How to read/understand/eat calories correctly

ricardobf

I would like to start to know how to really understand how to eat certain amount of calories. I see is very important to know how to actually know how much calories to eat per day but I am total Noob when it comes to this matter. I might start doing the Insanity workout if not I will keep doing what I do which is 30 min cardio and 1 hr lifting weights I definitely would like to lose weight and body fat right now more than building muscle.

I want this because since I got a new job I definitely have been very inactive and since is being in a desk all day I see myself very tire after work and find myself lazy to workout when I used to be very active and even got buff since i was skinny now I am getting to much belly weight.

I dont see my self eating really bad I try to really eat healthy but yes on weekends I might not be eating that well and like I said sometimes I just workout 2 or 3 times a week but from my lack of energy and laziness I feel like I am not doing it right. I have set my goal since today, but I will like to have some knowledge on this matter.

Any suggestions/opinions will be appreciated please go easy on me and slow.

BaconMD

Use a scale to weigh your food. You will get good at figuring out weights of food the more you do it.

Log your foods accurately.

Do not avoid "building muscle." Lifting weights is the way to go for fat loss.

ricardobf

Use a scale to weigh your food. You will get good at figuring out weights of food the more you do it.

Log your foods accurately.

Do not avoid "building muscle." Lifting weights is the way to go for fat loss.

Do you actually mean putting my plate of food on an actual scale as if I was going to weight myself?

kwilliams386

They have small scales that weight in oz, and grams, and such that are used in the kitchen for food, it helps with portion control and determining your calories with more accuracy.

BaconMD

Well, sorta.

Get a good kitchen scale - mine can weigh up to 11lbs, but that's maybe a little high.

Put your plate on it, turn the scale on. It will read 0.

Put your food on your plate, like whatever, grapes? If you weigh out 200 grams of grapes, then go into your food journal and log 200 grams of grapes.

If you want a second food on the same plate, the scale should have a tare function. Press that and it will read 0 again.

Put the next food on the plate. Say it's... Whatever, peanut butter? You put some on the plate and the scale says 40 grams, go into your food journal and add 40 grams of peanut butter.

Any other method really is not much more accurate than flat-out guessing.

cwolfman13

Get a food scale. You will not on various packaging, etc that the serving is by weight or measurement or both. Weight is the most accurate. So say you have a serving of peanut butter...a serving of my particular brand of peanut butter is 1 Tbsp or 32g...and is 189 calories per serving...so I get whatever container I'm going to use and put it on the scale...turn the scale on and then add 32 g of peanut butter so that I can accurately log those calories.

I weigh and measure everything...eyeballing serving sizes leads to all kinds of calorie creep. You need to log everything to be as accurate as possible when you're counting calories.

1 Lb of fat = 3,500 calories. So, to lose 1 Lb of fat per week, you need a deficit of 3,500 calories per week in your diet...or roughly 500 calories per day. Essentially, this is what MFP does when you set your goals...it builds in that deficit to your diet. This is much easier than trying to exercise away excess calories...the deficit is just baked into your diet for weight loss. A lot of people, myself included didn't exercise at all in the beginning. I didn't want to because I wanted to make sure I had my calories right first. Once I was consistently losing I started exercising. If you're using the MFP method, you are intended to eat back exercise calories as MFP doesn't include exercise in your daily activity. I would suggest eating a portion back...like 70-80% to account for BMR calories you would have burned regardless, as well as estimation error. A lot of people over estimate calorie burn from exercise and end up eating too much back. I'd also invest in a decent heart rate monitor for more accurate burn estimates from aerobic activity (note, do not rely on it for weight training).

ricardobf

Get a food scale. You will not on various packaging, etc that the serving is by weight or measurement or both. Weight is the most accurate. So say you have a serving of peanut butter...a serving of my particular brand of peanut butter is 1 Tbsp or 32g...and is 189 calories per serving...so I get whatever container I'm going to use and put it on the scale...turn the scale on and then add 32 g of peanut butter so that I can accurately log those calories.

