How Many Calories Would You Guess?


Many people who are trying to lose weight underestimate how many calories are in the food that they eat. This adds to the frustration and confusion of the battle to lose weight.

The following two pictures are of a banana muffin and a bowl of homemade pasta with a light garlic and basil sauce.

Take a guess at the total calories of each and put your answer in the comment section below.

(I’ll reveal the real amount of calories in both in a couple days)

Banana Nut Muffin

Banana Nut Muffin

—————————————————————————————————————————————————

Pasta Bowl

Pasta Bowl

Pasta Bowl

Pasta Bowl

John

Posted by johnbarban in Fat Loss, Weight Loss

213 Responses to “How Many Calories Would You Guess?”

  1. Jonathan Says:

    haha that’s a tricky question =D How much grams are there in both muffin and pasta :b But I would geuss that there are an equally amount of calories in both maybe :b

  2. Connie Says:

    I’m guessing each is somewhere around 500 calories…obviously depends upon size and type of ingredients used, but I suspect your example is meant to reflect that each food is of equal caloric value. Personally, I’d rather have the pasta!

  3. Ralph Says:

    It highly depends on the ingredients but since the this is about underestimating calories Id say the muffin is about 460-500 calories and the pasta can be as high as 800-1200-cals + if it has a cream sauce.
    ~R~

  4. Kirill Says:

    I’m guessing 300 cal in the muffin and 450 in pasta.

  5. Brian Says:

    muffin: 440
    Pasta: 1000

  6. David Smith Says:

    Muffin: 400
    Pasta: 700

  7. Joshua Says:

    muffin: 450
    Pasta (because of light sauce): 600

  8. Mike Says:

    Muffin: 700
    Past: 1350 (it looks like a huge portion!)

  9. Pat Says:

    Muffin: 325
    Pasta: 850

  10. Katie Says:

    Muffin 600
    Pasta 600

  11. travis Says:

    mmm, i would guess 500 each. muffins are totally misleading, they are terrible for you (unless you make them less evil)

  12. Doug Says:

    Yep, huge portion on that pasta… I’d go:

    Muffin: 600
    Pasta 1200

  13. Kevin Says:

    700 muffin
    1200 Pasta

  14. Angela Says:

    muffin-430, pasta 365

  15. Wazzup Says:

    That’s whey I wheigh everything and eat pretty consistent. (and I do low carb diets, so both of them are off limits till…. well tomorrow :-D )

  16. L.L. Says:

    640 Muffin
    370 Pasta

  17. josephine Says:

    october 8th, at 15:11
    Muffin: 500
    Pasta:450

  18. john Says:

    360 for the muffin, 660 for the pasta

  19. Pearl Mattenson Says:

    muffin: 550
    pasta: 350

  20. Lucius Says:

    Muffin-485
    Pasta-1200

  21. Chris M Says:

    Muffin: 350
    Pasta: 750

  22. David Says:

    360-450 muffin
    700-800 pasta

    I eat paleo now, pretty much no carbs and lots of fat. I’ve found I really never get hungry, and far easier to do a 24 hour fast and control my appetite the way I eat now, plus been consistently losing weight, even when I do indulge in a baked good or two.

  23. Teresa Fendley Says:

    muffin – 525

    pasta – 375

  24. Gina Says:

    Muffin: 600
    Pasta: 550

  25. Jon Says:

    Muffin – 700
    Pasta – 500

  26. Elizabeth Says:

    660 = muffin
    1350 = pasta

  27. Sylkat Says:

    Without knowing the ingredients and portion-size it is a bit vague but assuming that these are commonly prepared foods without great attention to healthy, low fat preparation my guess is
    Muffin 380
    Pasta 1250

  28. Kat Says:

    Definitely the muffin is more calories. Those guys can be deceptive!

