​Hidden calories: They can add up fast! 

Think of them as "stealth" calories. Like the military plane that's able to avoid radar, extra calories can sneak into your diet despite your best efforts to make good choices.

Hidden calories can masquerade in food that seems healthful but is filled with fat. Or, they might be in a food you didn't know packed a high caloric punch. And if you are trying to lose weight, then you may be shocked to hear that even foods we consider healthy can be high in calories, leading to weight gain.

No matter where extra calories come from, they add up fast. But knowing what foods contain hidden calories can help you stay on track in maintaining a healthful diet.

Tracking hidden calories
Foods that may give more calories than you bargained for include:

Reduced-fat foods: Just because some of the fat is gone doesn't mean the calories are. If you check the label, you'll often find that the reduced-fat snack you're eating still has a significant number of calories — sometimes almost as much as"regular" snacks.

Tip: Pay attention to the label, especially the serving size and total calorie content, and you won't wind up with more calories than you intended.

Condiments: A tablespoon of mayonnaise adds 100 calories to your sandwich with one spread of your knife. One tablespoon of salad dressing is another quick way to put up to 100 calories in your salad. And just 1 tablespoon of butter tops your baked potato with another 100 calories.

Think of the other things you typically add to your food without much thought. Do you like jelly on your toast? One tablespoon even of the all-fruit spreads has about 50 calories. Do you add cream and sugar to coffee? You could be adding up to 65 calories to your morning java. Honey, often added to tea, has 65 calories per tablespoon.

Tip: To add spice to food without adding as many calories, try ketchup, salsa or one of the many new gourmet mustards. For coffee or tea, use skim milk or a sugar substitute (in moderation) instead. Many flavored coffees or teas are also low in calories, and they don't need cream or sugar.

Alcohol: Cocktail calories add up fast. A Pina Colada has 644 calories. A Margarita 700.  

Tip: Try light beer (100 calories) or nonalcoholic beer (60 calories). Or, make your own wine spritzer by adding club soda to half a glass of wine.A 2.5-ounce martini has about 155 calories, while a 2-ounce Manhattan has 130 calories.

Soda pop: Because of the sugar in it, regular soda has about 150 to 200 calories per 12-ounce can. If you drink three cans a day, which is the amount contained in many of the large refillable cups sold by stores and restaurants, you've used up a good share of your recommended daily intake of calories.

Tip: Try making water your main beverage. But if you still want something fizzy, try club soda or mineral water. Add a lemon or lime wedge for flavor with negligible calories.

Nuts: Although they're a good source of protein and vitamin E, just a small handful of nuts can easily contain 100 to 200 calories. For example, there's about 160 calories and 14 grams of fat in those packages of peanuts handed out on airplanes. And just 1 ounce of sunflower seeds sprinkled on your salad adds 170 calories and about 15 grams of fat.

Tip: Snack alternatives to nuts include air-popped popcorn (25 calories a cup) or pretzels (25 small ones have 110 calories). For crunch on top of salads, try cut-up celery, water chestnuts, radishes or carrots.

Olive Oil: Olive oil is a healthy fat but it packs a high calorie punch. One level tablespoon has 119 calories, (making it calorically-dense) and those calories can easily add up if you are using olive oil as a salad dressing or to dip your bread in.

Tip: Go easy on the oil and measure it out or use a reduced-fat salad dressing and measure it so you know how much you are getting.

Yogurt: Many types of yogurt, including frozen yogurt, may be low in fat but high in sugar and calories. Check the label or ask at the counter to see how many calories you're getting.

Tip: Look for fat-free yogurts. But be careful even they may have about 100 calories per serving. And keep the serving size reasonable. Have frozen yogurt in a small sugar cone (which has 45 calories) rather than a waffle cone that is 200 calories. Or skip the cone altogether and have the same amount in a dish.

Muffins: They seem like a healthful food and they're often sold in so-called health food stores. But one large muffin can have between 300 and 500 calories, not to mention a good number of fat grams. Even a regular-size muffin can have 120 to 200 calories.

Tip: Choose a bagel, English muffin or slice of hearty, whole-grain bread instead.

Fruit juice:  Think of how many oranges you have to squeeze for a glass of juice. Now you know why an 8-ounce serving of orange juice can have 100 to 120 calories, even though an orange has only about 60 calories. Other fruit juices. pineapple and grape in particular  may also be high in calories.

Tip: Keep your juice serving size to 6 ounces. Or, eat a piece of the fruit itself instead.

​How kitchen scale can be beneficial for your health and kitchen:

A kitchen scale is not only a tool for measuring your food quantity and tracking your weight but also a device for bakers, chefs, home cooks, and health-conscious individuals alike. We have EQUAL  kitchen scales that will help you live your best, healthiest life, whether your requirements like watching your calories, needing precise flour measurements, or simply wanting to be more mindful of meal portion sizes.

