What surprises have you found about foods you didn't realize before logging?

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  • thenewkayla
    thenewkayla Posts: 313 Member
    The amount of calories in nuts, PB&J sandwiches, pizza, sugar-sweetened yogurt, "healthy" breakfast cereals, and alcoholic beverages. When I think of the calories I have put away in one night due to beer and pizza....I just can't even.

    I know the feeling ..i love beer and pizza lol
  • DoreenaV1975
    DoreenaV1975 Posts: 567 Member
    G33K_G1RL wrote: »
    G33K_G1RL wrote: »
    How much calories are in drumsticks!!! I used to have 3-4 of those a week!

    How much easier it is to stay at my calorie goal without being hungry if I don't drink my calories. Now I eat my fruits instead of drinking them.

    Wait! Drumsticks as in chicken or ice cream?

    The ice cream!!! LOL

    Hahahahahahaha! Yeah I figured! :D
  • estherlion
    estherlion Posts: 86 Member
    I weigh my plate before I serve myself. Add the food, weigh again and do the math (minus the weight of the plate).
  • HeySwoleSister
    HeySwoleSister Posts: 1,938 Member
    See, now I thought I would get less cheese per serving than I actually do. I have a cheese plane that cuts whisper thin slices of hard cheeses, and, believe me, there are a LOT of slices in an ounce of sharp cheddar, if you slice it super thin.

    Of course, if you are like CERTAIN HUSBANDS and insist upon taking bites directly out of an 8 oz block of Cabot Seriously Sharp? You have a rude awakening coming your way.
  • LovelyIvy466
    LovelyIvy466 Posts: 387 Member
    See, now I thought I would get less cheese per serving than I actually do. I have a cheese plane that cuts whisper thin slices of hard cheeses, and, believe me, there are a LOT of slices in an ounce of sharp cheddar, if you slice it super thin.

    Of course, if you are like CERTAIN HUSBANDS and insist upon taking bites directly out of an 8 oz block of Cabot Seriously Sharp? You have a rude awakening coming your way.

    Ok, this had me LOL. I can understand the impulse though.
  • mch2829
    mch2829 Posts: 70 Member
    I've found some foods can easily have twice as many calories as advertised because the serving size isn't consistent.
  • joeherbert48
    joeherbert48 Posts: 47 Member
    edited May 2015
    That you can lose weight eating the "right" tv dinners. :)

    Oh and for bread lovers. Wonder Bread has an excellent low cal low sodium one out. White Wheat I think it's called. It's 60 cal still but only 75 sodium per slice I believe. I'm on a low salt diet only 1500mg so I have to watch sodium content in everything I eat.

    If you're looking for good fast food. Burger King Double cheesburger (no bun, no pickles no ketchup) and bring that home and use Heinze no salt ketchup and this no salt substiture in a big white container they sell at Walmart's. It's just called Original NO SALT sodium free salt. Go figure. lol Also at Walmart's they sell these Great Value Hamburger Buns....90 cal/150 sodium for the whole bun. They are small but same size as Burger King uses for the Dbl Cheeseburger.
  • manders_b
    manders_b Posts: 44 Member
    The weight vs. measuring cups/spoons thing was huge for me. I bought a scale and was so surprised by my first weighed meal that I started just weighing foods I had around to see what the real serving looked like vs. the package estimate. Totally worth the $15!

    Also that "a steak" is not a serving size, and that my beloved twizzlers pull n peel has 100+ calories per twist :o
  • BodyByButter
    BodyByButter Posts: 563 Member
    estherlion wrote: »
    I weigh my plate before I serve myself. Add the food, weigh again and do the math (minus the weight of the plate).

    This is really taking the long way around. For example, put the plate on there, hit tare. Now you are at zero. Add the first item and record that weight on MFP, hit tare again. Add the next item and record the weight, hit tare, etc. It takes me next to no time to add foods from my recent list and then just edit the weights.
  • auntstephie321
    auntstephie321 Posts: 3,586 Member
    That advocados are tasty> and are not packed with as many calories as i thought .


