Do you weigh your food?

2

Replies

  • rladd6421
    rladd6421 Posts: 455
    i always use my scale and weigh my food after it's cooked. I weigh my protein in oz and my carbs in grams. The only thing i use a measuring cup for are liquids and my kashi cereal.
  • fallonrhea
    fallonrhea Posts: 388 Member

    You should weigh ur meat b4 cooking it, cuz it will often shrink when u cook it.

    I weigh my meat after cooking, especially beef, as a good bit of fat and juices cook away and are not consumed. I weigh pasta before cooking because the longer it is cooked the more water is absorbed and the heavier it weighs, though there is no calorie increase.

    ^^ Totally agree. The general rule of thumb is always weigh meats after cooking because they will shrink (mainly due to water loss). However, for items like fruit, veggies, pasta, etc. that expand after cooking should be weighed before you cook it :D
  • amnski
    amnski Posts: 251 Member
    I agree with the above posters...a scale with g/oz is the way to go. Mine even has fl oz and ml on it and I paid less than $30. I weigh everything I can now. Before, it turned out I was eating less than I thought when it came to things like fruits and chicken/meat (which I weigh out after I cook it)...yet the supposed 3/4 c. serving cereal I was measuring out with the measuring cups was way more than the equivalent 30g serving size the box gives. Talk about over eating that stuff :noway: Live and learn
  • redmapleleaf
    redmapleleaf Posts: 56 Member
    I use my scale almost daily. I even use it instead of pulling out tablespoons, cups, etc since all the items also have the servings in grams. The scale I have can go between grams, ounces, kiligrams and pounds.

    I love using the scale for peanut butter which is my favourite. I put the jar on the scale, zero it out then take the 32 grams needed for a serving which would show as -32 on the scale. Much butter then using a tablespoon to get all the peanut butter in then trying to get it all out so I'm not missing out on any of the serving.
  • Mangoose
    Mangoose Posts: 41
    If you can weigh something without feeling like an idiot, then do it. Things like rice, cereal etc.

    I won't bother with some things that have fairly definable sizes, like 'a chicken breast'. Small, medium and large work for things like that.
  • Cazzy34
    Cazzy34 Posts: 159 Member
    I love my scale! I am really bad for overestimating my portions, especially on things like peanut butter, nuts, seeds and other high calorie foods.

    It's also good for showing you what a portion should really be :)

    I would definitely recommend one. x
  • Sublog
    Sublog Posts: 1,296 Member
    Sure, you can lose weight without weighing foods, but if you cannot, I highly suggest you start. You're more than likely eating more calories than you expect.

    I personally weigh everything and have been highly successful doing so.
  • LouiseRose92
    LouiseRose92 Posts: 112
    I would strongly reccomend getting a scale. They're so cheap and they really help.
    I got mine free when I subscribed to a baking magazine and I use it everyday.

    Most foods on the database have cooked and raw information. Meat, I think, is better to weigh cooked and stuff that absorbs a lot of water during cooking, like rice, is better to do raw.

    I don't bother weighing very low calories things like mixed salad (the one I get is mostly leaves and about 10 cals a serving) or spring onions. I just eyeball it.
    But I always weigh ice cream, or cheese. It's just too tempting to go over :wink:
  • paulaviki
    paulaviki Posts: 678 Member
    The scale really opened my eyes to how much I was eating.

    This. It's amazing to see how big portions you sometimes eat when not weighing. I was having 2 or 3 times the amount of cereal, pasta, rice etc that I should be having!
  • sandiburn
    sandiburn Posts: 149
    When I first started I did. Now that I am used to eating the right size portions, I dont always.
  • munchlaxx
    munchlaxx Posts: 102 Member
    I didn't weigh my food at first, but since we eat at home more than go out...I finally started weighing things the past couple of weeks to be more accurate.
  • m16shane
    m16shane Posts: 393 Member
    I don't weigh everything but I do if I'm not sure. Its a good way not to cheat yourself
  • newmooon56
    newmooon56 Posts: 347 Member
    Ive done food diaries before knowing they work (notebook style before MFP) and I used measuring cups more than a scale then. I still use measuring cups more than the scale but I do use the scale now and then.

    I find when I stop using these tools- thats step 1 in going back to bad behavior- when I give myself permission to 'eye' out a serving - my eye lies! So cups are close at hand always- scale is on the counter- it takes a second to get it right.
  • Amryfal
    Amryfal Posts: 225
    i use measuring cups when i'm in doubt. i don't have a food scale but i know i should get one. i try to leave room in my estimates for a little too much here or too little there. but then, i've been measuring by eye and weighing by hand since i was a child and i have a pretty high degree of accuracy at it, for a lot of reasons. i imagine as i get closer to my goal it will have to become a finer science.
  • VisBella
    VisBella Posts: 21 Member
    As it happens, I just bought a scale this past week. Wow, am I glad that I did. My estimates were way off. It’s also made life a little easier. Now I can weigh out various items like nuts, put them in baggies, and have premeasured treats handy. I bought mine at Amazon for $15. I could have spent less, but I liked the stainless steel body and overall design. The scale is easy to use and clean, and you can choose ounces or grams. I would recommend it to anyone who is serious about their diet.

