Count it or not

Gregthree
Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
My question of the day is what part of the serving do we count as weight towards our calories. For example. I had a grapefruit for dinner tonight. The package says serving size is 5.5 oz for 60 calories. We all know that the peel is a good chunk of the weight. So do I weigh the grapefruit and count that as a whole or should I weight the grapefruit, eat the contents, weigh it again to subtract the peel from the whole grapefruit and count just that towards the serving size. This has come up a lot over the 7 weeks or eating habit changing. I guess this is the same thought as should I weigh the hamburger before I cook it or after.

Any thoughts and help is greatly appreciated.

Replies

  • cathywishart3
    cathywishart3 Posts: 8
    I think you should only count what you consume. Since you don't consume the peel, weigh it after the peel is off. I also think that one of things we're supposed to learn is to measure, measure, measure when we first get started, but then we learn how to do it by eye.
  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
    1. What on earth is a grapefruit doing in a package?
    2. Check the database. A grapefruit is approximately 100 calories. Log the whole grapefruit, if you ate one it was 100 calories. If you ate half is was 50. Don't over think it.
  • jnp96
    jnp96 Posts: 163
    You don't count the peel since you don't eat the peel! :noway:
  • DaniH826
    DaniH826 Posts: 1,335 Member
    Don't over think it.

    ^^ This.
  • Gregthree
    Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
    1. What on earth is a grapefruit doing in a package?
    2. Check the database. A grapefruit is approximately 100 calories. Log the whole grapefruit, if you ate one it was 100 calories. If you ate half is was 50. Don't over think it.
    The package is the bag it came in. The are Sunkist and there were 10 or so in the bag.
  • msliu7911
    msliu7911 Posts: 638 Member
    1. What on earth is a grapefruit doing in a package?
    2. Check the database. A grapefruit is approximately 100 calories. Log the whole grapefruit, if you ate one it was 100 calories. If you ate half is was 50. Don't over think it.

    This exactly.

    I'm baffled that a grapefruit would be packaged up AND include nutritional information with it. :) In any case, just look it up in the database. I have one at least every other day and as stated above.. a whole medium sized one is about 100 calories.
  • cmm7303
    cmm7303 Posts: 423 Member
    You can also look up "raw hamburger" and "grilled hamburger" (or tuna or salmon or whatever) so you can log either weight. :)
  • NaomiJFoster
    NaomiJFoster Posts: 1,450 Member
    1. What on earth is a grapefruit doing in a package?
    2. Check the database. A grapefruit is approximately 100 calories. Log the whole grapefruit, if you ate one it was 100 calories. If you ate half is was 50. Don't over think it.

    Quoted for truthiness.
  • JessicaRobin67
    JessicaRobin67 Posts: 275 Member
    Bananas, oranges, or fruit that I peel I weigh without the peel.
    Any fruit that I eat with the peel on I weigh whole...like apples.
  • Gregthree
    Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
    1. What on earth is a grapefruit doing in a package?
    2. Check the database. A grapefruit is approximately 100 calories. Log the whole grapefruit, if you ate one it was 100 calories. If you ate half is was 50. Don't over think it.

    This exactly.

    I'm baffled that a grapefruit would be packaged up AND include nutritional information with it. :) In any case, just look it up in the database. I have one at least every other day and as stated above.. a whole medium sized one is about 100 calories.
    The package is the bag it came in like a sack of potatoes. AS far as overthinking this, I don't think I am. I am interested in knowing do I add the peel to the weight for the serving size. Maybe the better question is what is a serving size. The actual part that we consume or is the serving size the way it comes to us at the table.
  • RobinvdM
    RobinvdM Posts: 634 Member
    Im on the "don't overthink it" mindset. Truthfully, dont make a ton of work out of weighing your actual food consumed. Weigh it with peelings, call it a serving and move on. Less stress, and you have either gotten it exactly right, OR you have overestimated your calories. Either way it is a winning situation.

