NOT Weighing Food?
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I haven't weighed my food since me and me kitchen scale had a disagreement over what an ounce of grated cheese looked like.
:laugh:I can't say that eye balling works for everyone but so far I'm ok. I got way too obsessed with the numbers and trying to make everything fit, took the joy out of mealtimes and turned me into a psycho in the kitchen :laugh:
Learning portion control is key, who wants to be weighing everything for life eh?
The way I feel about a scale is the same as any kitchen tool, to be honest. If I found a kitchen ladle that got the job done, would I wonder if I want to obsess over this ladle forever? No, it's just a simple tool that helps me get from A to B. But hey there was actually a topic recently where many people said they'd have no issues logging forever. Essentially it was five minutes out of their day (max) and they'd get to maintain their phenomenal weight loss0 -
my food scale sits on the kitchen counter..when I am home and cook, I weigh my food, when I go out for dinner I just guestimate as best as possible, which is pretty good because i have taught myself portion size through weighing food...
why is the implication that people that weigh food are a bunch of OCD nut heads who whip the food scale out at work, restaurants and ever other place they go?
Like others have said, it is a tool to learn portion size and if you are already using measuring cups, why not just use the food scale as it is more accurate ...0 -
I see there is talk of "obsessive" behavior in this thread.......... Nah.
We're all "obsessive" here because we log everything we eat into an online database, and on TOP of the time it takes to do that, we're all here perusing the forums and debating on the benefits of weighing/measuring your food for the sake of calorie counting. Honestly, the word "obsessive" is meaningless if you're already on MFP.
Truth. If someone is concerned about appearing obsessive this is the last place to be. Reading and talking on diet forums, logging everything that crosses the lips, figuring out BMR and TDEE and macros and all that other stuff normal people don't do? Tooooooooo late.0 -
pro (ish) bodybuilders who track macros actually do take scales to restaurants
Of course, this is not the norm for most and not required.
Alternatively, they could just be "clean eaters" and not go out and socialize at all :laugh:
And I wonder how many people who guesstimate cals are the ones stating threads about not losing weight on ridiculously low calories
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I see there is talk of "obsessive" behavior in this thread.......... Nah.
We're all "obsessive" here because we log everything we eat into an online database, and on TOP of the time it takes to do that, we're all here perusing the forums and debating on the benefits of weighing/measuring your food for the sake of calorie counting. Honestly, the word "obsessive" is meaningless if you're already on MFP.
Truth. If someone is concerned about appearing obsessive this is the last place to be. Reading and talking on diet forums, logging everything that crosses the lips, figuring out BMR and TDEE and macros and all that other stuff normal people don't do? Tooooooooo late.
LOL
You just made eight people realize they need to go out and get a life.0 -
I see there is talk of "obsessive" behavior in this thread.......... Nah.
We're all "obsessive" here because we log everything we eat into an online database, and on TOP of the time it takes to do that, we're all here perusing the forums and debating on the benefits of weighing/measuring your food for the sake of calorie counting. Honestly, the word "obsessive" is meaningless if you're already on MFP.
Truth. If someone is concerned about appearing obsessive this is the last place to be. Reading and talking on diet forums, logging everything that crosses the lips, figuring out BMR and TDEE and macros and all that other stuff normal people don't do? Tooooooooo late.
LOL
You just made eight people realize they need to go out and get a life.
And I was talking about myself!!0 -
pro (ish) bodybuilders who track macros actually do take scales to restaurants Of course, this is not the norm for most and not required.
Alternatively, they could just be "clean eaters" and not go out and socialize at all :laugh:
And I wonder how many people who guesstimate cals are the ones stating threads about not losing weight on ridiculously low calories
amen brother...0 -
Everyone can do what they want. If it works for you, fine. Keep doing it. Good work. The end.0
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I'm not going to get into the measuring cups vs. scale discussion, but my feeling (I'm a cup person myself), my biggest downfall is not thinking about what I'm eating.
When I use some way of measuring what I'm eating I have to consciously calculate what I'm choosing to put into my body.0 -
:laugh: at the "won't use a scale, but hey I use measuring cups/spoons!!! :laugh:
With the exception of this comment which is rude and unhelpful, this thread has been informative and eye-opening to see the different approaches and what works for different folks. I don't use a scale, but can see the benefit in some instances especially for calorie-dense foods like cheese, nuts, etc. I use a measuring cup as a scoop for cereal, for example. I use little plastic medicine cups for things like salad dressing. I use the package weight for meats (someone commented how do you measure chicken with a cup--cut it up into little pieces and shove it into a measuring cup?)
