Weighing food VS Measuring... WOW!

steffipaulina
steffipaulina Posts: 161
edited November 5 in Health and Weight Loss
I finally bought a fancy food scale after logging my calories for weeks and not noticing any change in my weight.

Today is the first food prep I've done with a scale instead of measuring and all I can say is HOLY ****.

No wonder why my weight only slightly changed. The differences in weighing is INSANE.

I was just measuring out Salsa for my pre-made mix for a wrap and literally 2 TBSP was in the one TBSP I usually measure out

I know it's only salsa - but everything adds up. Just that is 10 cals vs 20! And I can only imagine the difference this is going to make a couple weeks down the road.
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Replies

  • SezxyStef
    SezxyStef Posts: 15,267 Member
    oh Yah but don't worry there are good surprises too.

    When I started weighing I went from losing on average .6lbs a week to .9lbs a week...so yah big difference..

    If you like cottage cheese weigh that out...125g is more than half a cup.
  • indianarunner76
    indianarunner76 Posts: 108 Member
    I finally bought a digital scale this week. Love it. Realized was measuring pasta wrong :( whole time. But all worked out. Good luck on your health journey.
  • ValerieMartini2Olives
    ValerieMartini2Olives Posts: 3,024 Member
    Bump.

    Shocking, isn't it?
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Yes it goes both ways. Shredded cheese for example... more than 1/4 cup for a serving. But usually it's the other way around.
  • vanguardfitness
    vanguardfitness Posts: 720 Member
    Everyone who wants to lose weight and prepares food at home should be weighing their food.
  • DodgeRider509
    DodgeRider509 Posts: 15
    Yeah Weighing food is the route to go no doubt. I was clueless when I didn't use it.
  • Yanicka1
    Yanicka1 Posts: 4,564 Member
    This is the reason why so many can't lose weight and the cause of so many " I am doing everything right and not losing" threads
  • ElizaB84
    ElizaB84 Posts: 105 Member
    I felt the same way when I got my scale.
    I was really pleased at how much one serving of peas turned out to be, and only 60 calories.
    I eat a lot of peas now. Lol
  • amyahouse
    amyahouse Posts: 1
    I guess I am not very educated on this subject. This could be a really stupid question and probably learned during elementary school but, how do you know how much weight is in a cup or how much a serving size is in grams?
  • Mojoman02
    Mojoman02 Posts: 146 Member
    I bought a really good scale with the Tare feature. I love it! Couldn't lose weight without it!
  • gamer_geek
    gamer_geek Posts: 8
    i have been weighing my food and measuring my dry ingredients with a set of measuring cups, im still not used to it, but it does help a lot with portion control, i bought an electric food scale with a tare function, still not sure how to use the darned thing....
  • LishieFruit89
    LishieFruit89 Posts: 1,956 Member
    I guess I am not very educated on this subject. This could be a really stupid question and probably learned during elementary school but, how do you know how much weight is in a cup or how much a serving size is in grams?

    Depends on what you're measuring and how you pack the cup.
    A cup of flour ranges from 112g to 150g depending how its packed. Should be 125g btw
  • KateK8LoseW8
    KateK8LoseW8 Posts: 824 Member
    I guess I am not very educated on this subject. This could be a really stupid question and probably learned during elementary school but, how do you know how much weight is in a cup or how much a serving size is in grams?

    Most raw ingredients are in the database with a 100g option to use. Most packaged food has the volume in a serving followed by the gram weight in parenthesis. So 1 serving: 2 cups (85g), for example. Use the 85g.
  • steffipaulina
    steffipaulina Posts: 161
    It makes me SO excited. I was getting a little worried that my metabolism was slowing down. HA!
  • roberggren
    roberggren Posts: 14
    @amyahouse you wouldn't really know unless you actually put it on the scale and weighed it.
    For example if a serving size of OJ is 1 cup (8oz) You should really just put your cup on the scale and zero the scale out then add your OJ to be sure you see how much 8oz really looks like.
    My scale allows me to see the weight in OZ AND then I can switch the button and see it also in grams. Alot of the times you can see the actual serving size right on the packaging itself. I use that as a guide and then I weigh. Tonight I ate peas with my dinner the can said serving size 1/2 cup......but I also weighed them too. It just makes it easier when you are adding different things to your diary that may only show up in Oz or G.
    Feel free to add me as a friend and if I can explain anything else you can just hit me up there.
  • _TastySnoBalls_
    _TastySnoBalls_ Posts: 1,298 Member
    My food scale is my BFF.
  • ActuarialChef
    ActuarialChef Posts: 1,413 Member
    I guess I am not very educated on this subject. This could be a really stupid question and probably learned during elementary school but, how do you know how much weight is in a cup or how much a serving size is in grams?

