5 Salads That Can Be Worse for a Dieter Than a Whopper

guest — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 16:15:32 GMT

Most people on weight-reduction diets believe that having a salad for meal is a low calorie option that’s preferable to eating a Whopper or a Big Mac. Not always the case. Many salads come loaded with dried fruits, nuts, avocado, corn, and beans. Nutritious ingredients, yes, but caloric—especially if lots of cheese is sprinkled on top.

Salad dressing can be a real calorie-killer. Even a little bit of dressing on a big salad can become a LOT of dressing! Perhaps that’s why I’ve observed that people who eat salads for meals tend to be heavier than people who eat sandwiches. As for myself, I’ll take my sandwich with a small (but colorful) side salad.

Let’s see how some salads compare:

Entree	Calories	Fat: Total	Fat: % of calories	Sodium
Whopper	670	39 g	52%	970 mg
Big Mac	550	29	48%	1,000

Burger King Caesar Salad with Tendercrisp chicken	670	43	58%	1,760
Cheesecake Factory Grilled Chicken Tostada Salad	1,130	39	31%	2,150
Panera Fuji Apple Chicken Salad	710	34	43%	1,380
Olive Garden Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad	610	40	59%	1.230
Applebee’s Grilled Shrimp ‘N Spinach Salad	960	65	61%	2,500
Without dressing	630	46	66%	1,660

For more information on how to create a super sports salad, check out my Sports Nutrition Guidebook.

Nancy Clark's Recipes for Athletes are also available as an app.

Do Hummers need more gas than Mini-Coopers?

guest — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 14:49:33 GMT

Do Hummers need more gas than Mini-Coopers. Of course!

Do athletes who weigh 180 pounds need more calories than those who weigh 120 pounds? Of couse.

While this seems so obvious, I spend too much time counseling 180-pound over-fat athletes who try to eat like a 120-pound ballet dancer. They believe:

1. Food is a fattening “enemy.”

2. The less they eat, the faster they will lose weight.

3. The lighter they are, the better they will perform.

Wrong, wrong, wrong!

1. Food is fuel, not fattening. People who eat normally tend to be lean. People who diet tend to be heavy. Hence, dieting tends to make people heavy (in the long run) while learning how to eat normally contributes to a leaner physique.

2. The less you eat, the more likely you are to binge and regain all the weight you lost. This urge to binge is physiological. Just as you gasp for air and cannot breath normally after having stayed too long underwater, you can eat normally after having restricted food the point of feeling ravenously hungry.

3. The best-fueled athlete (who is genetically gifted and well trained) will out-perform the starved athlete who is thinner-at-any-cost.

I invite you to eat wisely, perform well and be at peace,

Nancy

For food help:

To consult with a registered dietitian (RD) who specializes in sports nutrition, find your local expert at www.SCANdpg.org.

To read how to lose weight and resolve dieting gone awry, enjoy the weight-reduction section in my Sports Nutrition Guidebook.

Blog Posts From Active Expert: Nancy Clark RD CSSD Tagged With diets

5 Salads That Can Be Worse for a Dieter Than a Whopper

Do Hummers need more gas than Mini-Coopers?