    With that said, I always log my meat as raw, if it loses fat on the grill (hamburger example) then I am logging overestimated calories.

    Think of it like overpaying your bills by an insignificant amount. It might not seem like a huge deal right now, but over time it turns into a not so small amount that goes towards future bills. Now substitute bills for calories :P
  • Gregthree
    Gregthree Posts: 36 Member
    Im on the "don't overthink it" mindset. Truthfully, dont make a ton of work out of weighing your actual food consumed. Weigh it with peelings, call it a serving and move on. Less stress, and you have either gotten it exactly right, OR you have overestimated your calories. Either way it is a winning situation.

    With that said, I always log my meat as raw, if it loses fat on the grill (hamburger example) then I am logging overestimated calories.

    Think of it like overpaying your bills by an insignificant amount. It might not seem like a huge deal right now, but over time it turns into a not so small amount that goes towards future bills. Now substitute bills for calories :P

    For me its not that easy. I have a slight OCD problem and when it comes to overthinking things, I am the king.
  • katevarner
    katevarner Posts: 884 Member
    Peel it and weigh what you actually eat.
  • ritasice21
    ritasice21 Posts: 200 Member
    I am also from the slightly OCD camp :-/
    I would weigh it with peel, and then weigh the "Trash" before throwing it out and minus that amount out.
    Also, most, but not all canned products include the packing liquids. So if a serving is 60 grams and you are just fishing out the "product" your counts will be way off!
  • NaomiJFoster
    NaomiJFoster Posts: 1,450 Member
    Eat the grapefruit the good way. Peel it and section it like an orange. So much easier and tastier and you get to eat the fiber of the membranes. So peel it and weight the actual fruit part.
  • nxd10
    nxd10 Posts: 4,570 Member
    Choose USDA grapefruit. Medium. Close enough.

    Same for bananas, oranges, etc. etc. Yeah there are other options, but keep looking.
  • mfoy94
    mfoy94 Posts: 228 Member
    I think youre being a little too specific. Also I dont think they calculate eating the peel into calories....since.....nobody does that..
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,347 Member
    On the meat thing, you should always weigh it raw, if possible. This is because depending on how well cooked it is, it will weigh less.

    Example (and these weights are for illustration, not specific) if you take a 300g raw rump steak and cook it rare, it might weigh 250g. If it is cooked medium, it might weigh 220g. Well done, 190g. All that's been taken out of it is moisture, but it dried out and gets lighter. So the raw weight is far more accurate.

    I follow the "if I don't eat it, I don't count it" rule for peel/bones/cores etc.
  • Babeskeez
    Babeskeez Posts: 606 Member
    I weight it before I eat it, then after. Subtract the difference then you have what you actually ate :)
  • Babeskeez
    Babeskeez Posts: 606 Member
    1. What on earth is a grapefruit doing in a package?
    2. Check the database. A grapefruit is approximately 100 calories. Log the whole grapefruit, if you ate one it was 100 calories. If you ate half is was 50. Don't over think it.

    I am going to over think it. Think about it. Calories are the difference between being able to eat more, or eat less. If I want to have more or splurge later on, you bet your *kitten* I am going to weigh the **** out of things before I eat it. That is called honest weight loss. Period.
  • melsinct
    melsinct Posts: 3,512 Member
    1. What on earth is a grapefruit doing in a package?
    2. Check the database. A grapefruit is approximately 100 calories. Log the whole grapefruit, if you ate one it was 100 calories. If you ate half is was 50. Don't over think it.

    I am going to over think it. Think about it. Calories are the difference between being able to eat more, or eat less. If I want to have more or splurge later on, you bet your *kitten* I am going to weigh the **** out of things before I eat it. That is called honest weight loss. Period.

    Or you could realize that there is always going to be a margin of error when counting calories and not drive yourself nuts over 5 calories worth of grapefruit peel. Even nutrition information on boxed food has a margin of error of up to 20% allowed by law! It is impossible to be 100% accurate, no matter how careful you are.

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