help when there’s no information online

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Jen92019
Jen92019 Posts: 8 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I’m going out with friends soon for a meet up, but the place we’re going has no nutritional info available. It’s a dessert chain which isn’t ideal for the diet, but not even similar chains have available calorie/macros for me to estimate with. What should I do?

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  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    Estimate to the best of your ability. If this isn't something you do every day then the act of logging is simply to keep up the habit of logging no matter the circumstances. Some days you just can't log accurately or even close enough, and that's alright in the grand scheme of things.

    What kind of dessert(s) are you planning to have? Planning what to have in advance may help you estimate, and if not, at least you will go with a plan knowing exactly what you will be eating, which helps lessen any anxiety you may feel for "eating what you're not supposed to eat". With a plan, anything you'll eat will be "what you're supposed to eat". You'll also be less tempted to eat more than planned, which happens sometimes when you're anxious and feel like "you've ruined it".
  • Jen92019
    Jen92019 Posts: 8 Member
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    Thanks. I’m planning on having crepes with banana, strawberries and I think it comes with ice cream, so thought of just adding things individually based on what’s already in the database but there’s so many similar products with wildly different caloric values that I really wasn’t sure what to do.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    Just add any entry that has average calories (not too high, not too low) for documentation purposes, and call it a day. That's what I do.
  • carriebeary8
    carriebeary8 Posts: 8 Member
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    Check out www.dwlz.com she has done a lot of research on different restaurants and has a lot of calories for them. IDK if she will have the one you are going to but it's worth a look.
  • Jen92019
    Jen92019 Posts: 8 Member
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    carriebeary8 wrote: »
    Check out www.dwlz.com she has done a lot of research on different restaurants and has a lot of calories for them. IDK if she will have the one you are going to but it's worth a look.
    I wasn’t aware of this site, thanks. I thought crepes were probably one of the lower calorie options on the menu, in comparison with cookie dough anyway!

  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    I don't eat out often, but I get whatever I want regardless of calories when I do. I would hate to waste money or calories on something I don't want. If several things sound appealing, only then I pick whichever of them has the lowest estimated calories.

    We make crepes at home often. You are right in that they are relatively low in calories. The pan is barely brushed with a little oil - more would ruin the crepes. The high variation of calories is probably because of the toppings, those can range from very low calorie to very high calorie.

    Trust me, it's not a big deal if you don't log things correctly occasionally (unless you're eating out often), as long as you log them accurately consistently outside of these special occasions. I have lost a lot of weight and currently maintaining, and I've only been able to do that because I don't make things harder than they need to be.
  • Jen92019
    Jen92019 Posts: 8 Member
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    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    I don't eat out often, but I get whatever I want regardless of calories when I do. I would hate to waste money or calories on something I don't want. If several things sound appealing, only then I pick whichever of them has the lowest estimated calories.

    We make crepes at home often. You are right in that they are relatively low in calories. The pan is barely brushed with a little oil - more would ruin the crepes. The high variation of calories is probably because of the toppings, those can range from very low calorie to very high calorie.

    Trust me, it's not a big deal if you don't log things correctly occasionally (unless you're eating out often), as long as you log them accurately consistently outside of these special occasions. I have lost a lot of weight and currently maintaining, and I've only been able to do that because I don't make things harder than they need to be.

    Thanks. I’ll try to estimate as best I can. I guess I’m just motivated to get to my goal weight, we had pizza yesterday and I went considerably over my limit so now it’s kind of having a knock on effect

  • steveko89
    steveko89 Posts: 2,217 Member
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    I'm very data-obsessed; I would expect making an estimate based on the components of a meal to be more accurate than a "close-enough" proxy. I'm not above asking what the portion size is, especially for proteins, to make my estimate more accurate. I fully recognize that level of effort and accuracy isn't for everyone or even necessary.
  • Jen92019
    Jen92019 Posts: 8 Member
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    steveko89 wrote: »
    I'm very data-obsessed; I would expect making an estimate based on the components of a meal to be more accurate than a "close-enough" proxy. I'm not above asking what the portion size is, especially for proteins, to make my estimate more accurate. I fully recognize that level of effort and accuracy isn't for everyone or even necessary.
    That’s true, I never even thought to ask when I’m there

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