Calorie shocker!

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Replies

  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
    I'm in my first week of trying to get fitter. My first steps are to do more exercise, which I'm sticking with and doing well with.

    I first thought I won't change my diet because even though I eat junk food I'm not overweight (poor excuse I know)

    Since joining here and updating my food diary however I have come to realise just how much rubbish I do eat - and there are some foods/drinks I've added and looked at the calories and thought NO WAY it cannot be that much surely?!? Needless to say I am very unaware of what I put into my body and this IS going to change. I'll stick with my usual diet for the next week to see exactly what foods I need to cut back on and what foods I could do with more of.

    Anyway, I was just wondering, when you first started eating healthy were there any foods/drinks that you thought were pretty low in calories and were shocked to find out how many they actually contain.

    For me I was really shocked at how many calories orange juice contained.

    Welcome, Even though I obesse when I started, I also logged a week with my normal diet before making changes. And when I made them it was a little at a time. And over time I got to eating pretty healthy. However, there still isn't a whole lot I won't eat. Just less of it.

    My biggest sticker shocks were Salad Dressing, anything at Quiznos, and how many calories salads at FF places have.
  • ashandstuff
    ashandstuff Posts: 442 Member
    How high in calories my gluten free premade foods are. One bagel WITHOUT any toppings or spreads is 350 cals!???? Um no thanks.
  • xX_PhoenixRising_Xx
    xX_PhoenixRising_Xx Posts: 623 Member
    I was a bit shocked the other day that a regular creme brulee latte from a local chain coffee shop is nearly 500 calories. The large is close to 700. That's not including any cream in the drink either. I wasn't expecting it to be low calorie, but wasn't expecting it to be that high either. A mocha for example is 240 calories for a regular size. Although since the creme brulee latte was so sweet I only wanted about half of a small size, I'd hazard a guess that all the calories came from sugar sugar and more sugar.
  • ninjakitty419
    ninjakitty419 Posts: 349 Member
    Before i started using MFP, I honestly thought a good, healthy breakfast consisted of: milk and cereal, orange juice, toast, maybe an egg. I thought chicken nuggets were healthy because they were chicken. And I certainly didnt realize just how many calories or how much sodium was in fast food.
  • ShadeyC
    ShadeyC Posts: 315 Member
    Here's another Shocker, Quinoa are crazy high in cal's

    but also super high in nutrients...

    THIS^ Quinoa is GOOD though because it has fats and protein that means you don't have to add all the extra stuff to get the requirement you need. You can put more veges etc with it and know you're not losing out on the protein and fats front.
  • KellySue67
    KellySue67 Posts: 1,006 Member
    I know it seems daunting and overwhelming to see the number of calories you are eating in your food, but it does not mean that you have to give up all of your favorite things. It's all about moderation. Eat less. I have learned to weigh and measure everything and while it does seem that some portions are small compared to what you were used to eating- that is the problem. We don't truly understand the size of a proper portion. Cereal, for example, is typically 2/3-1cup depending on the cereal. Add 1/2 cup of milk or soy milk or whatever. I find that I can eat bran flake- 90 calories per cup + 1/2 cup milk= 45 calories (for skim), I usually add 1/2 cup of blueberries or strawberries at about 45 calories and then greek yogurt(on the side- not in the cereal) (either Dannon light and fit at 80 calories or Chobani bites at 100 calories)- it's a great breakfast and only between 260-280 calories. You just need to think smart about how much you are eating. That doesn't mean you should fill your day with tons of junk food, but it's ok to have a little bit now and then. Plan it in to your eating for the day, and don't be afraid to try new things. I have found that I really enjoy lettuce wraps in place of my bread at lunch.
    Eat well!
  • ninjakitty419
    ninjakitty419 Posts: 349 Member
    You're smart to be getting a handle on this whole food-labeling thing before you get any older! I've been reading labels for years and thought I was pretty savvy. Then, one day I was standing in line at the grocery and picked up a packaged large cookie. The calories didn't look too bad, until I read closer and discovered that a "serving" was 1/2 a cookie! Who ever ate half a cookie? Certainly not me. I'm glad I didn't buy the damn thing! I guess the lesson here is Read the Label, the entire label including "Serving Size".

