Quality of food or quantity, which is more important to you?

RosanaRosanaDana

I ask because I see in a lot of diaries things like a breakfast of real junk food and at the end of the day the calorie intake is right but the food quality is soooo wrong. Not that I'm judging, to each his own and I've seen some great weight losses with this method.

Do you count every calorie and weigh you food? Do you plan out your meals the day before? I do count my calories but have never weighed my food, can't imagine it. Do you think it's important to do that and if so, why isn't counting calories enough? One thing I do religiously is plan my meals a day ahead. That way I'm not starring in the fridge or cupboard trying to figure out what to eat.

cwolfman13

They are both pretty important to me...they are both pretty important to long term success (one would be hard pressed to do the SAD and maintain a healthy weight without meticulously counting calories forever).

That said, context and dosage are also very important and a lot of newbs completely miss the boat here...a lot of newbs have an all or nothing mentality which isn't going to lead to any kind of long term success either. You see, a doughnut for breakfast and a bowl of ice cream at lunch isn't going to negate all of the other nutrition I've taken in for the day either. A lot of newbs also have a big misconception about what actually constitutes proper nutrition and categorize perfectly healthy foods as "bad" because of the calories or whatever...or something has fat (OMG the debil) and really don't understand that fat is essential to proper nutrition...again, context and dosage.

I've been on this little safari now for almost 2 years and have been maintaining for just over a year. I don't log or count calories...haven't done so for my entire year of maintenance save for a spot check here and there. I've been able to do this because I took the time to learn how to eat during the weight loss process (just one little piece of the entire process towards being a healthier and fitter you).

Counting calories helped me balance out my nutrition and helped me to see the bigger picture...my diet as a whole rather than getting overly wrapped up in the minutia of individual food items. I also weighed pretty much everything...I don't know why you wouldn't...you may be logging 4 oz of chicken breast, but if you haven't cut it in half it's likely you're actually eating 8 oz. What good is it to count calories when you don't actually know how much you're eating...you're just guessing at that point. Again, this was something I used to learn...I don't really use the scale all that much anymore because I've seen what an ounce of almonds looks like a million times over and I know that the average chicken breast for my particular brand is around 8 ounces, etc. I know these things because I took the time as part of the process to learn these things so that I could carry them over into perpetuity without being leashed to MFP or my scale.

You have to understand that this is all a process. Trying to do a complete 180* and change every little thing over night is probably not going to work...it's a series of baby steps. My nutrition now is a far cry different (and better) than it was 2 years ago...but I had to start the process somewhere...and my diary didn't look quite so awesome as it would not when I first started out...but I still lost the weight...I still made myself healthy...I still made myself a fit *kitten* 40 year old.

Process, context, dosage....

andreamaym

I've only been at this for two months, and if you had asked me this question 2 months ago my answer would have been very different. Initially I just counted calories and ate whatever I felt like. I tried to keep my calories at or below 1200/day. This did not work well for me at all.

After a week or two, I decided to start working out. Shortly after that I began paying attention to macronutrients. In the past week I've been paying more attention to micronutrients. As cwolfman13 said, these changes don't happen overnight. If you want to do it right, I think it needs to be gradual, and you need to educate yourself along the way.

That being said, right now I could not imagine buying a kitchen scale and weighing all of my food. Buttttt... I may have a different answer in a couple months, so I'm keeping an open mind (:

Novus175

I ask because I see in a lot of diaries things like a breakfast of real junk food and at the end of the day the calorie intake is right but the food quality is soooo wrong. Not that I'm judging, to each his own and I've seen some great weight losses with this method.

Do you count every calorie and weigh you food? Do you plan out your meals the day before? I do count my calories but have never weighed my food, can't imagine it. Do you think it's important to do that and if so, why isn't counting calories enough? One thing I do religiously is plan my meals a day ahead. That way I'm not starring in the fridge or cupboard trying to figure out what to eat.

How can you count calories if you don't weigh your food? Are you just guestimating? That can lead to some big problems as cwolfman13 already mentioned.

I make the majority of my food from scratch and try to avoid processed foods. Quality matters A LOT to me. (Like you, I cringe a bit when I look through some people's food diaries.) I want real nutritious food, not some chemical-laden crap made in a factory. I weigh, measure, or count everything I eat. (A few things I eat so frequently that I'm pretty sure I can eyeball them so sometimes I do. But after a few times of eyeballing, I always double check myself with the scale to make sure I haven't strayed too far. Like, I eat cottage cheese almost every morning. 1/2 cup, 113 grams. Checked it this morning - 111 grams.)

