Adding 1–2 tablespoons of light mayonnaise to your favorite salad or sandwich, instead of other fattening dressings, is beneficial for weight loss.
Prefer low-fat mayonnaise
Mayonnaise is fattening food. Full-fat mayonnaise has 680 calories per 100g, as it’s mainly fat. Just a tablespoon has about 100 calories!
Hence, you should eat only low-fat mayo if you want to lose weight. Light mayonnaise has 65% fewer calories than regular mayonnaise! A tablespoon of low-fat mayonnaise has only 36 calories.[1]
Add mayo to salads to lose weight
Actually, eating reasonable amounts of light mayonnaise is beneficial for weight loss. It provides flavor and helps us consume healthy, low-calorie foods, like salads.
In fact, a common diet mistake is adding too much fattening dressing to salads. Even healthy vegetable oils, like extra virgin olive oil, are calorie-dense foods. A tablespoon of any vegetable oil has 126 calories! A tablespoon of vegetable oil has 3-4 times more calories than a tablespoon of light mayo!
Consuming high amounts of salads is key for weight loss. Lettuce, kale, spinach, arugula, tomato, cucumber, and many more, support weight loss. Vegetables keep us full for hours with only a few calories.
In addition, they’re nutrient-dense foods. They contain nutrients that burn belly fat. A plant-based, whole food diet has been linked to decreased risk of obesity.
Don’t eat mayonnaise with other high-fat foods
On the other hand, you should avoid eating mayo with other high-fat foods, such as bacon. Both are high in calories and fat. This fatty meal can certainly make you fat.
Eat only small portions of mayo
In any case, we should eat only small amounts of mayo if we want to lose weight. Too much mayonnaise is bad for weight loss.
For instance, adding a tbsp of mayo to your favorite turkey or tuna sandwich as dressing can help you lose weight. Much higher doses can lead to obesity, though.
Alternative dressings to mayo
The best alternative dressing to mayo is mustard. Mustard is the dressing with the fewest calories. A tablespoon has only 10 calories!
Also, you can add spices to your dressing, like pepper and garlic powder. Not only are they low in calories, but also they’re particularly high in antioxidants. Antioxidant compounds fight oxidative stress. Chronic low-grade inflammation has been associated with obesity.
