LBD Challenge Week 8

Week 8 of the Little Black Dress Challenge is about getting your 5-a-day and being aware of salad dressings and toppings to make sure you are eating as healthily as you can to meet your weight loss goals. Here are some tips on how to get your 5-a-day:

• This week, in every meal, aim to swap a high-calorie ingredient for at least two portions of vegetables or fruits.
• Baby carrots, radishes and sugar snap peas all make ideal snack foods as they are easy to pack in handy portions and are convenient to eat - especially in an office environment.
• Swap cheese or creamy sauces for tomato or vegetable based sauces.
• Add some lettuce, cucumber and grated carrot into your lunchtime sandwiches for some crunch.
• Frozen vegetables count towards your 5-a-day too, so make sure to stock up on them. They are quick and easy to make on the hob or pop into the microwave.
• Add in some peppers, onions, mushrooms or tomato into your omelette at breakfast to get some 5-a-day into your breakfast too! You can also serve your omelette with a side of berries to make your breakfast extra healthy.

You can read more about your 5-a-day here. Salads are a great ‘diet’ food but the dressings and toppings that can go on top can turn a low-calorie meal into a dieter’s nightmare. To make a salad that is high in nutrition and low in calories, start with a nice base of green leaves, tomatoes and cucumbers. For variety add:

• Red onion
• Celery
• Apples
• Cooked beetroot

For protein add:

• Boiled egg
• Chicken slices
• Beans
• Lentils
• Pulses

Salad dressings, though delicious, can be high in calories. A single serving of mayonnaise (2 tbsp) is 220 kcal, making any mayo-based dressings high in calories. Toppings such as croutons, bacon bits, cheese and breaded chicken can also add excessive calorie amounts. Here are 4 lower-calorie dressing ideas: Orange-balsamic (82 kcal)

• 1tbsp Dijon mustard
• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• Juice of 1 large orange

French Dressing (88 kcal)

• 1 clove garlic minced
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 tbsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tbsp honey

Ranch-Style Dressing(51 kcal)

• 1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 3 tbsp fat-free natural yoghurt
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tbsp red wine vinegar

Grapefruit Vinaigrette(35 kcal)

• ½ cup vinegar
• ¼ cup grapefruit juice
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
• ½ tsp salt

For some low-calorie salad toppings try adding some of these 50 kcal for a burst of flavour:

• 1 tbsp toasted sunflower seeds
• 1 tbsp toasted pine nuts
• 1 tbsp toasted pumpkin seeds
• A handful of chopped grapes
• 1 tbsp of chopped toasted walnuts

  Our The Slimming Clinic Blog has some delicious salad recipes which can be discovered here