AlexFisher123's Journal, 23 Jul 22

Yes, yes, and no. What matters most is that your system of measurement is consistent and scalable. You can use your hands to approximate serving sizes, but you would need to track “servings per day” rather than calories and scale up or down depending on your goals. For counting calories and macros, cup measurements are good enough for some things - dry goods like grains, beans, chopped fruits and veggies, yogurt, shredded cheeses, etc.; but things like meats, whole cheeses, and sliced breads really should be weighed. It’s easier to underestimate serving sizes of these things. When you are heavier/first starting out, you have more leeway - meaning you could be 50-100 calories over your goal, but you’d still see a loss. The farther along/leaner you get, the more brass-tacks you need to be about serving sizes. 🤙🏼 

Added note: all bread products (breads, rolls, tortillas) should be weighed. A slice of bread can be 10-15 g. over its package serving size. That could potentially mean you’re eating up to 3 servings of bread, but only logging 2. 

That is super helpful thank you :). I will probably get a scale  

A food scale is everything! I weigh in grams so I can be specific 

I do find the scale very helpful for calorie dense items like peanut butter and cheeses. Very easily under estimated. And I was surprised to learn the bread difference from the packaging when I weighed it before adding a spread. 

I don't weigh things like slices of bread or other packaged items. But I do weigh produce like potatoes and avocados because there is such a difference than if I just choose a small, medium, large, etc for potatoes and even the avocados. I'm not that worried about the total calories since I am usually under what I allow. As long as I get up to a minimum of 40 grams of protein I am fine if I am following the plan. I keep a food scale out on the counter at all times. 

I bought Sea Best Atlantic Salmon to try (I usually go for Wild Caught), the package says 4oz. each portion. It really weighs a whopping 6oz!!! Checked out on 3 separate scales! The co. is getting back to me. I weigh/measure everything for accuracy. When I get to maintenance probably won't bother. Hope this helps :-) 

Weight can also be difference between weighing raw and weighing it cooked. That 6 oz salmon may weigh 4 oz after cooking 

Congrat's on your new PR! and good question! This is all great info. Very helpful and appreciated :-) 

Thank you HCB. The pkg. doesn't say raw or cooked. Wish they had a universal system. Fortunately, I don't get discouraged easily :-) 

I don’t weigh anything, but I’m content with slow weight loss. I do sometimes get out my measuring cups to keep myself honest about snack and dessert portions. 

I think there's a balance, pgcosta, where you weigh and measure enough to be reasonably accurate, but don't drive yourself up a wall. At least, there is for me. You're never going to get it down to the calorie, but you need to keep yourself honest 😉 

I use a scale for some things and measuring cup for others. I find weighing fruit to be more reliable and I tend to remove parts that aren't edible before weighing. I also agree with others that portion 

sizes on packages are unreliable. I only make an exception and dont use the scale if my day is winding down and Im workong with a big deficit. 

So do you weight meats and fish raw or cooked??? 

Meat is where it gets kind of tricky. You always need to account for the raw weight, so I typically weigh the cooked meat and apply a correction factor - 1.5 for poultry, 1.3 for beef, and 1.7 for ground beef. So, if you are eating 4 ounces of cooked chicken, you would log it as 6. That’s how I do it, but others do it differently and have had success. Whatever method you choose, just apply it consistently. 

I always weigh the raw food and go by what the packaging says. I'm sure a package of ground beef that lists the calories, fat, etc for 4 ounces means 4 ounces before you cook you. You aren't going to weigh it after cooking because usually there are other added ingredients, like if I make a meatloaf or chili I couldn't weigh the ground beef then. Same with chicken, if I coat it in egg and breadcrumbs and flour and then cook it that wouldn't be accurate to weigh it after. I am sure the packaging means the raw meat. It's tough because you do have to guess after cooking anyway. If I cook 10 ounces of chicken breast and it is good for 2 or 3 meals I have to enter 1/3 of the original amount. Or more or less depending on how much I eat. 

Gotcha so even with weighing you kind of still have to guess once it’s made. I was going to meal prep ground turkey with veggies. 

Gotcha so even with weighing you kind of still have to guess once it’s made. I was going to meal prep ground turkey with veggies.