Surprised about my ignorance

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wubbykid
wubbykid Posts: 60 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm a new time calorie counter so when I started searching the internet and books for calorie counts for food, I was shocked by how some foods seem so little or at least 'normal' yet have so many calories!

Like one of the burgers at Chili's has 1,490 calories in it alone. Or that some Asian noodles have as much as 492 calories per cup! My mouth gaped open when I read about these numbers.

It's no wonder I'm 329 pounds or whatever! It's like the shock of the new.
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  • strong_curves
    strong_curves Posts: 2,229 Member
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    That was me. :D When I first came to MFP I logged everything I ate & drank for 2 weeks, what an eye-opener! My pepsi "addiction" was 500-700 calories a day!
  • wubbykid
    wubbykid Posts: 60 Member
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    strong_curves wrote: »
    That was me. :D When I first came to MFP I logged everything I ate & drank for 2 weeks, what an eye-opener! My pepsi "addiction" was 500-700 calories a day!

    I thought that some burgers were only 400 calories, but some were as much as 1,100 calories. However, I should stop eating out or at burger places in general! :D
  • StaciMarie1974
    StaciMarie1974 Posts: 4,138 Member
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    I know someone who gave up after 3 days of counting calories - because without changing anything in her routine she was 'out' of calories by midday everyday. It can be discouraging at first, but the good news is you don't have to be perfect on day 1. You don't even have to be perfect on day 1,001. But by thinking about your food choices in advance, you will amaze yourself at how you can eat less calories and still be satisfied and even still enjoy food.
  • slinke2014
    slinke2014 Posts: 149 Member
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    yep, burgers became a rare treat for me. Maybe 3 or 4 times a year. I do enjoy eating out quite a bit in general but I make room for it during the day by really scaling back so I have extra calories for dinner.
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,483 Member
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    Chicken wings!
    When I told my OH how many calories he was eating in chicken wings, before he gobbled down a burger and fries, washed down with a few pints of beer. He just didn't believe it.

    After a few months of me giving him his calorie count, and his weight not shifting, he started to believe me.
    Those wings are now a once in a blue moon event, and the beer and burger has been replaced with a spinach and prawn salad washed down with a glass of red wine.
    He is 35 lb down, at his goal weight, and enjoying his new food choices.

    Yup, it is scary seeing the calorie content in some foods.

    Cheers, h.
  • wubbykid
    wubbykid Posts: 60 Member
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    StaciMarie1974 wrote: »
    I know someone who gave up after 3 days of counting calories - because without changing anything in her routine she was 'out' of calories by midday everyday. It can be discouraging at first, but the good news is you don't have to be perfect on day 1. You don't even have to be perfect on day 1,001. But by thinking about your food choices in advance, you will amaze yourself at how you can eat less calories and still be satisfied and even still enjoy food.

    I was too rigid at first, and I gave up at first. Realized it was only day 2.
  • AmberLeannnn
    AmberLeannnn Posts: 28 Member
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    The calories are high and the sodium is even worse! Double whammy!
  • wubbykid
    wubbykid Posts: 60 Member
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    slinke2014 wrote: »
    yep, burgers became a rare treat for me. Maybe 3 or 4 times a year. I do enjoy eating out quite a bit in general but I make room for it during the day by really scaling back so I have extra calories for dinner.

    I thought that a meal at McDonald's, including the 20 piece, was only 900 calories, turns out it was 2,399 calories.
  • sherbear702
    sherbear702 Posts: 649 Member
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    It is an eye opener. If you're serious about losing weight, invest in a food scale. You'd be shocked at how much 2 oz of pasta isn't
  • wubbykid
    wubbykid Posts: 60 Member
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    sherbear702 wrote: »
    It is an eye opener. If you're serious about losing weight, invest in a food scale. You'd be shocked at how much 2 oz of pasta isn't