  29. Scott Says:

    Muffin – 550
    Pasta – It’s kind of hard to tell the portion size and ingredients from the small pictures – however that looks like a LOT of noodles, so I’ll guess 950

  30. sarah reagin atl, ga Says:

    650 muffin and 800-850 pasta, but hard to say bc no size references or ingredients listed…

  31. John Says:

    Muffin 600
    Pasta 750

  32. Jeff Says:

    I am guessing 400-500 calories for the muffin and anywhere from 800-1000 calories for the pasta.

  33. Oak Says:

    Muffin = 750
    Pasta = 1500

  34. Vickie Says:

    probably wrong but my guess is that the muffin is around 600 calories and the pasta around 300 to 400.

  35. pinthewind Says:

    Guess 500 for muffin and 300 for “pasta” Going for the long shot and guess based on theory that those may be shirataki noodles.

  36. Dawn Says:

    Since the pasta is “homemade” I’d guess about 300 – 400
    The muffin is about 500…especially if its store bought.

  37. Nvard Chouljian Says:

    Muffin 545

    Pasta 1750

  38. Chris Says:

    muffin – 800
    pasta – 775

  39. Stacy Says:

    I’m going to say 275 for muffin and 500 for pasta.

  40. EarthBeauty Says:

    Pasta 450
    Muffin 1050

  41. kevin Says:

    muffin- 380
    pasta- 640

  42. Carol Says:

    Muffin=300
    Pasta=700
    It’s hard not seeing it in person. The muffin looks small & don’t know what kind of sauce is in the pasta.?????

  43. Mark Says:

    muffin 750
    pasta 550

  44. Joy Says:

    Muffin about 400
    Pasta over 1000

  45. Barbara Says:

    I am going to say:

    Muffin: 500
    Pasta: 350

  46. Cody Says:

    @Jonathan

    I’m with Jonathan on this one. If it’s like an avg. serving my calorie guess is about 400 each.

  47. jay Says:

    Without going into exact amount of calorie , I would say that the muffin has MORE calories than the bowl of pasta.

    Muffins are always underrated, caloriewise.

    J

  48. omacal Says:

    muffin: 415
    pasta:335

  49. MikeHawth Says:

    600 for the muffin
    Pasta 750

  50. Jana Says:

    muffin 250
    pasta 650
    …but better 2000 of pasta that one muffin, I think

  51. Cara Says:

    muffin – 600
    Pasta – 400

  52. steve Says:

    Muffin – 450
    Pasta Bowl – 700

  53. Nanci Says:

    Muffin – 350
    Pasta – 1100

  54. Mark McCullagh Says:

    I think Cara’s pretty close. I would guess aroung the same maybe:

    Muffin: 650 calories

    Pasta dish: 500 calories.

    Also, the muffin will have way more fat….

  55. Cecelia Knox Says:

    Muffin – 700

    Pasta – 500

  56. James Says:

    Muffin – 550
    Pasta – 600

  57. Tania Says:

    Muffin – 380
    Pasta -590

  58. Vikki Stefans Says:

    Muffin – 500
    Pasta – 800

  59. Denise Nelson Says:

    muffin-300
    pasta-800

  60. Laura Says:

    Muffin- 500

    pasta – 1150

  61. Jonathan Says:

    muffin 500, pasta – 350

  62. Adena Says:

    Muffin – 600

    Pasta – 500

  63. Rusty - Fitness Black Book Says:

    The muffin is probably around 650 calories. The pasta bowl is harder to tell…I am guessing around 1,000 calories, since it looks like there is a decent amount. So hard to tell with just pictures, but fun to guess.

    Rusty

  64. Gary Says:

    muffin 700

    pasta 800

    Hard to say not knowing the physical size.

  65. kristen Says:

    muffin – 460
    pasta – 650

  66. Karen Says:

    Muffin = 500 Calories
    Pasta dish – depends on type of noodle, ingredients in sauce, meat etc
    but from just looking at the picture looks like a creamy sauce = 1400 calories

  67. Bob Ross Says:

    Muffin 300
    Pasta 500 to 700 depending on amount of olive oil in sauce.

