Salads have become very popular and they're a terrific way to improve your daily intake of vegetables. You will get 5 various daily servings, or even more, from just one nutrient dense salad! A salad of just plain vegetables is generally really low in calories and could leave you still feeling hungry. So, it’s important to produce a high-energy sports salad and make certain to include enough carbohydrate and protein rich foods to make it substantial. However, you must beware because it’s very easy to create calorie destroying mistakes when selecting a salad. Not choosing wisely could easily pack on hundreds of extra calories in refined sugars and a lot of additional fat grams if you’re not watching out. Here are the top 10 guidelines to help you make the most from your salad!
Tip #1: Boost the carbohydrate content of your salad by adding these nutrient packed foods:
- Carbohydrate-dense veggies such as corn, corn relish, peas, beets, and carrots.
- Beans and legumes such as chickpeas, kidney beans, and three-bean salad (great protein also).
- Cooked brown rice, whole wheat pasta or yams chunks.
- Orange sections, diced apple, raisins, banana slices, and berries.
Tip #2: Select a number of dark, colorful veggies for example red tomatoes, green peppers, carrots and dark lettuce. Colorful veggies are rich in the antioxidants, nutrients and phytochemicals that protect your health.
Tip #3: Be generous with potassium-rich veggies. Potassium gets lost when we sweat and it’s the mineral that protects against high blood pressure. Some of the veggies rich in potassium include:
- Romaine lettuce
- Broccoli
- Tomatoes
- Carrots
Tip #4: Include adequate protein with the addition of low-fat cottage cheese, tuna, salmon, turkey breast, chicken white meat as well as other kind of lean meat. For vegetarian proteins, include diced tofu, chickpeas, three-bean salad, walnuts, sunflower seeds, almonds and peanuts.
Tip #5: Remember the calcium. Add grated low-fat cheese, cubes of tofu or perhaps a scoop of low-fat cottage cheese. Drink low-fat milk or skim milk with your salad and have a mug of yogurt for dessert to get your calcium in.
Tip #6: Watch the salad dressing! So you’ve made the best decision when you eat a nourishing salad, why on the planet would you then drench it in fattening salad dressing? Doesn’t that defeat the purpose completely? Many of the bandages that you find in the supermarket are fat bombs, basically. Just one serving of buttermilk ranch dressing, for instance, has more fat than a double cheeseburger. Caesar, blue cheese along with other creamy dressings aren’t much better. However, there are some healthy options when it comes to dressing up your greens. Balsamic vinegar and additional virgin olive oil is a tasty, health-conscious alternative (essential olive oil is a superb supply of “good fat”). Annie’s Naturals is a brand of salad dressing that is a natural and organic option that’s free from unhealthy additives and GMOs. They also make vinaigrette dressings and the majority of their flavors are gluten-free. Rather than using traditional salad dressing, you might want to try bulking your greens with some of those tasty “add-ons”:
- Hummus. Everything in hummus is healthy! It’s produced from garbanzo beans, tahini, garlic, lime and olive oil.
- Mustard. It's not only flavorful and sugar-free but mustard seeds will also be potent antioxidants.
- Guacamole. There is lots of “good fat” in guacamole, the type that controls appetite and regulates the hormonal balance in your body. When buying store-bought guacamole, ensure that it doesn’t have any added trans-fats. Making fresh homemade guacamole is always the easiest method to go.
- Pesto. This nutritious mixture of garlic, pine nuts, basil and essential olive oil is packed with healthy fats and antioxidants.
Tip #7: Add some seaweed. Aside from seasoning your salad with a salty taste and providing some interesting texture, seaweed is another great supply of vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin K, niacin, riboflavin, folate, calcium, iron along with other important minerals.
Tip #8: Cod liver oil. It’s one of the best sources of omega-3 essential fatty acids and it contains vit a and vitamin D which work together in a synergistic fashion. Cod liver fish oil has a reputation as being among the best “brain foods” available and contains a number of other healthy benefits. The issue, however, is it tastes awful. Adding cod liver fish oil to some salad makes it a lot more palatable.
Tip #9: Go organic whenever possible. Not only are fresh, organic vegetables much more flavorful and healthier but they're, by definition, free from pesticides. Most people could be shocked if they knew just how many harmful chemicals are sprayed on the supermarket produce that we eat. Moreover, these toxic pesticides aren’t properly broken down plus they accumulate in your body with time. Pregnant women should pay special attention to what's being sprayed around the fruits and vegetables that they eat, as studies claim that prenatal exposure to pesticides can cause delayed brain development and learning disabilities.
Tip #10: Boost the vitamins and minerals of your salad with herbs. There are many fresh herbs that in addition to being flavorful, will also be full of vitamins and phytonutrients. Moreover, their high level of nutrient density implies that they are also thermogenic, which means that they kickstart one's metabolism, allowing the body to more efficiently turn calorie intake into energy. You don’t have to be an experienced green thumb in order to grow your own herbs at home. Seven of the most nutritious herbs include parsley, cilantro, oregano, thyme, basil, rosemary and dill.These tasty, nourishing herbs can be added as they are, or they can be infused into a delicious vinaigrette!