I preplan my meals and log my foods several days in advance (sometimes as much as a week). It helps with grocery shopping and meal prep. It's easier to hit all my macros when I figure it in advance. And it definitely keeps me on track so I'm not doing that "standing in front of the fridge, ravenous, randomly stuffing food into my mouth" thing. I do not do well with on-the-spot food decisions.

willdob3

Both are important to me. And lots of other things, too.

Different people have different goals. Eating junk is fine according to some people but not others.

corgarian

I count calories. I dont weigh my food because I've had good progress using serving sizes and cups *gasp*, but I wouldnt mind buying a food scale when I have a few extra bucks lying around, its just not a priority for me.

But to me quality is whats most important. I still eat junk food from time to time, but I do my best to eat the best I can from day to day. I also find that the better the QUALITY my food is, the more QUANTITY I can eat, because healthier food tends to be lower calorie.

I spend my sundays making my lunches and breakfast for the week and portioning out my snacks so that I know I'm not over eating and hitting all my macros.

SnuggleSmacks

It's always funny what people include in "junk" food. Pizza? I can make my own crust from scratch and could even go so far as to make my own boursin cheese to put on it with milk from a local dairy. Chips? I buy organic chips made with alternative grains, no GMO corn for me...or I make my own pita chips, and can even make them with pitas I make myself. Sweets? I buy pastries and doughnuts from local bakeries or eat Vitatops. There are local dairies that make ice cream with their own fresh milk. I mean, some of the protein bars I've seen in the store (and tried myself) have way more sugar and preservatives than some of the pastries I eat. So where is the line on what's "good" food and what's "bad" food?

Edited for spelling

cwolfman13

That being said, right now I could not imagine buying a kitchen scale and weighing all of my food. Buttttt... I may have a different answer in a couple months, so I'm keeping an open mind (:

A lot of people do just fine without using a scale...on the other hand, I've seen a lot of people log (I'll use chicken again) 4 oz of chicken and I'll ask them how they knew it was 4 oz of chicken...response is usually, "that's what the package it came in said was a serving". My reply is generally to read closer...it says a serving of chicken breast is 4 oz...but an actual chicken breast is usually much more than that...a 4 oz chicken breast is rather tiny. So I see a lot of people who think it just doesn't work and woe is me, etc when in reality they just have a lot of user error going on.

Some people are better at guestimating than others. One reason I bought my scale was that I felt like I was selling myself short with some things and overeating others...I didn't want to do either. I enjoy food very much and want my fair share and now that I'm more into fitness, proper fuel is vitally important to my performance.

My suspicions were absolutely correct...I was under feeding myself certain things and over feeding myself others. Nuts were a big deal as I eat them frequently...they are very healthy, but very calorie dense as well. I was just scooping out a handful of almonds and logging that as a 1 oz serving and 160 calories...reality was I was closer to about 1.5 ounces and 240 calories. I was really bad with spaghetti pasta as well...measuring out macaroni or whatever with a measuring cup is one thing, but it's pretty difficult to do with spaghetti...I always had a tendency to overestimate 2 oz of dried spaghetti...it always looked so small (because it is).

For things that are of a consistent size and shape, I've found measuring cups to work just fine. I also weighed vegetables in order to make sure I was getting my goal of 12 ounces minimum daily...preferably closer to a pound.

brower47

I ask because I see in a lot of diaries things like a breakfast of real junk food and at the end of the day the calorie intake is right but the food quality is soooo wrong. Not that I'm judging, to each his own and I've seen some great weight losses with this method.

Do you count every calorie and weigh you food? Do you plan out your meals the day before? I do count my calories but have never weighed my food, can't imagine it. Do you think it's important to do that and if so, why isn't counting calories enough? One thing I do religiously is plan my meals a day ahead. That way I'm not starring in the fridge or cupboard trying to figure out what to eat.

First, you can't use pejoratives like 'junk' in describing other people's food and then claim to not be judging. Language doesn't work that way.

Secondly, I count every calorie and weigh my food whenever possible (95% of the time). I plan out my meals in that when I go to the grocery, I know what I'm going to be eating for the next week. You can't imagine weighing your food? You should if you want to be as accurate as possible. Isn't calorie counting enough? Yes it is but when you see people saying that they aren't losing weight despite doing everything right, 99% of the time it's because they have either one or both sides of the calories in/ calories out equation wrong. Most times, it's underestimating how many calories they are taking in. People who encounter this problem and are willing to make a tiny lifestyle change, weighing their food, quickly find just how inaccurate eyeballing can be. Also, once you get close to goal weight and you get to the point that your deficit should be rather small, perhaps only 150-250 calories, that amount of accuracy become increasingly important.

