Measuring greens, fruits , veggies

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  • ShannonMpls
    ShannonMpls Posts: 1,936 Member
    edited October 2015
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    I weigh produce when it's convenient (but almost never greens; those I estimate). If I already have my scale out or I'm slicing a pear at my kitchen counter with it right there, I weigh it. But if I pack an apple to have with lunch, I estimate.

    The primary purpose of my food scale is not to verify that I'm eating 136g of banana or 112g. I can handle that potential miscalculation. But when it comes to calorie dense foods like peanut butter or mayonnaise, the scale definitely makes a difference.


  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    broncos1982 wrote: »
    BecomingBane wrote: »
    broncos1982 wrote: »
    You don't need to weigh a banana or apple, just choose 1 large apple/banana. Fruit you'll need to weigh to be more accurate. No need to count calories in lettuce.

    Do you have any idea how many calories are in a banana? You sure do need to weigh it. It can make a huge difference.

    lol, what kind of bananas are you buying that they weigh vastly different? A large banana is around 120 calories. Are you weighing it with/without skin? You can make these things ridiculous. You don't need to weigh a banana, just choose a large banana on any calorie tracking program, it's close enough. Just like eggs, if you weigh your eggs then you're being absurd, especially when it tells you the calories for the eggs on the box. a large egg is a large egg.

    I think it's ridiculous to eat fewer calories than I can. If I eat a small banana, why would I want to log the calories for a large one?
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited October 2015
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    My eggs don't tell the calories on the carton -- I get them from a farm. And they can vary a lot in size, from about 40 g to as many as 65. I try to pick two that will average out around 105-115 g, and am good at that, but for me it's just as easy and somewhat satisfying to be able to log an exact number when I'm making an omelet so putting them in a bowl before cooking anyway.

    If I do a fried or hard boiled egg I estimate.

    And I prefer having correct numbers and not overestimating even for fruit and veg because right now I'm playing around with logging at cron-o-meter which gives a breakdown of micros in a much more user-friendly way than MFP, and I don't want to overestimate what I'm getting.
  • ValerieMartini2Olives
    ValerieMartini2Olives Posts: 3,041 Member
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    broncos1982 wrote: »
    You don't need to weigh a banana or apple, just choose 1 large apple/banana. Fruit you'll need to weigh to be more accurate. No need to count calories in lettuce.

    Everyone has a different perception on what is small or large. Your logic is very askew.
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
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    broncos1982 wrote: »
    BecomingBane wrote: »
    broncos1982 wrote: »
    You don't need to weigh a banana or apple, just choose 1 large apple/banana. Fruit you'll need to weigh to be more accurate. No need to count calories in lettuce.

    Do you have any idea how many calories are in a banana? You sure do need to weigh it. It can make a huge difference.

    lol, what kind of bananas are you buying that they weigh vastly different? A large banana is around 120 calories. Are you weighing it with/without skin? You can make these things ridiculous. You don't need to weigh a banana, just choose a large banana on any calorie tracking program, it's close enough. Just like eggs, if you weigh your eggs then you're being absurd, especially when it tells you the calories for the eggs on the box. a large egg is a large egg.

    "Close enough" doesn't work for people who are working with a small deficit. Underestimating can easily wipe that deficit out.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,372 Member
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    I weigh everything.
  • sweetiepie781
    sweetiepie781 Posts: 75 Member
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    nordlead2005 wrote: »
    Fruits I weigh, as they are calorie dense enough. Greens I sometimes weigh, but often just guess randomly since I'm not always given the opportunity to weigh them even though my wife knows I like to weigh my food.

    If I wasn't losing weight at my expected rate then I would definitely weigh everything.

    O
  • abatonfan
    abatonfan Posts: 1,123 Member
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    Fruits I weigh every time I eat it. Even being off by 10-20g can affect how much insulin I need to take.
    Starchy vegetables I always weigh.
    Nonstarchy vegetables I weigh, but I don't necessarily change my portion size in MFP if I pre-logged 228g of broccoli and actually weighed out 222g.
    Salad greens I estimate. Two handfuls (about 3 cups) is about 80g, so I typically log about 90-100g to leave a bit of wiggle room.
  • sweetiepie781
    sweetiepie781 Posts: 75 Member
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    Thanks everyone for your input I normally measure out my greens and go per cup measurements I always measure my tomatoes , carrots , cucumbers ...but just recently got a food scale and started to weigh them instead of using measuring cups i dont normally weigh my fruit but think my apple habit would be the only prob I would run into as I buy large apples and was shocked when I weighed one at 9 oz and thought it was smaller than that lol.. i have been losing on a regular basis just wondering sometimes if I am over doing my fruits and veggies (as I eat alot ) thanks again
  • Christine_72
    Christine_72 Posts: 16,049 Member
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    I have a banana everyday, and they range from 100g to 170g. A "Large banana" in the database is 136g, so they are one of the things I always weigh. I guestimate stuff like lettuce and onions though.

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