Counting calories is a good way to ensure you stay fit and trim. After all, maintaining a healthy weight helps prevent cardiovascular disease, certain types of cancer and type 2 diabetes. Unfortunately, the United States is becoming increasingly "obesogenic" due to sedentary lifestyles, the promotion of eating too much and unhealthy, calorie-laden food choices, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The good news is that there are many ways to find out how many calories your meal is adding to your daily tally.
Step 1
Learn portion sizes. A medium fruit, for example, is about the size of a baseball. Be especially mindful when you add in pasta, oatmeal or any grain. These often double in size when cooked.
Step 2
Read food labels. Check packaged foods labels on the foods you are using as ingredients. Pay attention to the serving size---a container might have two servings in it instead of one, so you'll need to add the calories for both if you use the entire box.
Step 3
Find a recipe that is similar to the dish you are eating. Many of these have calorie information. When you do this, make sure you pay extra attention to the recipe's serving sizes. That way what you eat matches the amount you add into your calorie count.
Step 4
Use an online nutrient analysis tool's calorie calculator. Plug your ingredients into the site to get nutrition information for an array of foods. You can also purchase a hand-held recipe calorie counter. Prices range between $35 and $90 for the Timex Nutrition Manager, the CalorieSmart Calorie Calculator and the DietCalc Nutrition Manager, for example.
Step 5
Look up each food item you are using, especially if it is a simple dish. Then, do the math. Take the total amount of calories and total nutrient content for each ingredient you are using. Then divide it by the number people eating or by the number of servings. Many organizations have nutrient and calorie databases online, including the U.S. Department of Agriculture and websites such as CalorieKing.com (see Resources).
Things You'll Need
- Recipe calculator
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