Gum calories.....Seriously!

kklindsey

I personally like to add it. I add every calorie I consume. It's all part of the need to over estimate the calories I have eaten rather than under estimate. Do I count unloading the dishwasher? Nope, but thats because I rather think I only have 76 calories left and not eat more than think I have 300 cals left and eat them... and be over. Ya know? Maybe it's the little paranoid person in me, but I am always careful that way.

I am with you on this one. I would count the gum, especially would count the gum if I had 50 calories worth in a day. If I eat 50 calories worth of M&M's but only do it 10 calories at a time is it not necessary to count them, because I ate them 10 calories at a time? I am not paranoid but I do have control issues. I like to be in control of what I eat and I dont like to scratch my head and try to figure out why I am not losing when I am right on the mark with calories and workouts when if I had logged those 10 calories here and 10 calories there I would know what was going on.

If I eat a cheesecake and nobody sees me does it make a sound?

jmruef

Careful! gum is a gateway snack! It can lead to larger and more un-logged calories. Next thing you know the rational is "this is sugar free. not logging it." "this says diet on the box. not logging it.""this says Weight watchers on the box. not logging it." "this says Fat free on the box. not logging it." The next thing you know there is nothing on your log and you starve to death while eating 5k un-logged calories.

Seriously though I believe that many folks are here to unlearn some bad habits and to learn new and healthier habits. So yes, the uber strict "log everything" is a good idea for most of us. It helps us not get into the habit of a bite of this and a taste of that and a diet cola, nah I'll just log the actual meal I'm having later.

For instance after I started logging everything I realized I was eating 200 calories of mints a day. Sure it was helping me quit smoking but getting mints with lower calories was also a good idea.

Yup. I log little things like gum and Jelly Belly jelly beans (though I admit I don't log my Crystal Light that I add to my water...I think that would just discourage me from drinking water altogether...) but I don't log every day activities like cleaning, walking the dog, etc. I was overweight when I was doing those things - I don't think they're contributing to my weight loss now.

But - to each their own. As somoene pointed out, it's MY Fitnss Pal - we all need to figure out what works for our own lives.

2bFitNTrim

Why is this so important to you? If you don't want to log it, then don't. I don't tell my pals what to eat, how much water to drink, how to exercise, etc. If they ask for my opinion, then I may give it, and if I do, I try to be kind and thoughtful. Otherwise, I go by "MYOB".

buttquack

I counted the calories it took to type this post......am I doing wrong?....lol

You win..for funny response of the day!!!!

eliz_in_pink

i log my gum... as strict as you want to call or as much as you want to bash it, it works for me. i log my gum because i could have and used to go through a ton of gum in a day... now i try to keep it at a minimum because once i started realizing how many calories those pieces of gum could have added up to i realized that, "wowza, i dont need all that gum".

now, you want to ask me if i log unloading my dishwasher or walking around the grocery store? no i do not. those are what i consider my lifestyle. i only log my kick-butt workouts or my walks that i take at work on my breaks.

judge me if you want to for logging my 5 calorie gum but i do what works for me... and i'm getting results that i'm pretty darn proud of.

kklindsey

i log my gum... as strict as you want to call or as much as you want to bash it, it works for me. i log my gum because i could have and used to go through a ton of gum in a day... now i try to keep it at a minimum because once i started realizing how many calories those pieces of gum could have added up to i realized that, "wowza, i dont need all that gum".

now, you want to ask me if i log unloading my dishwasher or walking around the grocery store? no i do not. those are what i consider my lifestyle. i only log my kick-butt workouts or my walks that i take at work on my breaks.

judge me if you want to for logging my 5 calorie gum but i do what works for me... and i'm getting results that i'm pretty darn proud of.

Exactly! you go girl!