  68. ellie Says:

    500 each

  69. michael Says:

    Both 450

  70. Dr. Ed Owens Says:

    Muffin–450
    Pasta Plate–900

  71. chrisi Says:

    muffin 525

    pasta 675

  72. Doug Says:

    muffin: 400 calories
    pasta: 250 calories

  73. chrisi Says:

    oopps…looks like the pasta dish has some kind of meat so I will change my guess to 800 for the pasta and 525 for the muffin. It really depents on the size of both the muffin and the pasta but its fun to guess anyway…. :)

  74. Emily Says:

    Muffin: 400
    Pasta: 800

  75. Jack Says:

    Muffin – 610

    pasta – 250

  76. chris c Says:

    Muffin: 375
    Pasta: 650

  77. johnbarban Says:

    Just to be clear, the pasta has no meat on it, those are slices of onion.

  78. Melissa Says:

    Muffin: 350
    Pasta: 900

  79. Chris Says:

    Muffin 550
    Pasta 600

  80. Karen S Says:

    Muffin 275
    Pasta 650

  81. Joshua Taylor Says:

    Muffin = 371
    Pasta = 893

  82. Jim Says:

    Muffin 100
    Pasta 525

  83. Joan Says:

    Muffin 480 calories
    Pasta 760 calories

  84. Tajha Says:

    muffin 450
    pasta 450 Same as/or close to the muffin calories. Showing the amt. of food you can eat instead of the muffin with same calories.

  85. Alice Says:

    muffin: 800
    pasta: 400

  86. Scott Says:

    Muffin 450
    Pasta 450

  87. Kay Says:

    Muffin = 380
    Pasta = 320

  88. JackedMan205 Says:

    Muffin – 260
    Pasta – 530

  89. Bev G Says:

    It really does depend on what is in the pasta and how big it is but I would guess about 450 for the pasta and once again it depends how big the muffin is and what went into it but I guess about 250

  90. dale patterson Says:

    Pasta 425 Muffin 575

  91. Moi Says:

    My muffins are whole grains and fruit, but I am guessing this one is not. I guess 700 for each.

  92. Rickard Says:

    Muffin – 650
    Pasta – 520

  93. Marilyn Says:

    I think the muffin is 425…..hard to tell how big it actually is.

    The pasta without knowing how much is there maybe 1400.

  94. Julie Says:

    Muffin – 400
    Pasta – 900

    I believe a regular 16 oz bag of pasta has 1,600 calories (4 realistic servings @ 400 calories each)… this serving looks larger than normal so I’m guessing 600 just for the pasta + another 300 for the sauce and topping.

  95. Irene Says:

    muffin 1200 calories-looks like a big one!
    pasta 600 calories!

  96. John Says:

    Both at 775 – but it’s a guess as the actual sizes are difficult to assess.

  97. Rachelle Says:

    Muffin – 320 calories
    Pasta dish – 675 calories

  98. Annie Says:

    Muffin – 750
    Pasta – 650

  99. Nancy Says:

    It doesn’t say if the muffin is homemade or factory made, which makes a huge difference. That said I will guess 450 for the muffin and 300-350 for the pasta dish (although there again, I don’t know what the pinkish stuff is). I am assuming that it is red onion but if it is ham the numbers might be elevated by 50 to 100 calories.

  100. charlie Says:

    muffin=500
    pasta=500

  101. Tanya Says:

    Muffin 400
    Pasta 1200 with way more sodium than I care to image

  102. WWanda Says:

    Muffin: 575k
    Pasta: 1400k

  103. cj Says:

    Both at 600.

  104. Thom Says:

    Muffin 530k
    Pasta 530k (approx: 2 cups pasta)

  105. Wes Davis Says:

    Muffin- 480
    Pasta-1280

  106. Don Says:

    Muffin: 380
    Pasta: 280

  107. Michael Says:

    Muffin: 450
    Pasta: 750

  108. Moriah Says:

    Muffin about 450kcal
    Pasta about 700kcal…but really hard to tell how big the bowl is!

