Given many popular fruits and veggies come into season in the warm months, it’s no surprise that summer is peak salad season. Besides, a light, cooling meal stacked with colorful produce is especially appealing when you’re sweaty and sluggish due to the heat. Not only will the veggies not sit heavy in your stomach, only increasing your fatigue, they’ll also help hydrate you thanks to their high water content, Anthea Levi, MS, RD, a Brooklyn-based health writer and founder of Alive+Well Nutrition, tells SELF.
But H2O isn’t all salads have to offer. Common ingredients—veggies, of course, but also fruits, legumes (like beans), nuts, seeds, and whole grains—are “naturally rich in dietary fiber that supports your gut microbiome and cardiovascular health,” Levi says. Despite its importance, most Americans actually don’t take in nearly enough of this essential type of carb, so having a salad for lunch (or any other meal) is a smart choice if you want to prioritize hitting that daily goal (not to mention keep constipation from clogging up your pipes!).
And while salads have a reputation for skimping on protein, it doesn’t have to be that way. Just pop in an animal product like chicken or a plant-based alternative like tofu to instantly boost that macro—and take a plain plateful of greens from skimpy to satisfying. Don’t believe us? Just scroll down for our comeback: Five original summer salad recipes that each deliver at least 21 grams of protein (and in one case, twice that!). With just “a pinch of effort” (a.k.a. not cutting corners), Levi promises, any of these can be turned into a meal worthy of a restaurant.
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