I weigh and measure everything...eyeballing serving sizes leads to all kinds of calorie creep. You need to log everything to be as accurate as possible when you're counting calories.

1 Lb of fat = 3,500 calories. So, to lose 1 Lb of fat per week, you need a deficit of 3,500 calories per week in your diet...or roughly 500 calories per day. Essentially, this is what MFP does when you set your goals...it builds in that deficit to your diet. This is much easier than trying to exercise away excess calories...the deficit is just baked into your diet for weight loss. A lot of people, myself included didn't exercise at all in the beginning. I didn't want to because I wanted to make sure I had my calories right first. Once I was consistently losing I started exercising. If you're using the MFP method, you are intended to eat back exercise calories as MFP doesn't include exercise in your daily activity. I would suggest eating a portion back...like 70-80% to account for BMR calories you would have burned regardless, as well as estimation error. A lot of people over estimate calorie burn from exercise and end up eating too much back. I'd also invest in a decent heart rate monitor for more accurate burn estimates from aerobic activity (note, do not rely on it for weight training).

Thanks this is very helpful. I understand that MFP doesn't account for exercise.
To see if I am understanding correctly in order to lose 1 lb I need to lose 3500 calories or 500 per day?
Also the eat back calories are the ones I need to re-fuel if you say it in other words so I have the energy to workout again right?

How can I know how much calories should I bee eating per day to lose weight and how many to eat back?

If some part you think I am confused or misunderstanding please let me know.

ricardobf

Well, sorta.

Get a good kitchen scale - mine can weigh up to 11lbs, but that's maybe a little high.

Put your plate on it, turn the scale on. It will read 0.

Put your food on your plate, like whatever, grapes? If you weigh out 200 grams of grapes, then go into your food journal and log 200 grams of grapes.

If you want a second food on the same plate, the scale should have a tare function. Press that and it will read 0 again.

Put the next food on the plate. Say it's... Whatever, peanut butter? You put some on the plate and the scale says 40 grams, go into your food journal and add 40 grams of peanut butter.

Any other method really is not much more accurate than flat-out guessing.

The name of the scale is Kitchen scale and would I be able to find a cheap one maybe at Amazon or eBay?

cwolfman13

Get a food scale. You will not on various packaging, etc that the serving is by weight or measurement or both. Weight is the most accurate. So say you have a serving of peanut butter...a serving of my particular brand of peanut butter is 1 Tbsp or 32g...and is 189 calories per serving...so I get whatever container I'm going to use and put it on the scale...turn the scale on and then add 32 g of peanut butter so that I can accurately log those calories.

I weigh and measure everything...eyeballing serving sizes leads to all kinds of calorie creep. You need to log everything to be as accurate as possible when you're counting calories.

1 Lb of fat = 3,500 calories. So, to lose 1 Lb of fat per week, you need a deficit of 3,500 calories per week in your diet...or roughly 500 calories per day. Essentially, this is what MFP does when you set your goals...it builds in that deficit to your diet. This is much easier than trying to exercise away excess calories...the deficit is just baked into your diet for weight loss. A lot of people, myself included didn't exercise at all in the beginning. I didn't want to because I wanted to make sure I had my calories right first. Once I was consistently losing I started exercising. If you're using the MFP method, you are intended to eat back exercise calories as MFP doesn't include exercise in your daily activity. I would suggest eating a portion back...like 70-80% to account for BMR calories you would have burned regardless, as well as estimation error. A lot of people over estimate calorie burn from exercise and end up eating too much back. I'd also invest in a decent heart rate monitor for more accurate burn estimates from aerobic activity (note, do not rely on it for weight training).

Thanks this is very helpful. I understand that MFP doesn't account for exercise.
To see if I am understanding correctly in order to lose 1 lb I need to lose 3500 calories or 500 per day?
Also the eat back calories are the ones I need to re-fuel if you say it in other words so I have the energy to workout again right?

