Eating a salad does not automatically equate to having a healthy meal. While some salad choices can be super nutritious and support your weight-loss goals, others can sabotage your health-related objectives. These common mistakes might be derailing your good intentions and hindering your weight-loss efforts—not all salads are created equal!

MISTAKE 1: LETTUCE CHOICE
In our previous blog, Not All Greens Are the Same, we discuss iceberg lettuce, a “go-to for a cheap and easy salad” green. But it doesn’t have much in the way of nutrients for your body. Iceberg lettuce, as it turns out, is mostly water, making it the least nutritious greens to put in a salad. It is best used on the occasional juicy cheeseburger for needed crunch rather than an everyday salad you’re eating to stay healthy. Since iceberg lettuce doesn’t offer many nutrients, it isn’t the best choice for greens. See the blog for some healthier suggestions.

MISTAKE 2: NOT ADDING PROTEIN
When your aim is to shed pounds, you might think you need to skimp on your salad ingredients to reduce calories, but deleting a macronutrient like protein from the equation is a big mistake. That's because if you skip the satiating protein in your salad, your greens won't count as a complete meal. Here's why. “Protein slows digestion and stabilizes blood sugar, so when it's lacking in your salad, you'll likely feel unsatisfied and be reaching for more food afterwards or later in the day," says registered dietitian Laura Burak, RD, CDN. A high-protein diet not only increases satiety, but it may also reduce fat mass and help preserve lean muscle during weight loss, according to a November 2014 study in Nutrition & Metabolism. ‌‌So stock your salad with healthy proteins like eggs, chicken breast, turkey, fish, tofu, nuts, and seeds.

MISTAKE 3: CHOOSING THE WRONG KIND OF PROTEIN
While protein is an essential part of a healthy salad, the kind you choose makes all the difference when it comes to weight loss. If you need proof, just browse a restaurant menu like The Cheesecake Factory, where some of the salads run upwards of 1,000 calories. Most of the calories come from the excessive saturated fat counts in fried proteins, bacon, deli meats, and cheeses. To keep your bowl of greens from becoming a high-calorie bomb, choose lean like grilled chicken, shrimp, fish, and plant-based options like legumes and tofu.

MISTAKE 4: YOU FORGET TO ADD HEALTHY FATS
While you want to avoid piling your salad plate with saturated fats to help with weight loss (and overall good health), you don't want to steer clear of fats altogether. Like lean protein, healthy fats like avocado, olive oil-based dressings, nuts and seeds slow digestion, keep you satiated, and balance out the meal.

MISTAKE 5: YOU DROWN IT IN DRESSING
If you think salads are boring and bland, it's all too easy to drown your greens in a creamy, high-fat, calorie-rich dressing to enhance the taste. But, again, saturated fats aren't doing you any favors in the health or weight-loss department. Choosing olive oil with vinegar or lemon and avocado-based dressings with heart-healthy fats, will not only burst with flavor but satisfy your stomach too.

MISTAKE 6: YOU DON’T ADD ENOUGH VEGGIES
Lettuce leaves, carrots, and tomatoes don't have to be the only veggies in your salad. There are so many other healthy ingredients to fill your bowl. Throw in edamame, seaweed salad, cucumbers, “spiralized” beets, scallions, sweet onion, radishes, red pepper, pickled ginger, purple cabbage, shimeji mushrooms, cauliflower, daikon sprouts, chick peas, asparagus, or even roasted vegetables. Combining different veggies make salads more enjoyable, while also increasing antioxidants and fiber.

MISTAKE 7: LOADING UP ON TOPPINGS
Tasty toppings can be the best part of the salad, and salad bars, with their wide array of toppings, can be totally tempting. But add-ons like tortilla strips, cheese, croutons, candied nuts, and bacon bits can negate the whole point of eating a salad for health and weight-loss reasons. Think of them, like condiments—a little goes a long way!