How to Fall in Love with Salads (Yes, LOVE)

Not a salad lover?

I felt the same way until I was diagnosed last year. That was the kick in the pants I needed to prioritize a healthy diet over comfortable, easy, and available.

It’s easy to eat out. It’s easy to eat leftovers from eating out. It’s easy to pull out a box or can from the pantry.

It seems hard to instead keep fresh ingredients in the fridge and, if you aren’t too thrilled about what those ingredients will turn into, it’s often easier to let them rot rather than whip something up.

I’ve let a LOT of fresh veggies rot in the fridge over the years.

That being said, I am a surprised convert. A little bit of repetition and creativity and I’ve found a salad groove that makes me so happy.

I love seeing all of the fresh options just waiting to be combined in a unique way that fits my mood.

And I have a stable of salads I love now, so I can easily pick up supplies for my southwest salad and cilantro lime dressing, my blue cheese chopped salad, and my thai peanut apple salad when I shop and know that I will use them up long before they go bad.

Your body needs the greens. It needs the fiber. It needs meals that aren’t so protein heavy so that your system can get cleaned out and maintain all the nutrients you need to perform fully.

We all KNOW we need to eat more greens. But it’s easier said than done…until you tweak things up and fall in love…and grumbly shoulds turn into, “Oh, hell yes! Salad night!”

Some key tricks:

1. NO MORE ICEBERG. Seriously, that stuff shouldn’t even be allowed to parade around as a vegetable. No nutrients, no flavor and terrible texture. Try baby spinach, romaine, chopped kale blends, and other greens.
2. Store-bought dressing is packed with preservatives and sugar. It tastes terrible most of the time and adds unnecessary carbs. Make your own simple dressings (it’s actually fun) or invest in the refrigerated, all natural organic dressings at the store.
3. Keep your favorite salad perks on hand: Roasted sunflower seeds, fried onions, cherry or grape tomatoes, a couple different quality hard cheeses you love (a little grated parmesan is amazing on most salads), olives, hardboiled eggs, limes, and sprouts all add texture and interest.

It’s worth an experiment. 30 days of salad dates to find your true loves.

Give it a shot and see if you can find a salad groove.

What are your favorite salad perks? I’m always on the lookout for new low-carb additions to keep my salads fresh!