1. The kitchen scale gives an accurate measurement of portion size
Kitchen scales can be handy if you are trying to control portions in a healthy way. To ensure your servings are healthy, weigh out your chicken breast, broccoli, and blueberries with the help of a precise kitchen scale. You can also weigh all the things together. To ensure you are eating the correct portion size at each meal, place your snacks and sweet treats on your kitchen scale. By placing your chicken on a scale, you can ensure that it is consistent with the weight of a healthy serving of chicken.

2. Calculating real serving sizes and counting calories
The nutrition label on a bag of fruit snacks may not provide you with the most accurate calorie count and serving size for a given snack but a kitchen scale can help you in accurate measurement. The label will usually show an approximate weight and the serving size information. Let’s suppose, a package of healthy snacks might say there are 200 calories in 50 grams (about 10 pieces) but when you actually calculate the weight it turns out 55 grams which is a huge difference from the actual one.

3. Eating healthier and possibly losing weight can be encouraged by weighing your food
Yes, it’s possible to lose weight with the help of a kitchen scale. Regulating serving sizes and portion sizes is only the first step. Making sure to weigh your food intake is a healthy habit, as it enables you to be aware of what you put into your body (and how much!). Maintaining your diet and healthy regimen is easier with a food scale if you are trying to lose weight. It is even possible that you will eat more vegetables because it is easier to calculate the exact serving sizes of vegetables than potato chips.

4. Makes eating out more mindful
As you become familiar with using a scale, you get an idea of what a healthy serving size looks like. You'll also be able to estimate how many calories certain foods contain. When you use your scale even when you're not home, you're training your brain to consume healthier foods! When you are out in a restaurant, you may make a better choice based on the knowledge you have about portion sizes. Additionally, you will be more conscious of your choices on the menu.

5. It makes your kitchen work much easier
They are useful for complicated recipes that require precise measurements, such as those that call for flour or salt. In addition, kitchen scales offer more accurate results than measuring cups for volume measurements. Weighing an item in a recipe can even offer you greater accuracy than measuring it out with a cup, like chopping onions or bowling fusilli noodles.

6. Very easy to use
You get an accurate weight result by simply placing your food on the scale and pressing a button. Our scales provide you with the option to toggle between the units within seconds by using their "unit" button. If there is more than one item on a plate to weigh, hit the tare button to start weighing the next item.

7. Convenient size
These sleek kitchen scales are small and convenient, so you can place them anywhere you like! It takes up very little space, and they are small enough to fit into most cabinets and drawers.

8. Easy to clean and maintain
Keeping our kitchen scales clean and maintained is easy, thanks to the tempered glass surface! When you are finished using it, wipe it down with a damp cloth. That means you don’t need extra time and products for cleaning purposes.

​Chances are, you know what it’s like to stretch your stomach past its limit, perhaps without even realizing it. Maybe you’ve opened a supersized bag of chips and nibbled through the entire package. Or maybe you’ve caved in to your sweet tooth and eaten a whole pint of ice cream.


The drawbacks of such accidental overeating are obvious. Most people overeat foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt, which can have negative effects on your health. Plus, over time, eating solely for enjoyment can override the body’s ability to recognize when we’re satisfied. It could also light up the addiction pathways in the brain and lead to even more overindulging.

Put a Stop to Overeating

Many factors converge to drive us to the refrigerator. It’s not just because we’re hungry or lacking in a certain nutrient. Instead, it’s a combination of visual cues (seeing food either on TV or in real life), emotional needs and feelings, and social or normative cues (it’s noon so it must be time for lunch).

Here are seven strategies to help you avoid accidental overindulging:

1) Create a supportive environment: Store fresh fruits and vegetables in plain sight. Keep a bowl of apples, pears and bananas on the counter or kitchen table. Stock green leafy vegetables, raw carrots, celery, bell peppers and other munchable produce in clear containers in the refrigerator. Put salty snacks and sweets in a high cabinet out of reach. Better yet, eliminate them from your house entirely.

2) Reduce distractions: Eating while you work, watch TV or fiddle with your smartphone increases your odds of overeating. When you’re distracted at meal time, you’re more likely to miss your body’s satiety cues — the messages your body sends that say, “Stop eating. I’m full.”

3) Keep good company: Eating with other people can help you eat less or lead you to eat more, depending on the situation. If you’re hitting happy hour with a buddy who likes to wolf down his food, chances are you’ll speed up your usual pace — and accidentally overeat. On the flip side, if you’re savoring a leisurely meal with a good friend and sharing a deep conversation, you may eat less.

4) Go slow: You should give yourself at least 20 to 30 minutes to eat a full meal. Any less than that and you may be eating too quickly for your body to realize it’s satisfied. To help yourself slow down, focus on your food and mindfully chew each bite. You can also play slow, soothing music in the background and put your utensils down after each bite.

5) Eat at a table: Instead of eating breakfast in your car, indulging in dessert in your favorite recliner and noshing on lunch working at your desk, make sure you eat every meal and snack sitting at a table where you can focus on enjoying your food.

