Why Salads are not as Healthy as we Thought

carolynmo1969 wrote: »

I had a bag of "healthier" tortilla chips in my cart at Costco yesterday. Made from quinoa and chia, yummy, couldn't wait to get home and have some with hummus. In the line, I read the label. 280 calories for 12 chips. 12 chips. 12. Chips. I left them in the store. OP's point and mine is that there is a lot of stuff that is packaged pretty and has all the correct buzz words that at a quick glance might make people think we are making a better choice, when in fact, a good old read of the label or nutrition info provided says it all.

This is true...but as other people have also pointed out, "healthy" really doesn't have anything to do with caloric density. I eat avocados pretty much every day...an avocado is a nutritional power house...and a calorie bomb.

It is likely your quinoa and chia chips have a bit more nutrition than the average chip...but saying something is healthy or a healthier alternative doesn't necessarily mean it's going to be a lower calorie alternative. These are two different things and it's important to understand that.

rainbowbow wrote: »

Maybe i'm crazy, but i would much rather eat something hot for dinner than an 800 calorie salad.

I also like to add stuff to my salads but usually they end up being between 5-600 calories and really filling. And i'll be darned if i eat a salad at dinner time when i could be eating something hot *_*

I eat salads because they are tasty, not because of any preconceived idea of their "healthiness" though...

This. Your regular garden salad depresses me. My salads are full on tasty treats. They usually run me between 500-550 calories which is very reasonable for a meal for me. I prefer any lettuce outside of iceberg, egg, chickpeas (black beans will work if I don't have chickpeas), additional mixed cabbage (just love the color lol), bean spouts for a nice crunch, olives (I know some say they're full of calories but they pack a flavorful punch in a small quantity so you don't need many), mushrooms, tomatoes, corn (another high calorie culprit but worth it in taste), mushrooms, carrots, cucumbers, artichoke hearts, and pepperoncini. I can't stand grilled chicken so I always have boiled shrimp. Add a nice vinaigrette and I'm happy. The end result is a rather large salad with some tasty toppings. Only a few of them are higher calorie items and the taste is great. I'm literally stuffed after I'm finished and I guess there's enough fiber to keep me full for quite a long time. I find that the more creative I get with toppings, the fuller I feel and end up not resorting to snacking so it's very lower calorie in that case if it helps me eliminate 2-3 hour later snack.

I used to be very fond of a (go ahead and laugh) southwest chicken salad from Jack in the box. Not low in calories but not outrageous and it was convenient for work. Someone once walked into my office and said "you know it's not healthy with all that dressing." My response was "who said I was eating this for health purposes?" I had to laugh because they point out some 200 calorie dressing only half put on the salad...yet there was multiple deep fried chicken fingers on the salad. You're seriously concerned about the dressing?

slickmickey wrote: »

I love my salads, but that being said i'm a picky eater and dont eat ANY dressing nor many cheeses one would think to put on a salad. i like the 50/50 spinach spring mix, with some low sugar craisons, carrots, "confetti slaw" mix, almonds, mandarin orange slices (you can get them in single serving cups with water, no syrup for like 50cal) and some wonton strips. add some chicken to that and i've got a good size salad for about 450cal.

That sounds yummy! Thanks for the recipe!

katiely95 wrote: »

jemhh wrote: »

kristen6350 wrote: »

See, my Greek salads come out to 160 calories. I add Romaine, tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, feta, grilled chicken and use a 45 calorie Red Wine Vinaigrette (use 2TBSP, weighed out). I just don't use HUGE amounts of each. Enough to fill me up. I think you are doing it wrong, bro! LOL It's all about appropriate serving sizes.

I'm trying to work this out. How much feta and chicken do you put in this?

I worked it out, to the best of my ability. With the small amount of information given, this is the best possible answer I could come up with:
3 cups of Romaine (15 calories)
1.7 ounces of Cherubs Nature Sweet Tomatoes (17 calories)
1 ounce of Tyson Grilled and Ready Chicken Breast Strips (33 calories)
1 ounce Fat Free Feta (35 calories)
2 table spoons of Red Wine Vinaigrette (45 calories)
1 ounce Cucumber (4 calories)
1 ounce Red Onion (11 calories)

It doesn't sound that impossible, because I usually use 1.4 ounces of chicken breast (mentioned above) in my salads, and just a table spoon or two of cheese. To each their own, I guess.

