Its impossible!

Sebani
Sebani Posts: 24 Member
edited 1:59PM in Health and Weight Loss
To track calories and lose weight without having any semblance of a life.

Please some of you seasoned MFPers tell me how you can go out to eat and accurately document your calorie intake. Especially if youre Chinese... It is effing impossible

Its also unrealistic to eat 100% of your meals home cooked.

Please give me some useful advice!
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Replies

  • silverfiend
    silverfiend Posts: 329 Member
    Learn what is being added to the foods when you eat out. If it's breaded or coated, don't eat it. If it has a sauce, it's probably a safe bet that it's not going to work on your diet. There are always plain meats available.

    If you counting calories, you should know how to eyeball the amount close enough for those dining out times. If you are low carb then learn to spot things that are likely to have added carbs into them.
  • Bxqtie116
    Bxqtie116 Posts: 552 Member
    It's hard only if you allow it to be. If you have the MFP app on your phone, you can log your food right there. MFP has a feature that can pull up restaurants in the area that you're located and you can pull up the menu from there. If the menu is not available, then try to guess what ingredients may be in the food. You may not hit it perfectly, but something is better than nothing.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    Sebani wrote: »
    To track calories and lose weight without having any semblance of a life.

    Please some of you seasoned MFPers tell me how you can go out to eat and accurately document your calorie intake. Especially if youre Chinese... It is effing impossible

    Its also unrealistic to eat 100% of your meals home cooked.

    Please give me some useful advice!

    It's only as impossible as we make it. :)

    When cooking at home, which is most of the time, I weigh all food.

    When eating out, I guesstimate, or I look up the nutrition information. I intentionally choose lower calorie options, or try to split it in half right away and saved the rest for later.

    I work hard to log all my food, no matter what I eat.

    At night, I log the next day's food so I have an idea of how much I am eating. I adjust accordingly.

    Each day, I stick to the plan as much as possible. If I'm doing cardio that day, I might have some calories left over, for which I might add in an after dinner desert. However, I will often not eat anything back on some days of the week to save extra calories for the weekend.

    I have foods in my own database because I've done my own research on correct calories. I read packages and use the USDA site to get my information. I no longer use the MFP app for food logging (I use Sparkpeople), but any online food database has some notoriously inaccurate food entries in it which, if used, can kill a deficit in a second).

    I am consistent with this plan. Once you get into a habit, it all goes pretty quickly. :)
  • Sebani
    Sebani Posts: 24 Member
    edited August 2016
    @Bxqtie116 trust me... Not all restaurants have their nutritional info espexially chinese ones. Hence my dilemma. And its impossibke to guestimate which i heard was friwned upin here anyways :|
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    Sebani wrote: »
    @Bxqtie116 trust me... Not all restaurants have their nutritional info espexially chinese ones. Hence my dilemma

    A lot of restaurants don't have nutrition information online, but if you find one that does you can guesstimate from that. :)
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    Sebani wrote: »
    @Bxqtie116 trust me... Not all restaurants have their nutritional info espexially chinese ones. Hence my dilemma. And its impossibke to guestimate which i heard was friwned upin here anyways :|

    Just eat less of what you normally eat at a restaurant. Instead of having a full plate, fill it 3/4 full.
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,643 Member
    I make really simple things at home (throw some salmon in the oven and veggies in the microwave), have really simple things at the employee cafeteria that are easy to estimate, use website entries for fast food and don't eat too much of it, and I eat real restaurant food so rarely that when I do, I just call it a day off and don't bother with it.
  • Sebani
    Sebani Posts: 24 Member
    Eating less means nothing. Yiu dont kniw the hidden crap thats thrown into these dishes i can be completely off.

    I can eat half a dish of somethng and it may still be ovee 1000 calories
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,643 Member
    Sebani wrote: »
    @Bxqtie116 trust me... Not all restaurants have their nutritional info espexially chinese ones. Hence my dilemma. And its impossibke to guestimate which i heard was friwned upin here anyways :|

    It's only a bad idea to guesstimate your food all day every day. Nobody will tell you not to do it at a restaurant. That's the general consensus.
  • queenliz99
    queenliz99 Posts: 15,317 Member
    Sebani wrote: »
    Eating less means nothing. Yiu dont kniw the hidden crap thats thrown into these dishes i can be completely off.

