Food Scale -- To Buy or Not To Buy?

Tink_889

I think I'd be a bit lost without my food scale to be honest. I find it really helpful.

wftiger

No way I would be at almost 100 lbs down if not for the scale keeping me honest. I weigh everything that is not a liquid. You would not even believe how much it will make a difference to your loss.

maryjay51

alot of folks need a scale but i never used one.i lost 80lbs but just used common sense with portions of meat..everything else ive measured i have the money to buy a scale but never thought to. if i buy a lb of ground turkey for instance, i break it into four sections and have approx 4oz each serving.

dawnrenee567

It's been fabulous for me when getting my lunches ready for the week. Weighed, measured, packaged. I just grab my containers and go. Best $15 ever (bed bath and beyond with a coupon)

mfp_1

Each kitchen should have a scale. It's a great tool. You don't have to use it for everything, use it when you want.

* Get one with a flat top - allows you to put your dinner plate on it.
* Increments of 1 gram (most have this)
* Capacity up to 3 kg (most have this) or 5 kg (nice to have).

It's simpler to add&weigh ingredients than to fiddle with cups.

Melampus

There was another thread on one of the forums here about different ways of measuring and it came to light that where I live, in the UK, recipes are normally measured by weight whereas in the USA it is more common to use volume (cups, spoons etc). In the days when a scale was actually a balance on which you had to try the weight of your ingredient against a set of known weights I can see how the American system would be quicker and easier but in these days of digital scales I would say the reverse is true.

I bought a fairly cheap digital scale that includes the following features:

1. A flat glass plate onto which to place the thing to be weighed. With this not only can you place some ingredients directly on it you can also place any other empty container on it before turning on the scale and it will set its zero point with that container there so you then add your ingredient and see only the weight of the ingredient.

2. A "tare" function. This means with some kind of container and some contents already on the scale you can reset the reading to zero and then add more stuff seeing only the weight of the extra stuff you have added. As an example of where this would be useful you can put an empty plate on, start adding foods and note the weight of the first food, hit tare, add the second food and note the weight of that etc.

3. The ability to give a negative reading. This is not so obvious but here's an example of how you use it. You want to add 200g dry weight of pasta to a pan of boiling water. You put the tin (or other container) of pasta on the scale and turn it on (or use tare) so the reading is zero. You then take handfuls of pasta out of the tin and put into the water until the scale reads -200 meaning the tin of pasta is 200g lighter than when you started meaning you must have 200g pasta in the water. No need to make any intermediate container dirty.

she_who

Yes, absolutely!

Don't cheap out and get the spring one, do the nice digital one that you can zero a plate out on.

I totally agree with this. Also make sure you can measure in either oz or grams. I use mine daily for everything from measuring peanut butter to creatine powder.

htmlgirl

Definitely buy! I have a digital one, I'm not sure how much it was, but I think it was only around $20. It's much easier to get an accurate count of calories consumed when you measure it out in weight. I recommend this as well as a HRM.

scorpio516

They are so much more useful than just in the kitchen too. If you've got similar hobbies vs. me

I had a $40 Satler one. Nice. Broke within 2 weeks. Replaced it for the same model. Broke within 3 weeks. Got a $30 OXO/Soft Grips one (the one with the remote readout). Has worked great for 2 months so far.

A necessity for baking. ALL baking recipes should be by mass, like someone pointed out, a packed cup of flour weighs a whole lot more than a loose cup, so there is differing amounts. Measuring ingredients for stove top cooking is much more loose and free. For baking you are dealing with chemistry - balancing acids and bases with leaving agents.

Anyway, I also use my scale for weighing bicycle parts, camping gear, and even running shoes



Argh, giant picture, but you get the idea, weighing a bit of camping insulation I made.

michele093

yes yes yes yes yes yes !!!!! I bought mine online at walmart. It weighs up to 6 pounds and really helps me accurately log my portions. I love it ! only 18$

pgp90xer

Too weird... I was just looking at these at Walmart yesterday and thinking of getting one.

This might be a dumb questions but do you measure your food before or after it is cooked? ie pasta will be heavier after it is cooked?

Thanks

pixiechick8321

I love my scale - between DH and I, we must use it 5-6 times a day! We weigh everything and wow does it make a difference.

For the question of dry vs wet:

Weigh pasta and rice dry (they suck up water, water will add weight but nothing else, hence weigh dry)

Weigh meat cooked (it looses water, hence will weigh less when cooked) - also for veggies if you want cooked ones

Realize that liquids can also be weighed - measure out 4 oz or 8 oz or whatever and then weight it - water is 4 oz by wt for 4 liquid oz, milk is about the same, clear alcohol is about the same, etc...useful for not dirtying up other dishes or guessing.

For fruit/veggies where you remove things (seeds, rind, etc), weigh before you eat, then after and subtract (ie, avocado weighs 200g, eat just the flesh, reweigh skin and seed = 120g, thus you only ate 80g - log just that).

If you really want to lose weight fast, use accurate portion sizes! It takes less than 10 seconds to plop the bowl on the scale and hit on before pouring in your cereal/pasta/rice/flour/etc!

Prayforya

I just bought one Tuesday from walmart for $5, but its a spring one. Thats b4 I knew about the spring vs digital, but I don't really care, it measures food and I could afford it so it works for me, but next time I will invest in the digital. Accurate recording is half the battle. A good scale and hrm (that counts calories) are essential tools, for most, in the battle of the bulge.

megsmom2

Buy! Its not only useful for measuring your portions to track calories, a lot of recipes ive come across lately (especially baking) are written in ounces not cups. I got mine at Target for about thirty dollars. It works great and is very handsome on the counter too.

anewme1202

I bought one and I don't know how I ever lived without it!

