Calorie shocker!

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  • pyrowill
    pyrowill Posts: 1,163 Member
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    Thats the fantastic thing about calorie counting, really knocks into you. Over here in the UK there is a show called Secret Eaters, and it gets people to guess how man cals they eat each day, average people say is 1500-2500 (they are obese btw). They are then filmed and secretly followed and logged then at end of week they are shown what they actually ate, most are about 5000 cals.

    I know when i don't count calories I can easily eat 4000 without noticing. Things like that really add up.
  • hayleywalmsley
    hayleywalmsley Posts: 19
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    It's never the calorie count that shocks me. It's the sodium.

    yup sometimes i am surprised by what i can fit in my intake as opposed to how high in calories something is. But i never realised how through the roof my sodium was. Ive recently given up energy drinks in my quest to be healthier and thats a good 750mg of sodium out of my diet and yet the past few days since i started logging ive been consistently over sodium budget.

    My diet will slowly change but in the mean time i feel terrible about the amount of sodium ive been eating
    and worse. I think ive gotten low on iron cos im craving marmite but that too is ridiculously high in sodium.

    Caught myself literally drooling at a steak today
  • LannyM74
    LannyM74 Posts: 25 Member
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    I wasn't shocked by a specific food per se. But I was shocked to see that I often ate my entire daily recommended caloric intake in one meal. Sometimes I ate two meals a day that were each 1500-2000 plus calories! I was blissfully oblivious to just how many calories they contained. This usually involved Pizza Hut breadsticks with cheese....I could eat a whole order myself everyday. Damn breadsticks...
  • ayalowich
    ayalowich Posts: 242 Member
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    A single donut. Couldn't believe these were like 300 calories apiece.
  • bdur76
    bdur76 Posts: 155 Member
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    Not much typically shocks me any more, but I had 8 traditional wings and fries as part of the lunch special at Buffalo Wild Wings yesterday, and was truly shocked at the 2,070 calories and 170 grams of fat it contained. Typically hot wings are around 100-125 calories a piece. For some reason theirs are over 200 a piece. Definitely not worth it!
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
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    there are some foods/drinks I've added and looked at the calories and thought NO WAY it cannot be that much surely?!?

    Someone may have already pointed this out, but please keep in mind that high calorie =/= unhealthy and low calorie =/= healthy.

    Obviously, many unhealthy foods are high-calorie and many healthy foods are low-calorie. But the calorie count alone doesn't tell you anything. Something like an avocado will be higher calorie because of the fat content, but it's VERY good for you (if you aren't allergic!). Those foods are often very filling, too, so they're good choices if you're hungry a lot.
  • MaryLaura83
    MaryLaura83 Posts: 66 Member
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    Gatorade sports drinks. I never realized how they were ruining all my efforts.

    The cals in these surprised me too.
  • Sjenny5891
    Sjenny5891 Posts: 717 Member
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    I had no idea how much was in everything I ate. You look at a bottle of pop that says 200 calories and think it's great until you realize there are 3 servings in that bottle.

    The first thing I dropped was the Mtn Dew and my Giant Cinnamon Rolls (1,000 calories total WOW)
    I still eat my pretzles and Ice Cream sometimes. People here call it IIFYM (If it fits your micros)
  • fuzzieme
    fuzzieme Posts: 454 Member
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    I was shocked by watermelon, because I could eat a whole one in a day. It's not too sweet and it's so watery, but I shouldn't have thought that means I can eat my head in it :laugh:

    Peanutbutter surprised me. I add a full tbsp to my stir fry sauce and I never knew I was adding close to 100 calories. Boo.

    Oats were surprisingly high too, but I was eating 50g when really 40g is more than enough, and I refuse to remove something that's wonderful for your health to lose weight. It seems counter productive. Same goes for nuts, seeds, healthy oils like coconut or olive and avocado. All calorie dense but in my opinion too good to remove.

    The sodium in soy sauce blew my mind wide open, that was my biggest shock.

    I juice daily unless I'm low on money. Juice can be VERY high in calories but I find life loses it's colour when you don't have it. I feel so much more content when I start my day with juice. But the trick is, for me, to eat your fruit, and juice your vegetables. Two boiled carrots for example, will have lost a fairly substantial amount of their nutritional value, steamed and stir fired to a lesser extent, but cold pressed carrot juice has it all. If you want a glass of orange juice, you have to juice three oranges, and that's loads of calories. But if you juice four carrots with a clementine and a wedge of lemon, it's pure joy. And it doesn't leave your mouth all sticky. Sometimes I dilute my juice too, if it's particularly packed with flavour. You can have a ton of juice if you enjoy the taste of juiced celery - I do, but I have to have it with lime.
  • ailbheoconnell
    ailbheoconnell Posts: 48 Member
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    Thats the fantastic thing about calorie counting, really knocks into you. Over here in the UK there is a show called Secret Eaters, and it gets people to guess how man cals they eat each day, average people say is 1500-2500 (they are obese btw). They are then filmed and secretly followed and logged then at end of week they are shown what they actually ate, most are about 5000 cals.

    i LOVE that show, it's always the same but never ceases to amuse me!! There was a great episode with a woman who swore she just ate salads all the time, but omitted to say she had mayonnaise on every one of them. She quit the show but her husband carried through and lost lots of weight. She wouldn't even sit in on the catchup chat at the end. Denial is more than just a river in Egypt.

    as far as i recall she said it was her 'glands' ;)
  • HealthyVitamins
    HealthyVitamins Posts: 432 Member
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    calories in rice and potatoes, I was floored!
  • judyde
    judyde Posts: 401 Member
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    I had a heart attack the first time I plugged in Chick-fil-a's polynesian sauce....100 calories per container. I would eat FOUR of them between the chicken and the FF's. The honey mustard is not quite as good in my opinion, but I'll deal with it. The syrup at IHOP caused the same reaction....