How can I know how much calories should I bee eating per day to lose weight and how many to eat back?

If some part you think I am confused or misunderstanding please let me know.

Just set your activity according to the descriptions MFP gives you. When you set your goals in MFP, MFP will give you a calorie goal that has your weight loss deficit baked in. Just need to net to that goal. If you exercise, you can use a heart rate monitor...it will give you a fairly accurate burn for whatever aerobic activity you performed...I knock off 20% to account for BMR calories and estimation error...then just eat those calories back to fuel that activity (remember, MFP considers exercise to be extra so it isn't included in your activity) You can also use various data bases, including MFP's for estimated burn from various exercise. These are not nearly as accurate, but a reasonable starting point...but if it seems to much of a burn to be true...too good to be true, then it probably is.

You will most likely require a bit of experimentation to get your numbers right.

ricardobf

Get a food scale. You will not on various packaging, etc that the serving is by weight or measurement or both. Weight is the most accurate. So say you have a serving of peanut butter...a serving of my particular brand of peanut butter is 1 Tbsp or 32g...and is 189 calories per serving...so I get whatever container I'm going to use and put it on the scale...turn the scale on and then add 32 g of peanut butter so that I can accurately log those calories.

I weigh and measure everything...eyeballing serving sizes leads to all kinds of calorie creep. You need to log everything to be as accurate as possible when you're counting calories.

1 Lb of fat = 3,500 calories. So, to lose 1 Lb of fat per week, you need a deficit of 3,500 calories per week in your diet...or roughly 500 calories per day. Essentially, this is what MFP does when you set your goals...it builds in that deficit to your diet. This is much easier than trying to exercise away excess calories...the deficit is just baked into your diet for weight loss. A lot of people, myself included didn't exercise at all in the beginning. I didn't want to because I wanted to make sure I had my calories right first. Once I was consistently losing I started exercising. If you're using the MFP method, you are intended to eat back exercise calories as MFP doesn't include exercise in your daily activity. I would suggest eating a portion back...like 70-80% to account for BMR calories you would have burned regardless, as well as estimation error. A lot of people over estimate calorie burn from exercise and end up eating too much back. I'd also invest in a decent heart rate monitor for more accurate burn estimates from aerobic activity (note, do not rely on it for weight training).

Thanks this is very helpful. I understand that MFP doesn't account for exercise.
To see if I am understanding correctly in order to lose 1 lb I need to lose 3500 calories or 500 per day?
Also the eat back calories are the ones I need to re-fuel if you say it in other words so I have the energy to workout again right?

How can I know how much calories should I bee eating per day to lose weight and how many to eat back?

If some part you think I am confused or misunderstanding please let me know.

Just set your activity according to the descriptions MFP gives you. When you set your goals in MFP, MFP will give you a calorie goal that has your weight loss deficit baked in. Just need to net to that goal. If you exercise, you can use a heart rate monitor...it will give you a fairly accurate burn for whatever aerobic activity you performed...I knock off 20% to account for BMR calories and estimation error...then just eat those calories back to fuel that activity (remember, MFP considers exercise to be extra so it isn't included in your activity) You can also use various data bases, including MFP's for estimated burn from various exercise. These are not nearly as accurate, but a reasonable starting point...but if it seems to much of a burn to be true...too good to be true, then it probably is.

You will most likely require a bit of experimentation to get your numbers right.

Ok since I am new to this can I start by doing my cardio and weight lifting and weighting my food to see how that it works?

MFP says 1560 calories reaming for goal should I try to burn that by eating healthy and exercising?
Also just to clarify how do I know ho much calories do I eat per day?

I just ask because I want to do this step by step or atleast start with something simple to experiment

ldrosophila

I'll say this and it is simply my current experience, it could very well change, I have been consistently losing weight by simply sticking to portioning out my meals. I never eat more than 16 ounces at any one meal. 8ounces of that is generally vegetables. I losely count and adhere to calories because there are so many inaccuracies and variabilities to food preparation. If you look at my food diary I am way over calorie, but I always overestimate and take the higest calorie item.

