Counting the healthy stuff ?

Justice96
Justice96 Posts: 29
edited November 12 in Food and Nutrition
I havent really counted my fruits and veggies up until I read something in a magazine 3 months ago that said I should start. It seems a bit weird to count the healthy stuff but yet again calories are calories no matter what the source.
I need some opinions should I stop counting fruits and veggies or go on about it.

Replies

  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    A banana has about 100 calories....an apple, about 70. If you eat 2 apples and a banana every day, that's almost 250 calories! (good calories, but calories) If you are limited to 1400 per day, that's quite a chunk of your allotment. Yes, count them!
  • ariant23
    ariant23 Posts: 161 Member
    I count the "high" ones. i dont really bother with lettuce or things that are goign to be less than 10 calories. but an apple (baseball sized) will be abotu 90 calories. Tropical fruits are especially high in calories. We eat lots of bell peppers in our house too, i usually just "sneak" them in by adding an extra 1/10th of a serving of something else, rather than logging them separately. Sugar snap peas are higher up in the veggie world, so i might count them too. ditto for carrots, peas, corn (really a grain). then again, if i'm throwing in a tablespoon of frozen peas with my freezer lunch, i dont bother. so i take quantity and type into account. partly b/c i dont log every bit of activity i do wiht my little kids. i only log my elliptical workouts.

    that might not be totally useful, but i guess the answer is, be thoughtful about it. no hard rule one way or another.
  • Justice96
    Justice96 Posts: 29
    Thanks :)
  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,871 Member
    You need to count everything, so that you will have a better idea of the total nutritional content of your food, not just the calories.
  • tawnajean
    tawnajean Posts: 20
    I don't count veggie cals except for potatoes, but I do count fruit cals because like another poster wrote, they have quite a bit!

    I think it's because I had done weight watchers in the past and most veggies were on the "free" food list, meaning they don't count against you. For me, it encourages me to eat more veggies and is especially helpful at the end of the day when I want a snack but am at my calorie limit. (I'm at 1260) Most times I will reach for some "free" veggies so I can stay under goal instead of giving up and going over with junk food!

    My next goal is trying to incorporate more fruits in my diet, choosing them for dessert, etc. I've found some delish 100 cal chocolate dip so I see some strawberries in my future :)
  • MaggiePuccini
    MaggiePuccini Posts: 248 Member
    I count them on this thing, but in my head it's the wrong way of eating. In my mind, things like red peppers, mushrooms, onions, leeks etc and the things I've always relied on to make tasty meals are free. I need to watch out for the amount of rice, garlic puree, sun dried tomato paste and cream cheese I add!! i follow a low gi diet and if i was doing points i'd only count the brown bread, pasta, rice, and fats and protien. that still adds up!!

    i may be BANNED for saying this, but if weightwatchers philosophy (or whatever the word is) is much healthier.
  • MaggiePuccini
    MaggiePuccini Posts: 248 Member
    ps, yes even on ww i wwould count potato and banana.

    the mfp dissuades people from eating a banana instead of two jaffa cakes. two jaffa cakes have FEWER calories.
    but if you're doing points then i think the banana would win.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member
    Count everything, because everything counts.
  • wolfchild59
    wolfchild59 Posts: 2,608 Member
    I count absolutely everything. When you have a calorie goal it all adds up. Plus I eat a lot of veggies, so that would be a lot of calories not logged for me. I have veggies in every meal and as snacks throughout the day. I'd be looking at hundreds of untracked calories every single day if I just skipped 'em. Plus my "meals" would look weird. Like a recent lunch would look like all I had was 4oz of shrimp and sriracha. Or a meal yesterday would have consisted only of 5oz of chicken, because everything else was veggies.

    Plus, I have my own food entries for every veggie I use based off of a 100g serving size that includes the all of the nutrient values, including potassium. That way I can look at my summary page and see where I'm at on fiber, potassium, vitamins, etc and have a truer picture than if I didn't log that stuff. And with the entries all based on 100g servings, I can enter the exact amounts, to the gram, and make sure I'm tracking to the best of my ability. (of course, knowing that nature is nature and there is no 100% exact amount of any info for fruits and veggies, just the best they can figure on averages)
  • dvisser1
    dvisser1 Posts: 788 Member
    I count everything. Apples, oranges, lettuce..... everything.
    If nothing else I like that I know I can heap a ton of fresh salad on my dinner plate and keep it well below 100 calories before I put dressing on it.
  • maf66
    maf66 Posts: 211 Member
    Count everything, because everything counts.

    :drinker:
  • darlilama
    darlilama Posts: 794 Member
    The basics are that your body uses "x" calories a day to live (your BMR). If you want to lose weight, you take in fewer calories than that… or you burn more calories than that by exercising… or you do a combination of both. So, yes, you need to count everything you eat.

    Then, there's the "health" aspect of starting a new "lifestyle", which is awesomely important if you want to feel good, maintain lean muscle and bone density, and be an overall healthier person for the rest of your life. You do this by what makes up the calories you eat. This includes how much fat vs protein vs carbs you are eating. Are you eating nutrient dense foods that have lots of the minerals and vitamins your body needs, or are you eating "empty calories" which really don't provide your body with any of its essential requirements?

    Lastly, the exercise component is vital. It's not just about losing weight or being able to eat more. It's about maintaining that muscle and bone density. Women NEED to know this. You can be skinny, but you won't be healthy without eating nutritious foods and including both strength (muscle/bones) and cardio (heart/lungs) exercise in your life.
  • coyoteo
    coyoteo Posts: 532 Member
    I had fruit and granola for breakfast and it was 617 calories. So yea, you really should count it. Calories count no matter what they are from.
  • MaggiePuccini
    MaggiePuccini Posts: 248 Member
    I had fruit and granola for breakfast and it was 617 calories. So yea, you really should count it. Calories count no matter what they are from.

    granola would have made up the bigger part of that. I'd be careful even with the choices i made wrt fruit.
  • Athijade
    Athijade Posts: 3,300 Member
    Every calorie counts when you are counting calories.

    Besides, if I log my fruits and vegetables then I can see where I can improve my meals. I can see how much of it I ate and WHEN I ate it. It gives me a better over view on my overall eating habits.
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