    I can eat half a dish of somethng and it may still be ovee 1000 calories

    If you think the dish is 1000 calories eat half. Go by how full you feel.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    queenliz99 wrote: »
    Sebani wrote: »
    @Bxqtie116 trust me... Not all restaurants have their nutritional info espexially chinese ones. Hence my dilemma. And its impossibke to guestimate which i heard was friwned upin here anyways :|

    Just eat less of what you normally eat at a restaurant. Instead of having a full plate, fill it 3/4 full.

    This. Anybody who doesn't want to or cannot count calories needs only to eat smaller portions. Weighing/measuring/counting is just a way to be more exact about eating less. It's not the only way to eat less.

    I'd suggest keeping a food log and using your own measurements. You likely tend to serve yourself around the same amount of each food whenever you have it. So log "1 serving chicken." Then aim to cut it down to 3/4 serving.
  • Bxqtie116
    Bxqtie116 Posts: 552 Member
    Sebani wrote: »
    Eating less means nothing. Yiu dont kniw the hidden crap thats thrown into these dishes i can be completely off.

    I can eat half a dish of somethng and it may still be ovee 1000 calories
    PaulaWallaDingDong wrote: »
    Sebani wrote: »
    @Bxqtie116 trust me... Not all restaurants have their nutritional info espexially chinese ones. Hence my dilemma. And its impossibke to guestimate which i heard was friwned upin here anyways :|

    It's only a bad idea to guesstimate your food all day every day. Nobody will tell you not to do it at a restaurant. That's the general consensus.

    If that's the case, then being knowledgeable about which foods to choose from and which to stay away from helps a lot. Choose foods that are grilled or baked instead of fried. Stay away from those foods that may be cooked in a ton of oil, cream sauces or may have a lot of ingredients in it. Try to limit starchy carbs such as rice, pasta and potatoes. If you're still in doubt, then stick to eating just the protein and veggies or a salad. If you go with the salad, stick to an oil & vinegar based dressing; something clear and not thick in consistency.
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,149 Member
    What I found works for me when I eat at a buffet is to ask myself "How much do you want?", then only take half or a third of that number. I love the shizzle out of General Tso chicken, but I only get half a scoop worth; chicken balls I take 2 instead of 6. If you look around or Google the types of foods you want to eat at a buffet, good chance you'll find a national chain restaurant with nutritional info available.

    If the rest of your logging is on track/as accurate as you can make it, guessing on take-away or special occasions won't kitten things up that much.
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
    Sebani wrote: »
    @Bxqtie116 trust me... Not all restaurants have their nutritional info espexially chinese ones. Hence my dilemma. And its impossibke to guestimate which i heard was friwned upin here anyways :|

    Do you have certain restaurants that you tend to frequent? Because while you may not be measuring the portions, the restaurant probably does - I find that the meal I get (steamed chicken with veggies, sauce on the side) comes out to be almost the same amount of chicken every time, so I don't even bother weighing it anymore. Try getting some dishes as take out and weigh them out, it's not going to be exact every single time but it would at least get you a pretty close estimate.
  • mgdnutty
    mgdnutty Posts: 17 Member
    Fast up to that meal then enjoy don't worry about it
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,423 Member
    I eat out one meal per week. The rest of my food is prepared from home.
    I plan what I will order. I look up nutritional info in advance. If the place doesn't have that I find a similar item or recipe to log.
    I avoid fried food, tons of cheese and bacon, go easy on sauces and condiments. I get more grilled meats than breaded. I get a thin crust pizza. I get a smaller item, share larger portions, or save part for another meal. I know what a portion of something like rice for me should look like because I have prepared it at home. I order vegetables or a side salad. I drink unsweetened tea or water.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    edited August 2016
    mgdnutty wrote: »
    Fast up to that meal then enjoy don't worry about it

    I've done this as well by skipping lunch if I know I will be eating a big meal out, or going to a potluck at somebody's house. It's nice to have a bit more wiggle room for those special meals. :)
  • emdeesea
    emdeesea Posts: 1,823 Member
    So what I used to do was to bank my calories throughout the week so I could have (what I guessed) a 2,000 calorie meal on either Friday or Saturday. That worked pretty well until I got to a point where my weight was very close to goal. Now a 2,000 calorie meal is going to throw me too far off because my target is way too small to hit.

