FRUIT and VEGGIES = CALORIES?!

PlayDoh1234
PlayDoh1234 Posts: 86 Member
in Food and Nutrition
To try to keep my calories down I try to eat a lot of fruit and veggies but I always get frustrated because it's 100 calories here and there and eventually they add up. Is there any "free" food that doesn't have calories? I know WW allows you to eat fruit and veggies for no points. I'm tempted to not include fruits and veggies in my tracking... Does anyone do that?
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Replies

  • Bumdrahp
    Bumdrahp Posts: 1,314 Member
    I would love to know too.. veggies and fruits seem to take a good portion of my cals too.
  • Meg_78
    Meg_78 Posts: 998 Member
    I'd guess the fruit would have a higher calorie count cause of the natural sugars, but I think veggies have very low calorie counts, at least form what i have seen in my diary, esp the green veggies, potato, and sweet potato would probably count higher though.
  • glassyo
    glassyo Posts: 7,744 Member
    Water doesn't have calories. :smile:

    If you're going to count calories, you need to count the calories in fruits and vegetables because they exist and, like you said, they do add up. You're just cheating yourself if you don't count them.

    I was on weight watchers (before they stopped counting fruits as points) and I'm convinced they keep your initial calories low so those extra foods won't do much damage. Plus you're only allowed 5 "free" foods until you have to start counting them as points.
  • Bumdrahp
    Bumdrahp Posts: 1,314 Member
    Water doesn't have calories. :smile:

    If you're going to count calories, you need to count the calories in fruits and vegetables because they exist and, like you said, they do add up. You're just cheating yourself if you don't count them.

    I was on weight watchers (before they stopped counting fruits as points) and I'm convinced they keep your initial calories low so those extra foods won't do much damage. Plus you're only allowed 5 "free" foods until you have to start counting them as points.

    Yeha, I have been counting all my fruits and veggies but I always hear " you can eat as many fruits and veggies as you want".. not so true.. damn calories!
  • nitrogen_widget
    nitrogen_widget Posts: 92 Member
    Steamed broccoli, cauliflower, & carrots, I have a tough time eating over 100 cals of those with 6 to 8 Oz. of chicken.
  • susannamarie
    susannamarie Posts: 2,148 Member
    If you eat enough fruits and veggies (hard to do) to go over your maintenance you'll still gain weight.

    What makes them nice is that they're a lot fewer calories per bite than everything else.
  • thetrishwarp
    thetrishwarp Posts: 838 Member
    I ate about a cup of celery sticks today and it was 8 calories. If you must dip it in something, use the low-cal Kraft Italian dressing, which is 5 calories per tbsp. Not 100% free (what is?) but it's as close as I can do.
  • vim_n_vigor
    vim_n_vigor Posts: 4,089 Member
    You could probably find some gum with no calories...
  • tig_ol_bitties
    tig_ol_bitties Posts: 561 Member
    <<----Overweight vegan right here. My diet is about 95% fruits and vegetables. I'm proof that you should count each and every one because yes, they DO add up.
  • LishieFruit89
    LishieFruit89 Posts: 1,956 Member
    4.5oz of baby carrots = 53 cals and is rather filling

    241g of steamed FRESH broccoli = 82 cals and VERY filling

    181g of gala apple = 57 cals and pretty filling

    100g celery = 14 cals
  • Bumdrahp
    Bumdrahp Posts: 1,314 Member
    If you eat enough fruits and veggies (hard to do) to go over your maintenance you'll still gain weight.

    What makes them nice is that they're a lot fewer calories per bite than everything else.

    Wow I have honestly never in my life heard of any one eating too many veggies and gaining weight from it LOL ever! learn something new every day...
  • muwchck
    muwchck Posts: 261 Member
    Fruit and veggies may still have calories, but haven't you noticed that you can eat a lot more fruit or veggies for 100 calories than you can chips? I'd much rather have 100 calories of something healthy that would more than fill me up,than 100 calories of chips that make me just want more.
  • PlayDoh1234
    PlayDoh1234 Posts: 86 Member
    Water doesn't have calories. :smile:

    If you're going to count calories, you need to count the calories in fruits and vegetables because they exist and, like you said, they do add up. You're just cheating yourself if you don't count them.

    I was on weight watchers (before they stopped counting fruits as points) and I'm convinced they keep your initial calories low so those extra foods won't do much damage. Plus you're only allowed 5 "free" foods until you have to start counting them as points.

    Yeha, I have been counting all my fruits and veggies but I always hear " you can eat as many fruits and veggies as you want".. not so true.. damn calories!

    That's what I was thinking.. You really can't eat ALL the fruits and veggies you want. They still count. I guess I'm stuck with drinking more water!
  • BeautEvilKells
    BeautEvilKells Posts: 27 Member
    Check it out -
    http://www.livestrong.com/article/280209-fruits-vegetables-with-little-or-no-calories/
  • Meliklotz
    Meliklotz Posts: 66 Member
    No free foods.......but......watermelon season is upon us and that is super low in calories.........47 calories per cup.
  • CharlieBarleyMom
    CharlieBarleyMom Posts: 727 Member
    7 oz. of broccoli is less than 70 calories. That's a LOT of broccoli.
  • Awkward30
    Awkward30 Posts: 1,927 Member
    The best way, is to log everything. However some veggies have nearly negligible calories, like celery, spinach, brocolli. You would need to eat a LOT of those for it to hurt your progress. I don't log my vitamins even though they have calories because I honestly won't take them if I have to log them. I'm an awful vitamin taker to begin with... so leaving them off makes sense. I like to log my veggies because I like to see how I'm doing with eating them, but it is your diary, you could just not log veggies and leave 100 cal at the end of the day. You should log fruit. They have sugar and they have enough calories to make a difference. Three servings a day would prob give you 200 cals you wouldn't be counting, depending on which fruits you choose.
  • Edestiny7
    Edestiny7 Posts: 730 Member
    Non-starch veggies are the way to go to be full and satiated on minimal calories. I steam and blend 8 oz. each kale and broccoli each day for lunch, with 1/2 oz. brazil nuts and 10 oz. water for a soup. It keeps me full for 4 hours and is only 268 calories.
  • ElPumaMex
    ElPumaMex Posts: 367 Member
    As others pointed out here, fruits and vegetables do have calories and should be counted.