    Goes for me too. I just started incorporating avocados into my diet this year. I actually like them and think they really have the ability to smooth out a fruit/fiber/protein smoothie! (I've also made chocolate pudding with them). Wish I'd have given them a chance earlier.

    How did you make your avocado chocolate pudding, I tried and mine turned out disgusting :(
  • SamKiler
    SamKiler Posts: 4 Member
    •1tbs is a lot more than I though.
    •how much fat I was actually eating in a day
    •the reason I felt sick and tired at the start of my diet 2 months ago was because I wasn't eating nearly enough calories
  • minkky
    minkky Posts: 73 Member
    edited May 2015

    [/quote]Of course, if you are like CERTAIN HUSBANDS and insist upon taking bites directly out of an 8 oz block of Cabot Seriously Sharp? You have a rude awakening coming your way.[/quote]

    A rude awakening like a swift kick in the butt? Lol, that's so my hubby !!
  • avskk
    avskk Posts: 1,787 Member
    One thing I find consistently surprising is how low in protein supposedly high-protein foods are. Nuts and nutbutters are frequently touted as protein powerhouses, but they're shockingly low (though tasty and full of healthy fats). I've also found that sausages and franks are lower in protein than expected, ditto grains like quinoa and millet, double ditto legumes. I really wonder how these things got their reputations as protein wonderbombs.
  • Merkavar
    Merkavar Posts: 3,082 Member
    That 2% milk isn't even remotely worth the taste tradeoff for the calorie savings.

    For me full cream tastes off. So lite milk etc tastes better an has fewer calories. Bonus.

    On the topic of milk. I used to drink a lot of milk. Not so much any more. I could easily drink 1-2 litres a day. On cereal, as a drink, chocolate milk at lunch etc but those calories add up fast.

  • TiJoGa
    TiJoGa Posts: 545 Member
    I was surprised how LOW bagels were in calories. They were always touted as the worst possible thing ever in my circles and even though they're not like a piece of whole 900 grain whatever bread they're still doable to fit in once in a while.
  • dlm4mom
    dlm4mom Posts: 251 Member
    Dried fruit and almond slivers add too many calories to a salad. Half a subway sandwich and baked chips have fewer calories than a foot long sandwich
  • titania_one
    titania_one Posts: 26 Member
    edited May 2015
    I don't drink milk, so for a while I was worried I must not be getting enough calcium, but was pleasantly surprised to learn most days I get plenty of calcium from various foods without ever drinking a glass of milk.

    That said... sodium was a nasty surprise. Most days I'm near the limit, and that's WITHOUT salting my food... :'(
  • daniebanks
    daniebanks Posts: 179 Member
    JoJo61612 wrote: »
    I had no idea how many calories sushi had in it

    hahaha yes, this. same here.
  • daniebanks
    daniebanks Posts: 179 Member
    ketorach wrote: »
    crys_todd wrote: »
    An actual half cup of oatmeal is almost 30% more than when I weigh out 40 grams.
    OMG, this!

    yes this x1000 hahah
  • weird_me2
    weird_me2 Posts: 716 Member
    The thing I miss most is cheese. An actual serving of cheese is so small, vs the big calorie wallop. I still eat it, but super rarely because when I do eat cheese it's never JUST cheese. It's cheese, prosciutto, honey, pecans and a glass of wine. I miss cheese!

    Mmm...I like to fit in an ounce or so of aged parmesan drizzled with honey sometimes. If it's a hard sharp cheese, I can be satisfied with a smaller amount. I also like extra sharp cheddar with dark chocolate. Now I need to buy some parmesan. I usually have an ounce or two of the more sedate cheeses like sharp cheddar daily with meals.
  • bendyourkneekatie
    bendyourkneekatie Posts: 696 Member
    JoJo61612 wrote: »
    I had no idea how many calories sushi had in it

    I know! And all these people lining up thinking its a health food. I'm not even letting my toddler have "shushi" anymore as those chubby cheeks don't need that many calories for lunch (and I don't need rice *everywhere*)
    spyro88 wrote: »
    How many calories were in a stir fry that I used to consider a healthy meal (it was mainly the egg noodles and pre-packaged sauce that did it). I am now rethinking how I make stir fries.