It's encouraging to see that folks are finding a variety of ways of "measuring" their foods, be it eyeballing and learning portion sizes or weighing to the gram. Thanks to the OP for opening up this topic for discussion.0 -
I think weighing food is more important in the losing phase than in maintenance. I'm also getting better at estimating how much "1 cup" of something really is. Ultimately though, I choose a scale over a measuring cup or my own estimates any day of the week.0
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If you're getting the results you want without weighing food, then don't.I know that most of the people around these parts are huge advocates of weighing food but I am really reluctant to do so. Am I alone on this?
What I'm doing here is supposed to be a sustainable lifestyle choice and I just can't see whipping out my scale and weighing everything I eat for the rest of my life. It seems like a miserable fate to be tied to that kitchen scale for eternity.
I know that I probably feel this way because I've been seeing results without weighing, maybe if my weight loss stalls out I'll be singing a different tune but right now I'm choosing not to weigh food and I'm happy about it. (I do however use measuring cups and spoons)
Any other measuring cup/spoon lovers out there?
But it isn't a "miserable fate." I don't weigh everything I eat, but one example is I always weigh my cheese. I put cheese on my salad. I pull out my (very small) digital scale, set the salad bowl on top of it and grate cheese into it until I reach the desired amount. It takes no extra time or special attention and after doing this for years and years, it's second nature.0 -
I don't weigh food, or use measuring cups.0
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Hi, I have to use the scale because when I first started I had a GENEROUS eye. I thought a 3 oz. chicken breast was really a 5-6 oz. once I weighed it. It keeps me on track and no, I'm not going to use it forever, but love it now. Either way you choose, best to you.0
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pro (ish) bodybuilders who track macros actually do take scales to restaurants Of course, this is not the norm for most and not required.
Alternatively, they could just be "clean eaters" and not go out and socialize at all :laugh:
And I wonder how many people who guesstimate cals are the ones stating threads about not losing weight on ridiculously low calories
I've never used a scale. If it's meat, it has the weight listed on the packaging. If it's grains, I use measuring cups to get the water-to-grain ratio right, anyway. Everything else - including ice cream and peanut butter - I eyeball and I've done okay, without a VLCD or thread starting shenanigans.. .
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What really does bother me is when people post threads that they aren't losing anything and immediately the replies are all "are you weighing your food? "Buy a food scale." Weight can be lost without a food scale,
This is one of the most illogical and ridiculous statements I think I have ever read in my entire life. And that's something!
I'm not sayng everyone must use a kitchen scale, but I'm curious abut why the idea of using one makes some people so angry?0 -
Seems like a pretty silly practice to me... but to each his/her own haha.0
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it depends -
if my progress reduces > i get more accurate with my weighing> my losses increase > i stop weighing as accurately and start guessing > my progress slows > ...
you get hte picture? this is me - my experience and it's fine if this isn't the case for you - lucky you
the key is EVERYONE underestimates their intake even dietitians - based on this published academic study [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12396160]
but people who know more about food and it's contents underestimate less
but when we are equally inaccurate on logging our exercise (I don't count each time I climb the stairs at home) these inaccuracies can balance out - if they do for you great - but when someone else is not loosing weight as they would like this is probably the best place to start
i'm fat - I assume I got fat by eating too much > my idea of the right 'serving' is wrong, I need to relearn, I do this by weighing what i eat, repeatedly and it's working
for example, I have recently changed from putting my cereal bowl on the scales before pouring cereal, to serving the cereal then putting it on the scales (having previously zeroed the scales for the bowl), i'm now usually within 4g of my target 'serving' and i then adjust it, when i started i was out by 10-15g regularly for my intended 35g serving
so for guessing hte right 'serving' of *my* cereal in *my* bowl - well i'm getting better slowly, but I know that if I used your bowl and your cereal I would be very unlikely to be able to guess accurately what 35g looked like0 -
The statement that "weight can be lost without a food scale" is one of the most illogical things you've ever heard? LOL0
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Yes because that is the entirety of what I quoted and responded to and you took absolutely nothing entirely out of context. :flowerforyou:The statement that "weight can be lost without a food scale" is one of the most illogical things you've ever heard? LOL0 -
"What really does bother me is when people post threads that they aren't losing anything and immediately the replies are all "are you weighing your food? "Buy a food scale." Weight can be lost without a food scale,"
That's what you quoted. The original poster asserted that there are much more important things that can be done to break a weight loss plateau than buying a food scale, and that weight can be lost without a food scale.
