Should I count the calories in seasonings?

jaysonwyle
jaysonwyle Posts: 2 Member
in Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
Im just wondering if it would affect my calorie intake

Replies

  • jennifer_417
    jennifer_417 Posts: 12,344 Member
    Anything that has calories affects your calorie intake.
  • MikePTY
    MikePTY Posts: 3,814 Member
    Calories are calories. If you are using most traditional spices, they have miniscule to no calories that would not be worth measuring. But if you season your food with something that has a measurable amount of calories, you should account for that.
  • Teabythesea_
    Teabythesea_ Posts: 559 Member
    edited March 2019
    I don't. Never have, not when I was losing maintaining or now that I'm gaining. They're so minuscule that the food left on your dishes probably makes up for it.

    However I will count seeds like fennel and sesame but i rarely use them and not sure I'd consider them seasonings.
  • PAV8888
    PAV8888 Posts: 14,253 Member
    Calories are calories.

    Whether it is material to account for them depends on the quantities you're playing with and on your tdee, deficit/surplus and general logging prowess
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    edited March 2019
    I rarely count them, but yes, they count. Everything that has calories counts. For convenience, however, it's safe to not log the very low calorie ones. I made the mistake of not logging poppy seeds when I had them daily in measurable amounts, but other than that, everything else is mostly under 5 calories. Things like garlic and onion powder are kind of on the higher side because people tend to use larger amounts (a tsp of onion powder is 8 calories, for example). Herbs are negligible at 3 calories or less per tsp.

    If you're too worried, you could quick add 5-20 calories to make up for any seasonings you added without having to log them (for perspective, half a tsp of cumin is 4 calories and it's one of the higher calorie items).
  • sardelsa
    sardelsa Posts: 9,812 Member
    Many seasonings have calories, but it's up to you if you feel it is worth tracking.
  • hydrostation
    hydrostation Posts: 37 Member
    I never track seasonings, most are comprised of salt and various herbs, which have 0 calories. You will be hard pressed to find a calorie reading on any seasonings you use. Large amounts of sodium will make your body retain water temporarily, so I'd worry more about tracking sodium content over calories in seasonings.
  • Panini911
    Panini911 Posts: 2,325 Member
    Some seasonings are not really worth tracking. others are. but yes a calorie is a calorie and they all can add up depending.

    I track what needs tracking for achieve my goal. some things like gum I didn't need to at first, but as I got closer to goal I started nitpicking as there was less wiggle room. At the moment things are going ok so I keep doing what I've been doing which is include spices when I build recipe for references but don't always add the cinnamon used on my morning street cut oats in MFP. if things start to snag i'll start including even that.
  • Lorleee
    Lorleee Posts: 369 Member
    I agree with hydrostation. Definitely not.
  • 99clmsntgr
    99clmsntgr Posts: 777 Member
    Depends on what you mean by seasonings. For something like oregano or red pepper flake, etc., the calories are going to be small, I usually track it, but it's such a small contributor it may not be worth it.

    For the pre-packaged rubs and seasonings (thinking Montreal Steak seasoning, etc.) the sodium could be a big hit. If you're tracking sodium, you should keep track of this.
  • lin_be
    lin_be Posts: 393 Member
    I mean how much seasoning we talking about here? 100g of garlic should maybe be measured, 2-3g not so much. I do weight onion raw before cooking because I’m crazy.
  • mndamon
    mndamon Posts: 549 Member
    Unless you're worried about sodium intake in particular I don't think I would stress over it.
  • solieco1
    solieco1 Posts: 1,559 Member
    I usually do for fresh but not for dried unless it's something like a seed or nut. Honestly, the only reason I do at all is because I have a fairly tight deficit window and if I start to estimate one thing I tend to start to estimate lots of things.
  • Chieflrg
    Chieflrg Posts: 9,097 Member
    edited March 2019
    I wouldn't bat a eyelash when it comes to seasonung. Too many random things in life that don't add up on average.

    As long as your weight goals are consistent and you can comply on food that are more calorie dense.



  • sgt1372
    sgt1372 Posts: 3,997 Member
    Spices have few cals and it's really too OC to count them.

    Take that from someone who "counts" his black coffee which amounts to only 8-10 cals/day everyday and who has been able to maintain his weight for 2 yrs w/o also counting the cals in spices and/or condiments, like ketchup or mustard.
  • savithny
    savithny Posts: 1,200 Member
    I was surprised by the calorie counts for chili powder, turmeric, and cinnamon. And once you get into seasonings like sauces and dips, you're into "damn that adds up" territory.

    Look it all up at least once to see.

Categories