  109. Scott Says:

    Muffin: 425
    Pasta: 1250

  110. Debbie Says:

    Muffin-600 calories
    Pasta-1100 calories

  111. Andy Says:

    Muffin 450- 540 not sure how big it is.

    Pasta 350 same problem with no sure how big plate is.

  112. Celina Says:

    Muffin – 650
    Pasta – 400

  113. Barb Says:

    muffin 540
    Pasta 275

  114. Emm Says:

    muffin – 230
    pasta – 800

  115. Roger F Aucoin Says:

    800 for the muffin and 1400 for the pasta dish

  116. Steve Says:

    The Muffin = would depend on a few things, but around 550/600

    The pasta = Yes, two cups of pasta as previously stated, but it looks as though it’s an Alfredo sauce, with chicken, mushrooms and bell peppers. Assuming the sauce has butter and the mushrooms were most likely sauteed in butter as well as the pasta having been cooked with some oil, I would say closer to 2,000 calories very easily. PASTA= 2,000.

  117. bruised violet Says:

    muffin 500
    pasta 450

  118. Fran Says:

    Muffin 600
    Pasta 1200 if that is cream sauce if not 800.

  119. Jeff Says:

    both at around 1200 calories

  120. Shawn Says:

    muffin 375
    pasta 1100

  121. Silvana Says:

    there is no way that pasta has a light garlic and basil sauce. i can clearly see carrots and cream!! Trick question! How large is the muffin and how large the pasta dish – starter / main meal?

  122. Silvana Says:

    @Steve Agree Steve – misleading on the pasta which clearly has carrots / cream in it – so muffin is probably less!!
    (God I must be bored!)

  123. johnbarban Says:

    that is a full sized pasta bowl…have a look at the fork, spoon and knife next to the bowl for a reference point.

    The pasta has chunks of orange pepper and onions on it. The sauce is just some chicken broth, garlic, basil and corn starch.

  124. Anna @ pathtofatloss Says:

    Muffin 300 calories
    Pasta 800 calories

  125. Zico Says:

    Muffin – 270
    Pasta – 400

  126. Jeremy Says:

    Muffin 450 calories
    Pasta 1200 calories

  127. aleknovy Says:

    Its called photography. The muffin is actually small, you can tell from the perspective… It just looks like a big muffin coz of the lens used.

    Muffin – 50kcal

  128. oolala53 Says:

    How big a muffin? Got nuts? raisins? Dense? Crumbly?
    Two cups of pasta? How light a sauce? Seems like it might be a trick question… maybe they’re the same?

  129. Ezra Schroeder Says:

    Muffin: 1,000 kcals
    Pasta: 350 kcals.

  130. vicky Says:

    ban muffin 450 cals
    pasta: 800

  131. VN Says:

    Muffin: 400
    Pasta: 600

  132. chains Says:

    mmmm

    I guess.

    muffin: 750
    pasta: 1000

  133. mivox Says:

    I’m guessing 400 calories for both.

  134. brian Says:

    muffin 540 calories. pasta 640

  135. jing shan Says:

    Muffin- 780
    Pasta- 1000

  136. David Almire Says:

    Muffin-350
    Pasta-300

  137. Layla Says:

    Muffin ‘Regular’ size :740
    Pasta (Homemade being the key i think): 400ish using an 8 oz pasta approximation
    :)

  138. Tristan Says:

    Muffin – 400
    Pasta – 700

  139. Jenny Says:

    Hard to tell the size of the muffin but I guess 280 if it’s average size but at most 430 if its supersized.

    The pasta I guess is 750.

  140. Anthony Says:

    600 calories for both

  141. Sara Says:

    Muffin, somewhere between 500 and 700 depending on if it comes from starbucks or not. Pasta 400 max.

  142. Damon Says:

    1,000 calories each.

  143. Matt Says:

    I think the muffin is over 1200 Cal, and I think the pasta is around 500 Cal.

  144. kaitlin Says:

    Muffin 550
    Pasta 950

  145. Trever Says:

    450 for both
    I’m not sure on the size of the muffin though.