Minnesnowtagurl

Oh my gosh too funny! I totally agree. If you are being that strict with your self you will never be succesful.

ladyluck5210

I log mine (loosely), I chew about 10 pieces a day (sugar free and some of those are nicotine gum), I also drink about 8 cups of decaf black coffee (4 calories) which I also log...its not about the calories, its knowing what I was doing when I look back....this is the way I'm doing it, its MYfitnesspal. If you don't want to thats fair enough but if others want to why knock them?

ETA. would you log a 50 calorie sweet?? Now would you log a 50 calorie sweet but ignore 5 sticks of 5 cal gum, 5 cups of 4 cal coffee, 2 cups of iceberg lettuce and a quarter cup of cucumber............

but as i said its not just about the calories

I AGREE!!!

And by the way, the last time I did chew gum, I DID LOG IT! I had 5, pieces at 10 cals each.. That's 50 cals okay? It matters to me! So joke it up why don't ya??

Phanessa917

Haahaa - too funny! There was a post a long while back about the calories in iceberg lettuce and should they be counted. I believe a cup of shredded lettuce has like 7 or 8 calories - you burn those just chewing!

I track all the veggies I eat even if it's only 7 or 8 hehe

catcrazy

Oh my gosh too funny! I totally agree. If you are being that strict with your self you will never be succesful.

That's rather presumptuous don't you think...this weight is coming off, and more medical issues aside its staying off. If you read my post you will see that I believe its about more than simply calories. And I'm not that strict...If I want something I have it but I account for it

But where do you draw the line. You won't log gum at 5 calories...even if you eat 2 or 3 (or a pack?) So that means you won't log the black coffee at the same calories or the cup of lettuce at a mere 8 calories, the 1/4 cup of cucumber, the 3 cherry tomatoes, the celery stalk, spring onion, a radish.....before you know you could be up to a couple of hundred a day because well its only a few calories and its just not worth being that strict is it? Hmmmm....

anna_lisa

I thought this was interesting cause I chew alot of gum so I researched and found this and thought I would post:


Weight Loss - Chewing Gum
Good news for gum chewers! Chewing gum and fat loss have now been linked by a recent study performed at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. Does gum chewing really burn enough calories to make a difference? Depending on how often you chew gum, the answer is yes. The Minnesota researchers concluded that chewing gum increases your metabolism (the rate at which you burn calories) by 20%. On average people in the study burned 11 more calories per hour than those that did not. Now, 11 calories for each hour of chewing gum does not sound like a lot, but over the course of a year that amounts to thousands of calories, or approximately 10 lbs.!

"Chewing of calorie-free gum can be readily carried out throughout the day, and its potential effect on energy balance should not be discounted. I'm not sure that many people would want to chew a big wad of gum all day long. But it does illustrate that small changes in daily activities, even something as trivial as chewing gum, can have a significant impact on weight loss," said Dr. James Levine, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and co-authors.

Just make sure the gum you chew is calorie free.
The New England Journal of Medicine.

AngieM76

Oh my gosh too funny! I totally agree. If you are being that strict with your self you will never be succesful.

I dont know that you can really say that. Its a big assumption. And I am pretty not an accurate one.

NeverStopRunning

People have to do what works for them. I log my 0 calorie diet cokes and coffee just to track how many I have in a week as I am cutting back. It would "erk" me a little to know someone read that in my log and laughed at me for it...there is a reason I am tracking it.

stormieweather

Oh my gosh too funny! I totally agree. If you are being that strict with your self you will never be succesful.

I am that strict with myself and I am very successful.

kaswain

I counted the calories it took to type this post......am I doing wrong?....lol

HAHAHAHAHAH

Texas501

I just logged the calories it took to move my mouse to read all these posts! I earned several pieces of sugarfree gum now! I'm awesome....

cheermom614

Why is this so important to you? If you don't want to log it, then don't. I don't tell my pals what to eat, how much water to drink, how to exercise, etc. If they ask for my opinion, then I may give it, and if I do, I try to be kind and thoughtful. Otherwise, I go by "MYOB".