    They are really nice to eat, because they have plenty of nutritious ingredients, and also they can fill you with a relatively low calorie count.
    This is specially true with certain fruits. For example Watermelon, where you can eat one pound of it for 136 calories !!
  • fuhrmeister
    fuhrmeister Posts: 1,796 Member
    I don't consider any food free, but some fruit and veggie choices are better than others.

    berries tend to have fewer cals than tropical fruits and grapes are defiantly not free and have more sugar than most fruits.

    leafy greens are virtually free when eaten raw but thing like carrots can add up

    I sugguest trying to go for a short walk on a break or at lunch if you veggies are taking you over your cals.

    Good luck!
  • jofjltncb6
    jofjltncb6 Posts: 34,415 Member
    No free foods.......but......watermelon season is upon us and that is super low in calories.........47 calories per cup.

    That reminds me of a recurring question I have...what exactly is a cup of watermelon? How do you measure that out?

    As a guy that relies on his digital scale to solve problems like this, I sure wish more of the foods in the database were in there based on weight instead of volume.
  • julierewa
    julierewa Posts: 17
    You've got to think about nutrition as well as calories! Don't exclude your fruit and veges. Tomatoes and cucumbers are very low in calories and I use them a lot. Try making small side salads - like salsas - half a chopped vege, add some fruit even - and only have say a heaped tablespoon on the side of your protein meal. I drizzle a tsp of WW balsamic vinegar over the top. Yum!
  • Sinisi2012
    Sinisi2012 Posts: 333 Member
    I've been thinking the same thing, so I filled up one whole days menu with all my favorite fruits and veggies just so I could see them all on the same page and start comparing. Watermelon and black raspberries came up with practically nothing for fruits and celery, carrots and broccoli the lowest veggies.So I am going to concentrate on adding more of those when I am having my really hungry days and need to add more food without killing my total calorie goals. The veggies are more filling and take longer to eat so those would be the best choice. You can add some light or fat free dressing to dip them in and it doesn't add too much depending on the kind of dressing.
  • PlayDoh1234
    PlayDoh1234 Posts: 86 Member
    Check it out -
    http://www.livestrong.com/article/280209-fruits-vegetables-with-little-or-no-calories/

    Thanks! Nice website!
  • JDM840811
    JDM840811 Posts: 4
    I do not count fruits or veggies. I have never known of anyone gaining weight from eating fruits and vegetables. Back when I was a vegetarian that is all I ate and I ate a lot and I never gained a pound from them.
  • Linda_Darlene
    Linda_Darlene Posts: 453 Member
    Raw fruits and veggies and greens are NOT calorie dense, but they are not calorie free! But you can still eat a ton of them! My cup full of raw cauliflower that I snacked on was only 25 calories (low calorie dip I 50). I would have to eat a wheelbarrow full of cauliflower to over do it. An entire tomato is what, 25 calories? A full cup of strawberries is less than 50 calories. How much ice cream could you eat for those same quantities of calories?
  • bjfrezell
    bjfrezell Posts: 241
    While its good for you, fruit can have a TON of calories. Some vegetables also have high calories. That's why I log it, along with everything else I eat. I didn't just eat junk before, I ate too much of everything. So I log everything now that I eat so I know how much I am eating.
  • Lorleee
    Lorleee Posts: 369 Member
    Sure, veggies have calories but you'd have to eat an awful lot of them to negatively imapct your loss. I never once counted fresh veggies in terms of what I ate while losing (and was encouraged by my RD to eat 4+ servings daily). Fruit is another matter and I never lumped together "fruits and veggies" as being the same. I limit fruit to 2-3 servings a day because of the natural sugars. Veggies, I don't worry about, I'm just mindful of how I prepare them. Eating a bunch of plain broccoli will fill you up without worrying about the calorie count. But if you slather that same broccoli in cheese, then it becomes an issue.
  • PlayDoh1234
    PlayDoh1234 Posts: 86 Member
    Now that I am reading eveyone's post, I realize that I eat a lot of FRUIT and not so many veggies. That's why those calories add up quicker. I think I need to start eating more veggies when I want a healthy snack!
  • msudaisy28
    msudaisy28 Posts: 267 Member
    I can't see your diary to see what your calorie goal is or what your days have been like to give any advice there.

    Personally, I log everything as best as I can. Not logging calories only fools my mind, not my body. Nothing is "free" but my fruit/veggie snacks are usually 6 oz baby carrots (70 cals), medium "lunchbox" apple (80 cals), two tomatoes cut up with a little salt and pepper (55 cals), 40 grapes (135 cals), medium banana (130 cals), medium pear (100 cals), 1.5 cups strawberries (75 cals). Pretty much any one of those items gets me from lunch to dinner without a problem.

    I do try to have protien with each meal, that also helps keep me full. Good luck!

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