weighing food, seriously?

2

Replies

  • Contrarian
    Contrarian Posts: 8,138 Member
    You're pretty!
  • Elle_Jamaicangirl81
    Elle_Jamaicangirl81 Posts: 418 Member
    I hope you aren't using your body scale to weigh your food..............


    *giggle*


    Anyway, yea...When i first started MFP i bought a digital food scale and weighed EVERYthing. its been 8 months..you'd be surprised how little (or a lot) things weigh and that you could have been underestimating before.

    i can eyeball things now, but i still use it.
  • UpEarly
    UpEarly Posts: 2,555 Member
    If you're having this hard of a time, you're either doing it wrong or you don't have the right kind of scale. My food scale is super easy - there is nothing to clean up and I can weigh even miniscule amounts of cheese. :-)
  • HeidiMightyRawr
    HeidiMightyRawr Posts: 3,343 Member
    Get a scale that measures in smaller increments (grams?)

    For yoghurt and things where you don't want to "dirty" other bowls.

    Weigh the pot before
    Eat what you want
    Weigh the pot after :)

    This is what I do with things such as butter, jars of sauces (as the pan is to big to put on top of the scale) etc etc
  • Elle_Jamaicangirl81
    Elle_Jamaicangirl81 Posts: 418 Member
    you definitely need a scale that measures by the gram or .1 of an ounce.

    there are bigger kitchen scales, but that wont do.
  • deadbeatsummer
    deadbeatsummer Posts: 537 Member
    hahahah.. is she saying she's using a bathroom scales to weight food?! sorry but LOOOOL
    hun.. just get a little digital food scales - simples!



    LOL!
  • LaurenAOK
    LaurenAOK Posts: 2,475 Member
    Why are you weighing yogurt and cheese? I weigh meat. Everything else has a calorie count on the back of the packaging. If you eat half, log half.

    you buy everything in single serving containers? i buy big tubs of greek yogurt and bags of shredded cheese. i have to weight whatever portion i am going to use.

    But bags of shredded cheese, at least, usually have a serving as 1/3 or 1/4 cup. I think yogurt is often measured by volume, too, not weight.

    *Shrug* I dunno, food scales always seemed a bit pointless to me except in rare circumstances where the only nutritional info you can find is by weight.
  • dawnagetsfit
    dawnagetsfit Posts: 81
    Why are you weighing yogurt and cheese? I weigh meat. Everything else has a calorie count on the back of the packaging. If you eat half, log half.

    you buy everything in single serving containers? i buy big tubs of greek yogurt and bags of shredded cheese. i have to weight whatever portion i am going to use.

    But bags of shredded cheese, at least, usually have a serving as 1/3 or 1/4 cup. I think yogurt is often measured by volume, too, not weight.

    *Shrug* I dunno, food scales always seemed a bit pointless to me except in rare circumstances where the only nutritional info you can find is by weight.

    Many things that have portion sizes as cups also have it in grams, such as shredded cheese, cereal, etc.
  • pauljsolie
    pauljsolie Posts: 1,024 Member
    Put your jar of mayonnaise (for example) on the scale, zero the scale, spoon out how many grams/ounces in a serving until the scale reads that amount.. The scale will read a negative number BAM there is your serving.. How much more difficult do you think it has to be?????????
  • rileysowner
    rileysowner Posts: 8,336 Member
    For those who weigh their food, I doubt if they're weighing servings that state "per cup" or "per half cup". Most will weigh meats and cheeses or anything that say's "per ounce". A good food scale will be very small and will measure the weight in ounces. Good Luck!!

    I weigh anything that have the serving size in grams even if it gives a volume equivalent. Why? Because the volume equivalent is rarely correct if the nutrition information is given in grams as well. For example, a couple of days back I was using some cocoa, the serving size is in tablespoons (1 tablespoon) and it also says a tablespoon of that should be something like 6 grams. I measured out a level tablespoon, it was about 10 grams. Not a big deal, but that is an item one uses a small amount of. If it was something else, I would much rather have the more exact measure.

    Second, you don't weigh on the kitchen scale, you put a bowl or plate on the scale and zero (tare) it. Then you measure out your serving. All you end up cleaning are the dishes you would use anyway.
  • killagb
    killagb Posts: 3,280 Member
    Why are you weighing yogurt and cheese? I weigh meat. Everything else has a calorie count on the back of the packaging. If you eat half, log half.

    you buy everything in single serving containers? i buy big tubs of greek yogurt and bags of shredded cheese. i have to weight whatever portion i am going to use.

    But bags of shredded cheese, at least, usually have a serving as 1/3 or 1/4 cup. I think yogurt is often measured by volume, too, not weight.

