Surprises when logging ??

1356

Replies

  • MadameLAL
    MadameLAL Posts: 108
    I've been shocked at how hard it is to make my macros for iron and calcium when I'm eating homemade whole plant foods (I'm vegetarian). It's made me aware of the need for supplements.
  • TheBrolympus
    TheBrolympus Posts: 586 Member
    Breakfast cereals surprised me. I used to grab the biggest bowl on the house and dump what I thought was 1 or 2 servings. Turned out to be 5 or 6 servings. AHHHHHH!
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
    I've been surprised all over the place, but mostly that I can have ANYTHING as long as I scale it down to a small portion. I can use ANY condiments, have ANY desert, as long as I log it in MFP *before* I serve it so I know how much I want to have in my portion before my eyes even look at it and find I've eaten a whole package. Then I'm surprised by how I enjoy those small portions more than the large portions I used to largely wolf down. It's a win all the way around.

    Very true! Its just so hard getting used to those small/correct portions LOL But definitely true!
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
    Breakfast cereals surprised me. I used to grab the biggest bowl on the house and dump what I thought was 1 or 2 servings. Turned out to be 5 or 6 servings. AHHHHHH!

    HA HA been there!
  • RUNNING_AMOK_1958
    RUNNING_AMOK_1958 Posts: 268 Member
    I was shocked at the amount of sodium in cheese. You are smart to pay attention to more than just the calories.
  • Huffdogg
    Huffdogg Posts: 1,934 Member
    I also noticed that i dont get much potassium or iron :(

    Potassium isn't a required micronutrient on food labels, so it's not in the database for moods foods. That's a stupid but significant detail, IMO, because most people's obsession with sodium may not be grounded in any sort of complete knowledge about its relationship with potassium.

    Yes, sodium is easy to go high on, but a lot of people, once they start eating a little more healthy, get far more potassium than they think, and the balance between the two is the really important part. At the end of the day, it's a wise move to do a bit of research on foods that are high in potassium, and try to incorporate those into your diet as much as possible, and don't beat yourself up over sodium.
  • Zekela
    Zekela Posts: 634 Member
    Applebee's surprised the crap out of me (well almost) with over 1,200 cals for the soup and grilled cheese sandwich combo... no meat either.

    I've also been surprised with cereal and porridge which has a significant amount of iron in them...
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
    I was shocked at the amount of sodium in cheese. You are smart to pay attention to more than just the calories.

    It's always the little things we're not paying attention to that get ya LOL
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
    I also noticed that i dont get much potassium or iron :(

    Potassium isn't a required micronutrient on food labels, so it's not in the database for moods foods. That's a stupid but significant detail, IMO, because most people's obsession with sodium may not be grounded in any sort of complete knowledge about its relationship with potassium.

    Yes, sodium is easy to go high on, but a lot of people, once they start eating a little more healthy, get far more potassium than they think, and the balance between the two is the really important part. At the end of the day, it's a wise move to do a bit of research on foods that are high in potassium, and try to incorporate those into your diet as much as possible, and don't beat yourself up over sodium.

    Good to know!
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
    Applebee's surprised the crap out of me (well almost) with over 1,200 cals for the soup and grilled cheese sandwich combo... no meat either.

    I've also been surprised with cereal and porridge which has a significant amount of iron in them...

    I could just imagine what my calories were when I used to pig out at applebee's LOL
  • Johnny_Marr
    Johnny_Marr Posts: 1
    Dried figs and dates. 360 cals for eight little dried figs!
  • funderbadass
    funderbadass Posts: 2 Member
    I really thought this was going to be a thread about lumberjacks.
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
    Sodium in frozen chicken. 410mg per 4oz serving.
  • chickenpie
    chickenpie Posts: 64 Member
    Pesto ! argh just two tablespoons in huge pan of pasta for the whole family with half fat creme fraiche was a horrible amount of calories. Gah, was such an easy dish to prepare when working but will have to be scrapped !

