Joe Decker: The World's Fittest Man

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Dear World’s Fittest Man,

I’m trying to knock off a few pounds this summer and salads seem to be the way to go. They are refreshing and light and there are so many vegetables in season, everything tastes so good. Even though I’m eating salads almost everyday, the pounds still aren’t coming off. Am I doing something wrong? What makes a salad healthy, maybe I’m using the wrong ingredients? I’ve heard that some salads can actually be fattening, is that true?

Skinny on Salad

Dear Skinny on Salad,

There’s a big misconception about salads. So many people think that all salads are created equal and that a salad is the best way to shed a few pounds. Unfortunately, as you’ve found out for yourself, all salads are not the same. In fact some can be downright unhealthy.

In fact, the newest trend in fast-food restaurants are salads. But before you trade in the burger and fries for fresh greens you have to look closely at the actual ingredients. For instance, at McDonald’s, the California Cobb Salad with Crispy Chicken and Ranch Dressing has around 670 calories and 53 grams of fat. Almost as much as a Big Mac and fries. If you’re trying to lose weight and stick to 1400 calories a day, that salad has almost half your day’s calories.

However, salads can be healthy, you just have to make some smart choices. At McDonald’s, choose a salad with grilled chicken, not crispy (that means fried). And get a low-fat dressing and just drizzle it on the top. The Grilled Chicken Bacon Ranch Salad with no dressing has only 270 calories and 13 grams of fat. Now that’s healthy!

Here are some other tips that nutritionist Heather Greenbaum of Nu-train in New York City recommends to help create a healthy salad:

Lettuce is usually the foundation of any salad. Here, you want to make sure you choose darker greens like spinach and romaine rather than iceberg lettuce. Darker greens have more nutritional value than iceberg lettuce so you get more nutritional bang for your buck.
Watch out for the “Chunchy Munchies.” Croutons, nuts, sunflower seeds all add a lot of extra calories to your salad. Surprisingly, croutons can have tons of “hidden” fat. If you want to add a crunch to your salad, crumble up a pack of saltine crackers. Two crackers are only 25 calories. Or crumble up one small sesame stick, that’s only 25 calories too.
Choose one lean dressing-free protein. Some salads really pile on eggs, chicken, and ham. One of these proteins is fine, and whatever you choose make sure it’s dressing free. For instance, tuna should be water-packed. 3 ounces of a lean protein is 100 calories.
Choose 3 undressed colorful, non-starch vegetables. Greenbaum says some examples of this are carrots, red peppers and broccoli. She also says that the deeper the color the higher the nutrients.
Dressing can be a danger zone. Whatever dressing you use, measure it out with a tablespoon. If it’s regular dressing use 1 tablespoon. If it’s fat-free or low-fat you can splurge with 2 tablespoons.

For more healthy nutrition tips, check out Heather Greenbaum’s website www.nu-train.com.

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