    *Shrug* I dunno, food scales always seemed a bit pointless to me except in rare circumstances where the only nutritional info you can find is by weight.
    Most times those very same things tell you the gram weight next to the cup volume. It's not rare to find this information, not at all.
  • dawnagetsfit
    dawnagetsfit Posts: 81

    I weigh anything that have the serving size in grams even if it gives a volume equivalent. Why? Because the volume equivalent is rarely correct if the nutrition information is given in grams as well. For example, a couple of days back I was using some cocoa, the serving size is in tablespoons (1 tablespoon) and it also says a tablespoon of that should be something like 6 grams. I measured out a level tablespoon, it was about 10 grams. Not a big deal, but that is an item one uses a small amount of. If it was something else, I would much rather have the more exact measure.

    Second, you don't weigh on the kitchen scale, you put a bowl or plate on the scale and zero (tare) it. Then you measure out your serving. All you end up cleaning are the dishes you would use anyway.

    This is very true, I actually just had this happen with baby carrots the other day. Portion size was 14 carrots or some-odd grams and as it turned out, the proper gram portion was actually only 7 carrots.
  • california_peach
    california_peach Posts: 1,809 Member
    Put the bowl on the food scale, hit zero out (a zero will appear), place yogurt into bowl to desired weight. Eat yogurt. Or you can use a measuring cup and then lick the residual yogurt from the cup.
  • Toddrific
    Toddrific Posts: 1,114 Member
    since yogurt is a liquid can't a measuring cup be used?

    all i know is i saw a video about weighing packaged foods like twinkies too..says it has 2 servings but often has like 2.5 servings.
  • Laces_0ut
    Laces_0ut Posts: 3,750 Member
    Why are you weighing yogurt and cheese? I weigh meat. Everything else has a calorie count on the back of the packaging. If you eat half, log half.

    you buy everything in single serving containers? i buy big tubs of greek yogurt and bags of shredded cheese. i have to weight whatever portion i am going to use.

    But bags of shredded cheese, at least, usually have a serving as 1/3 or 1/4 cup. I think yogurt is often measured by volume, too, not weight.

    *Shrug* I dunno, food scales always seemed a bit pointless to me except in rare circumstances where the only nutritional info you can find is by weight.

    measuring by cups and teaspoons are not as precise as grams. and quite often i use something like greek yogurt to round off my marcos at the end of the day. so i may need 63g of greek yogurt for my last meal.

    also its amazing that the USA isnt on the metric system. how can we be so backward? we should have bit the bullet in the 70s and made the change.
  • onequirkygirl
    onequirkygirl Posts: 303 Member
    when i weigh my greek yogurt, i just put the bowl im going to eat it out of on the scale, zero it, and then weigh out 227 grams (my greek yogurt says 1 cup [227g] for a serving size)..
    but my scale does grams, or oz/lbs .. and fractions of an oz

    This. I weigh everything, especially things that aren't all identical. Like the sweet potatoes I buy have a calorie count on them, it appears that they're between 100 and 200 calories, but when you actually weigh it out, you see that the whole thing is 280 ish.
  • missfancy1980
    missfancy1980 Posts: 326
    Ok you weigh the ingredients AND the bowl/ container? ha so simple! Giggle if you like but i have honestly stood thre scratching my head trying to figure out how the hell to do this stuff! When I input greek yoghurt for e.g. it comes up with standard 100g portion.. how the hell do i know if what i just ate measures 100g? lol, hence the interest.

    Thank you all for commenting.. wow, so many comments :flowerforyou:
  • missfancy1980
    missfancy1980 Posts: 326
    @ACG - That's a brilliant vid. Explains it very well.

    @Original Poster - You know you weigh things in a bowl right? That's what the "tare" function is for. Turn it on, put your bowl on there, hit "tare" and it's back at zero. Do this after every addition to the bowl if you're using multiple ingredients.

    Nope had no idea. The last time i measured anything it was to bake a cake with my mum when i was about 7 and never heard the term tare before hahaha! The scale i have is for food (Not to weigh myself lmao) but it only has lbs on it, it's like a round thing with a little dish on the top.
  • mgriffith91
    mgriffith91 Posts: 9
    Why are you weighing yogurt? just use a measuring cup if it says "1 cup". As for weighing food in general, it is smart to make that part of your routine. Don't make it so complicated. Most of the stuff I eat has the calorie count on the back and if it says "4 ounces" (such as raw meat) then that is what I use the food scale for. If it has "1/2 cup" or something like that, I use a measuring cup. You are over analyzing.
  • missfancy1980
    missfancy1980 Posts: 326
    Sometimes I weigh in reverse if it's a messy food, like greek yoghurt. I put the 500g tub onto the scale, scoop out 100g into my bowl, and so when the scale measures the tub at 400g I know I've taken 100 out. The container is going to add to the weight of course, but I just stop at the point where I've taken 100g away from the original total.