Planning ahead is great but even planning ahead doesn't account for the fact that your eyes and their estimates are not as accurate as a digital scale that tells you quantity down to the gram.

Finally, your thread title: I enjoy both quantity and quality but it depends on the food. I like quality in high calorie items like gelato, chocolate, cake, etc. I like quantity in low calorie items like salad. I'll have a huge bowel (knowing I'll suffer consequences later) in order to fill me up if I'm having one of those 'want to eat all the foods despite my lack of calorie allowance' days.

Francl27

To start, I'd say that counting calories if you don't weigh your food kinda defeats the purpose to me. I know a lot of people lose fine without weighing, but the whole point of counting is to adjust your diet to reach a certain amount of calories, so if your entries are false to begin with, well, I just don't see how it would help... although I guess that most people who don't weigh don't really try and reach their goal anyway and leave themselves a buffer, or don't eat exercise calories back or something.

I count everything personally, at least I know if I'm overeating. I log a day ahead sometimes, then adjust as I go, and dinner is typically calculated depending on how many calories I have left (I almost never eat an exact serving of something).

To answer your title question - for me it's a mix of both. Sometimes I'll blow 200 calories on junk (if it's much more than that, I might tend to go over, I'm more likely to get HUNGRY), but I try to make the most of my calories for most of them. I tend to like bigger meals or snacks overall though.

andreamaym

That being said, right now I could not imagine buying a kitchen scale and weighing all of my food. Buttttt... I may have a different answer in a couple months, so I'm keeping an open mind (:

A lot of people do just fine without using a scale...

Oh for sure. I think it depends on your goals. Using a scale would not benefit me, but I totally see how it could benefit others (:

Novus175

It's always funny what people include in "junk" food.

IMO, if it comes in a box or a bag or a can it's probably "junk food." That definition is very broad and there are certainly exceptions but basically it works. And, yes, everyone is going to consume some junk food. My concern lies with people who eat ONLY junk food. Their diaries are full of cereals, bars, fruit snacks, frozen meals, pre-made dinners, etc. but very little (or no) meat or dairy or veggies or fruit. That's totally their choice and no business of mine. But I do wonder if they are aware that this is not really the best food they could be eating and I feel a measure of concern for them. As a society, we are dangerously ignorant about nutrition.

Meerataila

If I don't pay attention to quality there is no way I'll nail down quantity. Maybe for a few days or a week, but pretty soon I'll be eyeballs deep in a bag of Cheetos again. I have learned this and relearned it and relearned it again and again and I really hope I've finally learned it for good this time.

tmauck4472

I'd say quality, but this is coming from someone who had this for lunch



But normally I would honestly say quality

criticaltodd

For me, it's quality, by a wide margin.

andreamaym

Omg what kind of cake is that?! That looks phenomenal.

SnuggleSmacks

I eat very high quality junk food, so I have no idea how to answer.

mustgetmuscles1

Accuracy of quantity, calories, and nutrients is the most important for reaching weight management and body composition goals.

How you choose to label food is your own preference after that.

Achrya

...both? I eat good food. I eat fresh veggies and fruit when it works, I eat quality meat, and I eat quality snacks. I like to eat these things in amounts that satisfy (I'm a 10oz chicken breast or gtfo kinda gal.)

I'm making brownies tonight. Butter, dutch cocoa, vanilla, cinnamon, sugar, eggs, and flour, from scratch. I'll put a nice scoop of ice cream on top. I consider this quality.

tmauck4472

Omg what kind of cake is that?! That looks phenomenal.

It's a Reece Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake with a brownie crust...It's amazing and I'm proud to say I made it :happy:

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I ask because I see in a lot of diaries things like a breakfast of real junk food and at the end of the day the calorie intake is right but the food quality is soooo wrong. Not that I'm judging, to each his own and I've seen some great weight losses with this method.

Do you count every calorie and weigh you food? Do you plan out your meals the day before? I do count my calories but have never weighed my food, can't imagine it. Do you think it's important to do that and if so, why isn't counting calories enough? One thing I do religiously is plan my meals a day ahead. That way I'm not starring in the fridge or cupboard trying to figure out what to eat.

1.) Not judging? 'Cuz it kinda sounds like judging to me. "Real junk," "food quality is soooo wrong," etc.

2.) Both matter for me in different contexts. I eat a variety of types of food. My diary is open. I'm happy with my results. I do prelog my food, at least a day in advance.

3.) I use a food scale because it makes counting calories more accurate. However I don't think it's necessary for everyone. If what you're doing is working then just do that.