    This! Half a cookie indeed! Lol
    I have had to really take a look at what a serving size is as I am discovering that MY serving size is often double what it should be.
  • jjnt007
    jjnt007 Posts: 302 Member
    Mine was a cobb salad and a roll from cotton patch. Who new there was so much sodium in a healthy salad. Not so healthy after all.
  • oldandhealthier
    oldandhealthier Posts: 449 Member
    Totally agree about the orange juice but if you think calories are shock you need to brace yourself when you get a food scale for portion size.:frown:
  • aprileko71
    aprileko71 Posts: 11 Member
    It's never the calorie count that shocks me. It's the sodium.


    Yes!!! Especially even when eating out something healthy.
  • nursenelson
    nursenelson Posts: 295
    my shocker is sodium
    Salt is in everything and so high!
  • ShadeyC
    ShadeyC Posts: 315 Member
    My "OH-MY-GOD-THAT-HAS-HOW-MANY-CALORIES-IN-IT" moment was with bagels. Some days (pre-MFP, of course) I'd eat TWO WHOLE bagels. Seriously. And more often than not, those two bagels both had cream cheese on them. The first package I bought since starting MFP were 250 calories per bagel. Add on my favourite flavour of cream cheese and now my 'snack' is bordering into an entire meal.

    I have learned that I can still enjoy a bagel, though. I usually only have a half and I measure my toppings so no surprises. Plus, I use cream cheese as a treat instead of a regular topping. :wink:

    I LOVE bagels with cream cheese. This would be one of my all time favourite breakfasts, and I find it hard to eat a proper breakfast.
    Bagels are incredibly high when you consider that they're the 'base' of a 'meal'.
    I don't do bagels as snacks but I can squeeze them in as breakfast.
    Having said that, I go nuts on cheese.
    I will cut out everything else for cheese :P
  • seabee78
    seabee78 Posts: 126 Member
    I ordered a "mini sized" M&M chocolate blizzard from Dairy Queen, and realized that it was 370 calories after I ate it! If you order the "small size", it's a whole 660 calories! Good thing that I ordered the mini size. Geez, I really have to avoid these kind of sweets. :noway:

    LOL. I know it. I thought I'd do good steering clear of the Blizzards and getting a small dipped cone instead...cha ching! 320 calories later for the small.

    Guess it wasn't that much better.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member

    Like a jar of nuts. Has anyone ever gotten a jar of nuts and counted out X amount of pieces?

    I actually do this with almonds all the time! 27 almonds makes a great, filling snack for ~150 calories!

    You should try weighing them instead. I found out quickly that counting out cashews was giving me more calories than I was counting. It's always better to weigh, but it's especially better on the high calorie stuff like nuts, avocado, ice cream, etc.
  • lady6starlight
    lady6starlight Posts: 127 Member
    A big shocker for me were the McCafe Frappes. They always made me sick and now I know why. They're like 450 calories each? What on earth do they mix them with, lard?
  • MsMimidoll
    MsMimidoll Posts: 249 Member
    Being as how I've dieted and calorie counted on and off for the last 22 years I know the calorie count of most things I eat. Luckily I rarely eat out, and am limited in the kinds of fast foods I can eat.( Im a vegetarian so I won't eat anything if there's a chance there's any meat products in it...you don't know how much i miss fast food fries.) But still , I'm stiiilllll overweight :-/
  • GettingMooreInShape
    GettingMooreInShape Posts: 80 Member
    Condiments! Salad dressings continue to shock me every time I look up nutrition facts on them. Especially blue cheese dressing.. mmm.. mayo is higher than I originally thought too.
  • feellikerain
    feellikerain Posts: 46 Member
    How about that stupid little lemon poppyseed muffin they give you at Portillo's?? Almost 500 calories, talk about pointless!!
  • callas444
    callas444 Posts: 261 Member
    I had 1 ounce of pecan halves the other day for a snack and it was 20 grams of fat! I about fell over!
  • sunshyncatra
    sunshyncatra Posts: 598 Member
    Cheese. Oh, my beloved cheese!
  • crysann1979
    crysann1979 Posts: 1
    im in total agreement. gotta watch your macros.
  • ELEANOR43da
    ELEANOR43da Posts: 166 Member
    I was amazed at the sugar in bananas and used to eat 2 a day. I am diabetic. I have given them up . Most fruit are high ,but I keep telling myself natural sugar is not as bad. I always go over !!
  • thesifter
    thesifter Posts: 107 Member
    Vintage aged cheddar, so sad!
  • lovejonz82
    lovejonz82 Posts: 8 Member
    The big shocker for me was orange juice. I use to have four servings of it (2 tall glasses) with breakfast easily. Once I started myfitnesspal and started looking at labels I was like whoa!! I had no idea that just 8 ounces had about 22 grams of sugar. Before reading labels I ate all types of food and had no idea that I was consuming so much of the wrong things.
  • SinomenJen
    SinomenJen Posts: 262 Member
    It's never the calorie count that shocks me. It's the sodium.