It's amazing to see EXACTLY how much food is compared to just eyeballing it. I spent $20 on mine at Canadian Tire and it's a digital one. My suggestion (like others on here as well) is to get the one that measures in grams and ounces and get a digital one with the glass top.

Better to be accurate more than anything. It's the best $20 bucks you'll ever spend!

kateblue72

Congrats on your loss! Buy one they are a great tool to have, and really will make you more aware of your portion sizes. I find I use mine for a bit, then it gets put away, and as the weight seems to slow coming off, I get the scale back out and often find the portion sizes I have been eyeballing have grown a little. Make sure you do get one with the TARE option.... that way you can put on a dish, zero it, then add your food. I got mine at Canadian Tire reg 25$ for 9.99. Fabulous!

wackyfunster

Yes. I have one for work and one for home.

VanillaBeanSeed

When I bought my scale, I was worried I would never use it and it would be a waste of money....


I ALWAYS USE IT! AND I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Annie_ga

I bought a $5 very simple scale that is perfect for individual portions - oz of meats, cheese, fruits, etc. It's Taylor brand and I bought it at Target. No batteries needed, dishwasher safe and I can store food in the container.

texastango

It's hard for me to "guestimate" ounces and grams sometimes. That said, should I invest in a food scale? I've seen some pretty decent ones that range in price from $9.99 to $49.99 (sorry...not paying more than $50 for one of these).

I look forward to your feedback.

ABSO-FREAKIN-LUTELY:

Seriously, I found a SALTER (COMPANY) Baker's Dream TM - Aquatronic Electronic Scale in the discount rack at Kroger's around Christmas time...HELLO.

The price on it was 27.99 marked down from 39.99 (dollars). IT IS FANTASTIC.

Weight Capacity is up to 11 lbs 1/8 ox (5kg 1g) and 175 fl oz x 1.8 fl oz (5000 ml x 1 ml)
Battery life is "guaranteed" at 10 YEARS or it is replaced! Lithium.
The platform is larger enough to put a good sized mixing bowl on.

The scale has four buttons on it.

ON: When depressed with zero the scale with what ever is on it. IE if you have a coffee cup on it at the time you push on (even if it's on already) it zeros again. Then pour your soup or coffee in and it gives you the number of fl oz.

Fl oz/ml lbs/gms - The second and third buttons allows you to switch between fluid oz/Ml and lbs/grams. That way if something in MFP is listed in grams and you just measured it in ounces you don't have to convert....with a calculator or if it is in fl oz it will convert to ml.

If you are adding multiple ingredients you could zero the scale and add milk. Then zero the scale again and add sugar. then zero the scale again and add cream cheese. Each time you'll get the weight in grams/lbs or fluid oz of the item you just added minus every thing else. You can measure the milk in fl oz, then add the flour and measure it (after zeroing) in lbs or grams, then measure the cream cheese in ml or lbs. What ever you need to do to record it in MFP. You just hit a button while it's on the scale and it converts it to the other units I can't tell you how useful this is. Otherwise I use an app (if at work) called "Mila's Tools" that can convert most things but the scale is very user friendly and fast.

Last button is off.

The Model number is 1020w. If you find it on line for this or cheaper let me know. I might buy some friends on MFP one for the Holidays!


Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Nutrition Facts For Foods

slim104

I'd be lost without my scales. Even got 2 spare batteries in the drawer for when they run out. I weigh absolutely everything. I quite enjoy weighing it and logging it.

Bentley2718

I've been through a few food scales over the years, both for fitness and because I bake and do confectionery. My hands-down favorite is an Escali Primo. It is easier to use, has lasted longer, and taken more abuse (getting wet, sliding off the counter) than more expensive models I have used have. I occasionally test it against something with a known weight, and it still performs well after years. Amazon has them for $25, but if you look around you can find them for less--I think mine was less than $15 because Sur La Tab had discontinued that color.

Overall, I'd say a food scale is well worth the investment.

keithgi

Definitely buy. I got mine off woot.com for a few bucks. I use it several times a day and it makes certain items so much easier to track, especially if weight is in grams.

LHudson53

I'm really glad you brought this up. I have been eating healthy for a few months now. I think I probably over- or under-estimate food portions on a daily basis.

After reading these posts, I will get one this weekend.

Thanks for the topic, and thanks everyone for the great responses!!!!

tmauck4472

Buy it. I love mine. I use it every day. Or to measure out my weekly amounts so I don't have to cook everyday.

FlittyGetsFit

Definitely buy one! I use mine every day, especially for breakfast cereal and cheese. If you need any help at all with portion control, scales are a must!

missikay1970

i can't live without mine! worth every penny, which by the way, if you have a Marshall's or TJMaxx, buy it there! i got mine for $8 and found the same one for over $30 at BedBath&Beyond

Lushaholic

I got a digital one at Walmart for $25 dollars, its so worth it, I use it for my meals and snacks everyday!

Polly758

I got my food scale on a whim using some corporate rewards points. Used it mostly for baking until I started monitoring my diet more closely. Now it's like

SCIENCE IN MY KITCHEN

GET HEALTHY WITH SCIENCE

grams or ounces? BOTH WITH SCIENCE

and all kindof of other nonsense. Plus I don't know how else to measure out a serving of cheetos.

Oh yeah! And I actually use MORE cheese on my sandwiches now. SCIENCE!

batgirl8809

Absolutely buy. I have a digital one that shows either oz. or grams and I LOVE it. Another good point others may have made -- buy one with a flat top so that you can put a plate on or bowl on it. That way I put down a plate, zero the scale, and then place whatever food I'm measuring on it. No clean up and makes everything easy.