When you weigh your food and it says 1 cup of something is that the same thing as 8 oz on a food scale? I know 8oz is a cup I just want to make sure I'm not doing this wrong.

For example myfitness pal doesnt have the grams or ounces listed for cantaloupe just says that 1 cup balled, or cubed equals 60 calories. So I weighed it to 8oz on the food scale and it just seemed like so much. Thanks guys!

The two are different.

Cups measure volume and the scale measures weight. A cup of melon is going to weigh a something different than a cup of shredded lettuce or a cup of chocolate chips... try it out and see for yourself what happens.

Oh boy do I feel like a dummy. Thank you. Does it help my case that I have a 5 month old who still doesnt sleep through the night? lol Thanks heather. So I guess I should have just cut the cantaloupe and put it in a cup. There are far worse things I could have overestimated.

err underestimated

I think it's a common misconception so don't feel bad at all. In fact, I'm impressed that you're measuring with all that sleep deprivation!

As far as calories, I always prefer to use weight over volume since there's so much room for error with the volume.

I prefer using a weight scale than using measuring implements. My exception is this wonderful measuring spoon that was made as a coffee scoop. It measures exactly 2T. I use it to measure my coffee grounds, my cream and whenever I want something like a nut butter for a treat. Then I have a "Popsicle" like treat right off the spoon, lol.

I am flexible though. I eat all of my meals from a bowl that hold exactly 1 cup. At times, when I am eating mixed foods that I did not prepare, or need to use a mixed food calculation, I put the food in the bowl and I know it is 1 cup (or half a cup if I don't fill it). This works fine as my estimate and I don't freak out. I did this recently for a Chinese restaurant dish that I found a count for on the internet and it was in "cup" sized portions. By far, weighing is the best method especially on a digital scale that you can tare out each previous ingredient. I have a digital one in the kitchen and carry a pocket sized one in my purse. The pocket sized are the ones made for jewelry and are fabulous for on the go weights.

It's actually quite confusing, so you shouldn't feel bad!