Do you weight EVERYTHING?

MysticRealm
MysticRealm Posts: 1,264 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Urg, just did something that REALLY made me realizing how important weighing your food is.
My bag of small apples says that per one apple (100 grams) is 50 calories. I just weighed all 3 of the apples I had left and they each weighed around 150 grams! Half as much more than they are supposed to weigh!! That's only about 25 calories more, but still! I often have 4-6 apples a day!! That adds up! And my chicken is more than I originally thought it was when I started using my scale.
When I looked up calories for the kind of chicken I had it says 160 calories for 150 grams chicken breast, well that's all fine and good but the chicken weighed 225 grams!! Maybe it's better that I keep my calories lower if I am gonna make accidents like that!!!
For those that have a food scale, do you weight EVERYTHING? Like pita wraps, if it says 80 cals for 2 mini pitas, do you weigh those to see if they are actually weigh what it says? Grr.
I had had my calories at 1500 (didn't have a food scale then so went by measuring cups and what the packaging said it weighed) and was losing weight pretty good (1-2 pounds a week), stalled out a bit cause of Christmas which lasted till Jan 6th due to when family was coming in, and have had troubles getting back on track. I thought that if I upped my calories to 1800 (according to an online TDEE calc it's 2500) that would give me a bit more leeway to eat and so make it easier to get back on track. However I know wonder how many calories I was ACTUALLY eating when I thought I was eating 1500, maybe I was eating pretty close to or above 1800 calories. And now that I have my calories set at 1800, what if I mess up my calorie counts and eat a lot more than I think. Now i am getting up to above 2000 calories. Not sure what I should do. I was losing nice and consistently on (what I thought was) 1500 calories. Not too fast, not too slow. Should I bump back down to 1500 ish and give myself room for mistakes in my calculations, or stay at (what I think is) 1800 calories?
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Replies

  • maryd523
    maryd523 Posts: 661 Member
    Stick at what you thought was 1500 calories. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    If your TDEE is 2,500, then stick to the 1,800. Make sure you weight/measure everything. Give it 4 weeks and reassess based on your weight loss.
  • samantha1242
    samantha1242 Posts: 816 Member
    Wow 4-6 apples a day! You must love apples!

    I don't weigh everything, but I do weigh my fruits, pasta, meat and cheese. Some other things occasionally.
  • MsLilly200
    MsLilly200 Posts: 192 Member
    Yes I weigh everything. Because the package is almost always wrong by at least a few grams. And that might not be all that much, but it can add up.

    The only thing I don't weigh is fast food, cause I already know it's bad for my hips and the websites never say what it's supposed to weigh anyway.
  • MysticRealm
    MysticRealm Posts: 1,264 Member
    Thanks guys.
    Yes one of my FAVE snacks is an apple dipped in cinnamon/splenda mix. So yummy (and ya ya, I know, splenda).
    Any other opinions?
  • taso42
    taso42 Posts: 8,980 Member
    I had a few moments like yours. I found out what I thought was 1 tbsp of peanut butter was really 2. That's a 100 calorie error. I weigh most things, but not everything. Basically you want to be sure you're logging pretty accurately. Whatever it takes to get a sense of confidence about what you're logging...
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  • makaiya
    makaiya Posts: 80 Member
    When it comes to fruits and non-starchy vegetables I'm heavy handed. They won't kill me. Chicken and fish I weigh, but generally use the "deck of cards" measurement. Nuts go on the scale, too easy to eat the handfuls I want to eat. Red meat, rice, and pasta always go on the scale.

    OCD is a real condition. Obsessing about exact measurement kills the joy of eating. Use smaller plates to make small servings look bigger. For measuring spoons and cups, fill and brush off the excess. Yes, calories do add up, but throw in an extra few steps when walking, or one extra push-up - those calories burned add up, too.
  • WildcatMom82
    WildcatMom82 Posts: 564 Member
    I weigh anything that has to be portioned out in addition to produce. Since getting my scale for Christmas it has become apparent some serving measurements are off. Most notably I've always measured out 1/4 cup of trail mix and since switching to weighing it's clear that was an overestimation on the part of the manufacturer. I only weigh things like bread if I cut it in half or something.
  • PriceK01
    PriceK01 Posts: 834 Member
    I weigh most things, it's been a real eye opener. Now that I've been doing that for a couple of months, I have a better eye and can guess fairly close on foods I eat often.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    OCD is a real condition. Obsessing about exact measurement kills the joy of eating.