In my little opinion the most important thing for weight loss is to portion control, weigh, and measure you food. However, many others have success by sticking to a certain calorie. One of the other suggestions I have is instead of one set number you look at a caloric range from about 200-300kcals/day.

dsendre

You can get a decent food scale pretty cheaply online. I just bought this one last week.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/The-Biggest-Loser-Digital-Food-Scale-6.6-lb.-Capacity/11090896?adid=1500000000000027727770

ricardobf

Still the question is out there for me how do I know how much calories I should eat and after what period of time I do the eat back of calories to get more energy everyday after the workout? o during the day?

I believe my routine will be 1 hr of insanity or maybe little less and 1 hour of weights lifting.

ricardobf

Also you guys suggested to get a weight scale for food just to be sure how do you guys know how many calories are in for example like you say grapes lets say it weights 2 grams

erickirb

Get a food scale. You will not on various packaging, etc that the serving is by weight or measurement or both. Weight is the most accurate. So say you have a serving of peanut butter...a serving of my particular brand of peanut butter is 1 Tbsp or 32g...and is 189 calories per serving...so I get whatever container I'm going to use and put it on the scale...turn the scale on and then add 32 g of peanut butter so that I can accurately log those calories.

I weigh and measure everything...eyeballing serving sizes leads to all kinds of calorie creep. You need to log everything to be as accurate as possible when you're counting calories.

1 Lb of fat = 3,500 calories. So, to lose 1 Lb of fat per week, you need a deficit of 3,500 calories per week in your diet...or roughly 500 calories per day. Essentially, this is what MFP does when you set your goals...it builds in that deficit to your diet. This is much easier than trying to exercise away excess calories...the deficit is just baked into your diet for weight loss. A lot of people, myself included didn't exercise at all in the beginning. I didn't want to because I wanted to make sure I had my calories right first. Once I was consistently losing I started exercising. If you're using the MFP method, you are intended to eat back exercise calories as MFP doesn't include exercise in your daily activity. I would suggest eating a portion back...like 70-80% to account for BMR calories you would have burned regardless, as well as estimation error. A lot of people over estimate calorie burn from exercise and end up eating too much back. I'd also invest in a decent heart rate monitor for more accurate burn estimates from aerobic activity (note, do not rely on it for weight training).

Thanks this is very helpful. I understand that MFP doesn't account for exercise.
To see if I am understanding correctly in order to lose 1 lb I need to lose 3500 calories or 500 per day?
Also the eat back calories are the ones I need to re-fuel if you say it in other words so I have the energy to workout again right?

How can I know how much calories should I bee eating per day to lose weight and how many to eat back?

If some part you think I am confused or misunderstanding please let me know.

Just set your activity according to the descriptions MFP gives you. When you set your goals in MFP, MFP will give you a calorie goal that has your weight loss deficit baked in. Just need to net to that goal. If you exercise, you can use a heart rate monitor...it will give you a fairly accurate burn for whatever aerobic activity you performed...I knock off 20% to account for BMR calories and estimation error...then just eat those calories back to fuel that activity (remember, MFP considers exercise to be extra so it isn't included in your activity) You can also use various data bases, including MFP's for estimated burn from various exercise. These are not nearly as accurate, but a reasonable starting point...but if it seems to much of a burn to be true...too good to be true, then it probably is.

You will most likely require a bit of experimentation to get your numbers right.

Ok since I am new to this can I start by doing my cardio and weight lifting and weighting my food to see how that it works?

MFP says 1560 calories reaming for goal should I try to burn that by eating healthy and exercising?
Also just to clarify how do I know ho much calories do I eat per day?

I just ask because I want to do this step by step or atleast start with something simple to experiment

You should eat teh 1560, and eat back what you burn from exercise. So on days you don't exercise eat 1560, on days you burn 600 cals eat 2160 (1560+600)

CallMeCupcakeDammit

Still the question is out there for me how do I know how much calories I should eat and after what period of time I do the eat back of calories to get more energy everyday after the workout? o during the day?

