals that are in the items are a wash since I don't record any extra activity (running for the train, all the extra walking that I do in my commute or what have you) I figure it all balances out.
  • Helloitsdan
    Helloitsdan Posts: 5,564 Member
    Zero calorie chemical **** storms?
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
    This thread has taken an unexpected turn (I guess that just goes to show how much I have to learn!) ... as I was thinking the same way, "... it's ONLY 5 calories.... who cares?!?!" But now I can see some value in tracking sodium, etc.

    I am a little concerned that tracking every piece of gum, 0 calorie soda / lemonade, etc. could become laborious...

    A diet coke has 40 grams of sodium in it. For some people that might not matter but for those that are trying to control BP it does. If you drink 4 or 5 a day that can add up.

    I log 98% of everything. If I add a dash of pepper or some other seasoning while I am eating...I don't. I do however keep a 30 calorie buffer that I allow for those types of things.
  • MissBabyJane
    MissBabyJane Posts: 538 Member
    I add everything. Cucumber are only 12 calories per 100gr, but I eat them daily so I add them everytime.
  • jhellwig828
    jhellwig828 Posts: 109 Member
    I lean to the OCD side so I log everything. Every sauce, every bite, every Lifesaver (10 cals apiece in case you cared!). I would just rather be able to see everything than think over what I could be missing.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,275 Member
    I draw the line at adding minuscule amounts of next to no calorie items like spices, a tiny dash of sauce, cooking spray etc

    Yes in theory they will add up but if I am doing this logging Long term it has to be user friendly - and I figure an extra calorie here or there is not really significant and evens out with things like walking ,say, 31 minutes and logging it as 30.
  • florentinovillaro
    florentinovillaro Posts: 342 Member
    I'll have a diet Coke once in a great while, the sodium is what I track. Of course, increased water and potassium balances that out and close monitoring from my doctor keeps me from being extra paranoid about a non existent problem (i.e. blood pressure, etc).

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