Calorie Counting 101

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  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    crocky64 wrote: »
    I have been using scales since starting on MFP and its best ting I have done I also weigh liquid on the scales as 1g = 1 ml. For example 250 ml of water will = 200g no mater what the density wasn't sure at first but checked on line and seems to work well. I also have high blood pressure so keep an eye on my salt intake also cook almost everything from scratch so I know what's in my food. Chemicals in commercial food a labeled with different names so you can't be sure what's what hidden sugars are prob the worst.
    Sugars really can't hide. They have to put how much sugar is in a product right on the label.

  • keeshmarie369
    keeshmarie369 Posts: 3
    edited January 2015
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    very helpful ☺️
  • crocky64
    crocky64 Posts: 93 Member
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    Meant that they use different names yes they do have to put sugars down on the label but it's also the hidden sugars that occur naturally in fruit n stuff it's only added sugars that need to be labeled. Big bedmate going on here in the uk regarding ladling on food as it still isn't as clear as it should be.
  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    crocky64 wrote: »
    Meant that they use different names yes they do have to put sugars down on the label but it's also the hidden sugars that occur naturally in fruit n stuff it's only added sugars that need to be labeled. Big bedmate going on here in the uk regarding ladling on food as it still isn't as clear as it should be.
    In America they must list the total grams of sugar (naturally occurring or added) under the section labeled sugar. Is that not true in the UK?
  • sncoombs
    sncoombs Posts: 31
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    Loved this post!!!!
    Just made my life 6372826382 times easier!!!
    Thanks @vismal‌ :smile:
    I have to agree with @crocky64‌ - hidden sugars is a massive pain in the bum here in the UK at the moment - fighting a losing battle sometimes!
  • wistfulruthie
    wistfulruthie Posts: 6
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    What about not eating enough calories? I rarely eat lunch because I work at a bank. It is difficult for me to get upto even 1100 in a day and that's with the help of milk (which I hate). I also work out every night and I'm afraid to log it.
  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    wistfulruthie wrote: »
    What about not eating enough calories? I rarely eat lunch because I work at a bank. It is difficult for me to get upto even 1100 in a day and that's with the help of milk (which I hate). I also work out every night and I'm afraid to log it.
    Nut butter. It's literally the only answer needed to not eating enough calories. They make regular, honey, chocolate, honey pretzel (I literally just ate some), there's almond butter, cashew butter, nutella, the list goes on and on. The stuff is 200 or so calories a serving and not exactly filling. In addition, avocados, eggs, whole nuts, and cheese are also pretty heavy on calories.

  • crocky64
    crocky64 Posts: 93 Member
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    no just total sugars and the have many different names as well. eg alpen light bar apple and sultana only shows sugar in total under carbs one bar contains 7.7g sugar we dont know % of natural or added not happy i can tell you. Reading through the ingredients i have spotted five different names for sugars that's not including the natural sugars from fruit and fruit juice i'm astounded no i have read this. all this and only 86 cals a bar
  • crocky64
    crocky64 Posts: 93 Member
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    here is a list of some of the name they use:
    sucrose fructose glucose dextrose galactose lactose maltose invert sugar raw sugar
    turbinado sugar brown sugar confectioner's sugar granulated sugar corn syrup
    high-fructose corn syrup honey maple syrup molasses. this list is not all but some of the ones you will see most often
  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    crocky64 wrote: »
    no just total sugars and the have many different names as well. eg alpen light bar apple and sultana only shows sugar in total under carbs one bar contains 7.7g sugar we dont know % of natural or added not happy i can tell you. Reading through the ingredients i have spotted five different names for sugars that's not including the natural sugars from fruit and fruit juice i'm astounded no i have read this. all this and only 86 cals a bar
    I don't see why it matters if they are added or natural sugar so long as you know how many total grams of sugar you are eating. Honestly, it really doesn't even matter how many total grams of sugar you are eating providing you know how many total grams of carbs you are eating.

  • crocky64
    crocky64 Posts: 93 Member
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    True it's just a bug I got about refined sugars and how they add them rant over lol
  • fktahoe
    fktahoe Posts: 2
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    I'm confused about my weight loss I'm 252 pounds and I'm 6"1 I plug in all my stuff and it says I should consume 2750 calories a day to lose 2lbs a week. Isn't that wayyy too high or is it so my metabolism needs that much to burn fat or something?
  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    fktahoe wrote: »
    I'm confused about my weight loss I'm 252 pounds and I'm 6"1 I plug in all my stuff and it says I should consume 2750 calories a day to lose 2lbs a week. Isn't that wayyy too high or is it so my metabolism needs that much to burn fat or something?
    At 6'1 250 you should lose weight at 2750 calories. I'm not sure about 2lbs a week, but it's certainly possible. I am 6'1 200 and I lose about 1 lb a week when I eat 2500. I tend not to worry too much about the MFP recommendations. If you use it, and you lose weight, that's fine. If you don't, simply reduce your calories a little bit.

