Weighing food: Must weights be EXACT to the gram?

[SPDeRosa]

Hi everyone, :hii:

I wanted to gauge your opinions on the topic of weighing food. I just now submitted these questions to my support team, so I will hope to get their response tomorrow. However, what are your experiences with weighing food?

(1) How EXACT do the weights need to be for proteins and vegetables? If I cut a piece of meat and it's one gram over my allowance, do I really have to try to trim just a gram off?

(2) On the other end, what if my protein allowance calls for 135g of meat, but the piece is 130g or 129g? Will NOT eating enough of the protein slow my weight loss? Should I really try shaving another piece of meat to get a few grams to add to my portion?

(3) Lastly, if my protein is 5g under the prescribed amount, can I substitute 5g extra of vegetables to make up the difference?


I've been trying to be as EXACT as possible but the reality is sometimes a piece of meat will be 5 grams under my limit and I'll just add 5 grams of vegetables on the other end. :innocent4: My gut tells me that I should just eat the correct amount of vegetables and just deal with the fact that I didn't get enough protein in that meal. Thoughts?

Thanks,
Shawn

[Bronwyn]

Hi Shawn,

Yes, every little variance you make to your plan may slow down your progress. You are supposed to weigh exact amounts as stated in your plan as though it were your prescription. I have to admit I am very anal about weighing my food, and yes, I will lob off 1 more gram of meat to make it exact. It can be a little annoying, but I want to be sure I'm doing everything right so that I'm not on this diet any longer than I have to be. Looks like you're making good progress! Keep it up!

[bitten]

hi there-

i totally agree with bronwyn. you must eat what the dr. has 'prescribed', not 5g more veg and 5g less meat....it will not be beneficial to your program.
this cannot be tweeked or manipulated, it has to be exact.
sorry-
bitten

[SPDeRosa]

Thanks ladies! I kind of suspected that this was the case - it's a little bit of a hassle to do that especially with meats ... how do you really add one gram of meat to a portion without having to make everything stir fry?

Here's the consultant team's response, keeping in mind that my meat allowance for Meal 2 is 135g. Their point about all the little grams adding up over time and equaling someone else's plan makes total sense, so I guess I'll have to be more precise in my measurements:

"Please regard the portions of food that Dr. Cohen worked out for you as prescribed medicine - that entails that 135g of protein for instance is necessary for your body to stimulate the growth hormone - not 129 or 130 or even 136g - if you add up all the 1 grams that you are out of sync with your program, it comes down to the fact that you are following some else's diet in the end! And by deviating on your portions, will show up as deviations in your follow up blood test."

Ok, three weeks of minor cheating I suppose ... but I'm still so happy that I've dropped about 20lbs in those 3 weeks and to be honest - it wasn't hard at all! :party1::party1:

Thanks again!!!
- Shawn

[bitten]

well done shawn-

i hope you lose even more when you are strict w/ your gram weights!!!
if i am using steak, i buy little fillets or other lean cuts and weigh and trim/add- it's no biggie. same with fish or chicken/turkey.
what are you having trouble with? perhaps we can help!
bitten

[Shasha]

{hi} there Shawn


{congrats} on having lost 20 pounds in only 3 weeks!!! :clapping3:

THAT IS FANTASTIC!!! {goodjob}

[SPDeRosa]

Thanks Shasha! That made me smile -- I've avoided seeing my family for 3 weeks so that when they all see me on Mother's Day this Sunday they'll be surprised at the change. If they don't notice though, I'll be somewhat disappointed. But 20 lbs is a lot, so I'm assuming they'll notice something! If not, they better all lie and tell me I look amazing! :)

Bitten, that's a great idea. I should really look toward the thin filets. I've been trying to figure out the "right" meat to buy for a while. First I went with the economical big steaks and tried cutting them down to size. Portions were close but occasionally off a bit. Then I went for the smaller cuts (I think top round... I have to pay closer attention to be honest), but if I go with the even thinner filets it might be easier.

My thing is that I broil my steak so that it is "grilled". So if I have to cut off one little sliver off another piece to add to the one I'm about to broil, then that other piece really isn't going to cook correctly along with the main piece of meat. In talking to my sister we thought that maybe if I take a toothpick and attach the small 1 or 2 gram sliver to the main piece of meat then perhaps it will cook uniformly. We'll see what happens over the next week as I try to be more exact. :)

[lfulwood]

shawn,
as you get more experienced making your portions, you will more often than not get the right weight. When divying up my steak, I would come out with 3 or 4 correct size portions and enought pieces to make stir fry for 2 portions. Or you could do kabobs with your steak and vegetables together!

[Shasha]

{hi} there Shawn

YOU ARE MORE THAN HALFWAY TO YOUR GOAL!!! OF COURSE THEY WILL NOTICE!!!

But, in case they go all jealous and they don't say a thing, just let me know and I'll sort them out with either a {pan} or some :nerd:...

Hope you have a super day with your family on Sunday and, just for your information, one little bit of something not allowed like desert can and will throw you right off the bus, so don't fall for that one, although, I'm sure that you won't... remember, this is for a limited time only and you don't want to be on diet any longer than you have to :flirt: it's almost time for your 4 week blood test so it's important to stay right on track...