    Yeah, stir-fry feels like it ought to be healthy, and it can be, but you gotta be careful with the noodles/rice and sauces. I'm now doing a bit of ginger, a bit of soy, a dash of kecap manis and chilli sauces, and weighing my noodles!

  • aBlueCrayon
    aBlueCrayon Posts: 120 Member
    Even the smallest piece of candy has sooooooo many calories, holy crap!
  • killencm
    killencm Posts: 10 Member
    that muffins are incredibly fattening!
  • alisupercali
    alisupercali Posts: 17 Member
    killencm wrote: »
    that muffins are incredibly fattening!

    I know, this breaks my heart! Usually much more of a savoury person, but muffins are like my kryptonite. Long lines in cafes are the worst...too much time to stare into the counter at all the muffiny goodness!
  • yirara
    yirara Posts: 9,943 Member
    No real surprise there. But before I started to lose weight I had a good think about why I gained in the first place, and realized that 1-2 packets of crisps and 2-3 bags of candy per week added an awful lot of calories to my diet. That was my eye opener, even though I knew there's a lot of calories in there. I just never really thought about it. Hey, worst case, that's over 2500kcal per week. :o though it was rather something like 1500. But still a lot!
  • SkinnyWannabeGal
    SkinnyWannabeGal Posts: 143 Member
    I was surprised at how little sodium I consume on most days. I also didn't realize that I used to eat way more sugar than I should've. I also used to be a fan of high calorie drinks (non-alcoholic) because I had no idea just how much calories were in them. I had a lot of eye opener moments after I began logging on MFP. I've found that a lot of rumors that I hear about foods aren't even true.
  • didda1
    didda1 Posts: 71 Member
    That nuts were my downfall. It's rude how many calories are in peanuts lol.
  • kindrabbit
    kindrabbit Posts: 837 Member
    How much I was eating.
    I was really bad at eating if anything was close to me or if someone asked me if I wanted something to eat.

    This for me too. I ate out of habit or boredom or if I was offered anything in any situation. I never said no to food or drink. I'd eat almost all leftovers. I ate when I was happy and especially when I was angry (that's the hardest one to remedy). I'd have "I'll show him!!" Binges. Who was I really punishing by doing that?
  • cyronius
    cyronius Posts: 157 Member
    That I can eat what I want still, I just have to eat less of it. It's been amazing to me to realise that I'm losing weight simply by counting calories, without having to overhaul my entire diet. This is letting me make gradual healthy changes to my diet that I can sustain, rather than a big change that is doomed to fail.

    Also, it's amazing how much you can grow to like diet coke when you realise how many kilojoules regular coke has :)
  • Allelito
    Allelito Posts: 179 Member
    How much I was eating.
    I was really bad at eating if anything was close to me or if someone asked me if I wanted something to eat.

    This for me too. I ate out of habit or boredom or if I was offered anything in any situation. I never said no to food or drink. I'd eat almost all leftovers. I ate when I was happy and especially when I was angry (that's the hardest one to remedy). I'd have "I'll show him!!" Binges. Who was I really punishing by doing that?

    100% this for me too. I didn't think twice (heck, I didn't think once) before putting something in my mouth, I just did it.
    I also could (and still can, if I really want to, which I don't) eat more and faster than ANYONE I knew. I was never overweight or particularly chubby either, so I started thinking of it as some kinda cool party trick when people were gasping at how fast I finished my pizza while others were struggling with eating half of theirs.. Scary times :neutral:
    It's definitely eye-opening to start counting calories, and I actually really love being more aware of how and when I eat, and really enjoy every meal, compared to just eating everything without caring.
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