  146. dave Says:

    Muffin 500
    Pasta 750 or more

  147. Sonia Says:

    I have no idea
    don’t even know where to start

  148. G Says:

    Muffin = 250 if home made standard size, 500 if store-bought.
    Pasta = 600

  149. jakob Says:

    Muffin: 400
    Pasta: 950

  150. Marliene Says:

    Muffin 170

    Pasta 1000

  151. Laura Says:

    Muffin 650
    Pasta 550

  152. Gloria Says:

    muffin 420
    pasta 650

  153. Anna Says:

    Difficult to tell- depends on size of muffin, and size of pasta bowl, but I’d guess 400 cal for the muffin, and 600 cal for the pasta.

  154. Gloria Says:

    same amount of calories

  155. Jon Says:

    muffin – 750 calories pasta – 525

  156. Linz Says:

    hard to know the size of muffin and they vary a lot
    Muffin 400
    Pasta 400 if 1 cup serving of pasta

  157. tanja Says:

    tough one. muffin: 400 cal and pasta: 450 cal.

  158. Ken Johnson Says:

    I think they are about the same with the edge in total calories going to a full-fat, full-sugar regular muffin. Muffin 530 calories. Pasta 480 calories.

  159. Lindsey Says:

    muffin – 450, pasta – 850

  160. Mateus Says:

    Muffin 750
    pasta 400

  161. Fitness Finder Says:

    Muffin is between 500 and 575, Pasta bowl between 450 and 600 (oz. and sz. are a bit unclear

  162. Johnny Says:

    Muffin 350

    Pasta 800

  163. Petra Says:

    Ordinarily, I’d hazard a guess, but from the photos I have no clue about portion size. Let’s just say, on good day I’d avoid both. ;-)

  164. Chris M Says:

    Pretty astounded by the range of guesses… sure, we need a bit of an indication in terms of portion size (grams), but the muffin can be judged by the cup (not very big) and the fact that the top doesn’t extend very far beyond it. It’s a calorie dense food, for sure, but it’s just not that big in terms of grams. I’d be amazed if it was more than 500 cals, no matter what the ingredients are, because I’m assuming it’s pretty small. As far as the pasta goes, it’s a solid helping, and the pasta is the biggest contributor to the calorie count. It looks like a few servings worth, I’d say 700 calories, plus sauce and veggies, which might equate to a grand total of ~1000. I think the “shock value” here is the fact that the pasta+veggies is viewed as being healthy, whilst the muffin is viewed as bad… but the shocker is how we view each food, the pasta+veg is ‘healthy’ whilst the muffin is ‘bad’… but their actual effect on our calorie counts is the SIZE… a ‘good’ food can be bad if we eat too much of it.

  165. derek krauss Says:

    muffin 250
    pasta bowl 1200

  166. Mary Says:

    Muffin= 1000 calories
    Pasta bowl 475

  167. sari Says:

    muffin 300~ pasta bowl ~1200

  168. Inna Says:

    muffin 650
    Pasta bowl 400

  169. k Says:

    muffin 280
    pasta bowl 750

  170. Lauren Says:

    I would say 250 for the muffin & 375 for a serving of pasta

  171. antonella Says:

    same

  172. Kelly Says:

    muffin 550
    pasta 1120

  173. Ann Says:

    Wouldn’t have a clue about the number of calories, a guess would be;
    Pasta- 350cals
    Muffin – 0cals, cos it sounds quite tasty, just kidding :)

  174. Kat Says:

    Muffin 350
    Pasta 550

  175. Felicia Says:

    banana nut muffin-650 cal..that pasta looks like a hugee serving to me so i’ll guess its around 700

  176. Dee Says:

    muffin 525 pasta 295

  177. SC Says:

    Pasta 500 cal
    Muffin 300

  178. Sangita Says:

    Muffin 385
    Pasta 400

  179. Chris Says:

    550 Muffin
    750 Pasta

  180. mAGDA Says:

    muffin 400kcal
    pasta 700 kcal

  181. Yenny Moreno Rodriguez Says:

    it’s hard to guess this way but i estimate that muffin has about 350 and pasta a little more such as 450.

