Buy a food scale
obscuremusicreference
Posts: 1,320 Member
Since I've started weighing my food, I can't believe how some of the items have stacked up. Eggs have surprised me the most--the brand I buy says there are 70 calories/large egg (and the USDA agrees), but I have had one egg that was under that number so far out of more than a dozen. The rest have been 75-85+. And let's not get started on how many calories are in a "tablespoon" of peanut butter or an eyeballed 1/8 of a block of cheese.
I still lost weight at a good pace not weighing, but I'm glad I decided to start so that it doesn't hurt me down the road.
I still lost weight at a good pace not weighing, but I'm glad I decided to start so that it doesn't hurt me down the road.
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Revealing huh!!0
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FWIW, I have had better success weighing, too, and I thought I was really good at eyeballing.0
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I keep seeing "food scale" on here. Is this a particular thing which is programmed with the calorie values of different food? Or is it in fact what I would simply call "scales" or "kitchen scales" to differentiate them from "bathroom scales".0
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fluffyasacat wrote: »I keep seeing "food scale" on here. Is this a particular thing which is programmed with the calorie values of different food? Or is it in fact what I would simply call "scales" or "kitchen scales" to differentiate them from "bathroom scales".
Kitchen scales! I don't know if they make ones that you can program, I just write down how many grams and do the math after I eat.
ETA: I use this0 -
I've been considering getting one! I had chicken in my salad today, and not a clue as to how many ounces I put in there. I guessed, and hope that I overestimated. But really, I have no idea!! I've heard the "3 oz is the size of your palm" thing, but a scale would obviously be much more accurate!0
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fluffyasacat wrote: »I keep seeing "food scale" on here. Is this a particular thing which is programmed with the calorie values of different food? Or is it in fact what I would simply call "scales" or "kitchen scales" to differentiate them from "bathroom scales".
It's like a scale you might use for body, but smaller and more sensitive. They only work for lightweight items, like less than five pounds. So you can tell if your potato weighs 100 grams or 150 grams.
They are good to have even if you don't care about using them for calorie control. They are very helpful for baking in particular because you can zero out between adding items.0 -
I've been considering getting one! I had chicken in my salad today, and not a clue as to how many ounces I put in there. I guessed, and hope that I overestimated. But really, I have no idea!! I've heard the "3 oz is the size of your palm" thing, but a scale would obviously be much more accurate!
Yep, what if you have big hands or small hands for that matter.0 -
queenliz99 wrote: »I've been considering getting one! I had chicken in my salad today, and not a clue as to how many ounces I put in there. I guessed, and hope that I overestimated. But really, I have no idea!! I've heard the "3 oz is the size of your palm" thing, but a scale would obviously be much more accurate!
Yep, what if you have big hands or small hands for that matter.
Good point!0 -
I use my kitchen scale for everything because my eyes play tricks on me.... Then a whole block of cheese is gone before you know it haha0
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A scale gives you a heads up what the actual food calories hold. Especially when you get down to maintenance levels you will know approximately what calorie each food has. Apples will vary wildly in calories, for instance.0
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fluffyasacat wrote: »I keep seeing "food scale" on here. Is this a particular thing which is programmed with the calorie values of different food? Or is it in fact what I would simply call "scales" or "kitchen scales" to differentiate them from "bathroom scales".
It's like a scale you might use for body, but smaller and more sensitive. They only work for lightweight items, like less than five pounds. So you can tell if your potato weighs 100 grams or 150 grams.
They are good to have even if you don't care about using them for calorie control. They are very helpful for baking in particular because you can zero out between adding items.
Mine goes to 11 lbs.
I use my scale at every meal.<3 love it! 0 -
fluffyasacat wrote: »I keep seeing "food scale" on here. Is this a particular thing which is programmed with the calorie values of different food? Or is it in fact what I would simply call "scales" or "kitchen scales" to differentiate them from "bathroom scales".
It's like a scale you might use for body, but smaller and more sensitive. They only work for lightweight items, like less than five pounds. So you can tell if your potato weighs 100 grams or 150 grams.
They are good to have even if you don't care about using them for calorie control. They are very helpful for baking in particular because you can zero out between adding items.
I actually have a very accurate set of digital kitchen scales, but it seems weird to call it a "food scale". I've never come across it. Must be an American thing.
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my kitchen scale is vital to my weight loss0
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I had been using an old analog scale that I had used for crafting when I first started on MFP. I asked for a digital scale for Christmas. It's much more accurate. My rate of loss has picked up. Yay for food scales!0
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Yes. I was the most shocked by my chicken intake. I make meals to stretch meat a bit and usually involve one medium size chicken breast feeding my fiance and I. I used to assume that half the chicken breast was about 0.75-1 serving and I would log as such. I actually weighted it and the breast had 2.5 servings. I was logging incorrectly by about 50 calories. Not a huge deal in itself...but those things do add up. I also lOVE it for measuring oils/dressings. so much cleaner than using a tablespoon!0
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PlaydohPants wrote: »obscuremusicreference wrote: »Since I've started weighing my food, I can't believe how some of the items have stacked up. Eggs have surprised me the most--the brand I buy says there are 70 calories/large egg (and the USDA agrees), but I have had one egg that was under that number so far out of more than a dozen. The rest have been 75-85+. And let's not get started on how many calories are in a "tablespoon" of peanut butter or an eyeballed 1/8 of a block of cheese.