    You assume everyone know how to subtract. Most people learn that in second grade, but I think some of the posters here never made it that far. :wink:

    I think some posters here need a wake up call. This is a forum for helping and sharing, not *****ing. It really makes it a very unwelcoming place when some people prefer to make others feel bad.
  • ThePunkHippie
    ThePunkHippie Posts: 213
    If you want to know how much a cup of food weighs, but don't want to get a scale or weigh it, just do a google search. Chances are someone somewhere has already weighed it :D
    (I made notes of how much things like a cup of flour weigh when I was trying to calculate cost of recipes, so I know the information is out there)
  • missfancy1980
    missfancy1980 Posts: 326
    Why are you weighing yogurt? just use a measuring cup if it says "1 cup". As for weighing food in general, it is smart to make that part of your routine. Don't make it so complicated. Most of the stuff I eat has the calorie count on the back and if it says "4 ounces" (such as raw meat) then that is what I use the food scale for. If it has "1/2 cup" or something like that, I use a measuring cup. You are over analyzing.

    It's for inputting my food on here (not for recipes since i always go on instinct when i cook) . Whenever i put something in it asks me how much of it i ate i.e. how many grams. At the moment I'm just using whatever option comes up first as i have no idea how to visualize how much 100g of yoghurt is and just guessing that's the basic potion size. I'd like to be more sure.
  • FungusTrooper
    FungusTrooper Posts: 227 Member
    You have 10000000 replies so I'm assuming someone told you this, but: say you have a 400g tub of yogurt, and you are going to eat 130g of it. Put the whole tub on the scale. It should read 400g. Take yogurt out, spoon by spoon, into whatever meal you're eating, until the scale reads 270g (400g - 130g).

    Tada.
  • missfancy1980
    missfancy1980 Posts: 326
    hehe i read that by one of the above posters and yes that seems like the most simple solution. Think I'll stick to doing this, cheers all :love:
  • CyberEd312
    CyberEd312 Posts: 3,536 Member
    The main reason to weigh food is that we tend to have "lying eyes". Most of us over estimate our calories burned and under estimate our calories eaten (usually due to underestimating portion sizes).

    However, if you're eating something that's premeasured like a tub of Greek yogurt, there's no need to weigh it - just use the facts on the container. If you're scooping it out of a big tub, scoop it into a measuring cup, weigh it once and you know how much that cupful weighs...then just use that to scoop it out all the time. I also generally don't weigh or measure things I'm splitting into a specific number of portions all for myself. Example: If I eat "half" of something one day and "half" the next day, it doesn't really matter that one day may be a little more than half and the other less. I just log half each day.

    I do weigh stuff that I have no other way of determining serving size, but it only takes a second. Set bowl/plate on scale and note weight. Add food. Note weight. Subtract.

    This!!! It really is that simple.. I have my own set of measuring cups and spoons separate from my wife stuff that I use to measure all the stuff that needs it.. I buy bulk at sam's club and anywhere else I can save a buck but on the back of the package it breaks it done by cups, 1/4 cups, tbsp, etc. etc. Just dump it in the measuring cup and measure it.. Only thing I weigh out is like bulk meats, etc that I am portioning in to freezer bags for single servings... It really is all second nature no... I just do it and don't really even think about it anymore.. Just a part of my daily routine...
  • FungusTrooper
    FungusTrooper Posts: 227 Member
    It really is the easiest way to do it. I only did it for the first few weeks, now I know how much like.. 30g of salad is, or 50g of yogurt.

    That being said, I, like I saw some other people say, still measure/weigh high fat/carb foods like meat/potatoes, though.
  • Sarauk2sf
    Sarauk2sf Posts: 28,072 Member
    Why are you weighing yogurt and cheese? I weigh meat. Everything else has a calorie count on the back of the packaging. If you eat half, log half.

    you buy everything in single serving containers? i buy big tubs of greek yogurt and bags of shredded cheese. i have to weight whatever portion i am going to use.

    But bags of shredded cheese, at least, usually have a serving as 1/3 or 1/4 cup. I think yogurt is often measured by volume, too, not weight.

    *Shrug* I dunno, food scales always seemed a bit pointless to me except in rare circumstances where the only nutritional info you can find is by weight.
    Most times those very same things tell you the gram weight next to the cup volume. It's not rare to find this information, not at all.

    And there are a couple of issues with just using volume, including, 1) not sure how you can measure a steak in a cup (although being a vegetarian this is not an issue for me) 2) how much you 'pack' the cup or spoon can really make a difference.
  • mom2belle
    mom2belle Posts: 4 Member
    I love my scale..and like a previous poster said..once you get used to the scale, cups and spoons you will be able to do it with no problem...like second nature..Honestly, when I think about something happening to my scale, I have a mild anxiety attack...lol
  • SMarie10
    SMarie10 Posts: 956 Member
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVjWPclrWVY
    Wow... Just wow... going to try actually using my digital food scale again. Guess eyeballing it isn't the smartest thing to do.
  • a_nunez89
    a_nunez89 Posts: 6
    WOW
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