How to work out how many calories if the food isn't listed..

kymdarnell

Hi All,

I am curious to know if there is something that I eat that isn't recorded/registered on the food list - how do I work out how many calories are in it? Is there a way?
Many thanks

kymdarnell

anyone???

LuckyLeprechaun

what did you eat? The database is pretty extensive, if you can't find an exact match, just approximate.

samatalma

Look at the nutrition label on the package...Google it...etc.

Edit: and then add it the "Quick Calorie" method.

Want2weigh165

find something similar to it if you can't seem to find the exact one then burn just a little bit more calires to be on the safe side

MisterDubs303

Give an example. If it's a prepared food, you could go to the trouble of creating a recipe in that section of your database. Or you could just estimate and log it with the little tool thingy as quick calories.

caveats

Guess. Whether it is an informed guess with some research or a wild guess with some made-up number via "Quick Add", you'll have to anyway.

Food logging isn't an exact science. I eat out at so many local places that don't list their nutrition data anywhere, I'd drive myself insane if I had to find accurate numbers. You'll overestimate one day and underestimate another. The idea is just to track your trends and let it all balance out over the long term.

TheNaturalNanny

If your like me and you eat alot of homemade stuff, just add the recipe and it will calculate it all for you. If its premade just look at the package and add it or search on the internet and add it.

kymdarnell

thanks so much guys - awesome replies - because I live in New Zealand there are alot of packaged foods that are not on MFP - didn't realise there was that recipe bit on here. :flowerforyou:

pixiesx3

I google and check it out that way. There are some sites that are fairly reliable. Estimating calories compared to something similar is a good thing.

BUT many people are about 20% off when estimating their portion sizes! SO, in that department I suggest measuring & weighing!

pixiesx3

And you can do Quick Add or add the food from the package labels.

ElizabethRoad

No you don't want to create it as a recipe. Create a new food.

Yoopermom13

Buy a calorie counter book in your country, it probably has a restaurant section.

sh0ck

1) Find something similar that is already in the database (food tracking does NOT have to be a perfect science as someone said above)

or

2) Guess what you think is in it and add those ingredients separately (for example, if I get a turkey and cheese sandwich from 7-11 and it isn't in the database then I will add in 2 slices of white bread, 1 serving of turkey, 1-2 slices of american cheese). Once again, not an exact science

LuckyLeprechaun

The cool thing is, you canhelp enlarge the database by adding new foods when you discover ones that aren't yet in there.

Just click on the thing that says 'didn't find what you were looking for?' and you can enter all the stats. Your fellow countrymen will appreciate it!

Yoopermom13

Try Calorie King.com it has foods from every U.S. restaurant listed, but it may be different and have your brands for your country.

robert65ferguson

Try calorieking.com for a wide range of foods

IronSmasher

And there's a NZ group

bllowry

Also, if you have MFP on your smartphone, there's an icon next to the search for a food bar that will allow you to scan the bar code on a packaged item and add it from the code.