    Does a food scale count calories?
  • EmmaFitzwilliam
    EmmaFitzwilliam Posts: 482 Member
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    One of my mantras became "Knowledge is Power". I can make knowledgeable, informed choices. I'm pretty much reconciled to needing to log as long as I am in charge of my food choices; if I don't weigh and log what I eat, I over-portion without realizing it. I still make energy-dense choices, and my choices are my no means an ascetic ideal, but over the course of 14 months my palate has changed and it's easier to make the trade-offs between the occasional indulgence and the generally healthier choice.
  • rsclause
    rsclause Posts: 3,103 Member
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    For me it was something at McDonald's that was about 430 calories alone but as a meal 1300. I gave up sweet tea and fries on the spot and came to MFP to start counting. Another moment was when I ran far enough to burn 1000 calories (7.5 miles) if that doesn't motivate you to control what you consume nothing will. In reality I was over eating and making bad food choices. That was 45 pounds ago and it just don't stop. That's why I tell people "It's not a diet, its a lifestyle change" If you re-train yourself on what and how much to eat, its not all that difficult. It also helps to run 25 miles a week too.
  • karyabc
    karyabc Posts: 830 Member
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    Hahahah wait until you get a food scale and start to see the REAL serving size of some food!
    I still remember when the first time I put the serving size for pasta in the scale :D I was like hell no please jesus nooooo.

    But don't worry it will get better! We all went through that

    Dont give up and good luck.
  • DeguelloTex
    DeguelloTex Posts: 6,658 Member
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    wubbykid wrote: »
    sherbear702 wrote: »
    It is an eye opener. If you're serious about losing weight, invest in a food scale. You'd be shocked at how much 2 oz of pasta isn't

    Does a food scale count calories?
    It helps you count calories.

  • Adc7225
    Adc7225 Posts: 1,318 Member
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    I know the feeling. I had that moment of realizing how evil and sneaky calories are they hide in massive amounts in the most unlikely of places and yes that does explain a great deal why some people are overweight.

    I have a friend who likes to drink, primarily brightly colored sweet drinks and all I can do is shake my head at all the added calories he consumes . . . of course he cannot understand why he is gaining the weight that he lost while hanging with me and drinking mostly water. There are times when I think his beverages have more calories than his meals.
  • wubbykid
    wubbykid Posts: 60 Member
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    rsclause wrote: »
    For me it was something at McDonald's that was about 430 calories alone but as a meal 1300. I gave up sweet tea and fries on the spot and came to MFP to start counting. Another moment was when I ran far enough to burn 1000 calories (7.5 miles) if that doesn't motivate you to control what you consume nothing will. In reality I was over eating and making bad food choices. That was 45 pounds ago and it just don't stop. That's why I tell people "It's not a diet, its a lifestyle change" If you re-train yourself on what and how much to eat, its not all that difficult. It also helps to run 25 miles a week too.

    I just restarted jogging today. Fingers crossed.
  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    edited August 2015
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    wubbykid wrote: »
    sherbear702 wrote: »
    It is an eye opener. If you're serious about losing weight, invest in a food scale. You'd be shocked at how much 2 oz of pasta isn't

    Does a food scale count calories?
    No, but a food scale will let you weigh your portions so your calorie counts are more accurate. If you say you are eating 4 ounces (the recommended serving size) of meat, how do you know that it's really 4 ounces unless you weigh it? Not that I usually eat just 4 ounces. However, when I am about to eat something of unknown size, knowing exactly what it weighs lets me enter the correct number of calories. I try to choose food entries with serving sizes in weight (grams or ounces) .

    I know I was terrible at eye-balling portion sizes when I first started.
  • Deckhand562
    Deckhand562 Posts: 76 Member
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    Does a food scale count calories?
  • wubbykid
    wubbykid Posts: 60 Member
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    SueInAz wrote: »
    wubbykid wrote: »
    sherbear702 wrote: »
    It is an eye opener. If you're serious about losing weight, invest in a food scale. You'd be shocked at how much 2 oz of pasta isn't

    Does a food scale count calories?
    No, but a food scale will let you weigh your portions so your calorie counts are more accurate. If you say you are eating 4 ounces (the recommended serving size) of meat, how do you know that it's really 4 ounces unless you weigh it? I know I was terrible at eye-balling portion sizes when I first started.

    That's it. I'm getting a food scale!
  • wubbykid
    wubbykid Posts: 60 Member
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    Deckhand562 wrote: »
    Does a food scale count calories?

    The answer is somewhere in this thread. :D

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