500 calories? Really?

MaiLinna
MaiLinna Posts: 580 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Is one boneless skinless chicken breast really almost 500 calories? I wanted one whole breast with some rice and veggies for dinner, but according to calculations it's almost 500 calories for one breast? What?

Please tell me it's just water weight.
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Replies

  • AsaThorsWoman
    AsaThorsWoman Posts: 2,303 Member
    Did you weigh it?
  • TNSLB
    TNSLB Posts: 7 Member
    Did you weigh it? I've never had a BS breast cost that much, but ours aren't huge.
  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    I just had a boneless skinless breast at lunch - weighed it before i cooked it - 162g for 178 cals.

    Either the one you ate was one big chicken breast, or the entry you're using is incorrect. Look for the entries that do NOT have an asterisk, and usually give you the option in the drop down menu of cups, ounces or grams, etc for logging.
  • MaiLinna
    MaiLinna Posts: 580 Member
    Yeah I weighed them. Each one is about 13.5 ounces average. This is uncooked so I'm assuming it HAS to lose some water weight when cooking because that's ridiculous.
  • starsandowls
    starsandowls Posts: 55 Member
    It really depends on how you cook it. Raw, boneless skinless chicken breast is 31 calories per ounce, and a lot of the chicken breasts in the US are 8-10 ounces each, which is about 250-300 calories. If you just in put "chicken breast" in MFP, you're going to get TONS of people's additions to the database, which are going to range from what it is raw up to chicken fried chicken smothered in gravy and everything in between.

    Try some other chicken breast entries, or make your own recipe with exactly how you're going to cook your exact chicken breast. Good luck!

    ETA: chicken breast doesn't lose much weight in cooking. When I cook beef, it usually reduces in weight by about 25%, but chicken tends to stay the same.
  • MaiLinna
    MaiLinna Posts: 580 Member
    I was just going to fry it in my nonstick pan without oil or butter or anything. Guess I'm eating only half a breast. Jeez this is stupid.
  • MaiLinna
    MaiLinna Posts: 580 Member
    They're 380g each btw. Are they huge or something?
  • smn76237
    smn76237 Posts: 318 Member
    380g of raw chicken breast = 418 calories. Pretty big breasts, but I'd have no problem eating the whole thing!
  • redwoodkestrel
    redwoodkestrel Posts: 339 Member
    Yep,smn is right. Make sure you're looking in the food database for entries WITHOUT an asterisk by them - those will be official USDA nutrition information entries. And then make sure if you're weighing something raw, that the database entry you're using also indicates that it's raw weight.

    Screenshot2014-04-09at25236PM_zpsfea982b2.png
  • TheGymGypsy
    TheGymGypsy Posts: 1,023 Member
    380g of raw chicken breast = 418 calories. Pretty big breasts, but I'd have no problem eating the whole thing!

    Teehee you said big breasts
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    They're 380g each btw. Are they huge or something?

    Yeah, that's pretty big. I'm calculating around 420 calories or so for your particular serving. The recommended serving of boneless skinless chicken breast is 4 oz raw and around 120 calories. Most of the whole breasts I buy are in the neighborhood of 8 oz or so and I cut them in half lengthwise and will generally have roughly a 4 oz serving or more if I happen to have the calories...

    ETA: I swear this is where so many people go wrong and good on you for measuring OP...many an MFP member would have sucked down that whole entire 380 grams (without weighing it) and then just logged it as a "4 oz serving" of chicken breast 'cuz the package says, "serving 1 breast 4 oz". I swear this is why it doesn't work for so many people who think they're doing everything right.
  • defauIt
    defauIt Posts: 118 Member
    That's nearly a pound of meat... that's quite a large serving.

    I usually have 8oz of chicken breast in a sitting which is around 250 cals.
  • MaiLinna
    MaiLinna Posts: 580 Member
    They're 380g each btw. Are they huge or something?

    Yeah, that's pretty big. I'm calculating around 420 calories or so for your particular serving. The recommended serving of boneless skinless chicken breast is 4 oz raw and around 120 calories. Most of the whole breasts I buy are in the neighborhood of 8 oz or so and I cut them in half lengthwise and will generally have roughly a 4 oz serving or more if I happen to have the calories...

    ETA: I swear this is where so many people go wrong and good on you for measuring OP...many an MFP member would have sucked down that whole entire 380 grams (without weighing it) and then just logged it as a "4 oz serving" of chicken breast 'cuz the package says, "serving 1 breast 4 oz". I swear this is why it doesn't work for so many people who think they're doing everything right.

