Spinach question
 

Sometimes I buy fresh bagged spinach leaves and measure pre-cooking. Other times I have the frozen chopped kind, so I have to measure that after cooking since I do the whole bag at once. Would that be more like 3/4 cup equivalent, or more like a 1/2? I know it's probably not a huge deal with spinach, but my coach never said to measure veggies before cooking, only meat. Now I think I've been overeating them which again, is not a bad thing, but I'd like to avoid any extra carbs that I can.

I think it would be 1c. fresh = 1/2 c. cooked. Spinach really wilts down when you cook it.

Both meat and veggies are to be measured uncooked.

stargirl seems close as spinach really cooks down. Maybe someone on the forum has actually measured it cooked down and will respond.

Molly

I asked my coach this a few months ago and was advised to measure how you eat, if eating raw, measure raw, if eating steamed, measure steamed. Thats the rule I follow.

Originally Posted by Sarahjane:
Sometimes I buy fresh bagged spinach leaves and measure pre-cooking. Other times I have the frozen chopped kind, so I have to measure that after cooking since I do the whole bag at once. Would that be more like 3/4 cup equivalent, or more like a 1/2? I know it's probably not a huge deal with spinach, but my coach never said to measure veggies before cooking, only meat. Now I think I've been overeating them which again, is not a bad thing, but I'd like to avoid any extra carbs that I can.

I did ask my coach about measuring veggies cause there is a big difference between raw and after they are cooked. She said "measure raw, although either way is ok" So I guess it's whichever way works best for the veggie in question. :)

The measuring question has kind of been nagging me too - not so much cooked vs raw...but even portions based on how you are cutting. For example, 1 cup of the same veggie can vary greatly depending on how small you cut.

I've kinda settled on the fact that we're not dealing with foods that have large amounts of carbs in them to begin with - if I am dicing something small and it's a slightly heavier portion than if I was chopping large, it's probably a difference of a couple of carbs...not enough that I'm going to stress over it.

For spinach in particular - one cup only has 1g carbs AND 1g dietary fiber, so measuring raw or cooked isn't actually going to have a big impact on your overall intake.

Originally Posted by Sarahjane:
Sometimes I buy fresh bagged spinach leaves and measure pre-cooking. Other times I have the frozen chopped kind, so I have to measure that after cooking since I do the whole bag at once. Would that be more like 3/4 cup equivalent, or more like a 1/2? I know it's probably not a huge deal with spinach, but my coach never said to measure veggies before cooking, only meat. Now I think I've been overeating them which again, is not a bad thing, but I'd like to avoid any extra carbs that I can.

Originally Posted by scorbett1103:
The measuring question has kind of been nagging me too - not so much cooked vs raw...but even portions based on how you are cutting. For example, 1 cup of the same veggie can vary greatly depending on how small you cut.

I've kinda settled on the fact that we're not dealing with foods that have large amounts of carbs in them to begin with - if I am dicing something small and it's a slightly heavier portion than if I was chopping large, it's probably a difference of a couple of carbs...not enough that I'm going to stress over it.

For spinach in particular - one cup only has 1g carbs AND 1g dietary fiber, so measuring raw or cooked isn't actually going to have a big impact on your overall intake.

This was posted a few weeks ago by a senior member. Can't give proper credit because I don't remember who it was. But it has made my life so much easier. I have a scale that measures in grams so it takes all the ???? out of it.

c=cup/g=grams
c=g Carb Fiber Net carbs Sugars
Asparagus 1c, 134 g 5 3 2 3g
Broccoli 1c, 91 g 6 2 4 2g
Brussel Sprouts 1c, 88g 8 3 5 2g
Cauliflower 1c, 130g 6 2 4 2g
Cabbage, green 1c, 89g 5 2 3 3g
Celery 1c, 100g 3 2 1 2g
Cucumber w/peel 1c, 133g 3 1 2 1g
Green beans, cooked 1c, 125g 10 4 6 2g
Kale, fresh 100g 10 2 8 0g
Mushroom portabella 100g 5 2 3 2g
Mushroom , white 1c, 70g 2 1 1 1g
Onion, raw 1c, 160g 15 3 12 7g
Red bell peper 1c, 149g 9 3 6 6g
Rhubarb 1c, 122g 6 2 4 1g
Rutabagas 1c, 140g 11 4 7 8g
Sauerkraut 1c, 142g 7 4 3 3g
Snowpeas 1c chopped, 100g 7 3 4 4g
Summer Squash (yellow/zucchini) 1c, 110g 4 1 3 2g
Turnips 1c, 140g 8 2 6 5g
V8 Juice note 1/2c, 120g 5 1 4 4g



Sorry this looks so much better in my spread sheet...!:?:

Originally Posted by princessM928:
I asked my coach this a few months ago and was advised to measure how you eat, if eating raw, measure raw, if eating steamed, measure steamed. Thats the rule I follow.