    Yes!!! Especially even when eating out something healthy.

    I am sodium sensitive and it killed me to try to bring it under 1500mg a day!
  • momRN2B
    momRN2B Posts: 247 Member
    You're smart to be getting a handle on this whole food-labeling thing before you get any older! I've been reading labels for years and thought I was pretty savvy. Then, one day I was standing in line at the grocery and picked up a packaged large cookie. The calories didn't look too bad, until I read closer and discovered that a "serving" was 1/2 a cookie! Who ever ate half a cookie? Certainly not me. I'm glad I didn't buy the damn thing! I guess the lesson here is Read the Label, the entire label including "Serving Size".

    same here, I have been reading labels for years and its a new trick. They make something that most people eat as one serving into two so If you are not careful when reading the label you think the calories are ok, not realizing its for 1 serving. I mean who drinks a half of a 16-20oz bottle or half a small chips bag, I mean really!
  • brraanndi
    brraanndi Posts: 325 Member

    Like a jar of nuts. Has anyone ever gotten a jar of nuts and counted out X amount of pieces?

    I actually do this with almonds all the time! 27 almonds makes a great, filling snack for ~150 calories!

    LOL same here but before I started cutting down, I doubt I ever had just one serving of such a thing.
  • pinkgumdrop123
    pinkgumdrop123 Posts: 262 Member
    It's never the calorie count that shocks me. It's the sodium.

    yup! its been a battle
  • CandiQueen
    CandiQueen Posts: 57
    cheese was a big shocker for me, as was milk and peanut butter. hmm what else? I remember alternatively I was shocked at how MUCH vegetables you can eat for the amount of calories. You could pretty much each some veggies all day long and not meet your calories.

    I was also super shocked at the difference in calories when you make something at home versus when you get it at a restaurant.
  • penutbuttercups01
    penutbuttercups01 Posts: 25
    I am a strong believer that not all calories are created equally, I am sure everyone has heard the old 200 calories of cookies isn't the same ad 200 calories of veggies.

    Of course no one can go asking you to removed certain foods from your diet straight away but at least you are becoming aware of what is going into your body and further down the track you can make the decision yourself...

    I dont really eat packaged foods anymore or any sort of junk... My "cheat" or "junk" meals are usually a meal at a holistic cafe or restaurant, and the foods I order aren't exactly very different from my daily diet, only maybe a little larger in portions.

    So that way I am not so horrified by my caloric intake.
    I chose to give up all forms of packaged & man made junk food & I do feel 110% better for it but of course that is me, and that way I am no longer shocked by the calories in any foods that i consume, and if something I do choose to eat that is very high in calories like for example quinoa I am not hesitant to do so because I know how nutrient dense that food is and how well it will fuel my body, especially with the intensity of workouts I perform on a daily basis.

    :)

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