    OCD is a real disorder and it cannot be caused by weighing food. It is generally a seratonin related brain chemistry issue that causes floods of unwanted thoughts, things that a person without the disorder filters out as insignificant or unimportant. It has nothing to so do with weighing food, though a person with clinical OCD would probably be likely to either enjoy or get great anxiety from food measurement.
  • VelociMama
    VelociMama Posts: 3,119 Member
    Once you get into the habit of weighing/measuring, it's very easy and takes almost no time. I definitely suggest doing it especially for beginners so you can learn proper portion control.

    I weigh and measure mostly everything even now. It really is no trouble to do it and gives me the peace of mind that I'm actually logging the correct portions.
  • NatashaShen
    NatashaShen Posts: 295 Member
    I usually just weigh meats. Other then that I weight the occasional thing to see how much something is, then after that I just eyeball it. I measure pasta, rice and stuff like that. But mostly just eyeball. Its worked for me so far :smile:
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  • cmcollins001
    cmcollins001 Posts: 3,472 Member
    Weigh it all in my opinion. Unless you're having one of those, "I really don't care" days. I weigh as much food as I can, just short of bringing a scale to work with me or to restaurants with me.

    I've found some food I get more than I thought and others I don't get as much as I thought. I use my digital scale instead of measuring cups anymore. I just put my plate on the scale and zero it out as I add stuff..works like a charm.
  • melissarina
    melissarina Posts: 113 Member
    Wow, that's a lot of fruit each day. I try to limit fruit to 1-2 pieces per day, because of the fructose levels.

    At the start, I weighed everything I ate, until I had a good idea of a standard serving. Now, I'm much better at estimating, and only weigh things occasionally. You'll get the hang of it :)
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    OCD is a real condition. Obsessing about exact measurement kills the joy of eating.

    OCD is a real disorder and it cannot be caused by weighing food. It is generally a seratonin related brain chemistry issue that causes floods of unwanted thoughts, things that a person without the disorder filters out as insignificant or unimportant. It has nothing to so do with weighing food, though a person with clinical OCD would probably be likely to either enjoy or get great anxiety from food measurement.

    What an awesome answer. I swear that's me. I have OCD. I deal with it and try not to let it get to me. It's funny you say a person can get joy from weighing food. I truly do. I weigh all my stuff and my fiancee's the night before, bag it in zip local or Tupperware and have it ready for the next day. Today we were at her sisters house and I spent an hour separating her cereal, snacks and chicken for the week just because I felt it needed to be done since she is now on mfp. Man, I guess I am just a bit crazy.

    I do too. The weird thing about OCD is that not all of the compulsions are unpleasant. You like some of them. Its only a problem when they cause you anxiety or get out of control and interfere with your life. I keep it in check and dont allow myself to stress if I can't weigh something or have to eat off-book.
  • michellekicks
    michellekicks Posts: 3,624 Member
    I weigh meat, fruit, cheese, veggies, snack foods etc. I don't weigh eggs, bread slices, protein powder, some crackers, canned tuna, etc. Some things I suppose I assume the package is pretty accurate. Maybe it's not, but I'm doing okay with the numbers I'm using. If it doesn't work anymore, I'll change the way I do it.
  • ValentineMomma
    ValentineMomma Posts: 51 Member
    Hi there,
    I have an electronic food scale, and I weigh pretty much everything. The only time I don't weigh stuff is if I'm confident that what I've served myself is the correct portion. However, the scale I have can be tricky...because liquid stuff doesn't weigh the same as solid stuff. So, 1 cup of water, may not weigh 8 oz. So that's when I'd use measuring cups. But I'm getting pretty used to weighing everything. I just make sure to keep my scale clean, so that it's always ready to use.

    Regarding the calorie intake...I usually don't mess with my calorie intake unless MFP tells me that I should adjust it. When I lost 10 lbs, MFP sends a little pop up that asks me if I want to reconfigure, or update my goals for weight loss. Once I lost the 10 lbs, I went from something like 1800 calories a day to 1540 a day.

    I hope that helps. You're learning more about portions and weight with the scale. It's a real eye opener. :) This is a good thing.
  • MysticRealm
    MysticRealm Posts: 1,264 Member
    Thanks guys. Maybe I will try 1800 for a few weeks but be diligent with weighing most everything and see how it goes.
  • FitnessPalWorks
    FitnessPalWorks Posts: 1,128 Member
    For those that have a food scale, do you weight EVERYTHING?

    I weigh my meats, fresh veggies and fresh fruit, because they aren't always the same as is listed in the database.
    Also, sometimes they are listed in grams on here when I've weighed it in oz so have to calculate online... no big deal.
    Other than that, if it's in the database and the macros match, I don't bother.
    Be aware that SOME listings in the database are incorrect, and you may have to search for the correct listing or input your own for your own use.

