How to Measure Calories in Food
To lose weight, you must consume fewer calories than you expend throughout the course of a day or week. Learning how to measure the calories in the food that you eat can help you in weight loss and weight maintenance.
Things You'll Need
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Food scale
- Internet access or book on calculating calories for common foods
- Notebook or journal
Instructions
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Measure your food with a food scale. When you are learning to calculate calories, you should not guess. Even after you learn what a portion of food looks like, check periodically to make sure that you are still eyeballing your food accurately.
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Measure liquids in measuring cups or measuring spoons. Do not use flatware for measuring as there is no standard sizing among flatware spoons, and you may end up with substantially more or fewer calories than a measuring spoon would allow.
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Look up the caloric value of foods in a book or on the Internet. A good free website for this is Sparkpeople. Type in the food that you are eating, along with the accurate measurement. Be sure to select the correct brand or variety of your item if applicable as calories can vary between brands of food.
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Write down the food that you are eating, the portion size and the number of calories for that food item. Do this for every food and drink that you consume. At the end of the day, add up the number of calories that you have consumed and compare with your daily goal.
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Keep track of the calories that you have eaten each week, and how much weight you have gained or lost each week. Adjust accordingly. A healthy goal is to lose approximately a pound per week. If you are losing too quickly, add some calories to each day. If you are losing too slowly, subtract some calories from each day.
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Tips & Warnings
Make a note of how hungry or full you are before and after eating. This can help you to decide whether you are letting yourself get too hungry between meals, or if you are eating too much or not enough at each sitting. Keep a food diary over the course of several weeks. You may notice patterns in the times that you overeat or forget to eat.
Do not cut your calories drastically without the advice of a medical professional. As a general rule, women should not consume fewer than 1,200 calories, and men should not consume fewer than 1,500 calories. Do not reduce your number of calories without medical advice if you are pregnant or nursing a baby. Dieting while pregnant or breastfeeding can cause health problems in you and your unborn baby.
Resources
- Photo Credit mauricesvay
