Hello! Having done South Beach in the past (low-carb) I have it in my head that baked potatoes are bad. I also have it in my head that salads with olive oil or canola oil based (homemade) dressings are good.

Are baked potatoes considered healthy these days? I looked it up and a whole baked potato is only 145 calories! I should be able to have 1/2 a baked potato, a little Smart Balance butter and nice salad with homemade dressing and still come in around 200 calories, right?

Do you guys make baked potatoes and salads part of your diet and still lose? To me, this is a very satisfying meal and I'l like to enjoy it without the onset of guilt.

I read an article yesterday from yahoo that said keeping potatoes within a healthy diet is a great idea. If you're not on a carb-overload the rest of the day, I think they are really healthy. As for salads, I have a couple non-fat, low calorie dressings that I love.

Maybe throw some chicken on the salad for some protein...and that sounds like a delicious lunch or dinner to me!

One thing I'd say is be sure to weigh your potatoes I bought russets before that were about 400 calories per potato. (Calorie king shows 422 calories per pound of potatoes)

I think a potato is good food and can be very filling. If you like potatoes, no reason to not include them in your diet plan. I liked them sprinkled with garlic powder and black pepper and nothing else.

In summer, I generally eat lots of salads but fall/winter, I rarely eat salads. The produce just isn't as fresh and salads tend to chill me a bit. I get excited though in spring/summer when I eat good salads regularly.

I was never one who cared for baked potatoes, but I love herby, roasted potatoes, and potatoes in soups and salads.

Potatoes have a lot of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients, especially potassium. They even have some fiber and protein.

I love lov elove baked potatoes. I'm a fan of the stuffed baked potatoes as meals. Usually i use a small potato and over load on veggies and stuff. I like chicken & veggies w/a little cheese for a kind of american thing, and taco meat, cheese, beans, tomatoes, onions, and salsa for a more south of the border meal. these combo well with a small salad for a filling dinner.

I do like potatoes, but I don't really eat them because for me, what made them good was all the bad things I put in them! Butter, sour cream, maybe cheese or bacon, salt, etc. Sigh. They just aren't the same without those things to me.

Salads are great, but again it's all about what you put in them and how much dressing you use. Oil, even the healthy kinds, add up quickly at 120 calories and 14 grams of fat a tablespoon. But if you can make it without much oil or use it sparingly it can be be very healthy.

Mmm... baked potato. That sounds tasty. Ooo... I think I will pick up some sweet potatoes to bake this weekend. Thanks for the yummy idea!

If you eat the peel too that's even better- I LOVE to scrub the potato, poke some holes in it for venting- coat it in a bit of olive oil and salt or herbs and then bake them- you get a super crispy peel and it's full of flavor! My husband loves when I make it this way- and he's the kind of guy who NEVER eats the peel! Don't cover it in foil cuz then the skin won't get crispy.

I think they're considered healthy these days. Things are always changing, but you can never argue with the calories, so if you weigh them, as mentioned above, you're in good shape.

I think there was a little something about it either on The Biggest Loser or maybe it was the Dr. Oz show? Anyway, I think they put some nonfat Greek yogurt on top instead of sour cream, you could add chives, whatever else you like. That sounds like a great idea! I think I might just do that too! Thanks!

I'm Irish so i love potatoes, and my favourites are boiled (yes boiled) new potatoes, just some pepper on 'em swooooon LOL but i do like the convenience of a baked potato for supper - sometimes i'll have one with sauteed onions and peppers on it and it's delish!

I've never made baked potatoes. Does it take long to bake a potato? And are regular potatoes as good if baked whole, or do you buy the special big ones?

What I have done before is cut a potato into small squares, seasoned with dry or fresh dill, a little black pepper sometimes, and a little salt. Sometimes I added a little oil and sometimes I forewent the oil. Then baked at 400-425, depending on how quickly I needed them. Yummy too.

Man, I love forums! I learn so much.


Beautiful one, I buy the big potatoes, scrub the skin, wrap it in foil and bake about 2 hours at 350.

I LOVE the ideas here about how to load them! Toppings can definitely add up.

Nelie, I'm so glad you said to weigh it! Online I thought it was 145 calories, but when I weighed it, it was actually 260! But it was still ok with just a half. And I measure out my salad dressing to get a good feel for how bad that was. I make my own dressing so I know exactly what's in it. I measured out 1 Tablespoon and was surprised at how much that is. I poured it over a salad that served all four of us and felt like I actually drenched it with that Tablespoon. I estimate the dressing was about 30 calories per person.

Thanks for letting me know

I love potatoes too but I dont eat them very often because for me carbs stop me from losing. I dont cut carbs out but I do try to limit them. What I found to love though are sweet potatoes. ANd when I do eat white potatoes I try to chop them up and add them in my bakes steaks or something like that so that I dont eat a whole entire potatoe.

For me the rule of thumb is not really what I eat but how much I eat. Most things arent as good health wise when you eat it too much. That being said if you eat one here or there minus all the extra stuff like cheese sour cream bacon bits etc. lol you should be fine.

Sadly, I've pretty much given up salad since I started counting calories. For the first couple of months, I ate a variety of cooked and raw vegetable salads with olive oil vinaigrette-- I was careful with the olive oil and measured it, but it just wasn't working for me. The 200-300 calories I was getting from the oil made me cut back on other calorie sources. Unfortunately for me, I really don't like any lo-cal dressings, but I know many people do.

So, now I eat a lot of cooked veggies, especially sauteed with PAM and a little vegetable broth, or I season veggies with rice wine vinegar, but I just can't eat salad right now. Sigh.