    Hope that helps.
  • tameejean
    tameejean Posts: 197 Member
    I have a digital scale and when I eat at home, I weigh most things, except anything that is a pre packaged serving size, like a Larabar. It doesn't bother me too bad if I can't weigh something, but it does become a it of an obsession. I have noticed that I'm pretty good at eyeballing now though. I'll grab what I think is a serving and put it on my scale and I'm usually right on the dot.
  • MoreBean13
    MoreBean13 Posts: 8,701 Member
    I guess I didn't really answer your question earlier- I weigh everything except for pre-portioned food, like tortillas. There was a time when I weighed EVERYTHING but it got out-of-control logging 1.04 slices of bread to account for differences, and I realized those things were just going to be my margin of error. I weigh fruit usually, but only the edible portion (like I probably would have cut the apple's core out first), but make some judgement calls- like I don't weigh oranges because I like to eat the slices in the rind so I'm not going to dissect them to weigh them first. And I almost never weigh bananas because they're on the go food, so I just try to choose a conservative choice (as in not be delusionally choosing 'small banana' when it's not).

    I've found protein powder scoops to be really unreliable getting you a correct portion, so that's a new one that I almost always weigh when I can. The amount of milk I put in my coffee was a shocker- I thought it was 1-2TBSP, turns out it's more like 2-2.5 oz. Peanut butter my visual estimations were off by about half.
  • Firefox7275
    Firefox7275 Posts: 2,040 Member
    I weigh most things, yes, and I have obsessive compulsive traits (not disorder) as many people do, most mental health issues are a spectrum from 'normal'/ 'healthy' to disease state anyway. Anyone who totally separates themselves from that sort of behaviour is ignorant, everyone occasionally goes back to check they switched something off or check they locked the front door even when they know deep down they already did it occasionally.

    Being a problem is about time, place, frequency and how negatively it affects your life. Weighing does not mean I eat a diet that is unhealthy or lacking in variety, and it does not stop me eating out of the house. I am sure many others are the same. Plenty of people work in environments like pharmacies and laboratories where everything is weighed, measured and double checked, are all the staff OCD?

    Sorry for the rant but I really dislike ignorance and prejudice in mental health, it's not something we should be 'accusing' people of or instilling fear about. If you want to amateur diagnose at least have the decency to do some research.
  • sunside
    sunside Posts: 2 Member
    I try to make the effot to weigh almost everything, I'm diabetic and it really helps when working out the amount of carbohydrates I am eating and thus the amount of insulin to inject. Meat and dairy and anything starchy are a must to weigh as far as i'm concerned, as it is very easy to go overboard with rice, potatoes and the like. Over the months I have listed generic foods much like the food data base on here. I know for instance that one of my winter staple side dish's of leek and cabbage steamed with chilli(tastes better then it sounds) will be less then 100 kcal for a 300g serving. I have found that when i stop weighing every thing then my portion size goes up quite quickly. It can be difficult when you eat out, so i would suggest alway fill up on the none starchy veg and then you cannot go to wrong.
  • shorty35565
    shorty35565 Posts: 1,425 Member
    I weigh every single thing that goes into my mouth, on the scale not in measuring cups. I weigh my almond milk, my sauces, my peanut butter...everything
  • Showmm
    Showmm Posts: 406 Member
    I weigh about half my food. I don't weigh the non-starchy veg or salads. I estimate the size of my slice of bread and pre-cut things such as that. I weigh meat, cheese and other dairy products, grains and other fats like olive oil. If I think it makes a big difference, I'll weigh it to be certain of its size. But I can't be bothered to worry if it was 30g or 35g of cucumber in the salad with my lunch. The calorie difference is very minor and it would drive me INSANE to try and measure everything.

    However, after reading this thread, I do think there are probably a few extra things I should measure. I think I will weigh out a small pitcher of milk in the morning, and then use it throughout the day for my tea. And fruit is something I've usually eyeballed and perhaps should measure for a while just to make sure I'm not underestimating it.
  • niknak2308
    niknak2308 Posts: 315 Member
    Once you get into the habit of weighing/measuring, it's very easy and takes almost no time. I definitely suggest doing it especially for beginners so you can learn proper portion control.

    I weigh and measure mostly everything even now. It really is no trouble to do it and gives me the peace of mind that I'm actually logging the correct portions.

    This!
  • ingeh
    ingeh Posts: 513 Member
    If the pack says per slice/wrap then I go with it but if its says per 100g I weight 100 exactly
  • gotlouis
    gotlouis Posts: 6 Member
    Even when I ate healthy, I found out I ate way too much because I wasn't losing weight so I started to weigh my food. After weighing it for a few months now, I can "eye" how much I can eat when a scale isn't around (ie. going out); but at home though, I still like to weigh my food just to be sure! :tongue:

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