1. Treat high-calorie foods as jewels in the crown:
Make a spoonful of ice cream the jewel and a bowl of fruit the crown. Cut down on the chips by pairing each bite with lots of chunky, filling fresh salsa, and balance a little cheese with a lot of salad.
2. After breakfast, make water your primary drink:
At breakfast, go ahead and drink orange juice. But throughout the rest of the day, focus on water instead of juice or soda. The average American consumes an extra 245 calories a day from soft drinks. That’s nearly 90,000 calories a year — or 25 pounds! And research shows that despite the calories, sugary drinks don’t trigger a sense of fullness the way that food does.
3. Carry a palm-size notebook:
Everywhere you go for one week. Write down every single morsel that enters your lips—even water. Studies have found that people who maintain food diaries wind up eating about 15 percent less food than those who don’t.
4. Buy a pedometer, clip it to your belt, and aim for an extra 1,000 steps a day:
On average, sedentary people take only 2,000 to 3,000 steps a day. Adding 2,000 steps will help you maintain your current weight and stop gaining weight; adding more than that will help you lose weight.
5. Add 10 percent to the amount of daily calories you think you’re eating, then adjust your eating habits accordingly:
If you think you’re consuming 1,700 calories a day and don’t understand why you’re not losing weight, add another 170 calories to your guesstimate. Chances are, the new number is more accurate.
6. Eat one less cookie a day:
Or consume one less can of regular soda, or one less glass of orange juice, or three fewer bites of a fast-food hamburger. Doing any of these saves you about 100 calories a day- and that alone is enough to prevent you from gaining the 1.8 to 2 pounds most people pack on each year.
7. Eat 90 percent of your meals at home:
You’re more likely to eat more—and eat more high-fat, high-calorie foods—when you eat out than when you eat at home. Restaurants today serve such large portions that many have switched to larger plates and tables to accommodate them!
8. Eat slowly and calmly:
Put your fork or spoon down between every bite. Sip water frequently. Spruce up your eating with stories for your dining partner of the amusing things that happened during your day. Your brain lags your stomach by about 20 minutes when it comes to satiety (fullness) signals. If you eat slowly enough, your brain will catch up to tell you that you are no longer in need of food.
~~~~~~~~~AUTHORS NOTE~~~~~~~~~
I didn't really feel like writing 10 tips so I decided to half-ass it and only do 8. Anyway, I still hope yoi enjoy and use these tips. I actually put alot of time into this. Leave a vote and/or comment! Thanks :)