  182. Hilbert Says:

    My guess:
    800 kcal each
    My real answer:
    It doesn’t matter to me. I will eat the muffin even if it had 2000kcal.;)

  183. Venee Says:

    If the sauce is cream or Alfredo on the pasta I think both are around 350 Cals and both probably have 1/2 the calories from fat.

  184. concetta27 Says:

    600
    1100

  185. Lori Says:

    Muffin: 380
    Pasta: 530

  186. Lance Says:

    Muffin: 475
    Pasta: 600

  187. Laurel Says:

    muffin 400 pasta around 800?

  188. tobias7912 Says:

    Muffin – 450 Pasta 750 (it seems it is a real large plate), and since we do not know, 750-950 is a better guess.

  189. Allan Fleming Says:

    600 for the muffin, 750 for the pasta

  190. Tisa Yonts Says:

    Muffin 900
    Pasta 1400

  191. gidi Says:

    Impossible to say without knowing the portion sizes. It also looks like there’s more in the bowl than just pasta and garlic sauce, some yellow peppers and maybe some kinda meat?. A muffin can range from 280 to 800 calories, depends on a lot of variables. All this talk of calories doesn’t even address the fact that not all calories are absorbed, and some more readily than others – so raw numbers from a bomb calorimeter are not universally informative as to what you actually absorb from what you eat. Anybody wanna field that one?

  192. Andrea Says:

    Muffin 582, Pasta 512

  193. clare Says:

    muffin 600
    pasta850

  194. Belezura Says:

    I would guess the muffin is around 290/310 cal and the pasta around 420/450 cal
    Can’t wait to see the real #s

  195. Jazmin Says:

    Banana muffin 500
    Pasta bowl 950

  196. karen Says:

    Banana muffin- 210 cals
    Pasta-470 cals

  197. Mary Anne Says:

    Muffin 750
    Pasta 380

  198. Ralph Marks Says:

    Muffin: 397 calories
    Pasta: 551 calories

  199. Juan Arroyo Says:

    I’m going to go with Muffin: 400, Pasta: 600, great meal! Priceless

  200. CH Says:

    muffin: 635
    pasta: 950

  201. Sean Rafferty Says:

    muffin: 575
    pasta: 750

  202. Limastar Says:

    Muffin 750

    Pasta 600

  203. Yara Says:

    muffin 700

    pasta 500

  204. Johannes Says:

    Muffin: 660 kcal
    Pasta: 570 kcal

  205. cathy Says:

    muffin 450
    pasta 375

  206. Ebony Says:

    That looks like a ton of pasta. I’ll say 400 muffin and 900 pasta.

  207. tetlanyo mogomotsi Says:

    I THINK A BOWL OF PASTA HAS MORE CALORIES THAN MUFFIN

  208. Leslie Says:

    muffin 640
    pasta 910

  209. Terhi Suominen Says:

    My guess is that the muffin has more calories than the pasta. But since we don’t know anything about the ingredints it’s har to say.

  210. susanm Says:

    650 Calories for the muffin
    1200 pasta bowl

  211. aaffri Says:

    The pasta bowl I think is more dense in calories, but it will take more space into your guts, maybe it will satisfy you more than a small muffin, full of sugars and fats wich will lead more easily to “just another small muffin”.

    In general we should know the ingredients and the ratio of the ingredients in the muffin…let’s say: flour, butter, sugar, corn syrup, nuts and some vegetable oil…well it’s a bit of a BUNCH of calories :D

  212. Pretty Girls Gallery Says:

    I always monitor my Calories when i eat. I make sure that i dont eat foods that are very high in carbohydrates or foods with very high calories.

  213. arthritisremedy Says:

    I am very conscious about my Calorie intake when eating. I usually restrict my Calorie intake so as not to gain weight and also i am into a low carb, low fat diet.

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