Whats with the beef

burn0u7
burn0u7 Posts: 3 Member
edited February 4 in Food and Nutrition
Hello...new person here.

So I've joined up and am on a restricted calorie goal of 1680 calories per day. I've also started a learn to run type project thats obviously burning a couple hundred additional calories a week.

I should probably mention that I work in remote area in a camp and eat in a Canteen, so I don't really have control over my menu's, suffice to say that there is a fairly good variety of western and asian food.

Now my question is whats the story with eating red meat...beef as a for instance?

Example, I have a fairly healthy breakfast, (550-600 calories), usually muesli and fruit with a mug of tea, then for lunch I had about 4.5Oz of roast beef, (I think...my portion judgement isn't very good yet) along with 90g of curried vegetables in a spicy sauce and half a fresh tomatoe. That was 216 calories only as calculated by the diary. I realise the sauce must also add a few, but it wasn't a creamy based sauce...trying to ID what I eat in the list of foods is endlessly amusing.

Dinner was stir fry'd beef with vegetables along with a fresh fruit salad...coming up with 383 calories.

So my intake for the day is 1146.

Before dinner I burnt 480 on a 5km walk/run as I do a couple times a week.

This leaves me with a net deficit of 1000 odd calories, and I'm hardly starving here...I'm being told to eat more which was something new.

Now, normally I don't eat as much red meat, (its not very good in the canteen, so I stick to the chicken), but now that I've had beef for lunch and super, I've noticed how low calorie it is.

Is it really that low calorie or am I screwing up my portion judgements here? Its counter intuitive because its generally seen as unhealthy to eat too much red meat...so what gives?

PS: It has struck me that running 5km a couple times a week and being on lean calorie diet is probably wrong, I'll recalibrate after I've burnt off a bit.

any insight welcome...as I've said I'm very new to this.

Replies

  • kirkor
    kirkor Posts: 2,530 Member
    What kind of curry was it?
    Between that and the stir fry, you are probably getting more calories than you realize, esp. in the form of fat from cooking oil, esp. because it's in a canteen/cafeteria-type environment.

    Also ya I think your portion estimates may be off. And depending on the entry you're choosing in the database, there is a difference in values between raw and cooked, due to water weight lost, fat drained, etc.
  • Ed98043
    Ed98043 Posts: 1,333 Member
    You have to be careful with trusting the MFP calorie listings since they're user-generated for the most part. The ones without an asterisk are USDA numbers and are the most trustworthy. I find that it's best to check several listings and look for the ones with lots of confirmations. I think your roast beef was probably more like 65 calories an ounce, and then there's the preparation - was there any oil involved? And don't assume that sauces and stir-fries are super low in calories, either. Even without the visible presence of creamy sauces, the oil is what gets you. You can be pretty sure that the stir-fry had a coat of sesame oil on it.

    Also, here's a slideshow with some comparisons for eyeballing serving sizes: http://www.rd.com/slideshows/what-does-a-serving-size-look-like/3/
  • burn0u7
    burn0u7 Posts: 3 Member
    Yes, I think you are right...I must be taking in more. than I am capturing in the diary. My portion estimation for red meat is basically "how does this look compared to the 12oz steak I usually order at my favourite sizzler"...an imperfect science at best.

    Sauces also kill...the canteen is split into western and asian, they give nice optimistic names to the western food, but the asian dishes are in hindi and urdu...not may of those in the database I fear. Sometimes I really do have no clue what I'm eating...

    Thanks, that slideshow is super useful :)
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    I'm also guessing that you're eating more than you realize, particularly if you cannot weigh your food and don't know exactly which ingredients are used. That said, do be careful about cutting your calories too low. If you are obese, then you can afford to lose weight quicker, but you need to be mindful that you are giving your body sufficient nutrition as you lose, and that becomes increasingly difficult as you lower your calorie intake. Also, keep in mind, that if you are concerned with looking solid when you are done losing, it is best to do it slowly, strength train, and mind your protein intake.