Not with spinach. Then you would get way too much.

I would cook down two cups and see what that measures.

Originally Posted by Osohealthy:
This was posted a few weeks ago by a senior member. Can't give proper credit because I don't remember who it was. But it has made my life so much easier. I have a scale that measures in grams so it takes all the ???? out of it.

c=cup/g=grams
c=g Carb Fiber Net carbs Sugars
Asparagus 1c, 134 g 5 3 2 3g
Broccoli 1c, 91 g 6 2 4 2g
Brussel Sprouts 1c, 88g 8 3 5 2g
Cauliflower 1c, 130g 6 2 4 2g
Cabbage, green 1c, 89g 5 2 3 3g
Celery 1c, 100g 3 2 1 2g
Cucumber w/peel 1c, 133g 3 1 2 1g
Green beans, cooked 1c, 125g 10 4 6 2g
Kale, fresh 100g 10 2 8 0g
Mushroom portabella 100g 5 2 3 2g
Mushroom , white 1c, 70g 2 1 1 1g
Onion, raw 1c, 160g 15 3 12 7g
Red bell peper 1c, 149g 9 3 6 6g
Rhubarb 1c, 122g 6 2 4 1g
Rutabagas 1c, 140g 11 4 7 8g
Sauerkraut 1c, 142g 7 4 3 3g
Snowpeas 1c chopped, 100g 7 3 4 4g
Summer Squash (yellow/zucchini) 1c, 110g 4 1 3 2g
Turnips 1c, 140g 8 2 6 5g
V8 Juice note 1/2c, 120g 5 1 4 4g



Sorry this looks so much better in my spread sheet...!:?:

This is great, but spinach is not on it :D

Originally Posted by Delgen:
This is great, but spinach is not on it :D

I know I was so disappointed, but I figure it is so simliar to Kale - I use the 100g as my rule

When I weigh out my spinach raw (85g= 2 cups), (3 oz =2 cups)

The fact I'm even EATING this much spinach should count for something! Popeye would be very proud of us all! LOL

According to the chart green beans and kale have the same amount of carbs, if you look at net carbs beans have LESS. Does anyone know why the beans are considered restricted and kale is not?

I use frozen spinach everyday in my smoothies. Just looked on the bag and 1 cup of frozen spinach has 3 g carb, 1g fiber. I think they blanch it and freeze it, so it is not as condensed as the cooked stuff is. Not sure how to measure fresh spinach, ie., how tightly do you pack it in the cup?

I'm still amazed at the difference in messages that coaches give us...

Originally Posted by Raidensmom:
According to the chart green beans and kale have the same amount of carbs, if you look at net carbs beans have LESS. Does anyone know why the beans are considered restricted and kale is not?

what's the sugar comparison? I'm thinking green beans have more natural sugar than kale does...

very interesting!

Originally Posted by Raidensmom:
According to the chart green beans and kale have the same amount of carbs, if you look at net carbs beans have LESS. Does anyone know why the beans are considered restricted and kale is not?

1 cup green beans: 34 cal, 4 net carbs, 2g sugar

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/...roducts/2341/2

1 cup chopped kale: 33 cal, 8 net carbs, 0g sugar

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/...roducts/2461/2

It's all about the sugar content.

Both veggies have a glycemic load of 3. I am not telling anyone that it is ok to eat green beans whenever they want, I just find it interesting that IP classifies one as restricted and the other not. My understanding of IP is the Glycemic Load principle and that we are allowed low GL foods in limited quantities. most meats have 0 GL and all the veggies listed have very low GL. Just something that makes you go hmmmm.

Kind of off topic, but still on the topic of spinach. I always buy frozen spinach, I find it just works better for me. What are suggestions for eating/preparing it. It sits in my fridge and I look at it daily what on earth i'm going to do with it. i've done shakes but looking for something more along the lines into incorporating it into my lunches and dinners.

thanks

Originally Posted by nightprowler:
Kind of off topic, but still on the topic of spinach. I always buy frozen spinach, I find it just works better for me. What are suggestions for eating/preparing it. It sits in my fridge and I look at it daily what on earth i'm going to do with it. i've done shakes but looking for something more along the lines into incorporating it into my lunches and dinners.

thanks

I mix an half cup of the frozen chopped (=1 cup) into omelets and soups for lunch. It's ean easy way to get veggies in and the food is more filling with a serving of spinach added to it. I don't use it in shakes but lots of people do. You can add it to just about anything.

so I downloaded the alternative plan today. It states

Originally Posted by :
measure whole food portions (meat, vegetables) after they are prepared for consumption.

