why do you use a scale to weigh food?

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Replies

  • monkeefun
    monkeefun Posts: 271 Member
    My idea of a serving is to eat until I feel physically ill, so the scale helps.

    This. So much this. Physically ill, or until you need wheels to get around properly...The food scale absolutely helps with this. Eliminates the physically ill, and eventually you learn to measure properly and how much a serving really is (and ultimately, get fuller faster).
  • monkeefun
    monkeefun Posts: 271 Member
    would many of you on here recommend a digital scale or does it matter really? :)

    I got the cheapest one I could from Amazon. It does ounces and grams which I think is helpful and it's got a little tray you can put stuff in it. For me the big thing (after peanut butter) was cheese. Love cheese. Wasn't good at figuring out what an ounce of cheese was. If you're trying to be serious about counting your calories, weighing it is the best way to be able to do that. Plus you learn all sorts of great math multiplying and dividing ("Okay that says 3 oz is this many cals but I ate 2 oz which means I type .66 in the box and ..."). After you do it for a while you get good at estimating. When you start you tend to be bad at estimating.

    I actually have the Biggest Loser kitchen scale (hubby bought it for me once many moons ago as a way of keeping motivated - it now sits in storage waiting for us to have a kitchen again :-(), and it worked wonderfully. Once I got it, I don't think I ever stopped using it. Really showed how much we were eating compared to what we should be eating.
  • poohpoohpeapod
    poohpoohpeapod Posts: 776 Member
    It helps to teach you what the right portion is. After a while you will be able to judge. Befiore I had a scale my 4 ounces was more like 8 ounces, now I CAN eyeball it and be quite accurate. Like anything it is a tool.
  • Resa52
    Resa52 Posts: 182 Member
    For us, it's because we have zero idea of what a portion size is SUPPOSE to be. In the two weeks we've been tracking and measuring, we've found that most of our meals are actually four servings PER PERSON. Knowing that this is what 4 oz of X looks like and this is what one cup of that looks like is a learned skill. Eventually we'll be able to eyeball a lot of stuff, but not at this point.
  • TNR32
    TNR32 Posts: 110 Member
    I absolutly love my food scale I just bought one and am shocked at how small serving sizes are. I never learned proper portion sizes and I also don't do well by compairing it to other things like meat deck of cards is that 4 or 5 oz accutally.
  • Spartan_Maker
    Spartan_Maker Posts: 683 Member
    You can't manage what you don't measure.

    I like guaranteed results.
  • NRSPAM
    NRSPAM Posts: 961 Member
    Well, I haven't read all of the posts, so I'm sure someone has already said this, but many of us are unaware of our portion sizes and what they should ACTUALLY look like. Living in America where portions are always larger than they should be, everywhere you turn, it's easy to over estimate. No, most people don't do it forever, but especially starting out, it is important. For instance, when I first started losing weight, I was really surprised at the difference between my version of a tablespoon, and a tablespoon's version of a tablespoon! Lol. Once you get the idea of what your portions should look like, and once you have lost atleast the majority of the weight you need to lose, I would say it would be ok to lose the scale and measuring utensils.
  • Cinflo58
    Cinflo58 Posts: 326 Member
    I weight my food occasionally to tract accurately. I don;t weight and measure everything every day
  • LacyJean1
    LacyJean1 Posts: 36 Member
    portion control.
  • YoungAchiever
    YoungAchiever Posts: 3 Member
    You use a scale because you're able to track your calories more accurately than you can by
    other means like using "portions".
  • ecw3780
    ecw3780 Posts: 608 Member
    My idea of a serving is to eat until I feel physically ill, so the scale helps.

    Pretty much this. Also, my cereal bowls don't seem to be made by the cereal companies idea of a serving so it keeps me from eating half a box for breakfast.
  • XXbrendaXX
    XXbrendaXX Posts: 169
    If you are taking the time to log/count your food/calories, I assume you would want your numbers be accurate? How can they be if you are just "guessing" on your food portions??
  • tridiv
    tridiv Posts: 47 Member
    I used the scale in the beginning when we started out, I dont use it anymore for standard things that I eat, however when I eat different things I surely use the scale the first few times to ensure I get the hang of it.

    I also used the scale for certain receipes that requires too many ingredients just ensure the calories dont get lost in approximation. Its a brilliant tool to begin with, keeps you aware.

    I think once you use the MFP for about 2 years consistently you would pretty much have a fair idea on what needs to be done and wouldnt need to use it for a lifetime, thats my best guess, I have only been on here for 8 months though.
  • TheRealParisLove
    TheRealParisLove Posts: 1,907 Member
    I use a scale to weigh my food for the same reason why I use a calculator to balance my checking account: I want accuracy.

    Just like I can't rely on myself to "guess" at the balance of my bank account, I can't rely on myself to "guess" on what my food portions are.

    I will probably always use scales and measuring cups and spoons, because I always guess wrong. I guess wrong on my bank account balance, too. Now I double check both my diet and my bank balance, and my weight is down and my savings account is up.

    I do this because it works.
  • jenilla1
    jenilla1 Posts: 11,118 Member
    Get a DIGITAL scale if possible! (One that switches from oz. to grams and can tare out between items for fast and easy measuring.)

    P.S. I'm in this for the long haul and it's easy to measure and track, so I don't mind growing old with my scale. It's gonna be great to be 80 and still be ABLE to use a scale! :laugh:

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