6) Watch portion sizes: Unfortunately, portion sizes for standard meals and snacks — whether prepared at home or purchased on-the-go — have ballooned in recent decades. When you’re home, use 9-inch salad plates for meals instead of 11-inch entrée plates. When you’re dining out, ask your server to put half of your meal into a doggie bag so you can eat it the next day.

7) Keep healthy foods within reach: You’re more likely to eat what you see and can reach. Serve high-fat, high-calorie foods at the counter, but keep the vegetables and fruit on the kitchen table where they’re easy to reach.

Support Yourself

Even with these strategies, you’ll probably overeat from time to time. Don’t beat yourself up. It can be difficult to avoid food traps on a daily basis. Take note of what led you to overindulge and try to steer clear of the trigger next time.

Still struggling to control your calorie intake? Consider scheduling a consultation with a registered dietitian to help you devise a plan that works for your unique circumstances.

There are several benefits of working out in the morning—here's how to shift your exercise schedule with a few simple strategies.

Just as the best type of exercise is the one that you actually enjoy doing, ultimately, the best time to exercise—whether that's afternoon, evening, or morning—is whenever works best with your schedule and lifestyle. Because let's be honest, figuring out how to start working out is hard enough without having to rework your entire routine. That said, if you've been wondering if there's one time of day that's best for exercising, there are some undeniable pros of working out in the morning.

The Benefits of Working Out in the Morning

Surveys show that you're more likely to stick with a morning workout or exercise program than one later in the day, when you'll likely be distracted by other responsibilities or have time to come up with excuses to skip your fitness session. Research has also found that exercise can help improve mood and sense of well-being by increasing feel-good neurotransmitters like endorphins, epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine. Physical activity also been shown to boost cognitive functioning like memory, attention, concentration, and learning. Needless to say, a sweat session is a great way to begin each day, especially before work or school when you want to be in top mental form. Morning workouts can also help you beat the heat of summer. And if you're participating in any type of fitness event, start times are almost always in the morning. If you want to compete at your optimal level, it's wise to get used to morning workouts.

So how do you start working out in the morning without dreading it? Experts have their favorite tips for turning the morning into your preferred time of day to move. Read up and get ready to set your alarm for a few hours earlier than usual.

1. Get enough sleep

This should be a no-brainer, but if you don't log the sleep you need, you're not going to feel like getting up in the morning, let alone tackling a morning workout. While you should shoot for seven to eight hours of sleep every night, making the switch overnight isn't easy. That's why Jonathan Jordan, a NASM certified personal trainer personal trainer and nutrition coach in San Francisco, tells his clients to add just 30 minutes at a time to their bedtime routine. So if you're usually in bed around 11 p.m., start making a conscious effort to get in bed at 10:30. "Even if you lie quietly in bed and do a little deep breathing or meditation until you fall asleep, it can help," he says.

2. Get good quality sleep

It's not just the amount of sleep you get that matters—sleep quality is important too. One rule Jordan employs with his clients: Adopt a 30- to 60-minute device blackout period before bed. During this time, abandon your use of phones, computers, and light-emitting devices. "Clients who do this [tend to] sleep better, have more energy, and report less stress, better diet, and even better digestion," he says. Also helpful for ensuring deep, uninterrupted sleep is to make your sleep environment as cool, dark, and quiet as possible. Temperature, ambient light, and ambient noise are all environmental factors that can disrupt a sound night's sleep—but that you do have some control over.

3. Wake up 15 minutes earlier at a time

How appealing does it sound to wake up (at least) an hour earlier just to work hard? Probably not much. So start small. Could you wake up 15 minutes earlier and squeeze in a quick workout (like this 15-minute stairs workout) or a round of full-body stretches? Probably.

Get used to doing this for a week or two before moving your wake-up time up another 15 minutes. Repeat until you're up with enough time to log the exercise you want. Progressing slowly will help you adapt to that earlier wake-up call, says Jennie Gall, former owner of Relevé Pilates Studio in Ripon, Calif.

4. Prep your workout stuff the night before

Set out your workout clothes, sneakers, gym bag, and whatever else you need for your morning workout the night before. This is the best way to give your future self a helping hand, save some time in the morning, and avoid forgetting anything—especially if you're a little foggy when you wake up.

5. Set an alarm across the room

Leaving your alarm clock next to your bed makes it all too easy to hit the snooze button. But if you place it across the room, you'll be forced to get up to turn it off. The extra benefit of doing this if your smartphone is your alarm is that keeps you far away from your phone all night. You'll sleep better.

6. Drink your morning caffeine

Permission granted to sip that cup of coffee or tea before exercising. Keep your serving to one 8-ounce cup and avoid tons of add-ins like cane sugar and artificial sweeteners. "In moderation, caffeine is widely recognized and safe for sipping pre-workout," Jordan says. In fact, research even suggests that caffeine can aid fitness performance.