Tracking without a kitchen scale?

mariagabriella
mariagabriella Posts: 267 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
So my kitchen scale just broke, and yes I changed the batteries several times but it was a no go.

I've been weighing food for over 8 months now so I feel a bit lost without it! I'm worried that I'll end up increasing my calories without meaning to because I'm not 100% sure how much my food weighs/how many calories are in it.

How do you track without a kitchen scale? I know some people have said they don't weigh food but somehow track anyway.

My biggest concerns are with meat and such because I can't just put it in a measuring cup.

Replies

  • StephDuffney
    StephDuffney Posts: 51 Member
    if you in the states look for a grocery outlet in or around your town. I pick up a food scale for 10.00
  • mariagabriella
    mariagabriella Posts: 267 Member
    if you in the states look for a grocery outlet in or around your town. I pick up a food scale for 10.00

    yeah, I will get a new one soon but wanted advice on how to track well until I get a new one. :)
  • pkw58
    pkw58 Posts: 2,038 Member
    I have to eat out a lot, and so I have developed a few coping skills.. here they are, but at home I do weigh and measure to keep myself in check:

    Chicken / Steak/ Salmon - a serving is about the size of a deck of cards (roughly 3-4 ounces)
    Shrimp - boiled or steamed - 10 medium/small or 4 large is a serving (roughly 4-6 ounces)

    I eat non starchy vegetables at restaurants with the exception of avocado. I always ask for slices or diced and it's pretty easy to determine it's a 1/4 , 1/2 or whole.

    For breakfast eating out I try to eat hardboiled eggs or two eggs scrambled or poached.

    I think a kitchen scale is a must have on a diet as is measuring cups. If you are low on cash, the dollar store generally has scales for cheap.

    One thing to do is after you weigh you food (say for example, one ounce of almonds) is to count how many almonds you have or pour them in your hand to understand the volume. If you are picking out fruit, try to pick an apple the size of your fist and weight it then the next time you are trying to eat without weighing you can at least eyeball to get within the right range.

    I work on adjusting my "perception" of how much I am eating while out all the time. I look at nutrition information on the web and MFP by brand names and restaurants almost daily.
  • TonyStark30
    TonyStark30 Posts: 497 Member
    I thinks its more they eat the same stuff they used to or portions of a pack rather than being able to eyeball rice!
    I know I could have my breakfast shake, my chicken for lunch, meat and salad for dinner and never go over my calories. A cake at lunch or starch with dinner would make me there or there about.
  • dad106
    dad106 Posts: 4,868 Member
    I did my whole journey without a food scale... and even now that I bought one, I don't really use it all that often.

    I think by now, you'll be good at eyeballing things.. and if you are worried, then you can always leave a few calories left over at the end of the day.
  • PinkHurricane88
    PinkHurricane88 Posts: 156 Member
    I haven't used a food scale, as one of the previous posters above has mentioned a good way to know if you don't have a scale is using visual aids, such as the deck of cards and stuff. When I did WW that was one big thing I took away was knowing how to portion my food. I do use measuring cups for portion control if it can be measured that way. But as far as weight it is best to use visual aids.
  • BR3ANDA
    BR3ANDA Posts: 622 Member
    A basic rule for meat or chicken is the size of a deck of cards (not the jumbo cards either, lol), for fish its a checkbook, fats and oils are a tablespoon or the size of a single die, nutbutters should be the size of your thumb, carbs should be the size of a computer mouse, fruit is about the size of a baseball, & veg should take up 1/2 your plate.

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