Nutrition & Diet Idea: how to keep a record of calorie intake, in the day.

[Blobbenstein]

I had this idea the other day. I have decided to try to keep track of my calorie intake during the day, and it seems to be going quite well.
I think one of the reasons I over eat is that I have some weird fear that I am not eating enough, but counting calories sort of gives me a road map for the day's food intake, and also gives me motivation to stay within a certain limit.
I realise now, that I vastly underestimated the amount of calories in food.

Anyway, the idea to keep a record of calories is to use the stopwatch on my digital watch.
I used it so that each second I add to the time represents 50kCals. If I eat something which I work out to be 160kCals, I'll round down and add 3 seconds to the stopwatch.
I did google calorie bracelets, and there do seem to be some, but they work on the same basis, ie that each bead represents 50kCals.
So as I wear my watch anyway, it it pretty convenient, and I can remind myself how much I have had with the press of a button.

With counting calories, I have also found that, as I have a better idea of how much I have eaten in a day, that I can check that any food I am about to eat is within the target amount, so I don't have to worry, or feel guilty about what I am eating....I am eating less, but I feel like I am enjoying the food more.

I got some kitchen scales the other day, so I can work out the calories fairly accurately, even the soya milk in my tea(27kCals)...I only mainly eat at home so have access to a calculator, and scales etc.

Not sure what calorie intake to aim for to lose weight(male), I was thinking about 2300-2400kCals, I think over restriction would just lead to yo-yoing.

Maybe there are watches specifically designed for this, that would be more accurate, so I didn't have to round off so much....I'll look into it at some point, maybe.


I did look a bit at what is out there, and as I suspected these things have far more functions than I want.....I just want a device that can store a 4 digit number....so maybe my watch is the best solution...I suppose I could let 1 second equal 25kCals....I think I am going to have to do that.

I hope this isn't triggering for anyone.

 

[mary1]

I think that's a pretty clever idea.
I don't have a watch to try it out though.

 

[Blobbenstein]

I hope that if I am able to lose a bit more weight, that I can walk further each day. Walking is about all I can do, I like walking anyway, but my feet can only manage about 4miles a few days a week, and then the rest, 2 to 3 miles a day.....still, I get tired too.

 

[hungryraccoon]

Have you got a smartphone? There are some apps which make it very easy for you to track your calories. They can also tell you how much fat/protein/iron etc etc ect you are getting in your day.

 

[Blobbenstein]

I thought there must be apps for that, but I don't have a phone that can do apps.

I think if I could lose 3 stone(42 pounds) a year, that would be fine. So I guess about 400kCals/day deficit.

 

[CrazyCatLady]

I like this idea. I am going to try calorie count as I am also worried about not getting enough. I lost about 6 lb in 3 weeks when I first became vegan (a mere 5 months ago lol), but have managed to remain stable, albeit at a weight just under where I wanted to be xxx

 

[RabbitLuvr]

Cool idea, I don't have a watch to try it.

I use the MyFitnessPal app, both on my phone and on their website. I use it most to get a general idea of what I eat, and nutrients.

 

[CrazyCatLady]

I added up my food from today on my fitness pal and it wasnt too bad. Taking into consideration it thinks my Pizza Hut slices had cheese on them. This was the food type breakdown...

 

[Blobbenstein]

I consumed 2450kCals yesterday. That included a bag of chips though, which is a treat for Saturday. I got the regular size for a change, rather than large, so it was around 950kCals......because I knew how many calories was in them, I enjoyed them just as much as the large bag.

Only a vegan cheese sandwich for supper, and a small piece of smoked tofu. I think my usual diet must be more like 2700kcals, so maybe I need quite a lot for my walks which are effectively weight lifting sessions as well as walks.

 

[Blobbenstein]

I like this idea. I am going to try calorie count as I am also worried about not getting enough. I lost about 6 lb in 3 weeks when I first became vegan (a mere 5 months ago lol), but have managed to remain stable, albeit at a weight just under where I wanted to be xxx

when I gave up, or started to give up(still ate chocolate) eggs and dairy, I lost around 9 stone from 2006-2011. Maybe some of that was due to badly controlled diabetes, but it was mainly because there were less foods for me to binge on.

 

[CrazyCatLady]

when I gave up, or started to give up(still ate chocolate) eggs and dairy, I lost around 9 stone from 2006-2011. Maybe some of that was due to badly controlled diabetes, but it was mainly because there were less foods for me to binge on.

Wow!

I'm glad I haven't lost anymore as I'm not even 9 stone lol xxx

 

[AeryFairy]

I like the idea of using your watch to count calories

I use the sparkpeople app on my iPad to track mine. Not as portable, but as long as I remember to keep track of everything, it works out okay. I, too, was underestimating the calorie value of some stuff - mostly drinks like fruit juice, which I was drinking by the pint. I started keeping track of my calories (taking in about 1800 a day) and doing some light excersise on the Wii fit about a month ago, and I've lost 5lbs so far. Not the fastest way to do it, but slow, easy, and healthy works better for me.