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View Full Version : How to Weigh Grams of Protein, Carbs and Fat


rackcity
Sep 10, 2014, 06:14 PM
Okay, not sure exactly if my question makes sense! But... I am following a new diet plan that requires me to consume X number of carbs, fats, and protein in grams. It also lists foods I can eat, but doesn't specify how much carbs, fats, and proteins are in the food items listed (I guess cause the creator is from Europe and this varies from country to country)... anyhow, what's the best way to ensure when I'm eating from those food groups I'm consuming accurate numbers of fats, carbs and proteins without going over or under what I need?

Everything is in grams!

Thanks!

CravenMorhead
Sep 11, 2014, 07:03 AM
First off you're going to need a kitchen scale capable of measuring grams. Welcome to the 90% of the world that uses metric system. I am assuming that you're using mostly whole foods. You can get nutritional guidelines online for fresh fruit. They're usually in a 'typical' size but you have to be careful of the ones that say per fruit. The nutritional value of a small gala apple will be different than a huge red delicious that could easily be twice the size/weight. For the first little bit this is going to be cumbersome and time consuming, but you'll need to calculate the grams/grams of protein/fat/carbs for most the food you're eating, but once you have been doing this for a couple weeks you'll develop a sense of what is what. For packaged the value is on the side with the nutritional information. Use those but again be careful of the size of the serving. For example, a light product is something that has 0.5g of fat per serving, I saw a light kitchen oil that had .49g/serving but the serving size of .5g. There is a lot of subtle misdirections like that so be cautious and informed.

As well, don't worry about going a few grams over or under. It won't make that big of a difference. IE don't just use 95% of a chicken breast because that will give you the percise protein. The extra gram or two won't matter in the long run.

Are you incorporating a new fitness/exercise regime in this as well?