    Definitely NOT a stupid question!
    i have been weighing my food and measuring my dry ingredients with a set of measuring cups, im still not used to it, but it does help a lot with portion control, i bought an electric food scale with a tare function, still not sure how to use the darned thing....

    I think this information will help you too, gamer_geek.

    A cup, as in a measuring cup, is not easily convertible to weight because, as you probably guessed, everything does not weigh the same. To illustrate this, consider a measuring cup of grated/shredded cheese compared to a measuring cup of peanut butter. The peanut butter obviously weighs more, right? (Hint: yes :) haha)

    So, that doesn't help you much. What does help, though, is that most items include a weight in grams or ounces in the serving information. For example, my bag of flour says a serving is "1/4 cup (31g)". What I do is, place an empty bowl on my scale and press the "tare" button - this zero's out the scale so that it's not counting the weight of the bowl. Then, I spoon or scoop or pour (depending on the item haha) the ingredient into the bowl and measure out the weight in grams or ounces.

    If you have any other questions or need help with specific items, feel free to PM me or add me as a friend a comment on my wall. I'd be happy to help :)
  • vjohn04
    vjohn04 Posts: 2,276 Member
    Thank you for posting this. I hope more people see this and take note.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    Now you know why we say ad nauseum "weigh your food instead of measuring!"
  • Cranquistador
    Cranquistador Posts: 39,744 Member
    you think the difference in salsa is big?


    try peanut butter. lots of room for error when using tablespoons and not grams
  • kaylerato
    kaylerato Posts: 18 Member
    Yes Girl,It makes a big difference! You will definitely start to see a steady loss,going forward!
  • YorriaRaine
    YorriaRaine Posts: 370 Member
    Yeah I was surprised by the difference. I have had my scale about a week now. However, I love it because I never realized how much easier it was to weigh vs. measure.

    Seriously, the tare button is my best friend, I don't have to dirty up a million measuring cups, I can use one bowl, I always know exactly how much I'm putting in.

    Best 15 dollars I've ever spent in my life.
  • vjohn04
    vjohn04 Posts: 2,276 Member
    you think the difference in salsa is big?


    try peanut butter. lots of room for error when using tablespoons and not grams

    same for hummus. A serving size of hummus makes me a sad panda.
  • wonderwoman325
    wonderwoman325 Posts: 49
    Yeah, I pulled out my digital food scale that I bought two Xmases ago and never used. Measured out the cheese for my turkey fajitas tonight and...well it's embarrassing just how much cheese I had been using before and the calorie add up :/
  • Healthy_4_Life2
    Healthy_4_Life2 Posts: 595 Member
    Yes, weighing food is the way to go.
  • psych101
    psych101 Posts: 1,842 Member
    This is the reason why so many can't lose weight and the cause of so many " I am doing everything right and not losing" threads


    QFT
  • christinapike2
    christinapike2 Posts: 13 Member
    I recently started weighing my food out as well and was very and I mean VERY surprised. I think it will be my new best friend in the kitchen for sure!
  • steffipaulina
    steffipaulina Posts: 161
    you think the difference in salsa is big?


    try peanut butter. lots of room for error when using tablespoons and not grams

    I was just using it as an example because it was the first thing I weighed that was literally HALF the amount I would measure. Plus, every calorie counts. ;)
  • heatherlynnc123
    heatherlynnc123 Posts: 18
    I bought a scale a few weeks ago at Aldi's when they were on sale... love it! LOVE IT!

    Like the OP, I've had surprises where what I was measuring and using was double what I was counting. And others, like someone mentioned, shredded cheese, where I actually get more than I was using.

    It really shines when it comes to making my lunches. For example, this week I did a cabbage, black bean, corn, pepper, onion, tomato salad marinated in sugar free balsamic vinaigrette. The entire batch weighed in at 1,908 grams so I put it in as 19.08 servings. When I dish it out, if I serve myself 267 grams, I will record it as 2.67 servings. So much easier and more accurate than cups and measuring spoons!
  • chezjuan
    chezjuan Posts: 747 Member
    For example if a serving size of OJ is 1 cup (8oz) You should really just put your cup on the scale and zero the scale out then add your OJ to be sure you see how much 8oz really looks like.

    This is not entirely correct. For liquids like OJ, the 8 oz serving size is almost always a volume measurement (fl oz) rather than a mass measurement (grams, etc.).

    It is not generally necessary to weigh liquids because 8 fl oz is always the same since you can't pack it the way you can pack, say, brown sugar.
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