    I am all for logging in advance too, sometimes i log & get surprises - good and bad !


    x
  • Phrick
    Phrick Posts: 2,765 Member
    My biggest surprises have come in the form of how little of something there is:

    -Years ago when I joined to get healthier and started logging food, I was shocked to find that I was only consuming 700-900 calories on an average day. (I should have ~1400 w/o any exercise.) I knew my no-breakfast way of life wasn't healthy, but jeez!

    -A while later, I discovered the 'reports' section and discovered how little calcium I was getting, despite my new habit of eating yogurt every morning.

    -About a week ago (in reports again), I discovered that there is barely any potassium in my diet at all, despite taking a multi every day and eating fairly healthy.

    I have resolved to check the reports regularly instead of as a novelty to make sure my nutrition is on track.

    Actually, the FDA does not require potassium to be reported on food labeling, so you are likely getting a lot more than you think.

    +1 i was just about to say the same thing.
  • jammallnyte
    jammallnyte Posts: 26 Member
    At a business lunch at PF Chang's, got the appetizer lettuce wraps thinking, no bread should be low carb. I left my iPhone in the car and boy was I upset after. There is NOTHING worth eating at PF Chang's anymore.

    Flip side,this weekend my son was at a birthday party so my Wife, and I took our 7 year daughter out for lunch. She wanted Panda Express... which made me concerned after PF. SURPRISE!! There are things there that aren't bad. Oh the sodium is high but I worked it in to my daily and was good. I endorse their bowls and replacing noodles or rice with mixed veggies. Panda will be a healthier choice for a treat in the future.

    Also, Papa John's THIN crust pizza. If you go with a medium and stick to 2 slices and a good size salad on the side and work within your daily numbers you won't be sorry either (40 carbs for the day but hell it's pizza). MFP has really opened my eyes.
  • golgoroo
    golgoroo Posts: 69 Member
    That my favorite restaurant salad, which I'd choose over a burger to be "healthy", actually had MORE calories than the burger AND fries! Yikes!

    I've become a pre-logger. Only way to make sure I stay on track.
  • arrseegee
    arrseegee Posts: 575 Member
    The amount of sodium in oyster sauce. We used to cook with it twice a week, now it's a once a month thing at most.
  • Phrick
    Phrick Posts: 2,765 Member
    Not so much calories as proper portion sizes. I typically ate 3-4 times the recommended serving size of pretty much everything.

    Portion sizes are terrible LOL

    I have been really surprised and irritated especially in cooking when it comes to portion sizes. So I'm baking chocolate-chocolate chip zucchini cake for our small group meeting yesterday. It calls for 2.75c flour. Well a "serving" of flour is just 1/4 cup or 30g by weight. HOWEVER! 1/4 cup of flour measured out weighs more like 44g, which means a difference of 154g, which equals over 500 calories MORE if you measure it out by cups vs weighing it! When you weigh ingredients for a recipe like that you get a much smaller finished product than when you make it by measuring cups, too.
  • Always_Smiling_D
    Always_Smiling_D Posts: 118 Member
    I am more surprised at how quickly the sodium adds up...

    Also I will suggest everyone when logging something for the very first time on their diary check the nutrition facts before choosing - sorta annoying when I find the right serving with all the wrong information as calories, sodium, carbs, simply not all the correct info.
  • 3laine75
    3laine75 Posts: 3,069 Member
    nutty cereal yoghurt bar, more calories and fat than I imagined

    A lot of those bar type snacks are silent danger LOL

    You're definitely just as well off having a snicker :D

    Biggest shock I've had was a side plate of my own homemade carbonara - weighs in at around 1600 cals! I knew it was bad but not that bad (did try it once with creme fraich instead of double cream but it's just not the same)!
  • Raasy
    Raasy Posts: 972 Member
    Corn dogs is a big one, you think "i have corn dogs bought frozen at the store all the time for roughly 180 cals". So when spur of the moment hits and pull up at the drive thru and think corn dogs are probably the "Cheapest" calorie wise and then get home and see that its practically double what your at home corn dogs are :grumble: :angry:

    Also nuts, they are supposed to be good for us in limited quantities but the calories on them are crazy!!!!
  • dswolverine
    dswolverine Posts: 246 Member
    I think it was portion size more than anything that shocked me once I bought a food scale. The alleged "half cup" of oatmeal when weighed didn't come close to an actual half cup. And It scares me to think how many calories i've eaten in cereal in the past! The measly 3/4 cup serving on many cereals is like a third of what i'd add to my bowl. Yikes. I LOOOOVE my food scale
  • sullrico18
    sullrico18 Posts: 261 Member
    Before I started paying attention to calories, I used to eat a muffin from work every morning (I believe Otis Spunkmeyer), and it was around 250 calories per serving --- there were 3 servings in the muffin! Yikes!

