Salads yes or no!

2

Replies

  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    It's up to you how many calories are in the salad. Calculate correctly (weigh your dressing or buy individual packets) and you'll know how many calories are in it, and if they're worth it to you.
  • sllm1
    sllm1 Posts: 2,130 Member
    Salads are difficult for me due to the difficulty in logging all of the individual ingredients, and the fact that I only like full-fat-ranch dressing which is a calorie disaster. I still eat one from time to time, but it causes me to have to make up calories the rest of the day.

    Many people seem to think that if they're on a "diet" they should eat salad, and they couldn't be more wrong when they're not watching the serving size of their dressing.
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
    I love taco salads, and with salsa used as a dressing, it's pretty easy to fit in my goal (although watch adding things like avocado and cheese).

    For another common dressing, I do horseradish mustard mixed with balsamic, and usually some avocado for some fat. I love salads with lots of flavors and ingredients, and as long as you log it properly and it fits in your goals.

    And there is nothing worse than a sad salad to me (some lettuce, dressing, and not much else). I've been served a few of those at restaurants and had my day ruined...
  • realcalm
    realcalm Posts: 63 Member
    If the salad is the whole meal, then you can afford the calories in the dressing. A humongous bowl of favorite veggies, maybe half an oz of cheese, a few nuts, an oz or so of grilled chicken or turkey, slice in a few strawberries or grapes, and a serving of whatever dressing your heart desires!
  • icemom011
    icemom011 Posts: 999 Member
    I make my own chicken salad, everyone loves it. I don't use a lot of dressing in it, just enough to moisten the chicken. As for green salads, we add whatever vegetables we like to it, like tomatoes, cucumbers, onions celery, mushrooms, olives. I don't put any dressing on mine most of the time, but guacamole is a great topping, so is the hummus. I love pumkin or sunflower seeds on my salads, and feta cheese. So i prefer to load it with other things, rather than dressings. Have to have my salad every night :smiley:
  • AmberSpamber
    AmberSpamber Posts: 391 Member
    I like salads and love them even more since I discovered Bolthouse farms.They have dressings made out of greek yogurt and the one I love is only 40 calories a serving. It beats all the other high calorie dressings and tastes amazing!
  • Shana67
    Shana67 Posts: 680 Member
    I adore salad, and have (finally) learned to eat it with less dressing. So my salads typically have a bunch of leafy greens, 3-4 oz grilled protein (typically chicken but varies), 28z shredded light cheese, cucumber, red/yellow/orange peppers, a few tortilla strips (14g), and a Tamari sesame dressing that I love. Very tasty and filling, and usually tops out around 400 calories. I eat that at dinner 2x per week at a minimum.
  • ekim2016
    ekim2016 Posts: 1,199 Member
    I have a romaine base salad, with garbanzo beans, black olives, tomatoes, radishes every night with my protein and veg dinner... a tablespoon of vinaigrette and I'm good to go..
  • ekim2016
    ekim2016 Posts: 1,199 Member
    that is one slice of tomato, two black olives, one radish sliced and 8 garbanzo beans...on a pile of romaine...
  • CoffeeNCardio
    CoffeeNCardio Posts: 1,847 Member
    Boo>:( for the calories in a salad that won't satisfy me, I can have several things that will.

    Salad or no salad is totally a preference thing. Food isn't good or bad except in the context of an individual diet.
  • 85Cardinals
    85Cardinals Posts: 733 Member
    People should make every day their salad days imo.
  • My go-to almost every day for lunch (in addition to my broiled BBQ chicken) is a salad in my Big *kitten* Bowl! I keep it super-simple: lettuce, baby spinach, cherry tomatoes, 1 tbsp olive oil, balsamic vinegar....
  • cerise_noir
    cerise_noir Posts: 5,468 Member
    If you like it, eat it. Just log it.
  • jgnatca
    jgnatca Posts: 14,464 Member
    There's a hummus and tuna salad that I adore. It has dark greens.
  • lorrpb
    lorrpb Posts: 11,463 Member
    I could not have lost weigh without a salad every night with my dinner. It adds a satisfying amount of bulk for low calories, and I put good stuff on them. EVOO & vinegar, various flavors, is my go to dressing. Give me the exact same meal, no salad, and I"m hungry all evening.