I still lost weight at a good pace not weighing, but I'm glad I decided to start so that it doesn't hurt me down the road.
I don't have a scale but I plan on getting one. For eggs, do you just put the whole egg on there, shell and all, or do you zero a cup or something and crack it into that?
I crack my egg into a cup on the scale. I'm not planning to eat the shell so I don't weigh the shell!0 -
queenliz99 wrote: »A scale gives you a heads up what the actual food calories hold. Especially when you get down to maintenance levels you will know approximately what calorie each food has. Apples will vary wildly in calories, for instance.
How does a scale tell you how many calories a food holds? If you take 5 apples of the same weight, they are unlikely to all have exactly the same calories.0 -
I love weighing my food! Its an eye opener and I feel so much better knowing exactly what I'm putting in my body0
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Need2Exerc1se wrote: »queenliz99 wrote: »A scale gives you a heads up what the actual food calories hold. Especially when you get down to maintenance levels you will know approximately what calorie each food has. Apples will vary wildly in calories, for instance.
How does a scale tell you how many calories a food holds? If you take 5 apples of the same weight, they are unlikely to all have exactly the same calories.
I didn't word it right. sorry0 -
obscuremusicreference wrote: »Since I've started weighing my food, I can't believe how some of the items have stacked up. Eggs have surprised me the most--the brand I buy says there are 70 calories/large egg (and the USDA agrees), but I have had one egg that was under that number so far out of more than a dozen. The rest have been 75-85+. And let's not get started on how many calories are in a "tablespoon" of peanut butter or an eyeballed 1/8 of a block of cheese.
I still lost weight at a good pace not weighing, but I'm glad I decided to start so that it doesn't hurt me down the road.
Eggs are sized according to the weight per dozen so it is not unusual to get some that are over and some that are under. I eat enough eggs that I use the USDA average knowing that, in the end, it will average out.It's like a scale you might use for body, but smaller and more sensitive. They only work for lightweight items, like less than five pounds. So you can tell if your potato weighs 100 grams or 150 grams.
Mine weighs up to 10 lb which I like for prepping casseroles or crock pot meals. I can put the dish on it and keep throwing all of the ingredients in the same bowl, taring after each one. It was $15 at Amazon and I love it! I have a smaller one that only weighs up to 500 g. that I use when making my bath and body stuff since some active ingredients and essential oils only are 5-10 g. per batch.
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queenliz99 wrote: »I've been considering getting one! I had chicken in my salad today, and not a clue as to how many ounces I put in there. I guessed, and hope that I overestimated. But really, I have no idea!! I've heard the "3 oz is the size of your palm" thing, but a scale would obviously be much more accurate!
Yep, what if you have big hands or small hands for that matter.
Not to mention thickness. I have seen some chicken breasts that are almost 2" thick!
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Need2Exerc1se wrote: »queenliz99 wrote: »A scale gives you a heads up what the actual food calories hold. Especially when you get down to maintenance levels you will know approximately what calorie each food has. Apples will vary wildly in calories, for instance.
How does a scale tell you how many calories a food holds? If you take 5 apples of the same weight, they are unlikely to all have exactly the same calories.
Calories per gram in the database are averages. Yes, your 3" diameter Granny Smith apple might have a little more water or sugar than the next 3" diameter one, but they will be pretty close to each other. You take the weight, then look it up in the database. All calorie counts are figured by weight so, for example, you look up a medium Granny Smith apple and the listing says one apple is 154 grams and 80 calories. Your apple weighs 125 grams so you go to the drop down menu for serving size, click on the 1g serving and enter a quantity of 125. You now know that your apple is 65 calories.
May not be 100% accurate for water bearing fruits and veggies but it is much more accurate than guessing.
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I am so glad I invested in a food scale. I was surprised at how many things I underestimated and how few things were over estimated. I was also surprised about how many prepackaged items are heavier than what they say. Best $15 dollars spent on a kitchen accessory.0
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I underestimated veggies, big time. What I thought three cups of spinach would be turned out to be about 1.75ish.
As for the specific chemical makeup of fruits and vegetables, I figure I'm still going to eat at a deficit even if there's more sugar in one banana versus another. Besides, when I was using the generic 105 calories/banana, I didn't know the makeup of my food either.0 -
I bought a small food scale at a garage sell for like .50 and it's the best thing ever. I want to weigh everthing I can! It's really an eye opener to see how much we overeat!
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a tablespoon of peanut butter is whatever i can balance on a knife.0
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Capt_Apollo wrote: »a tablespoon of peanut butter is whatever i can balance on a knife.
It's generally pretty close to that!
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For a lot of people starting out with a lot to lose, they will likely be pretty successful 'eyeballing' it for a while. And that's probably ok - too many changes at once can derail you! But when you have less to lose, or are trying to maintain, 50 calories off per meal/snack can add up really fast. I weigh nearly everything, and it doesn't take me hardly any time at all. Plus no extra measuring spoons/cups to wash.0
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