I am a calorie counter. I have been cooking my own meals every day since I started my calorie counter lifestyle approx 2 weeks ago.
My question is... do you always believe nutrition labels?
Tonight I want to get a WaWa Classic Turkey Hoagie. Its 10 inches long and WaWa claims its only about 600 calories. Can this be true? How can I know for sure? Are there any sites that have honest numbers?
I'd probably trust WaWa's numbers before those on another site. Most restaurants pay to have the food analyzed in an independent lab for accuracy.
It can be tricky when checking other sites because some sites may include every ingredient as generally available, while others may include the meats and veggies but not include calories for any type of spread that might be on it.
I think it can be fairly close. I mean there could be a couple extra or less grams of meat or veggie that is different than count the standard is based off of, that's just human error, Lean Cuisines and other prepackaged meals are never accurate on their calories because the cals are based on a certain weight but the actual weight is different, some times less, some times more. Also is the count including, cheese mayo ect?
I wonder about this all the time. It always makes me think of the Seinfeld episode where everyone ate this new "fat-free" frozen yogurt that was supposedly low in cals, and it turned out it was full of fat and calories, and everyone only found out when they started gaining weight.
I wonder about this all the time. It always makes me think of the Seinfeld episode where everyone ate this new "fat-free" frozen yogurt that was supposedly low in cals, and it turned out it was full of fat and calories, and everyone only found out when they started gaining weight.
Ultimately, I think you just have to trust nutrition labels for things and hope that they're accurate. Unless it's something where you can easily separate the ingredients and KNOW it's off, you're kinda stuck... unless you have a laboratory in your home to test it :P
the calorie counts are usually accurate as possible of course there are a lot of variables such as if you add cheese, mayo, bacon, etc..... usually the counts include only the basic essentials that come on the sub the things you add extra usually add cals even the veggies sometimes
600 calories sounds about right. But remember, these are only averages. There is no way to know the precise, accurate calorie count of anything you eat. It might be over or under what the label says.
Nutrition isn't an exact science--it's always more-or-less. So when you're using a weight loss calculator, every number is an average number. You may need to adjust the numbers for yourself to get results.
As LindseyLouWho said, you just have to trust the labels and see what works.
One thing I noticed when looking up restaurant calories is that you need to note how many "servings" is in a meal.
For example, DH likes this pasta dish at a restaurant and the website stated it is 700 calories per serving. And then off to the side in little tiny letters it said that each bowl that you order contains 2 servings. So at first glance you might think it is 700 calories. But if you order and eat what they serve you, it is 1400 calories.
So I think 600 might be fair for a restaurant turkey sandwich, but also be careful that they are not being cute and calling each serving 600 calories but that the sandwich itself is 2 servings. I don't know how restaurants inject so many calories. Come to my house and I'll make you a turkey sub that is yummy and has less than 600 calories!
I will be honest and tell you I don't trust restaurants in general. When in doubt I order a dry salad with a grilled chicken breast. That is about as safe as it gets.
There have been many independent studies in my own area checking calorie and fat content in "healthier choice" menu items at many different restaurants. What they have found almost across the board is that the calorie counts are extremely inaccurate.
I do trust Subway because I can see my food being prepared.
I have no problem indulging and letting myself enjoy whatever it is that I am wanting. I just want to know WHEN I am doing that so I can count accordingly and choose accordingly.
Sorry to be a Debbie Downer!
Last edited by Thighs Be Gone; 04-16-2009 at 08:56 AM.
I have found that, once I'm used to eating in a certain calorie range, I can pretty much tell if a restaurant's calorie estimates (or MY calorie estimate, if I'm guesstimating at a restaurant that doesn't give numbers) is off by a lot. So if I eat a turkey sandwich for lunch that's said to have 600 calories, but at the end of the day, I am feeling quite satisfied and my calorie log is showing around 1200 - then I know the count for the sandwich was probably on the low side, because I am NEVER full on 1200 cals/day. Or vice versa - sometimes I estimate something as having more calories than it really does, & at the end of the day I'm ravenous, even though my log shows me being at the upper end of my calorie limit.
You do have to have a bit of experience with what your body feels like at a certain calorie level before you can begin to just "tell" like this. But I find that if I'm listening to real hunger cues, and not other eating cues, my body is pretty darned smart!
I will be honest and tell you I don't trust restaurants in general. When in doubt I order a dry salad with a grilled chicken breast. That is about as safe as it gets.
There have been many independent studies in my own area checking calorie and fat content in "healthier choice" menu items at many different restaurants. What they have found almost across the board is that the calorie counts are extremely inaccurate.
I do trust Subway because I can see my food being prepared.
I have no problem indulging and letting myself enjoy whatever it is that I am wanting. I just want to know WHEN I am doing that so I can count accordingly and choose accordingly.
Sorry to be a Debbie Downer!
I agree completely. There are too many variables between a restaurants's website nutrition info and what comes to my table.
More and more I just want to eat at home because I have a much better idea about what I'm eating.
Can it be true?