    http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004CG469E/ref=oh_details_o04_s00_i00
  • BellaEle
    BellaEle Posts: 13
    Since I started to weight all my food I started to lose weight.. It's the only way to be sure about how much calories you're eating! I weight even fresh fruit... i weight everything.. and if there are no info on the package I search for it on the internet (in Italy we have this very useful website www.calorie.it) and then I have at least an idea about what and how much I'm going to eat.. it works!
  • GreenEyedLady1
    GreenEyedLady1 Posts: 67
    i weigh / measure everything pretty much.

    if it's something with the nutrition info on the package, like one slice of bread or 6 crackers, then i know what to put for the calories. but things like milk, shredded cheese, pasta, etc, i weigh or measure with measure cups so i know exactly how many servings i am using.

    i was completely surprised at the HUGE difference in when i 'estimated' a serving vs actually measuring one out.
  • gsager
    gsager Posts: 977 Member
    I didn't think I would need scales but I'm starting to realise I do really need them. It's getting hard to try and estimate everything.
    It's getting to track my food when I can't find things and I don't know what they weigh.
    It's easy if I buy food that has the info on it, but when I get meat/ham/chicken from the butcher or deli how I am supposed to track that?
    Do you weigh the food before or after cooking ?
    Before, 4 oz. of meat means raw. 2 oz. of pasta means uncooked.
  • gombolyu
    gombolyu Posts: 136 Member
    At the beggining I just tried to guess. When I started to measure I was surprised. I underestimated a lot. I use my scales a lot, but I know my genereal stuff now, so I don't measeure everything. Mostly I eat what I prepare, and I really like to have a good overwiew.
  • Ralphrabbit
    Ralphrabbit Posts: 351 Member
    Is there any other way to be accurate!?!?!? Foods that already have the numbers on tend to be processed & not very healthy so I stay well away from them anyway!!
  • ketchup38
    ketchup38 Posts: 112 Member
    Yes. All the time!
    I actually love seeing how much my food turns out to be in cals/grams.
    Definitely helps put the idea of portion control in better perspective.

    The biggest shocker like most have said has been with cereals, especially granola!
  • Enigmatica
    Enigmatica Posts: 879 Member
    Yep I have to weigh and measure or I *will* underestimate, lol
  • rebeccasedwards
    rebeccasedwards Posts: 208
    I have scales and do weigh some things. I also measure my food at home. However we do eat out a lot so I can't always measure my food. I just make good choices when we are eating out.
  • Gloria67648
    Gloria67648 Posts: 108 Member
    I weigh things like meats, cheese, nuts. I had no idea that 1 oz of cheese was so big. Or that 1 oz of nuts was so small.
  • photojunkie28
    photojunkie28 Posts: 292
    I have not invested in a scale. I have lost 37 lbs since January so I figure it's not necessary. I do use measuring cups for most things like milk and oats but often estimate those realy low cal things like cucumber and broccoli. I use the palm hand rule for my meat portions if there is not info of amount of servings on the package.

    As long as you are being honest with yourself I think you can "guess" with reasonable accuracy. As I get closer to my goal weight I do realize measuring may become a possibility though.
  • angieroo2
    angieroo2 Posts: 970 Member
    I use measuring cups/spoons all the time. I use my scale sometimes, but am still working on making it a habit. I was surprised to find out there were quite a few things I overestimated on. Cereal was one. I thought I was eating double what I actually put in my bowl. Also meat is important because eyeballing it can be pretty inaccurate. But as Gloria67648 said, I had no idea how much one oz of cheese is.
  • monicalosesweight
    monicalosesweight Posts: 1,173 Member
    I usually weigh out the amount of meat I plan on eating then I look it up online and get an estimate for calories based on the type of meat. For example, I may be looking up flank steak or sirloin steak and I figure out my best guess. The weighing is to know if it's a 4 ounce steak, 6 ounce or if I accidentally picked a 12 ounce steak which needs to be cut in half. I think once you sorta see the size of the steaks based on weight, you'll be able to pick out that amount. The other option is talk to the butcher and tell him the type of meat you want and ask him to cut it by a certain amount of ounces. He can probably set it up so you can individually freeze them when you get home. :)

    Not all processed foods are bad. If you go to an organic stores you'll find some great cereals which are healthy and not junk laden with sugar. Also, some processed foods at the organic store have fewer chemicals. The only way to know is to look at the ingredients. Sometimes it's nice to have a dish in the freezer for a night when you're tired or you have a headache. :(

    Monica

    P.S. I agree with everyone here - a scale is critical to weighing foods such as meats. Oh, I also keep measuring cups and tablespoon measurements for everything from jam to coffee creamer.
  • beansprouts
    beansprouts Posts: 410 Member
    Yes...I weigh and measure everything!
  • woodsygirl
    woodsygirl Posts: 354 Member
    I think i'm an obsessive food scale user, lol. I weigh everything. I usually try to use the gm setting for most things, but sometimes I need to switch and use oz. I even weigh my milk when I pour it, just to make sure it's exactly 1/2 cup.
  • blushlady
    blushlady Posts: 7 Member
    I love my scale it really made me realize how much I was eating. Eventually you won't need it as much you pretty much will be able to eyeball quantities .

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