Calorie Counting 101

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  • starsarai720
    starsarai720 Posts: 31 Member
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    HappyCampr1 wrote: »
    starsarai720 wrote: »
    The packages lie?!?!

    Well...the calories are accurate for the grams listed. Just not necessarily for the number of pieces. Another reason the scale is a lifesaver and brings me peace of mind.

    Oh! Thank you for the clarification.
  • nvnikaela
    nvnikaela Posts: 1 Member
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    Following thanks so much
  • tanyabrock1991
    tanyabrock1991 Posts: 1
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    I am new at all this calorie counting and eating cleaner....so thanks for a great post! Helped alot!
  • chanell84
    chanell84 Posts: 41 Member
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    My bubble has been bursted... As a mom of 3 who works full time I'm really busy. I thought as long as I got something pre packaged I would be safe and not have to weigh it out :-(. I just started weighing out all my solid foods and I'm amazed and horrified that I have been over eating due to pure ignorance. Before this thread I had no idea you were only suppose to use measuring cups for liquids! My eyes have been opened so thank you.
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,454 Member
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    Great guide - thank you! I love your idea about how to weigh condiments. I don't actually weigh them myself at the moment, but if I'm going to be precise I'll know what to do. It would also work for lots of other things that come in a container, now that I think of it - butter, flour, pickles, cheese, yoghurt, you name it! I've been weighing things as they go into the bowl/pot/plate, but sometimes it's difficult to see the scale under the plate. It might often be easier to find out how much you've taken out of the original container. It's one of those "why didn't I think of that?" moments!
  • jpdrury2
    jpdrury2 Posts: 1
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    As a relative newcomer (only been doing this since December) this was great! I'm learning that self-education is half the battle when it comes to not only weight loss but also health and nutrition. Thanks so much for sharing!
  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    chanell84 wrote: »
    My bubble has been bursted... As a mom of 3 who works full time I'm really busy. I thought as long as I got something pre packaged I would be safe and not have to weigh it out :-(. I just started weighing out all my solid foods and I'm amazed and horrified that I have been over eating due to pure ignorance. Before this thread I had no idea you were only suppose to use measuring cups for liquids! My eyes have been opened so thank you.
    It's unfortunate that prepackaged products get away with this. I understand that there is going to be some variance, but some products are consistently 20% or more over what they say they should weigh. I also find that for every 1 product that actually weighs less then what the serving claims, there are about 20 that weigh more. The cynic in me says that this cannot be a coincidence.
    Vailara wrote: »
    Great guide - thank you! I love your idea about how to weigh condiments. I don't actually weigh them myself at the moment, but if I'm going to be precise I'll know what to do. It would also work for lots of other things that come in a container, now that I think of it - butter, flour, pickles, cheese, yoghurt, you name it! I've been weighing things as they go into the bowl/pot/plate, but sometimes it's difficult to see the scale under the plate. It might often be easier to find out how much you've taken out of the original container. It's one of those "why didn't I think of that?" moments!
    I put containers on my scale almost as often as I put food on it. It's extremely convenient.
  • snowy0wl
    snowy0wl Posts: 179 Member
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    I've been calorie counting to the gram about a month now. It's very much a reeducation. Where before a plate of nachos is now enough to serve 8 people; is eye opening. Mind you I know there is no way I could eat one serving and be satisfied so I use 2 servings and just keep counting the calories.

    I may be approaching this the wrong way but where does Macros and minimum amount protein and fiber come in. Where does Fat,carbs,protien, salt come in the calorie counting view. How does it matter?

  • andi_FP
    andi_FP Posts: 4 Member
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    When I am searching for foods, many times the food will only have a choice of weighing per ounce. From the comments on here, I realize I should be using grams, so what do you do when there is only an ounce choice in the food search results. Also, sometimes the grams say 100 grams (rather than 1 gram), so then do you just do the math and enter something like .25 in the serving size? Still trying to get in the groove of this, but love it so far.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    andi_FP wrote: »
    When I am searching for foods, many times the food will only have a choice of weighing per ounce. From the comments on here, I realize I should be using grams, so what do you do when there is only an ounce choice in the food search results. Also, sometimes the grams say 100 grams (rather than 1 gram), so then do you just do the math and enter something like .25 in the serving size? Still trying to get in the groove of this, but love it so far.

