When you eat out, do you ask for dressing on the side? Let me keep it real. I love food too much to waste time on boring salads.
The only reason I eat salads is because of the tasty dressing.
Yes, I get it. Salad dressings contain calories, sugar and fat. Cafés can sometimes add lots of salad dressing. And that’s why we’ve been encouraged to ask for it on the side.
But let’s put it in perspective.
No one struggles with their weight because they eat too much salad. Most people DON’T EAT ENOUGH salad.
And you know what makes you want to eat a salad?
Salad dressing.
And the extra yummy bits on top that excite you like avocado or nuts or feta (because feta makes everything beta, I am right?!).
Not only are salads palatable with salad dressing but fun fact… adding salad dressing helps you absorb fat-soluble nutrients (A, D, E and K), found in veggies.
With salad dressing, it’s likely that you’ll also stay fuller for longer because fat can also help make you feel satisfied after eating.
You only have a small amount of willpower.
Waste your willpower on eating boring salads at lunch, and by dinner time, you’ll have run out of self-control – and end up face-planting into the fridge.
You can’t control every aspect of your diet. That’s exhausting. Save your willpower for things that actually make a difference.
You deserve to enjoy food AND you deserve to be healthy. The two are NOT mutually exclusive.
I say, if a bit of salad dressing helps you get through a whole plate of the good stuff, then drizzle away.
On that note…want my FREE meal plan? It might be different from any meal plan you’ve seen before. Click HERE to download.
Take home message
- Enjoy your salads with salad dressing. Make them as tasty as possible because when you ENJOY healthy food, it never feels like a chore (and then never fall off the bandwagon). Hooray!
- If you’re a dietitian or nutritionist reading this, please don’t encourage people to ask for salad dressing on the side. It’s outdated nutrition advice. It makes people fear a perfectly healthy food. Our job is to get people to eat more vegetables, not less.
Want more support to eat healthier without falling off the bandwagon? Listen to my podcast No Wellness Wankery, which will help you sidestep wellness wankery (phew!) so you can be healthy without dieting and feel better in your already wonderful body.
About the Author (that’s me)!
Hey! I’m Lyndi Cohen. I’m a food-loving Australian dietitian known as The Nude Nutritionist. I used to struggle with my weight big-time so that’s why, when it comes to nutrition, I like to strip it back to basics and help other women build a healthy relationship with food inside Binge Free Academy. My healthy recipes are tasty and easy and I share heaps more healthy eating tips on my blog. Follow me on Instagram for updates.