  • justmagickit
    justmagickit Posts: 3
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    This is a great topic and so helpful really. A lot of common sense but sometimes good to see it written down to help you stick to your plan :]
  • crocky64
    crocky64 Posts: 93 Member
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    Popcorn mmmm so many different things you can do with it just to fill that gap yum yum
  • fktahoe
    fktahoe Posts: 2
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    See I'm
    vismal wrote: »
    fktahoe wrote: »
    I'm confused about my weight loss I'm 252 pounds and I'm 6"1 I plug in all my stuff and it says I should consume 2750 calories a day to lose 2lbs a week. Isn't that wayyy too high or is it so my metabolism needs that much to burn fat or something?
    At 6'1 250 you should lose weight at 2750 calories. I'm not sure about 2lbs a week, but it's certainly possible. I am 6'1 200 and I lose about 1 lb a week when I eat 2500. I tend not to worry too much about the MFP recommendations. If you use it, and you lose weight, that's fine. If you don't, simply reduce your calories a little bit.


    I got you thank you vismal,I mean I was thinking just reducing it down to under 2000 my friend weighed 230 and now weights 205 said he eats healthyAnd only has 1200-1800 calories a day but it's it better to consume more calories, I cut yes for a living, lift Logs all day , climb up trees, I put that I'm not very active so it would make my calories lower. Is that good or bad? Anybody have any other ideas to lose some weight without having to pay a gym membership. Maybe lose weight without barely exercising after work?

  • tkrejcarek
    tkrejcarek Posts: 7
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    I have been counting calories for four weeks - eating very healthy and continuing to exercise 4-5 days a week. I lost four pounds the first week and maintained only the last three weeks. Fitness pal and my Fitbit keep saying I'm not eating enough most days but I have a really hard time believing that. My stats are showing I'm eating about 1/2 the amount of calories I burn so even with room for error I'm not eating too much. This is a pattern for me and when I usually give up. Any advice?
  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    fktahoe wrote: »
    See I'm
    vismal wrote: »
    fktahoe wrote: »
    I'm confused about my weight loss I'm 252 pounds and I'm 6"1 I plug in all my stuff and it says I should consume 2750 calories a day to lose 2lbs a week. Isn't that wayyy too high or is it so my metabolism needs that much to burn fat or something?
    At 6'1 250 you should lose weight at 2750 calories. I'm not sure about 2lbs a week, but it's certainly possible. I am 6'1 200 and I lose about 1 lb a week when I eat 2500. I tend not to worry too much about the MFP recommendations. If you use it, and you lose weight, that's fine. If you don't, simply reduce your calories a little bit.


    I got you thank you vismal,I mean I was thinking just reducing it down to under 2000 my friend weighed 230 and now weights 205 said he eats healthyAnd only has 1200-1800 calories a day but it's it better to consume more calories, I cut yes for a living, lift Logs all day , climb up trees, I put that I'm not very active so it would make my calories lower. Is that good or bad? Anybody have any other ideas to lose some weight without having to pay a gym membership. Maybe lose weight without barely exercising after work?
    With your kind of job, you are basically getting physical exercise every day, so I wouldn't worry about doing tons of extra exercise. You can lose weight simply by tracking calories. Where you start your calories isn't of great importance. Just be consistent with your logging and then you can adjust the calories up and down based on your actual results.
    tkrejcarek wrote: »
    I have been counting calories for four weeks - eating very healthy and continuing to exercise 4-5 days a week. I lost four pounds the first week and maintained only the last three weeks. Fitness pal and my Fitbit keep saying I'm not eating enough most days but I have a really hard time believing that. My stats are showing I'm eating about 1/2 the amount of calories I burn so even with room for error I'm not eating too much. This is a pattern for me and when I usually give up. Any advice?
    How closely are you counting. Are you doing all the things from the guide, most importantly weighing food? Do you have cheat or free days? Also, it's very possible that it's just water weight fluctuations messing with your scale weight.
  • willowmayfarm
    willowmayfarm Posts: 6
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    I am very happy with my fitness pal I count everything and look at labels before I eat. I am little confused about the calorie part of things. When I add in my exercise it gives u the extra calories that u can eat. I was told not to eat back your extra points from exercising ie 1200 per day walking 260 gives me 1460 calories to eat. I am under between 500-700 calories per day with exercise Am I doing this right. Lost 19lbs since jan 5th
  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    willowmayfarm wrote: »
    I am very happy with my fitness pal I count everything and look at labels before I eat. I am little confused about the calorie part of things. When I add in my exercise it gives u the extra calories that u can eat. I was told not to eat back your extra points from exercising ie 1200 per day walking 260 gives me 1460 calories to eat. I am under between 500-700 calories per day with exercise Am I doing this right. Lost 19lbs since jan 5th
    Judging by your weight loss, I'd say you're doing fine. I don't worry so much about the calories MFP recommends. I just pick a number, eat that many for a few weeks, and adjust the number based on my results.

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