    When I began counting calories, I figured out my favorite McDonald's meal (2 cheeseburgers, fries and a drink) was well over 1100 calories. No wonder the weight piled on! (McDonalds is a lot less frequent now :-)).
  • arrseegee
    arrseegee Posts: 575 Member
    My biggest surprises have come in the form of how little of something there is:

    -Years ago when I joined to get healthier and started logging food, I was shocked to find that I was only consuming 700-900 calories on an average day. (I should have ~1400 w/o any exercise.) I knew my no-breakfast way of life wasn't healthy, but jeez!

    -A while later, I discovered the 'reports' section and discovered how little calcium I was getting, despite my new habit of eating yogurt every morning.

    -About a week ago (in reports again), I discovered that there is barely any potassium in my diet at all, despite taking a multi every day and eating fairly healthy.

    I have resolved to check the reports regularly instead of as a novelty to make sure my nutrition is on track.

    My iron is always low in the reports on here, and I was scratching my head trying to work out how I had eaten only 11% of my iron after a 200g steak... and iron wasn't listed for the steak. Worth being aware of!
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
    At a business lunch at PF Chang's, got the appetizer lettuce wraps thinking, no bread should be low carb. I left my iPhone in the car and boy was I upset after. There is NOTHING worth eating at PF Chang's anymore.

    Flip side,this weekend my son was at a birthday party so my Wife, and I took our 7 year daughter out for lunch. She wanted Panda Express... which made me concerned after PF. SURPRISE!! There are things there that aren't bad. Oh the sodium is high but I worked it in to my daily and was good. I endorse their bowls and replacing noodles or rice with mixed veggies. Panda will be a healthier choice for a treat in the future.

    Also, Papa John's THIN crust pizza. If you go with a medium and stick to 2 slices and a good size salad on the side and work within your daily numbers you won't be sorry either (40 carbs for the day but hell it's pizza). MFP has really opened my eyes.

    PF Changs!! I love those lettuce wraps, I usually get brown rice with pepper steak.. Yea it was enough to cover me for 2 days LOL
  • JayDavila
    JayDavila Posts: 146 Member
    That my favorite restaurant salad, which I'd choose over a burger to be "healthy", actually had MORE calories than the burger AND fries! Yikes!

    I've become a pre-logger. Only way to make sure I stay on track.

    Pre-logging definitely helps me too
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    French toast (especially homemade) surprised me in a good way. Same with a single pumpkin pancake from IHOP...pecan waffle at Waffle House. Those aren't things I eat regularly, but I would have imagined them having around 700 calories and a lot more fat and sugar...they're in the neighborhood of 290-400 with relatively small amounts of both :-)

    Subway surprised me in a bad way because of the sodium. I still eat it, but not as often as I would if it had less sodium...I'm not obsessed with limiting that in my diet, but it just seems unnecessary (especially when I get a veggie and/or egg white sub and the sodium is still nuts)

    When I FIRST started MFP I was stunned by the calories and sugar in my daily milk and Greek yogurt. At the time, I was eating Oikos blueberry or Chobani pineapple etc. I never realized how I could cut back by getting plain Greek yogurt and putting a little of my own fruit in.
  • bperkins88
    bperkins88 Posts: 357 Member
    yeah ive noticed a lot more things that have a lot of sodium! :-O
  • DonaldChadDavis
    DonaldChadDavis Posts: 89 Member
    I was happy when I logged Mugshot's SGT. Pepper Jack and fries and it fit my macros. I'm sad by the amount of sodium in most breads, though. :sad:

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