I believe my routine will be 1 hr of insanity or maybe little less and 1 hour of weights lifting.

Read this http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets

I got a food scale at Wal Mart for about $15, and I got another that only weighs oz and grams for $10 at CVS. I actually like that one better since those are the measurements I use.

jennifer_417

Also you guys suggested to get a weight scale for food just to be sure how do you guys know how many calories are in for example like you say grapes lets say it weights 2 grams

MFP has a database, where if you enter a food into your diary, it will give you the calories in it automatically. For instance, if you ate a 4-oz chicken breast, you could just enter that into your diary, and MFP will automatically post the calories and how much you have left for the day.

ricardobf

Also you guys suggested to get a weight scale for food just to be sure how do you guys know how many calories are in for example like you say grapes lets say it weights 2 grams

MFP has a database, where if you enter a food into your diary, it will give you the calories in it automatically. For instance, if you ate a 4-oz chicken breast, you could just enter that into your diary, and MFP will automatically post the calories and how much you have left for the day.

I understand I already did that for example for 1 cup of rice I know it depends how much salt or butter or how you prepare it but at least I have a rough approach. My question is when it comes on scaling the food lets say like the example they gave me lets say an apple weights 3 grams i just simply covert that to calories and have track on that right?

BaconMD

Also you guys suggested to get a weight scale for food just to be sure how do you guys know how many calories are in for example like you say grapes lets say it weights 2 grams

MFP has a database, where if you enter a food into your diary, it will give you the calories in it automatically. For instance, if you ate a 4-oz chicken breast, you could just enter that into your diary, and MFP will automatically post the calories and how much you have left for the day.

I understand I already did that for example for 1 cup of rice I know it depends how much salt or butter or how you prepare it but at least I have a rough approach. My question is when it comes on scaling the food lets say like the example they gave me lets say an apple weights 3 grams i just simply covert that to calories and have track on that right?

Honestly man, you really should be eating more than 1500-1600 calories per day, especially if you're working out. You have barely any weight to lose and you look like you're quite fit in that picture.. I eat 2700 calories every day, give or take a hundred.

Read the link CallMeCupcake posted, and then read it again. Repeat until you really fully grasp it. I

As for your question about how to track food, here's what you do.

Take an apple, and decide HONESTLY if it's small, medium or large. Eat the apple, then go to your MFP food diary and add an apple by searching for "apple raw" and choosing the USDA entry that does not have a * next to it. In the dropdown menu, choose "1 medium" if it's a medium apple that you ate.

If you want to be 100% accurate, using an apple again as the example, weigh the apple on your kitchen scale and say it weighs 225 grams. Eat the apple, then weigh the core, say it's 10 grams, so you ate 215 grams of apple (I did say accurate, right?). Go to your MFP food diary and add an apple by searching for "apple raw" and choosing the USDA entry that does not have a * next to it. In the dropdown menu, choose "100g" and for the serving size, put in "2.15" to give you 215g of apple. Add that, and in your food diary, you'll see the calories automatically.

For fruits and veggies, I'm ok for the most part by just entering rough sizes, but when it comes to high-calorie foods, say nuts or oils or meats, or whatever, then I tend to weigh and be much more accurate.

Say you cook some bacon, then weigh it after you cook it, and say it says 50 grams, then search for "pork cured bacon cooked" and choose the appropriate USDA entry (without a * next to it) and then choose the 100g from the menu and enter .5 as the serving size. If you use the bacon fat in a recipe, you can log that too by searching for "bacon grease" and choose the appropriate USDA entry (without a * next to it)...

It's not too hard, and though it might seem tedious, once you do it a few times (and learn to use the tare function to quickly weigh multiple things going onto one plate), you'll see it's quick and easy to do.

