Counting every single calorie...
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ShannonMpls wrote: »I do add spices, garlic, ginger, etc in recipe builder but that's mostly because I use my recipe builder later as my actual recipe for a meal, and my shopping list. Also, some spices are actually kinda high calorie, like if you're making a hungarian goulash with a 1/2 cup of paprika
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breathless575 wrote: »Yes, it's important to log every single thing. For example, I used to not log gum until I found out there were calories in it. At 5 calories per stick of gum, it can add up.4
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Once you've been tracking for a while you'd have a good idea what a serving of rice/beef/whatever looks like and that is usually good enough for maintaining a normal weight.
But if you want to be shredded you gonna have to track every single Calorie.0 -
I track everything but spices, this has worked for me...as far as your tomatoes go, can you weigh them and then search for the weight and log that? If not I'll google calories in X grams of canned tomatoes and use that as a last resort0
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Youll have to do what works for you, as you can see by the variety of responses.
I dont log spices, but then I dont use much of them. Even if I made a recipe that day, its likely not going to account for more than 5 calories. I nearly always have a good chunk of calories left over, so I dont really care about things under 5 calories, there's plenty of room for it. When I am at the last 10 pounds or so, and I have very little room to play with, I will tighten up if it needs it. Most items in general are going to be off by a small amount anyway.1 -
I only count spices if they are a blend with sodium. I need to track that for health reasons.
If they don't have salt, I don't log them.1 -
There's no way I'm obsessing over spices and some tomatoes.3
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It won't hurt anything to be a little off (you're guaranteed to be a little off anyway), but be aware that vegetables have a significant number of calories.2
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Thanks everyone. I have not tried the recipe builder yet, I guess that is my next task.2
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I put everything in the recipe builder even if its 0 calories because if my husband and i like a new recipe i print it out how i made it and it goes in a binder on my kitchen counter. I do this instead of printing the recipe where i got it from because i change stuff it sometimes ends up way different than it started and i dont like to have pen marks all over my recipes. I keep a post it note by my binder to note down any weight differences in ingredients and adjust those and the final weight as servings later.0
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Thanks everyone. I have not tried the recipe builder yet, I guess that is my next task.
The recipe builder is great. I really like the feature that lets you import a recipe from another website. Yeah, it's not perfect but it's really neat. You just have to go through and double check the results once imported, but it saves a lot of typing.0 -
Just be careful... being so meticulous with calories can lead to disordered eating and/or an eating disorder. I know it because I'm there right now and trying to recover. If it's something that has so little calories like spices, don't count them. They won't matter.
Please just stop. Being accurate with logging is not in any way disordered and that is a ridiculous assertion.
She didn't say logging is disordered; she said it can (not will--CAN) lead to an eating disorder for some people. Which is true. For other people, obviously, it doesn't lead to an eating disorder.1 -
I log as much as I can. I cook from scratch too and it surprised me how the carbs in particular can creep up when I add in all the spices, onions, etc.0
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I never log vegetable calories if they were on the old Weight Watchers "free" list. I do not log celery, broccoli, cucumbers, cauliflower, peppers, lettuce, spinach, peppers, onions, mushrooms, zucchini, and tomoatoes. I DO log butternut squash, carrots, sweet and white potatoes, corn, beans, chickpeas, peas. I use cucumbers, celery, and salads as a volumetrics trick to keep me full. I also bulk up meat with peppers, mushrooms, and onions as it helps me stay fuller and gives flavor for less calories. I do not count them because they keep me on track, are very low calorie and it works for me! I DO count pasta sauce, sauces, and dressings. I am not sure where homemade canned tomatoes would fall - as a sauce type condiment or as a veggie, but I find that if I do not stress over every little thing I tend to do better overall, so I say - "free."
This varies by person, depending on how s/he eats. If I skipped logging non-starchy vegetables, I'd understate my day by several hundred calories. Last night's 692-calorie dinner had 18 ingredients, only 4 of them over 50 calories (only one over 70).
Not trying to dispute what's working for you, just trying to encourage others to consider the influence of their food choices on their strategy.4
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