    1 ounce=28 grams. Most food scales will allow you to weigh in both (grams is preferred because of tighter accuracy/ease of use throughout most of the world). And yes. If you have something that weighs 25 grams, enter .25 servings.
  • thenonbeliever
    thenonbeliever Posts: 3
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    Insightful, thanks for the break down.
  • eddie388
    eddie388 Posts: 20 Member
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    Great post. Thanks.
  • chanell84
    chanell84 Posts: 41 Member
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    I've been telling everyone about weighing vs measuring and explaining why and ppl are just shocked! I was using 15 oz cans of black beans in a recipe and found that once drained and rinsed there is really only 9.6 ounces in each can. not the 15 they said. I found that the 15 oz weight includes the liquid and the can. My question then is do I then calculate the calories for 9.6 ounces of beans instead of 15. I'm thinking that's a no brainer yes but just want to be sure. Pasta is the same way... One box of gf pasta is 12 oz but that 12 oz includes the packaging. So annoying!
  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    HappyCampr1 wrote: »
    chanell84 wrote: »
    I've been telling everyone about weighing vs measuring and explaining why and ppl are just shocked! I was using 15 oz cans of black beans in a recipe and found that once drained and rinsed there is really only 9.6 ounces in each can. not the 15 they said. I found that the 15 oz weight includes the liquid and the can. My question then is do I then calculate the calories for 9.6 ounces of beans instead of 15. I'm thinking that's a no brainer yes but just want to be sure.

    I'm not the expert, so you may want to wait for someone else to answer, but... I had the same issue with garbanzo beans and managed to find an entry in the USDA Database for canned drained garbanzos. The calories and nutrients are higher per gram in the drained version because the liquid has weight, but not many calories. When you take that away, you aren't taking away many calories, but you're adjusting the weight a lot. I don't know the right way, but I just weigh with the liquid and then drain it knowing that I'm not eating quite as much as I'm claiming. Not perfect, I know.
    This is exactly what I would do! I use the USDA database A LOT!

  • chanell84
    chanell84 Posts: 41 Member
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    I looked up how many calories were in 9.6 ounces of cooked black beans. So are you saying by doing that I am under the amount of calories that are really in them? I don't see how if your only consuming 9.6 ounces.
  • chanell84
    chanell84 Posts: 41 Member
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    This is what I found... If you measure out the beans in ounces you get 9.6 so I just don't see why I should count the calories for 15 ounces of beans if the rest of the ounces is liquid. Am I over thinking this?!? My brain hurts trying to wrap my mind around this one lol
  • csheaves
    csheaves Posts: 13 Member
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    Very informative,thx for the info
  • vismal
    vismal Posts: 2,463 Member
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    Always make sure your information matches what you are weighing. If your information is for drained, rinsed, black beans, use that information only if you beans are drained, rinsed, and black. This is true of all foods. If you have 12 ounces of grilled chicken breast on your scale, don't use information for raw chicken breast. Don't use information for boiled chicken breast. Use information for grilled chicken breast because that's what you have. Is your information for cooked white rice? Don't use information for dry, brown, rice. You should always be able to find information to match what you have on the scale.
  • katieyank2009
    katieyank2009 Posts: 1
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    I found this to be very helpful! Thank your posting this! I will now weight in grams (minus liquids!)
  • thejoe06
    thejoe06 Posts: 1
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    I think I need some help guys. I just started p90x and the book is saying I should be taking in around 2200-2500 calories a day. I may be way off with the calculation but if I'm not I just physically don't think I can eat that much in a day. I've been trying for a few days... does this calorie intake sound right? I am 6'2, 215lbs if that helps.

    Thanks for any help!

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