Yes, salads could be a great diet food if you make the right choices. But those choices include making sure that you are getting enough nutrition to keep yourself full before the next meal. Using a salad for lunch does you no good should you wind up at the vending machine mid-afternoon since you are starving.
- A strong base – Iceberg and Romaine lettuce are certainly the foundation for several salads. However, they really do not pack the nutrition punch that the body needs. Spinach and kale offer much more sustainable nutrition in addition to vitamins and minerals.
- Flavor and color – As long as they are not fried or marinated, you can add almost any vegetable or fruit. In fact, the more variety within the color, the better-rounded your meal is going to be. We eat with this eyes first! Try broccoli, tomatoes, carrots, onions, and butternut squash, even a small amount of apple, grapes, or pineapple.
- Protein – To keep yourself full all afternoon, your meal must include some kind of lean protein. That can be diced turkey or chicken, flaked tuna (with no mayo), boiled shrimp, hard-boiled egg, tofu, beans, avocado, quinoa, or perhaps a mixture of different textures and flavors.
- Fat – A great, balanced, and healthy diet does require fats. But realize that this means essential olive oil not Oreos. For any heart-healthy quantity of fat, try using a small amount of essential olive oil to decorate your salad, adding diced avocado like a topping, or even salmon as the natural saturated fats as well as your protein. Or instead you could include a moderate amount of flavor-packed cheese such feta, blue cheese, or shaved Parmesan.
- To avoid – Anything marinated in oil or mixed with mayonnaise or fried.