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  • workinonit1956
    workinonit1956 Posts: 1,043 Member
    Yes! I love a big salad for lunch. I use measured olive oil and vinegar as the dressing.
  • mysteps2beauty
    mysteps2beauty Posts: 493 Member
    Taco salad my fav.......ground turkey, cheese, organic (flavorful) tomatoes, red onions, avocado (good oil) and balsalmic vinegar. Not too many calories, flavorful and filling! I cut out the bread cause I'm trying watch how much sugar I eat. I tried a diabetic bread today...for my purposes, just fine.
  • MalkinMagic71
    MalkinMagic71 Posts: 1,433 Member
    I like croutons. Beyond that yuck to salads lol.
  • tlflag1620
    tlflag1620 Posts: 1,358 Member
    Love salads. I skip croutons (I eat low carb), but pile on cheese (a nice handful), meat, eggs or avocados, sunflower kernels, and douse the whole thing with a good deal of olive oil and balsamic vinegar or Italian dressing made with olive oil. I have no earthly clue how many calories are in my salads, but they fill me up nicely and give me a good amount of veggies, fat, and protein for very few net carbs. Big salads allow me to bulk out small portions of the carb heavy foods I sometimes serve my family (pizza, Mac n cheese, etc). If it weren't for my huge calorie laden salads I'd be stuck going hungry on pizza night :(
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    I use hot sauce on my salad. Low calorie, spicy. Sometimes I use salsa but often I don't even want to waste 30 calories on that when I could have a 35 calorie wedge of laughing cow cheese in the salad instead.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    ysoto2014 wrote: »
    Kinda like coffee I feel like people say salads are great and some people say no. My favorite salad is the chicken Caesar but apparently it's horrible to eat due to the dressing. So is there a salad that is a better option? Not a picky eater I usually do a sandwich for lunch but am trying to cut the bread out.

    A salad is a salad, none is good or bad. Make it to your liking, dressing on the side and use moderate amounts. In fact, just stay within your calorie goals and you will lose weight.
  • KateTii
    KateTii Posts: 886 Member
    edited September 2016
    I have a "hack" for when i'm after a Caesar but don't have the calories (I like a ton of sauce which doesn't work well for me) ... zero fat french dressing (I don't like the oil slick, but that is up to you!) ontop of lettuce, bacon etc. (I usually leave out the croutons) and then soft boil an egg - the yolk must be runny. Mix the runny yolk egg into the salad and you get a creamy "zingy" sauce. Add a little salt and pepper that (for me) satisfies the craving.
  • SusanMFindlay
    SusanMFindlay Posts: 1,804 Member
    We use a yogurt-based dressing for our Caesar salads. It tastes the same (to me) with a much lower calorie count. I've decided that a small sprinkle of bacon bits is worth the calories (for me) but croutons are not - so I take my salad out before adding the croutons for my husband and son.
  • rcktgirl05
    rcktgirl05 Posts: 87 Member
    I get the salad bar at my work cafeteria quite often. Spinach and romaine, with a bit of chick peas, hard boiled egg and ham for protein. Maybe a slight sprinkle of shredded cheese. For dressing I put olive oil and balsamic vinegar together in one of the tiny cups and weigh it (for tracking) before I put it on. I have gotten used to walking past the croutons/bacon bits/sunflower seed section! It's amazing how much staying power salad has when there's plenty of protein in it! I made this combo a custom meal so it's easy to log for my lunch.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    Just like you have a 5 calorie cup of coffee and a 700 calorie cup of coffee drink, the calorie content of salads varies with what is added to them. If you like it and it fits neatly into your calorie allowance, I see no reason why you shouldn't have it whenever you feel like it.
  • Whitezombiegirl
    Whitezombiegirl Posts: 1,042 Member
    I have a salad everyday for my lunch. The base is baby spinach, shredded lettuce, onion, cucumber, peppers, baby tomatos.

    I vary it each day. I like to add one of the following:
    good quality ham and whole grain mustard
    Feta cheese and olives
    Roasted veg and thin sliced steak
    Chicken breast and avocado
    Chedder cheese and pickled onions
    Pork loin and avocado.

    I dont like greasy veg so i just dress with vinegar and black pepper.
  • paperpudding
    paperpudding Posts: 9,281 Member
    Why did the lettuce blush?

    Because he saw the salad dressing.



    Sorry, will put away book of jokes for 5 year olds now :o
  • trigden1991
    trigden1991 Posts: 4,658 Member
    Does it fit you calorie and/or macronutrient goals? If YES then its brilliamt, if NO then maybe not.
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
    That's like saying, "Is casserole good or bad?" You can build a salad to be as many or few calories as you want. I can make a 100 calorie salad with spinach, feta, and lemon juice. I can also make a 2,500 calorie salad with blue cheese and chickpeas and croutons, etc.

    If you measure your ingredients, there's no reason why you can't eat salad.
  • ekim2016
    ekim2016 Posts: 1,199 Member
    heard of the honeymoon salad? yeah, lettuce alone...