    <3 Thank you! :D I wanted to make extra sure because I have to bake tonight and that's going to end up with a hefty 300 calorie + price tag because my mother loves sweets. So yeah I'm definitely cutting the buggers in half.

    I also found out today after fixing my scale (I couldn't find the balance resetter and it's a hard to read analog scale) that I had actually lost 5 whole pounds! And this whole time I thought I was doing all this work for nothing. :P
  • AwesomeGuy37
    AwesomeGuy37 Posts: 436 Member
    Yeah, that is 2.5 oz. shy of one pound. That is crazy big for a breast, whereas normal is about 8 oz. It most likely has some salt water added for some girth. Look up the calories for enhanced chicken breast in the USDA search. 3 oz. (84g) is an average serving.
    500 calories isn't much. Eat it.
  • GelasiaT
    GelasiaT Posts: 74 Member
    Another thing you could try is the chicken breast tenderloins instead, they're approx. 100-120 calories for 4 ozs.(which is usually about 2 pieces). They are just as filling and easier to pan fry in my opinion. I usually spray my pan with Pam and then cook them on medium heat about 10 minutes each side.
  • Mrsfreedom41
    Mrsfreedom41 Posts: 330 Member
    I usually fix the chicken breast how I want it - then only eat half of it with a huge portion of veggies and a pretty big salad. The left over piece I put in a salad the next day for lunch. Works out well for me.:drinker:
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
    Not sure how you are cooking them but 4oz boneless, skinless and boiled is 186 calories. Sometimes I'll throw some garlic powder in there for flavor.
  • MyChocolateDiet
    MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
    it's just water weight.
  • ILiftHeavyAcrylics
    ILiftHeavyAcrylics Posts: 27,732 Member
    Yeah 380 grams is large. I usually take one that size and butterfly it, and it feeds myself and my husband once I've added sides.
  • Cameron_1969
    Cameron_1969 Posts: 2,855 Member
    Yeah. .that's one HUGE breast!. . which. . now that I've said it. . sounds pretty good actually. .
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    A boneless skinless chicken breast (typically 4oz of meat) is about 130 calories...certainly not 500.

    Edit: most of the time I buy chicken breast I think they are actually technically half-breasts. So I guess I should say a half breast is usually around 4 oz.

    Chicken breast is a very lean protein and if you ate 500 calories worth of it you would be very full indeed. I usually find two of those (8oz) in a tortilla is a good sized meal for me.
  • lee91356
    lee91356 Posts: 330 Member
    whats the add on - cooking with oil? marinating? etc. because that is where the calorie are hidden
  • Aaron_K123
    Aaron_K123 Posts: 7,122 Member
    ETA: chicken breast doesn't lose much weight in cooking. When I cook beef, it usually reduces in weight by about 25%, but chicken tends to stay the same.

    Reason for this is beef is typically fatty and as you cook the fat melts and runs off the meat so the meat shrinks and weighs less after cooking.

    Chicken breast is very lean so it loses hardly anything when you cook it.
  • ironanimal
    ironanimal Posts: 5,922 Member
    I want some of your breasts. Impressive weight.

    That didn't sound quite right.
  • lbsNirvana
    lbsNirvana Posts: 18 Member
    I want some of your breasts. Impressive weight.

    That didn't sound quite right.
    to us men, that sounded too right..
  • Ang108
    Ang108 Posts: 1,706 Member
    Yeah I weighed them. Each one is about 13.5 ounces average. This is uncooked so I'm assuming it HAS to lose some water weight when cooking because that's ridiculous.

    If you weighed the chicken breast you should really know what each one weighs exactly. Saying " each one is about 13.5 ounces on average ", sounds more like guesswork, because scales give you an exact weight and not just an average,
  • Calliope610
    Calliope610 Posts: 3,783 Member
    That 13oz chicken breast is really 2-6oz servings. A 6oz serving is about 250-300 calories - not really a big deal. This is just one example of why PORTION SIZE is so critical to weight loss.
  • ravenmiss
    ravenmiss Posts: 384 Member
    That 13oz chicken breast is really 2-6oz servings. A 6oz serving is about 250-300 calories - not really a big deal. This is just one example of why PORTION SIZE is so critical to weight loss.

    This, that chicken breast is a double serving in my opinion!
  • struttdaddy
    struttdaddy Posts: 4
    Just scan the barcode on the packaging with your smart phone through the Myfitnesspal app, that will give you the correct info.
  • Graelwyn75
    Graelwyn75 Posts: 4,404 Member
    Good grief, when I still ate meat, mine usually only came in at around 290 calories roasted.

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