I don't know why this isn't on the regular protocol sheet. It sure would clear up a lot of confusion.

This was a question that I posed to my coach as well and I was originally told that you measure however you serve it. I kept saying but that's an awful lot of sipinach or grated cauliflower!!!

So she did some checking and was told it had recently changed to measure items raw.

Either way for me its confusing because when you cook it, like spinach, you get almost nothing. Or if you dehydrate....not very much.

So confusing.

I found this on http://tracker.dailyburn.com/nutrition/facts/Spinach
Some of them have the grams listed. I love this site. The list for veggies with the grams I posted the other day is wrong. Kale is 67 grams for 1 cup, not the 100 grams that was listed. Anyway, at the site listed you can put in any food item you'd like.


Baby Spinach, raw (1 cup)*(1 cup (30g))*

Calories: 6, Total Fat: 0.12g, Total Carbs: 1.09g, Protein: 0.86g

Spinach, raw (1 leaf)*(1 leaf (10g))*

Calories: 2, Total Fat: 0.04g, Total Carbs: 0.36g, Protein: 0.29g

Spinach, cooked, boiled, drained, with salt (1 cup)*(1 cup (180g))*

Calories: 41, Total Fat: 0.47g, Total Carbs: 6.75g, Protein: 5.35g

Spinach, frozen, chopped or leaf, unprepared (1 cup)*(1 cup (156g))*

Calories: 48, Total Fat: 1.17g, Total Carbs: 6.75g, Protein: 6.15g

Spinach, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt (1 cup)*(1 cup (180g))*

Calories: 41, Total Fat: 0.47g, Total Carbs: 6.75g, Protein: 5.35g

Baby Spinach*by Dole (2 cups (48.6 grams))
Calories: 20, Total Fat: 0g, Total Carbs: 3g, Protein: 2g

Spinach*by Giant (4 cups)
Calories: 20, Total Fat: 0g, Total Carbs: 3g, Protein: 2g

Spinach*by Popeye Tender Spinach (1 cup)
Calories: 20, Total Fat: 0g, Total Carbs: 3g, Protein: 2g

Originally Posted by Osohealthy:
I found this on http://tracker.dailyburn.com/nutrition/facts/Spinach
Some of them have the grams listed. I love this site. The list for veggies with the grams I posted the other day is wrong. Kale is 67 grams for 1 cup, not the 100 grams that was listed. Anyway, at the site listed you can put in any food item you'd like.


Baby Spinach, raw (1 cup)*(1 cup (30g))*

Calories: 6, Total Fat: 0.12g, Total Carbs: 1.09g, Protein: 0.86g

Spinach, raw (1 leaf)*(1 leaf (10g))*

Calories: 2, Total Fat: 0.04g, Total Carbs: 0.36g, Protein: 0.29g

Spinach, cooked, boiled, drained, with salt (1 cup)*(1 cup (180g))*

Calories: 41, Total Fat: 0.47g, Total Carbs: 6.75g, Protein: 5.35g

Spinach, frozen, chopped or leaf, unprepared (1 cup)*(1 cup (156g))*

Calories: 48, Total Fat: 1.17g, Total Carbs: 6.75g, Protein: 6.15g

Spinach, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt (1 cup)*(1 cup (180g))*

Calories: 41, Total Fat: 0.47g, Total Carbs: 6.75g, Protein: 5.35g

Baby Spinach*by Dole (2 cups (48.6 grams))
Calories: 20, Total Fat: 0g, Total Carbs: 3g, Protein: 2g

Spinach*by Giant (4 cups)
Calories: 20, Total Fat: 0g, Total Carbs: 3g, Protein: 2g

Spinach*by Popeye Tender Spinach (1 cup)
Calories: 20, Total Fat: 0g, Total Carbs: 3g, Protein: 2g

Wow! Thanks :hug::hug::hug:

I've been using spinach with my dinner every night for the past couple weeks. I don't really measure it out because it's a hassle to stuff it into a measuring cup just to make sure I get the exact right amount. I've just been taking 2 or 3 large handfuls and put it on my plate and it's been fine so far I guess.