It was important to me because it was my rant and my opinion. I didn't say anyone was going to agree or disagree just getting it off my chest.

cheermom614

Okay people....yes I agree if you are going to chew an entire pack of gum in a day you should probably log that but that wasn't his post. It was one piece of gum and my opinion is that you don't need to log that stick of gum.
If you are strict about EVERYTHING you log and it works for you then AWESOME! I applaud anyone who is working towards a healthier lifestyle.

kklindsey

Oh my gosh too funny! I totally agree. If you are being that strict with your self you will never be succesful.

Oh my gosh, this girl lost 165lbs being just that strict with herself. Never say never.

2bFitNTrim

This thread is a prime example of why some people on MFP may choose to keep their food diary private.

NatalieWinning

Careful! gum is a gateway snack! It can lead to larger and more un-logged calories. Next thing you know the rational is "this is sugar free. not logging it." "this says diet on the box. not logging it.""this says Weight watchers on the box. not logging it." "this says Fat free on the box. not logging it." The next thing you know there is nothing on your log and you starve to death while eating 5k un-logged calories.

Seriously though I believe that many folks are here to unlearn some bad habits and to learn new and healthier habits. So yes, the uber strict "log everything" is a good idea for most of us. It helps us not get into the habit of a bite of this and a taste of that and a diet cola, nah I'll just log the actual meal I'm having later.

For instance after I started logging everything I realized I was eating 200 calories of mints a day. Sure it was helping me quit smoking but getting mints with lower calories was also a good idea.

Thats my rationale when I logg tiny stuff. Because I can eat up 200 calories of a bite of this and that pretty quick. So the times I log more strictly its so I will pay attention to what I'm actually doing. Before MFP I actually thought I didn't snack. HA!! I also didn't get fat free anything. It seemed rediculous when it was just a handfull of calories more to eat "the real thing". 1200 calories doesn't spread out too well with several hundred calories that I believed didn't really happen. That's how I got fat!
Because when you walk through the kitchen and take a handful of something it's really not eating, right? Well logging it adds up to a lot for some of us.

If you don't log it. So what. It's your plan. My plan is my plan. Everyone is learning to eat right for them. Not logging gum will not wreck your life, either.

katkins3

My husband logs the calories in his vitamins and supplements! Its just his way and I have let it go. I think it makes him feel more in control.

NatalieWinning

Oh my gosh too funny! I totally agree. If you are being that strict with your self you will never be succesful.

That's rather presumptuous don't you think...this weight is coming off, and more medical issues aside its staying off. If you read my post you will see that I believe its about more than simply calories. And I'm not that strict...If I want something I have it but I account for it

But where do you draw the line. You won't log gum at 5 calories...even if you eat 2 or 3 (or a pack?) So that means you won't log the black coffee at the same calories or the cup of lettuce at a mere 8 calories, the 1/4 cup of cucumber, the 3 cherry tomatoes, the celery stalk, spring onion, a radish.....before you know you could be up to a couple of hundred a day because well its only a few calories and its just not worth being that strict is it? Hmmmm....

Actually if I am not accurate I tend to fool myself into thinking i'm a rock star when i'm not so much. I'm peri-menapausal and the weight sticks like glue. I must stay a tad under (also eating exercise calories and i have a HRM) for 4 days straight in a row to lose one pound. I can go 3 or 4 weeks sometimes and then get discouraged. WTH, I think! I'm doing it right!! Well, If I don't include ALL the calories I find that i've blindsided myself with up to 500 pretty easily and quickly nibbling and just having a "taste" of this and that, with maybe 3 chips, and 3 pretzles, etc... So when I get serious and want that one pound to go I have to log everything. Gum and my glucosamine plus coffee included. It works for me.

Big rule: Never ever ever ever poo-poo or laugh or snicker at anyone trying. Trying will snowball into positive things. Negative things snowball into negative things. So take the negative things out of it and maybe you'll understand a little more how you aren't really helping someone by raising eyebrows at -effort-.

jeffpettis

Ummm... If it was the post I made a few weeks ago, it was a joke, I was bored. If that was the post... Sorry!!!