Do you guys really count calories?

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  • teamAmelia
    teamAmelia Posts: 1,247 Member
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    i weigh / measure EVERYTHING, i log EVERYTHING...

    EVERY SINGLE CALORIE that goes into my mouth gets counted!

    ive been known to log 1 skittle... what??? sometimes i just need a taste! :)

    1- yuck. I hate Skittles.
    2- I wish that I had your self-control when it came to White Cheddar Cheeto Puffs. Mmmm.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
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    At home I weigh all my food and measure free-pouring liquids. The only thing I don't weigh is raw spinach, and I have weighed it before just to be sure.

    When I eat at someone else's house or at a restaurant I do the best I can, and I try to make those instances few enough that they don't mess with my progress.

    I agree with neandermagnon-- it gets much faster and easier once you're in the habit. I eat the same foods a lot and I've learned how to search for the usda entries in the database so I'm getting the most accurate entries. It barely takes me 10 minutes to log.
  • mattschwartz01
    mattschwartz01 Posts: 566 Member
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    Whenever it is possible and feasible, yes, I will weigh out portions. My dietitian gave me some techniques for estimating that work VERY well. How do I know they work well? I'm still losing weight. One of her tips was that 3oz of chicken is roughly the size and thickness of a standard deck of playing cards.
  • jjinteso
    jjinteso Posts: 2,060 Member
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    I weigh/measure and count every gram of what I eat every day too. I then log it into MFP. I am so anal that I actually created by own database of foods since I found so many on the website here to be in error. All of my data either comes from the USDA, the manufacturer website or manufacturer packaging.

    I will also bring my scale and a tablespoon to a restaurant. I just had sushi tonight at a restaurant and weighed every gram of each piece. I also measured out the low sodium soy sauce.
  • ninrj
    ninrj Posts: 2
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    Yes I weigh everything...every day. However, I always prep all my food for the entire day the night before. I find that it saves a lot of time and I don't have to worry about numbers and weighing throughout the day.
  • Prephred
    Prephred Posts: 140 Member
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    After a while of tracking, when you look at food....all you see are calorie numbers, grams of protein, sodium levels...etc...

    LOL and your friends look at you like you are nuts when you go, Chinese pepper chicken - 1 cup is about 300 cals and a crab ragoon is 140 =)
  • The_Enginerd
    The_Enginerd Posts: 3,982 Member
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    Yep, for every single one of my 910 days so far. It does go much quicker after you get the hang of it. Most of what I eat is already in my recent or most used foods, and that makes it quite quick. I weigh everything at home, and have done enough weighing to have a very good idea for estimating when I eat out at a place that does not have calorie counts.
  • Otterluv
    Otterluv Posts: 9,083 Member
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    Yes I do. I weigh and measure. When I get slack my weight loss stalls.
  • MarioLozano16
    MarioLozano16 Posts: 319 Member
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    I count my macros not my calories bro
  • bazzawood30
    bazzawood30 Posts: 45 Member
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    569 day and counting!!!!!!!!
  • QuietBloom
    QuietBloom Posts: 5,413 Member
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    Yes. I really do.

    There are days, however, where I only track through my afternoon snack and I "rough it' out for the rest of the evening. I also weigh regularly so I can see trends with my eating. I don't plan to ever stop logging!!

    I'm glad I'm not the only one on here who does that!
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
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    I have measuring cups and a scale, and yes, I measure, log, and let MFP do the counting.
  • dababydollmami
    dababydollmami Posts: 13 Member
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    I have been logging weighing and measuring everything I consume. But I do this because I know if I do not keep track I will fall back into bad habits and overeat. I also find counting calories helps me make wiser decisions, like do I want to eat a 1/2 cup of this that will not give me a satisfied full feeling or do I want to eat 2 cups of that which will leave me with a satisfied full feeling.
  • SusanDugas
    SusanDugas Posts: 30 Member
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    This! I weigh everything even at work and if I want something - I find out how many calories etc are in it and then if I REALLY want it and think the 'cost' is worth it - I have it ! Having said that - mostly when I find out how much something is going to 'cost' me I weigh it up against how long I will have to run or workout in the gym and decide that I don't quite want it enough!

    Ha ha, thought I was the only one that treated my food like a budget and figured the costs for each thing I want. If I want to join friends for BBQ, I consider the cost of each thing available and make my choices based on that. Sort of like buying my food twice, but it is working for me. I don't really consider it counting calories, just selecting lower 'cost' items based on my food diary.
  • jkos007
    jkos007 Posts: 7
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    Everyone of you looks great and if you keep it up you will od fine,,, now me ,,,I need some help,,,lol
  • LovinDaNewLiz002
    LovinDaNewLiz002 Posts: 18 Member
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    That is why I signed up for mfp to follow their guidelines and well loose the weight so ummm yeah I love EVERY SINGLE THING
  • guessrs
    guessrs Posts: 358 Member
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    Yes, believe me I wish I didn't have to ... I have to log it in.
  • hitmeister
    hitmeister Posts: 11 Member
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    I find it impossible to keep a precise count. One reason is that the count has to include calories burned through exercise. I use a heart rate monitor/calorie counting device, but the accuracy of the device is highly suspect.
  • boognish1972
    boognish1972 Posts: 83 Member
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    In my life I could probably count the times I've actually kept track of my calories for a day on one hand. But I know a lot of people here do it. So how do you do it? Do you actually weigh everything out and keep a list of everything you eat throughout the day? The two times I did it on MFP I kind of just guessed at the amounts I ate.

    I'm asking because I'll soon be at my normal weight. I'm just starting to weightlift (which I LOVE btw). I want to burn more fat but retain the muscle I have. So...do I need to count calories and how many should I eat? I'm 5'8 soon to be 145 lbs and 28% body fat. Would like to set a first goal of 24% body fat. I do weightlifting 3 times per week for about 45 minutes each session.

    Help is appreciated!

    That seems like a pretty odd question to pose on a site that features software that tracks your calories. Perhaps you came to the message board inadvertently, without realizing what this site is about? I would guess that almost everyone on here "counts" their calories, ranging from measuring everything out and putting it into the food diary to estimating portions and putting it into the food diary. The software calculates the calories for you.
  • cyberbidder
    cyberbidder Posts: 20
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    Hi yes I do. As for muscle retention/gain while losing weight there are articles on several websites http://www.bodybuilding.com/; http://www.muscleandstrength.com/ ://www.exrx.net/FatLoss.html and many others. They do not agree on all points therefore I suggest you do the research.
    may God bless you

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