Sweet potato’s

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pinkgurl456
pinkgurl456 Posts: 64 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Would sweet potato’s be considered low value or high calorie wise. My dinners usually consist of 4 large sweet potato’s with Greek yogurt not sure if this is a high calorie dinner or not
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  • JDMac82
    JDMac82 Posts: 3,192 Member
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    https://www.google.com/search?q=sweet potatoe nutrition&cad=h
  • SVZee
    SVZee Posts: 76 Member
    edited December 2018
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    Depends on how much and how you're preparing them, and if those fit within your calorie goals.

    I frequently will eat a large sweet potato for supper-I thinly slice it and sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top, cook until crisp and then dip in Hidden Valley ranch dressing. Pure awesomeness :#
  • MikePTY
    MikePTY Posts: 3,814 Member
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    "High or low calorie" really depends on your calorie goal. If you don't add anything like butter to the sweet potatoes or cook them in oil or any other method that would add calories, you are looking at around 500 calories for the dinner you mention (varying depending on the size of the sweet potatoes and how much greek yogurt you use).

    So is that high calorie? Personally I wouldn't consider that high calorie for my own needs, but I realize that my calorie goal is higher than it is for most women. But as long as you fit in within your calorie goals, then it's not too high in calories.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    edited December 2018
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    pinkgurl456 wrote: »
    Would sweet potato’s be considered low value or high calorie wise. My dinners usually consist of 4 large sweet potato’s with Greek yogurt not sure if this is a high calorie dinner or not

    Well, how many calories does it have (my estimate is about 600 or more for just the sweet potatoes, nothing added, not including the greek yogurt, but you'd have to add in everything else and sweet potatoes vary a lot in size)? How much protein (I'd be concerned there's not enough in that meal)? Are you eating enough non starchy veg? Those would be things I'd consider.

    4 large sweet potatoes seems like a lot to me, but if you really, really like them and have a higher calorie goal than me, maybe they aren't for you.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    Four sweet potatoes would be what I would consider a "high calorie" dinner, but the real question is how it fits into your calorie goals for the day.

    If you're still meeting your goals, there is no issue with having a high calorie dinner. My concern would be to make sure the sweet potatoes are not crowding out other things that you might need. If you enter your meals into MFP, then you'll be able to see how the foods you are choosing for the day are meeting your nutritional needs.
  • Sunshine_And_Sand
    Sunshine_And_Sand Posts: 1,320 Member
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    What is your definition of "large"? What I would think of as a large sweet potato is probably 2-3x the size of what was meant as large when the nutrition information was listed for a large sweet potato...
    Either way 4 of them is probably what I would consider to be a high calorie meal, but you really won't know the exact amount of calories without weighing them.
    Also, as others have said your size and activity level will determine what is "high calorie" for you.
  • dsboohead
    dsboohead Posts: 1,900 Member
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    There are high nutritional value foods and with that being said, they are NOT without calorie values. Even the best of foods that are good for you can have you gaining weight if not monitored.
    If it fits within your calorie goals....go at them!
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,426 Member
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    I typically eat 500-600 calorie dinners. I think 4 sweet potatoes and some yogurt might be around that depending on actual potato size and amount of yogurt... is the yogurt low fat or full fat? What is high calorie to you?

    Log it and find out if it fits your calorie goal. Weigh your sweet potatoes on a food scale instead of just logging large potatoes.
  • pinkgurl456
    pinkgurl456 Posts: 64 Member
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    I use low calorie yogurt on the days I ate the sweet potato dinners I eat light for breakfast and lunch I don’t own a food scale so I’m a tad afraid I’m over eating calories wise
  • amy19355
    amy19355 Posts: 805 Member
    edited December 2018
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    Weigh the potatoes before you eat them so you can look up the actual calories and know for sure.

    I don’t see any standard size in this root vegetable ; it can be 1 cup worth of cooked or 3 cups . I have purchased 6lb monsters from the farm market !

    And - what others said: high calorie is relative to your needs. It could be a big or medium meal depending.
  • nowine4me
    nowine4me Posts: 3,985 Member
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    I eat a ton of sweet potatoes, in fact, I’m slightly orange. Really. But I might suggest you cut back by a potato or two and add in some green leafy vegetables or broccoli to expand your nutrient profile
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    nowine4me wrote: »
    I eat a ton of sweet potatoes, in fact, I’m slightly orange. Really. But I might suggest you cut back by a potato or two and add in some green leafy vegetables or broccoli to expand your nutrient profile

    Yeah, adding some greens/broccoli and maybe some lentils or black beans (or other higher protein food) would create a meal that is more balanced in nutrition. Depending on what you're eating the rest of the day, it might be a good idea to round out the nutritional value of this dinner.
  • pinkgurl456
    pinkgurl456 Posts: 64 Member
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    Here’s a picture of them 7jvdyng1bk0n.jpeg
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    Unfortunately, the only way you can know for sure if they are "too much" is to weigh them and log them. You can get a $15 food scale on Amazon. All we can do is guess and make generalizations.

    Otherwise just log them however you currently are, and if after a few weeks you aren't losing weight as you would expect, the potatoes might be the culprit (more calories than you thought).
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,950 Member
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    Another vote for getting a food scale.

    And do consider adding more protein and fat to that meal. You could be satisfied with less calories if you have a more balanced meal.
  • kam26001
    kam26001 Posts: 2,799 Member
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    pinkgurl456 wrote: »
    Here’s a picture of them 7jvdyng1bk0n.jpeg
    Check your receipt. If they're sold by weight you might see it listed on the receipt. You can also use the scale in the produce section.

    I don't like the skin so I mash it into a measuring cup and calculate it that way.
  • pinkgurl456
    pinkgurl456 Posts: 64 Member
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    Changed portion / number

    Weight of three I bought
    1 Garnet 1.70 LB
    Two weighed together 2.82 lb
    Any help in calorie count?
    I put Fage 0% for protein
  • deannalfisher
    deannalfisher Posts: 5,600 Member
    edited December 2018
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    pinkgurl456 wrote: »
    Changed portion / number

    Weight of three I bought
    1 Garnet 1.70 LB
    Two weighed together 2.82 lb
    Any help in calorie count?
    I put Fage 0% for protein

    that is a shade over 1000cal just in sweet potatos (253g carbs/22g protein)

    this is the database entry i use - eat to perform sweet potato - i've validated it off the USDA entry

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