Best Salad Bar Selections

Many people think if they fill their plate with food from a salad bar, they are making healthy food choices. While that may be true for the most part –as salad bars host a cornucopia of healthy foods — there are also loaded with hidden weight loss programs pitfalls. When making your next trip to a local New Jersey salad bar, follow these tips to construct a plate chock full of healthy and nutritious ingredients.

Fill up on the fruits and vegetables:
Fruits and veggies are lower energy density foods than many other types of foods. What this means is that you can eat a larger portion of these foods, while consuming fewer calories.

Fill up on filling foods:
Beans are high in fiber, helping you to feel more full and satisfied. Additionally, adding a hard-boiled egg can help you lose weight because it offers a feeling of satiety as well as increased energy, not to mention a good source of protein.

Fill up on color:
Colorful foods, especially vegetables, offer a healthy dose of nutrients. For instance, red suggests that the food is high in lycopene, which may have potential heart benefits. Orange and yellow foods often contain carotenoids, an important component to healthy eyes and immune system. Anthocyanins are found in blue and purple foods and are strong antioxidants. Some green-colored foods contain lutein, which promotes good skin, eyes and cardiovascular health.

Watch the dressings:
Salad dressing can sabotage a weight loss goal. Just two tablespoons of salad dressing can have as much as 19 grams of fat and 180 calories. The creamier dressings, such as Caesar, ranch and blue cheese can have even more. Your best bet is to choose low fat vinaigrettes and low-calorie dressing.