measuring my protien....is this right?

[Stacy160 201]

And at the end of this thread, and after 6 1/2 months living with the sleeve, I STILL have no idea whether we're supposed to be measuring by weight or volume. I know that half a cup of chicken isn't gonna do it for me, but 4 oz. sure as heck is.

[lamsunshine 2]

I'm so confused, but I guess I have some time to figure it out before my surgery.

[Globetrotter 1,340]

As a VSG'er we should measure our food by volume, not weight. All different foods are different weights and densities. 2 oz of chicken is less than 2 oz popcorn, for example. When they say eat 2 oz, they mean volume. As in, can fit it into 2 1-oz shot glasses. :001_smile:

I have these little plastic cups that came with some of my medicines, I think I got some of them in the hospital - don't remember. Anyway, the little measure lines on the side say half ounce, ounce, and dram. So these are meant for liquids. I'm using them with my tuna salad, scrambled egg, chili, etc. Am I accidentally cheating? An ounce of real food has to be more than an ounce of liquid, right? I don't pack it tight when I'm measuring say, tuna salad, because I'm concerned that I'm accidentally eating more than I should. Right now, measuring it like this, 2 "ounces" of tuna is fine and 3 "ounces" has me stuffed. Help!

[Globetrotter 1,340]

Ah-ha!! I did some research and it turns out I was right; the liquid ounce is slightly more than the dry or averdupois ounce. So I will be "loose packing" my ounce cups from now on.

[Jane_J 117]

Haha, but just to confuse it all a bit more I think the Protein weight we are recommended to get in at 60-70g is 'dry' weight! Thats why if I log 4 oz of chicken breast of the DailyPlate it only shows up 35ish g of protein. If it was pure dehydrated protein it would be 4 x 28g = 112g. So thats why I use the Plate.

Jane x

[Tiffykins 673]

I've never "weighed" my food. My stomach holds by volume not weighted ounces.

I've experimented with foods with their volume and weight. And, about 85-90% of the time, the weight and volume of certain foods was off. But, sometimes, they were the same. Also, for a lot of meats, they are measured pre-cooked weight. If you cook weight, it loses moisture, the fat cooks out, and will weigh less. I just always measured, and when I did weigh the "measured ounces" of my foods, I was pretty stinking close too my Protein goals per day. It wasn't difficult to get in the required amounts with eating slow, and taking my time chewing.

[Globetrotter 1,340]

I'm not weighing, I don't own any scales - for my food or myself. It helps me stay away from pain after eating though if I measure out my ounces, so I take my food item and scoop it into the plastic shot glass thingey and put it in my tiny bowl. Two shot glasses - two ounces- and I don't get the pain. I'm only a month out so have yet to refine my "eyeballing" abilities.

[ouroborous 519]

Look, what counts for grams of Protein is weight -- period.

Volume is affected by density. Take a giant bag of popcorn, and you can lift it and throw it around easily. Take a giant bag of rocks -- same size, or volume -- and you can barely lift it. That's because there's a great deal more mass -- weight -- in the same volume. That means it's more dense.

Weight -- or mass -- is a constant. There's a trick physics question which says "which is heavier, a pound of bricks or a pound of air?" It's a trick question because they both weigh a pound. Sure, a pound of air might fill a 55 gallon drum, whereas a pound of bricks might mean a half a brick, but they're still both a pound.

That's why when measuring things like Protein quantity, weight is everything. If you want to know how many grams of protein you're eating, the only reliable way to figure that out is to take the weight of the chicken (or whatever) you're eating, and multiply it by something (that "something" is the coefficient of chicken mass to protein mass). I'll say it again, when you're trying to figure out how many grams of protein that you're eating, mass (weight) is all that matters.

Now, just because that's too simple, volume DOES matter, but for a different reason: we have tiny stomachs! Most of us can't eat more than 1/2 to 1/3 of a cup (a cup is a measure of volume, not weight) at a time. So we have to look at that 1/2 chicken breast, which maybe weighs 2 oz. cooked (56 grams, for about 15-20 grams of protein I'd guess), and see if it's more than 1/2 cup of volume. If it is, we may have to cut it into two meals, or get more protein in a different way (some Beans, maybe?)

But if you really want to accurately measure your protein intake, you must use weight. That's because all of the measures are in weights, and if you start confusing weights and volumes, you'll get your numbers all wrong.

I highly recommend you get an accurate (gram accurate) kitchen scale and weigh all your portions. Then use something like Livestrong (or whatever) to get your nutrition info from your portions (1 gram of chicken is not 1 gram of protein; you need a nutrition database to figure it out).

I also recommend using metric measures :biggrin0: As you're already seeing, "Imperial" or standard weights and measures are needlessly complex. Almost all nutrition information is already in metric on most sites, so why not make the switch? Even if you don't have any conception of what a "gram" (a unit of weight) is, your scale will, and you won't be tempted to get it confused with say a cubic centimeter (cc, a unit of volume).

I don't mean to be harsh to those replying otherwise, but this is basic physics -- basic weights and measures, really. Volume matters to sleevers because we have tiny stomachs. But if you're calculating nutrition, weight is king, baby.

Edit: all this being said, it's probably a tempest in a teapot. I don't measure ANYTHING anymore, I just try to get "a lot" of protein and a fair amount of carbs, and I eyeball portion size. I think that honestly the payoff isn't worth the effort of religiously weighing portions. And yes, to avoid overeating, you should pay attention to volume, since that's what will plug you up, not weight. But still, I just wanted to point out that if you want to measure your nutrition, you must use weight. If you just want to eyeball it, then volume is probably fine.

Edited August 17, 2010 by ouroborous

[Jane_J 117]

Yup, I must admit I eyeball and guess the weight of the meat etc I eat and then log it on ThePlate and it automatically tots up the calories and the Protein for me. And it has worked for me so I keep on truckin with it! It's not totally exact but good enough.

Jane x

[Globetrotter 1,340]

And this is just one of several reasons why I'm still primarily on the Protein Shakes, food is such a hassle.