CallMeCupcakeDammit

Definitely what BaconMD said, and also, here's a link regarding tracking. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/872212-you-re-probably-eating-more-than-you-think

ricardobf

Also you guys suggested to get a weight scale for food just to be sure how do you guys know how many calories are in for example like you say grapes lets say it weights 2 grams

MFP has a database, where if you enter a food into your diary, it will give you the calories in it automatically. For instance, if you ate a 4-oz chicken breast, you could just enter that into your diary, and MFP will automatically post the calories and how much you have left for the day.

I understand I already did that for example for 1 cup of rice I know it depends how much salt or butter or how you prepare it but at least I have a rough approach. My question is when it comes on scaling the food lets say like the example they gave me lets say an apple weights 3 grams i just simply covert that to calories and have track on that right?

Honestly man, you really should be eating more than 1500-1600 calories per day, especially if you're working out. You have barely any weight to lose and you look like you're quite fit in that picture.. I eat 2700 calories every day, give or take a hundred.

Read the link CallMeCupcake posted, and then read it again. Repeat until you really fully grasp it. I

As for your question about how to track food, here's what you do.

Take an apple, and decide HONESTLY if it's small, medium or large. Eat the apple, then go to your MFP food diary and add an apple by searching for "apple raw" and choosing the USDA entry that does not have a * next to it. In the dropdown menu, choose "1 medium" if it's a medium apple that you ate.

If you want to be 100% accurate, using an apple again as the example, weigh the apple on your kitchen scale and say it weighs 225 grams. Eat the apple, then weigh the core, say it's 10 grams, so you ate 215 grams of apple (I did say accurate, right?). Go to your MFP food diary and add an apple by searching for "apple raw" and choosing the USDA entry that does not have a * next to it. In the dropdown menu, choose "100g" and for the serving size, put in "2.15" to give you 215g of apple. Add that, and in your food diary, you'll see the calories automatically.

For fruits and veggies, I'm ok for the most part by just entering rough sizes, but when it comes to high-calorie foods, say nuts or oils or meats, or whatever, then I tend to weigh and be much more accurate.

Say you cook some bacon, then weigh it after you cook it, and say it says 50 grams, then search for "pork cured bacon cooked" and choose the appropriate USDA entry (without a * next to it) and then choose the 100g from the menu and enter .5 as the serving size. If you use the bacon fat in a recipe, you can log that too by searching for "bacon grease" and choose the appropriate USDA entry (without a * next to it)...

It's not too hard, and though it might seem tedious, once you do it a few times (and learn to use the tare function to quickly weigh multiple things going onto one plate), you'll see it's quick and easy to do.

Thanks I'll keep going back to your post to fully get it, where can I find the cupcake link ?

Ok so the ones with the * are bad try to find the query without for more accuracy because I believe I do have some of my entries with that.

Yes I mean I do not say I m not that fit, but I have notice getting weight this past year my belly fat is increasing I feel more flaccid and I want to avoid that and by eating healthy and doing my exercise I want to see if I can actually drop some pounds.

I'll post something I want to also ask I am sorry if you might get a lil desperate but really I do appreciate all of your help.


Also can you clarify me the * next to the queries next to it.. i query something and all of them start like " *Glazed donuts" is that what you mean dont use or how can I see all of my queries like that.

ricardobf

Here is what I also had a doubt/question about.

I am doing the insanity program first of all do you think it might work? I mean is the first time I do such thing and I'm in the third day today. I try to do the exercises the best I can and to endure the whole 30-45 min the set. Obviously those guys on the video never stop. Sometimes I do have to stop i start good then on some intervals i rest even if he keeps yelling to keep moving lol!. I do sweat a lot and my heart is so fast plus I am sore. Will this help me lose weight plus the healthy eating we are discussing even if i do not do it as perfect as in the video since I have to accept I do not have nay condition at all hehe.