Yep saddest salad to ever salad.

1oz of chicken, what's the point :noway:

Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »

Salads ARE healthy. Mine come in around 300 calories. I use dressing very sparingly. I eat lots of yummy vegetables in mine. And a little feta or blue cheese.

This! I have salads for maybe five meals a week over most of the year. Yesterday I had a salad consisting of red leaf lettuce and raw spinach, hard-boiled egg, 1/4 cup of shredded cheddar, a tbsp of bacon bits, and 2 ounces of tomato with raspberry vinaigrette dressing for under 300 calories. Four ounces of chicken thigh (I prefer it over chicken breast) still would have added just a little over 100 calories. An 800-calorie salad would take up 2/3 of my calories for the day and would have to be HUGE. I don't see an issue with big salad as meals, really, but I have to wonder why anyone would think that a salad would have to be tiny or bare to be "healthy."

I'm so confused. Lower calories = healthier?

SergeantSausage wrote: »

RunTimer wrote: »

JenD1066 wrote: »

What's with the "we" crap, kemosabe? I eat enormous salads every freakin' day, and they are exactly as healthy as I require. The difference is the base of my salads is GREENS. Yes, you can fill a bowl with croutons, top it with chicken and velveeta, cover it in ranch dressing and call it a salad. This does not alter the nutritional value of produce.

you left out the sprinkles

I agree that when you count calories, it's a huge eye-opener and things you assumed were "better" or "more healthy" can still pack a caloric punch. There are tons of things I didn't realize had as many calories as they do. I'm often amazed at how quickly I can reach my calorie goal even when eating nothing but fresh produce, lean protein, healthy fats, and complex carbs so, yes, that's a good lesson to learn.

But I still manage to eat gigantic and delicious salads almost every day for lunch. I like to eat a lot of volume as well so I use at least two cups of leafy greens and tons of raw or steamed or roasted veggies--tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, broccoli, cauliflower, red onion, carrots, squash, etc. or fruits like strawberries, apple slices, etc. The veg is the vast majority of the salad. Then depending on my mood, I measure out either a serving of cheese or a serving of slivered almonds (again, as other posters have said, chopping up a high calorie item distributes the flavor throughout without having to add a ton) and a measured out protein (grilled chicken, tuna--I even use those flavored packets of Sunkist tuna and they only come in at 70 cals a packet which also cuts down on how much dressing I use--or hard-boiled eggs) then, as I'm generally too lazy to make my own salad dressing, just measure out a two tablespoon portion of some organic or low cal dressing I've bought at the store. Sometimes I'll use salsa instead as someone else said or if cottage cheese is my cheese choice of the day, then I don't need dressing and can use a bit more cottage cheese. My salads come to 400-600 cals depending on the day and as a 5'2" girl with a 1500 calorie limit per day, that still fits in easily and I've been steadily losing the past four months!

If you're adding "too much" bacon, cheese, etc. because you don't feel like the veg part of the salad is flavorful enough then I really encourage you to go the roasted veg route. My favorite salads are the weeks I toss my broccoli and cauliflower in a bit of olive oil and whichever spices suit my fancy and then roast them; I'll make a big batch and then put it on the salad cold throughout the week--still adds that great roasted flavor with all the flavor of the seasoning you've added. (One of my favorite combos is curry and ginger!) If you're mindful of how much olive oil you use, you can still add a boatload of these roasted veggies without a lot of calories. Adding fresh herbs goes a long way as well for flavor--cilantro is my favorite in a salad. I also like making homemade pickled green bell pepper and onion slices. So much flavor!!

(Oh, last one: I love doing a homemade taco "salad"; when you're controlling the portion of each item, it can still be really reasonable on calories. I do ground turkey, tons of shredded lettuce, pico de gallo or salsa or tomatoes depending on what's in the fridge, onions, bell peppers, black beans, cheese, and sour cream. If the bulk of it is the veg, you'll have a filling, delicious meal that fits into your daily calories!)