    The "Chick-Fil-A Sauce" is 140 calories per container!!!!! It's basically like a mix of Honey Mustard and BBQ, but higher calorie than both!!
  • wmstormvet
    wmstormvet Posts: 145
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    Mine was eggs also, and peanut butter.
  • jackielou867
    jackielou867 Posts: 422 Member
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    My main shock was what a portion was. A portion of peanut butter, 126 calories, that's not so bad. But wait, how much is a portion, seriously, I used to eat that stuff straight from the jar about 10 portions at a time :-(
  • kechiemc
    kechiemc Posts: 1,355 Member
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    This is a good way to go about it. Just remember though...caloric density has nothing to do with nutrient density. Too many people on MFP and dieters in general cut out very nutritious and healthy foods because of calorie content...it's high calorie, so it must be "bad" mentality. Many foods that you most definitely should be eating because of their nutritional value are also very calorie dense. Conversely, many foods with very low calories have little to no nutritional value.

    Also kepe in mind that you need fats...people get all freaked out when they see the fat number and go all low fat/no fat. Fat is an essential nutrient...you need it for heart health and overall organ function. Your brain is largely comprised of fat. Many nutrients are fat soluble, so you need to consume fats in order for your body to absorb these nutrients. Fat also regulates hormones and this is essential to being healthy and to weight loss.

    Just seek balance in your diet (noun).

    Totally agree. Enjoy some orange juice with no added sugar or a fresh orange instead. It is so much better for you than a low calorie option that has had sugar added.
  • tartsul
    tartsul Posts: 298 Member
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    This is a good way to go about it. Just remember though...caloric density has nothing to do with nutrient density. Too many people on MFP and dieters in general cut out very nutritious and healthy foods because of calorie content...it's high calorie, so it must be "bad" mentality. Many foods that you most definitely should be eating because of their nutritional value are also very calorie dense. Conversely, many foods with very low calories have little to no nutritional value.

    Also kepe in mind that you need fats...people get all freaked out when they see the fat number and go all low fat/no fat. Fat is an essential nutrient...you need it for heart health and overall organ function. Your brain is largely comprised of fat. Many nutrients are fat soluble, so you need to consume fats in order for your body to absorb these nutrients. Fat also regulates hormones and this is essential to being healthy and to weight loss.

    Just seek balance in your diet (noun).

    ^^^ yes! very well stated!
  • JoshuaHilbish
    JoshuaHilbish Posts: 4 Member
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    Agreed a lot of foods are really high in sodium and I find it very hard to keep the sodium count to acceptable levels
  • kristinarnet55
    kristinarnet55 Posts: 2
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    My family used to have ice cream after dinner most days and I would have....a pretty generous serving of around 3-4 large scoops (about the size of a 1/2 cup). I was totally shocked to find out that 1/2 cup of ice cream usually contains 130+ calories! That meant I was having at least 400-500 extra calories after dinner in just dessert! Cheese also really surprised me, as others have said. 110 calories per 1 oz!? I used to eat a lot of cheese and I don't even want to think about how many calories were in the amount I consumed. Another one was the calories in my favorite restaurant foods at popular places like Denny's, Panda Express, Starbucks, and Olive Garden. I used to eat Fettuccine Alfredo every time we went to Olive Garden and a full pancake, toast, and egg breakfast at Denny's. I was shocked to find out that both had over 1,000 calories per serving. Even the salad I ate at Denny's had over 500 calories. When you're first losing weight it's really hard because you feel like you have to give up some of your favorite foods. You don't. Have little treats now and then (key word: little) because for some people, if they deprive themselves, they can end up bingeing. Also, as time went on, a lot of health foods became my favorite foods as I acquired a taste for them.
  • JoshuaHilbish
    JoshuaHilbish Posts: 4 Member
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    It's never the calorie count that shocks me. It's the sodium.
    Meant to quote that
  • BeckyMBisMe
    BeckyMBisMe Posts: 215 Member
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    Orange juice. All the way! I was totally shocked. Even eggs I was shocked, jsut becuase I thought they were less calories. Cheese too.

    I haven't checked eggs yet, is that another shocking one. I knew cheese was bad but I didn't actually realise HOW bad and cheese is one of my all time favourite foods. Really not looking forward to eating healthier and fewer calories.

    no, no, I disagree about the cheese and eggs. They are NOT bad! They are an awesome protein choice. Orange juice is high so peel and eat a real orange, yummy. It comes down to moderation, eating whole nutritious food, and avoiding the overly processed junk. And really, there is no "bad" food, it's just how much you eat of each thing. To say the food is bad is sort of like trying to escape the responsibility of your choices.

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