He/she is right on both counts.0 -
If you weighed it or not isn't the issue. It's eating at a calorie deficit which you would have been if you were losing weight. (unless you are some miracle of modern science, which there are a few who seem to think they are)I've never weighed my food. Still lost the weight.
I's just weighing your food is the most accurate weigh for most people to see that they are in a deficit. If your methods work for you fine but don't try and tell people you weren't in a calorie deficit because I'm afraid science says otherwise0 -
I've never weighed my food. Still lost the weight. Below I'm going to list all the ways I care about everyone's opinion:
Why do you have to always post with such a negative response. So glad you lost the weight, but why always so sarcastic?.0 -
:laugh: at the "won't use a scale, but hey I use measuring cups/spoons!!! :laugh:
With the exception of this comment which is rude and unhelpful, this thread has been informative and eye-opening to see the different approaches and what works for different folks. I don't use a scale, but can see the benefit in some instances especially for calorie-dense foods like cheese, nuts, etc. I use a measuring cup as a scoop for cereal, for example. I use little plastic medicine cups for things like salad dressing. I use the package weight for meats (someone commented how do you measure chicken with a cup--cut it up into little pieces and shove it into a measuring cup?)
It's encouraging to see that folks are finding a variety of ways of "measuring" their foods, be it eyeballing and learning portion sizes or weighing to the gram. Thanks to the OP for opening up this topic for discussion.
But...chopping up chicken into small pieces and shoving it into a cup is more mess, more time consuming, and less accurate than placing a whole piece of chicken on a plate on a scale.
Also, package weights for meats are typically not accurate--they always say serving size 1 breast (4 oz) or something along those lines, but if you had a scale, you would see that the breast is typically 6-8oz (or bigger).
If you're using measuring cups, you should use a scale. Measuring cups aren't even close to accurate for anything solid, they are more time consuming, and they are more wasteful.
If you're eyeballing and losing weight at the rate you want and aren't hungry, then obviously a scale wouldn't be beneficial to you.0 -
She said people were posting that they WERE NOT LOSING WEIGHT DOING WHAT THEY WERE DOING. So people respond with a recommendation that has helped a large number of people lose weight (ensuring an accurate calorie count) and that bothers her."What really does bother me is when people post threads that they aren't losing anything and immediately the replies are all "are you weighing your food? "Buy a food scale." Weight can be lost without a food scale,"
That's what you quoted. The original poster asserted that there are much more important things that can be done to break a weight loss plateau than buying a food scale, and that weight can be lost without a food scale.
He/she is right on both counts.
It bothers her that people post a helpful suggestion to someone to change up what they're doing that ISN'T WORKING.
Do I need to spell that out a little moe clearly for you or can you follow the logic now?
Just because there are other things that can be done doesn't mean it isn't a valid and helpful suggestion. Inaccurate calorie counting is 90% of the time the reason people aren't losing.0 -
I don't weigh my food , and refuse to do it as well. I don't see myself weighing every meal for the rest of my life. I have 9kg to my goal weight, so really i don't care if i lose the weight fast or slow. I work out 6 times a week and i'm doing pretty well.
BUT, just out of curiousity, how would you weight let's say peanut butter sandwich ? do you take your PB with a spoon put on a scale? then put your bread on the scale ?? or bowl of cereal with milk ??? I find it will take a lot of time, doing this everyday. Or do you just weigh it once and "eyeball it " the next time ?
For me i use cups, i take 1 cup of cereal and 1/2 of milk, or 3 T of plain yogurt, and do the math. it's not hard.0 -
I think it gets you used to portion control. I know if I have a choice I want a large portion of whatever I am eating. I use measuring cups and spoons....I need a scale too0
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I *sometimes* weigh my food - usually it's when preparing a specific recipe and I am entering it into the recipe tracker. I know darn well that the chicken breasts I buy at Costco are WAY more than 4-5oz each, and when I weigh them they turn out to be 8ozs+. Something like that makes a big difference, IMHO.
On the other hand, I am not using MFP to actively lose weight, for me it is about maintaining and having a general idea of what my macros look like.
There's more than one way to skin a cat. :drinker:0 -
I had no idea that food scales were such a controversial subject.
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