And here is a picture of my food tracking do you guys think I am kind of doing it right? maybe baconMD who has give me great advice can take a look

http://i49.tinypic.com/18yz2c.jpg

Im just concern that since is a something MFP gave me I have some red on carbs and protein would that might stop me from losing weight? or Am I doing it right lets say with the tracking of food and the actual results?

I still have difficulties understanding how to track obviously Ill take in consideration the suggestions above this post and the new to come, adn example for today might be Ill eat a portion of white rice, chicken and broccoli and some beans.. since i have got my kitchen scale how can I know how many serving or grams is a little topper ill post a photo so you can get a rough idea

http://i50.tinypic.com/11cehk8.jpg


Just copy paste the links to the browser

CallMeCupcakeDammit

You want to look up "bananas raw" (without the quotes) and use that one, not just 1 banana, or the bananas entered by size, then go the dropdown menu (I think it starts with 1 c mashed) and go down to where it says 100 g, then you can enter the actual weight. I used 35 g of banana in my oatmeal, so I would put .35 as my serving size. I don't know how to do screen shots, so I can't show you what I mean. The entries with * are ones other members added to the database. Sometimes they're accurate, and sometimes they're not. After you've been doing this for a while, things will stand out that might not be right. My imitation crab meat I had originally entered into my diary last night had 11 g of carbs. Whoever entered it into the database entered the carbs as 115 g! If you have the correct information, where MFP asks you if the entry is correct, you can say "no" and then you'll be given the option to edit to make it correct.

This is the link I had posted earlier. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets
I would say it's ok that your protein was over. It seems a little low for your goal, anyway, but you'll know for sure after you read the info in the link I posted.

If you enjoy doing Insanity, there's no reason not to do it as long as you're keeping proper form so you don't injure yourself. I think a lot of people here would tell you to include heavy lifting in your routine, if you're not already doing it. Not on the same days you do Insanity, though.

BaconMD

^^ Everything she said.

I try hard to only use the database entries without the * beside them, but it's sometimes unavoidable. There are entries for most things, especially produce, meats, etc. Pretty much anything generic.

I wouldn't worry about protein going into the red, that's a good thing. Some people are carb-haters, and would say it's bad for carbs to be in the red, but I have had a lot of carbs and still lose weight. It's really more about your overall energy output (exercise + living), versus your overall fuel input (food and drink)... If you eat less than you burn, you'll lose weight. But don't go overboard - for a variety of reasons, it is best to have a smaller caloric deficit, the least of which is the studies showing keeping weight off in the long-term is much more difficult for people who eat very little and exercise a lot.

Like I said, I am eating 2700 calories per day and I still lose weight. I came to this number by using a TDEE calculator and subtracting a percentage (10-20% or so).

ricardobf

You want to look up "bananas raw" (without the quotes) and use that one, not just 1 banana, or the bananas entered by size, then go the dropdown menu (I think it starts with 1 c mashed) and go down to where it says 100 g, then you can enter the actual weight. I used 35 g of banana in my oatmeal, so I would put .35 as my serving size. I don't know how to do screen shots, so I can't show you what I mean. The entries with * are ones other members added to the database. Sometimes they're accurate, and sometimes they're not. After you've been doing this for a while, things will stand out that might not be right. My imitation crab meat I had originally entered into my diary last night had 11 g of carbs. Whoever entered it into the database entered the carbs as 115 g! If you have the correct information, where MFP asks you if the entry is correct, you can say "no" and then you'll be given the option to edit to make it correct.

This is the link I had posted earlier. http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/819055-setting-your-calorie-and-macro-targets
I would say it's ok that your protein was over. It seems a little low for your goal, anyway, but you'll know for sure after you read the info in the link I posted.

If you enjoy doing Insanity, there's no reason not to do it as long as you're keeping proper form so you don't injure yourself. I think a lot of people here would tell you to include heavy lifting in your routine, if you're not already doing it. Not on the same days you do Insanity, though.

You can provide me a screen shot like this just use the windows snipping tool under start logo/accessories and there it is if not using windows or cant find it just use your keyboard that says home/prt sc or similar abbreviation but mos likely is always under the home key. since I enter boiled eggs and I always see like *boiled eggs without yolk ( the one I want since i get the yolk out).

