Staying True With Homemade Food

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tbridges8
tbridges8 Posts: 12 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I'm trying to stay true to myself when I keep my log, but I'm running into problems when I try to do so with homemade food. Servings for food call for stuff like 135 grams or 3 oz. of something and I don't want to go out and buy equipment to measure out how much cut-up chicken and salad I eat. I don't mind using measuring cups as those are already in my house and no hassle to use. But is there a way to measure ounces, grams and such without buying this stuff or should I just get good at eyeballing my amounts?

Replies

  • yogi323
    yogi323 Posts: 56 Member
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    Measuring cups can be very inaccurate. You'll find most people on here recommend getting a food scale. I got one from walmart for ten bucks and it's been a godsend. I don't think most people can eyeball their food with accuracy, so my vote is just get a scale.
  • CoffeeNBooze
    CoffeeNBooze Posts: 966 Member
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    I think you're better off just buying the scale. You can get a good one for less than $10. I didn't want to use it either, but I got hooked on it! Why don't you want to buy it?
    You can eyeball but it might not be very accurate and you may not get as accurate/consistent results as you want.
  • Alluminati
    Alluminati Posts: 6,208 Member
    edited May 2015
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    How would you get good at eyeballing a portion if you don't have anything to measure it against? It's 20 bucks for a decent food scale at Walfart or Amazon. At least use it temporarily until you have an idea of portion size. Cups are good for liquids, though.
  • inked_Calimom82
    inked_Calimom82 Posts: 143 Member
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    I use my 21 Day Fix containers so I don't have to portion anything! So nice. :)
  • ahoy_m8
    ahoy_m8 Posts: 3,053 Member
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    SO much less hassle than estimating and eyeballing. And less clean-up than measuring cups/spoons because you weigh each individual food right on the plate you're using to eat. I didn't realize how helpful the scale would be.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    Get the scale. Like Odes said, how can you get good at eyeballing if you have nothing to weigh it with in the first place?
  • jrosto
    jrosto Posts: 95 Member
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    When building recipes you can change serving size when adding ingredients.

    Say you search for chicken. You choose chicken with 3 oz serving size. Click on the 3 oz and choose cup from the drop down. Cals and macros will adjust accordingly.
  • MyM0wM0w
    MyM0wM0w Posts: 2,008 Member
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    My scale was 14.00. It uses 2 batteries per year (the C234?) and has lasted 3 years. It's not like it was an investment that broke the bank.
  • tbridges8
    tbridges8 Posts: 12 Member
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    Odes and rose, you raise a valid point. Idk I'm jst on the go a lot and didn't want to add and extra step, but I suppose if I want do see a change I've got to do something different than I've been doing before.
  • Justygirl77
    Justygirl77 Posts: 385 Member
    edited May 2015
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    My food scale was $20. I had it a looooong time before I put it to use measuring everything mostly in grams. It may feel clumsly at first and cumbersome, but after a while you realize that your diary is WAY more interesting if it's actually accurate!!
    Then you start to think about how you can tweak your macros etc, and you can, because you really do know where you stand calorie/macro-wise.

    The only thing is that the data entered into the foods may not be accurate, so once you get a set of foods that you usually eat, you can check the macros/cals for accuracy.
    I've done that only occasionally, when something was obviously off. However, I am still in consistent bodyfat% and weight loss, so it's close enough?
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    tbridges8 wrote: »
    Odes and rose, you raise a valid point. Idk I'm jst on the go a lot and didn't want to add and extra step, but I suppose if I want do see a change I've got to do something different than I've been doing before.

    It's not really an extra step if you're putting stuff in measuring cups anyway. When you use a scale you can put a bowl on there, tare it to zero, add one ingredient, tare it to zero, and keep adding things. It's fast.
  • taraskylit
    taraskylit Posts: 48 Member
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    Wait till you measure a "tablespoon" of peanut butter.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
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    taraskylit wrote: »
    Wait till you measure a "tablespoon" of peanut butter.

    The worst day of my life.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    Scales are cheap and if you bake at all they are best anyway, even apart from calorie counting.
  • PopeyeCT
    PopeyeCT Posts: 249 Member
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    tbridges8 wrote: »
    Odes and rose, you raise a valid point. Idk I'm jst on the go a lot and didn't want to add and extra step, but I suppose if I want do see a change I've got to do something different than I've been doing before.

    There is always time in life for whatever you put at the top of your priority list. Make your health a priority.

    In the meantime, some things you can look at the package and divide it up. Like if you buy a one pound package of hamburger, that's 16 oz. So divide it in 4 equal parts and you get 4 oz...one serving.
  • Justygirl77
    Justygirl77 Posts: 385 Member
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    taraskylit wrote: »
    Wait till you measure a "tablespoon" of peanut butter.
    Haha yes! Or a "scoop" of protein powder!

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