    As for red meat, it's probably best to forget the out of date dogma on it. More recent evidence is indicating that there really is nothing wrong with eating red meat. Like any other food though, it is best to eat it as part of a nutritionally balanced diet.


    http://www.biomedcentral.com/1741-7015/11/63
  • Cranquistador
    Cranquistador Posts: 39,744 Member
    invest in a food scale...weigh everything.
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    invest in a food scale...weigh everything.

    That will be of limited use in a canteen setting where everything is made with mystery ingredients.
  • MrsFowler1069
    MrsFowler1069 Posts: 657 Member
    invest in a food scale...weigh everything.


    Typically fantastic advice, but not super practical for the circumstances described here.
  • Cranquistador
    Cranquistador Posts: 39,744 Member
    invest in a food scale...weigh everything.
    Typically fantastic advice, but not super practical for the circumstances described here.
    That will be of limited use in a canteen setting where everything is made with mystery ingredients.

    wow

    It really is (in my opinion) important to make sure the meals NOT eaten at work are logged as accurately as possible..I was assuming OP would be eating at home sometimes and would have days off. Did you plan on suggesting something or just come in to tell me what i should or should not post?
  • lacurandera1
    lacurandera1 Posts: 8,083 Member
    invest in a food scale...weigh everything.


    Typically fantastic advice, but not super practical for the circumstances described here.

    Sounds super practical since OP is eyeballing meat portions and isn't sure about accuracy.
  • Ed98043
    Ed98043 Posts: 1,333 Member
    I assumed that the OP lived at a camp (military?) of some kind and all meals are eaten canteen-style. I suppose he could break out a scale and quiz the servers as to what ingredients are in each dish, but that's not very practical, especially since he said the Asian side doesn't even label the foods in English. Really the only thing he can do is estimate portions and keep an eye on his weight to see what works and what doesn't.
  • burn0u7
    burn0u7 Posts: 3 Member
    Yea, unfortunately a food scale wouldn't really work as I do long deployments...when I'm in field I'm here for a couple months at a time.

    When I'm at home off shift, rest assured that watching what I eat doesn't feature on my to-do list...my list comprises mainly of cheese and wine and restaurants.

    luckily the menu here does rotate to a fairly consistent schedule, so its probably a case of figuring out what the healthy options are and then getting portion sizes correct.

    I'm not very overweight...I could probably shift 6 kg's and be happy...I'm doing this because when working 7 day weeks for 2 or 3 months its important to get into a healthy routine. Running in the evening keeps my cardio up so I can surf when I get home.

    Since I've started running I've lost 2 and bit kg's fairly easily, as as I run more I'm burning more, so its definitely working.

    Also...I stay out of the bar...man alcohol really screws up your stats!
  • Cranquistador
    Cranquistador Posts: 39,744 Member
    I assumed that the OP lived at a camp (military?) of some kind and all meals are eaten canteen-style. I suppose he could break out a scale and quiz the servers as to what ingredients are in each dish, but that's not very practical, especially since he said the Asian side doesn't even label the foods in English. Really the only thing he can do is estimate portions and keep an eye on his weight to see what works and what doesn't.
    i get it now..and had no idea he lived there...he could either take my advice or say nah i only eat at the canteen, or whatever. I just felt like it was just as unnecessary for other users to come in and call my post out without even offering anything themselves, especially because it really isnt a big deal.

    good luck OP.

    and yes, watch those drinks:drinker:
  • Mr_Knight
    Mr_Knight Posts: 9,532 Member
    wow

    It really is (in my opinion) important to make sure the meals NOT eaten at work are logged as accurately as possible..I was assuming OP would be eating at home sometimes and would have days off.

    The OP is living/working in a camp. That was in the OP. The canteen *is* "not at work".'

    Did you plan on suggesting something or just come in to tell me what i should or should not post?

    What's with the snark? Nobody told you to do or not do anything.
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