Easy Ways to Lose Weight

If you try to lose a few pounds, do not start by trying to look at all of your eating and exercise habits. You 're better off finding several simple things you can do on a daily basis to follow the cardinal rules of eating more vegetables and less fat and getting more physical activity. Together , they should send the scale numbers in the right direction : 

1. Enjoy the release of fatty foods:

They should help to avoid feeling deprived and binging on high calorie foods . For example :

• Honey .

Only 64 calories from fat in a tablespoon . Pour over fruit.

• Eggs.

Only 70 calories in a boiled egg , releasing fat-laden proteins. Sprinkle with chives for a more elegant treatment.

• Part-skim ricotta cheese .

Only 39 calories in an ounce of this food , full of fat release calcium. Pour over a bowl of fresh fruit for dessert .

• The black chocolate.

About 168 calories in one ounce square , but it is full of fat release fibers .

• Shrimp.

Only 60 calories in 12 large .

2 . Treat high-calorie foods as jewels in the crown . Make a spoonful of ice cream the jewel and a bowl of fruit the crown. Reduce the chips by pairing each bite with lots of pieces , filling fresh salsa , suggests Jeff Novick , director of nutrition at the Pritikin Longevity Center & Spa in Florida. Balance a little cheese with a lot of salad.

3 . After breakfast , make water your primary beverage . At breakfast , go ahead and drink orange juice . But the rest of the day , focus on water instead of juice or soda. The average American consumes 245 calories more per day of soft drinks . That's nearly 90,000 calories a year - or 25 pounds! And research shows that despite the calories , sugary drinks do not trigger a sense of fullness the way that food does.

4 . Carry a convenient laptop wherever you go for a week. Note every piece that goes into your mouth water - even . Studies have shown that people who maintain food diaries end up eating 15 percent less food than those who do not.

5. Buy a pedometer , clip to your belt, and aim for an extra 1,000 steps a day. On average , sedentary people take only 2000-3000 steps per 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.

6. Add 10 percent of 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 do not understand why you are not losing weight , add another 170 calories to your riddle. Chances are, the new number is more accurate.

7. Eat five or six small meals or snacks a day instead of three large meals. A 1999 study in South Africa found that when men ate a part of their morning meal at intervals over five hours , they consumed almost 30 percent fewer calories at lunch than when they ate a little only . Other studies show that even if you eat the same amount of calories distributed this way , your body releases less insulin, which keeps blood sugar steady and helps control hunger.

8. Walking for 45 minutes a day. The reason we say 45 minutes instead of the typical 30 is a study at Duke University found that while 30 minutes of walking a day is enough to prevent weight gain in sedentary relatively people, exercise beyond 30 minutes results in weight and fat loss. Burning an extra 300 calories a day with three miles of brisk walking (45 minutes should do it ) could help you lose 30 pounds in a year without even changing how much you eat .

9. Find a partner in weight loss online. A study from the University of Vermont found that fellow online weight loss help keep the weight off. The researchers followed volunteers for 18 months. Those who are assigned to a weight maintenance program through Internet have maintained their weight loss better than those who met face to face in a support group .

10. Bring the color blue into your life more often. There is a good reason why you will not see many fast food restaurants decorated in blue : Believe it or not, the color blue functions as an appetite suppressant . So serve dinner on blue plates, dress in blue while you eat, and cover the table with a blue tablecloth. Conversely , avoid red, yellow and orange in your dining areas . Studies show that foster food.