    So here's what I do now. I don't do it. I am able to socialize without eating. If I do go out and eat, I figure that I won't have any loss for a while and I'll just maintain.

    How badly do you want this? It's up to you.
  • elisa123gal
    elisa123gal Posts: 4,324 Member
    edited August 2016
    It is hard but you can do it.. it is just making the change and getting used to a new routine. All i know about chinese food is that it is doubled fried many times in the wok. I'd stop doing that.. ditch the oil. (use chicken broth). and then I think it would be pretty healthy. At that point just count the calories of the ingredients. Once you get your rice, noodles, and vegetables added into your diary it will be easy.
    Oh, and for eating out.. you have to exercise and save up extra calories.. and truly.. try to limit going out to restaurants so you can be in more control. If you eat out all the time.. it will be almost impossible because restaurant food has hidden calories ..and you'll get frustrated.
  • ouryve
    ouryve Posts: 572 Member
    So, how often do you eat out? If it's once every week or two, then keep back 200 exercise calories per day, eat lightly on the day before the meal, then don't worry about it. Avoid obviously deep fried dishes and let the fact that you've learnt to eat smaller portions guide you as to when you're full.
  • mph323
    mph323 Posts: 3,565 Member
    Sebani wrote: »
    Eating less means nothing. Yiu dont kniw the hidden crap thats thrown into these dishes i can be completely off.

    I can eat half a dish of somethng and it may still be ovee 1000 calories

    Are you actually eating half a dish at each meal? If so and you are not losing, eat a quarter as suggested above. You don't have to know the calorie counts to eat less. If your lifestyle includes a lot of restaurant meals then you go by portion size and your weight gain or loss. If you want to use exact calorie counts you stop eating out so often. Your choice.
  • AlabamaMama224
    AlabamaMama224 Posts: 137 Member
    Try it for a few weeks. Be as accurate as you can. You may surprise yourself.

    Oh, and go take a look at all the success stories. It may be uncomfortable, or take you out of your normal way of doing things, but it's hardly impossible.
  • gambyt
    gambyt Posts: 1 Member
    My two cents:

    Don't MFP rule your life. Use it strictly for between 3-4 weeks to get an idea as to food values (i.e., how much fat, carbs, protein, sodium, etc.) of different foods. If you are anything like me, then you may tend to eat the same, or similar, meals each week. I happen to eat very similar lunches every day. Even if you go out to eat semi-regularly, after 3-4 weeks, you will likely have a really good idea as to what you can, and can't eat, in order to stay on your goal. Then, use MFP every few days to make sure you are staying on track, or if you are going to a new place to eat.

    If I go to a restaurant that I don't know anything about or can't look up, I order something sensible, but I don't let it get me down because I know I'll be on track the next day.

    Diet is like working out. If you don't work out or run for one day, that doesn't mean that all your hard work is out the window - it means you get your butt out of bed and get back to it the next day. If your diet crashes and burns for one day, no big deal. Don't guilt yourself over it. Enjoy the meal and get back on track the next day. Just don't make it a habit.

    'nuff said.
  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,179 Member
    edited August 2016
    What, no Princess Bride clips?

    I have breakfast at home, which I cook. I have dinner at home, mostly, which I cook.

    I have lunch at work, and it consists of junky snacks provided by the workplace. Portion control is key.

    I haven't tried to track foods at a Chinese buffet. The only buffet I've visited on this journey was a breakfast buffet and I guessed at remembering what I ate and I know that I logged inaccurately.

    That was back in July and I've lost 13 lb since then.
  • NikeSoccRu87er
    NikeSoccRu87er Posts: 6 Member
    silverfiend wrote: »
    Learn what is being added to the foods when you eat out. If it's breaded or coated, don't eat it. If it has a sauce, it's probably a safe bet that it's not going to work on your diet. There are always plain meats available.

    If you counting calories, you should know how to eyeball the amount close enough for those dining out times. If you are low carb then learn to spot things that are likely to have added carbs into them.

    I mean, you can still be in shape, attractive and successful--and eat a reasonable amount of breaded, saucy stuff (and the like) from time to time. It just takes educating yourself (calories in vs. calories out), practice and control--and not being a gross, pitiful glutton with a lot of laughable excuses. I mean, we're human; not savage animals!
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