Did you checked my pics? you can use that site to post them like I did tinypic.com and thanks for your post

ricardobf

^^ Everything she said.

I try hard to only use the database entries without the * beside them, but it's sometimes unavoidable. There are entries for most things, especially produce, meats, etc. Pretty much anything generic.

I wouldn't worry about protein going into the red, that's a good thing. Some people are carb-haters, and would say it's bad for carbs to be in the red, but I have had a lot of carbs and still lose weight. It's really more about your overall energy output (exercise + living), versus your overall fuel input (food and drink)... If you eat less than you burn, you'll lose weight. But don't go overboard - for a variety of reasons, it is best to have a smaller caloric deficit, the least of which is the studies showing keeping weight off in the long-term is much more difficult for people who eat very little and exercise a lot.

Like I said, I am eating 2700 calories per day and I still lose weight. I came to this number by using a TDEE calculator and subtracting a percentage (10-20% or so).

Once again thanks for you quick response, by any chance did you look at my pics mainly the one of my lunch i brought to work I kind of do know how to enter the servings there since I still dont have my scale ( hasn't been deliver) i find rice i kind of put 100 g cuz it aint a cup or by a cup is putting the cooked rice ina cup then serving it to a plate? lol!

CallMeCupcakeDammit

Since you don't have your scale yet, using a measuring cup would be your next best alternative. I don't know what 100 g of rice looks like. You could look up rice, cooked and then enter the amount you used. Yay, I learned something new! :bigsmile:

ricardobf

Since you don't have your scale yet, using a measuring cup would be your next best alternative. I don't know what 100 g of rice looks like. You could look up rice, cooked and then enter the amount you used. Yay, I learned something new! :bigsmile:

Did you use the

CallMeCupcakeDammit

Since you don't have your scale yet, using a measuring cup would be your next best alternative. I don't know what 100 g of rice looks like. You could look up rice, cooked and then enter the amount you used. Yay, I learned something new! :bigsmile:

Did you use the

Yeah, I used the img tags. One of my friends is a dj in TN, and the only way I can hear his station is using winamp. I closed some stuff because I didn't want anyone to think I don't work!

It will be so much easier once you get your scale. You should join the Eat. Train. Progress. group.

BaconMD

It's really hard to tell how much food is in a picture. I'd be a better estimator in person, honestly, and even then I only do it when I'm out somewhere else and I tend to gravitate towards the "1 cup" options since it's easier to visualize. But if I'm at home, I always weigh my stuff. And by "cup" they mean like, 1 cup as in the measurement... Roughly 240-250mL or 8oz ish. They're for volume, rather than weight, and is less accurate than weighing, so just hold tight for your scale rather than rushing out for measuring cups.

ANYHOW, I weighed my rice at dinner tonight and had 200g on my plate, and it looked roughly around twice what you have, so I'd say 100g is probably close enough. Again, when you get a scale and use it, you'll get good at estimating for those times when you're not at home.

I can't tell what's mixed with the broccoli - chicken? If so, is it just breast? I'd search for chicken and add "Chicken - Breast, meat only, cooked, roasted" or whatever suits how it was prepared, then choose a serving size as close to what you figure you've got there. Maybe 0.5 servings of "1 cup, chopped or diced"? It's hard to tell from a picture.

And the beans, did you use a half a can or something? Again, it's hard to tell from a picture, but I'd search for "beans canned" and look through for an entry that matches without a *, and add like 1/2 cup or something.

For the broccoli, you could probably just put "1 serving" in, since I have no clue what that would be, and it's not going to be a very big difference anyhow, given how low-cal it is.



I don't use Windows or Winamp, I use Linux and Totem... But I think that's totally off-topic.

ricardobf

I have my scale now and what i did is set it to grams i serve it on a plate then weight it for example rice it was 256g and then just logged it in here