Best Diet Tips Ever

Experts share their top tips for weight loss success.
By Kathleen M. Zelman, MPH, RD, LD


Everyone knows the keys to losing weight: Eat less and exercise more. Sounds simple enough, but in the context of real life and its demands, it can be anything but simple. So how do successful losers do it? To find out, WebMD asked experts across the country for their best diet tips.

Here's what they said:
Best Diet Tip No. 1: Drink plenty of water or other calorie-free beverages.

People sometimes confuse thirst with hunger. So you can end up eating extra calories when an ice-cold glass of water is really what you need.

"If you don’t like plain water, try adding citrus or a splash of juice, or brew infused teas like mango or peach, which have lots of flavor but no calories," says Cynthia Sass, RD, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.
Best Diet Tip No. 2: Think about what you can add to your diet, not what you should take away.

Start by focusing on getting the recommended 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

"It sounds like a lot, but it is well worth it, because at the same time you are meeting your fiber goals and feeling more satisfied from the volume of food," says chef Laura Pansiero, RD.

You're also less likely to overeat because fruits and vegetables displace fat in the diet. And that's not to mention the health benefits of fruits and vegetables. More than 200 studies have documented the disease-preventing qualities of phytochemicals found in produce, says Pansiero.

Her suggestion for getting more: Work vegetables into meals instead of just serving them as sides on a plate.

"I love to take seasonal vegetables and make stir-fries, frittatas, risotto, pilafs, soups, or layer on sandwiches," Pansiero says. "It is so easy to buy a variety of vegetables and incorporate them into dishes."
Best Diet Tip No. 3: Consider whether you're really hungry.

Whenever you feel like eating, look for physical signs of hunger, suggests Michelle May, MD, author of Am I Hungry?

"Hunger is your body’s way of telling you that you need fuel, so when a craving doesn’t come from hunger, eating will never satisfy it," she says.

When you're done eating, you should feel better -- not stuffed, bloated, or tired.

"Your stomach is only the size of your fist, so it takes just a handful of food to fill it comfortably," says May.

Keeping your portions reasonable will help you get more in touch with your feelings of hunger and fullness.

WebMD Weight Loss Clinic-Feature
Reviewed by Louise Chang, MD

Free Weight Loss Tips - Balanced Diet

Balanced, healthy eating is based on the "Food Pyramid" which contains six main food groups. Eating a balanced diet means eating foods from each of the six main food groups, each day and excluding fats, oils & sweets.
The Food Pyramid (6 Food Groups)

1. Fats, Oils, Sweets: Use Sparingly
2. Milk, Yogurt & Cheese: 2-3 Servings
3. Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs, Nuts: 2-3 Servings
4. Vegetables: 3-5 Servings
5. Fruits: 2-4 Servings
6. Bread, Cereal, Rice, Pasta: 6-11 Servings

If you follow the recommended servings for each of the six food groups (Fats, Milk, Vegetables, Meat/eggs, Fruit, Bread/pasta etc.) each day, and choose lower-fat, lower sugar brands, you are sure to get sufficient nutrients like: protein, vitamins, minerals and fiber.

By choosing the lower number of servings from each group your calorie intake should add up to about 1600 calories, per day. If you choose the highest number from each group, your calorie intake should be about 2800-2900 calories, per day.
Food Pyramid Serving Sizes
Food Group Serving Size
Bread, Cereal, Rice, Pasta, Noodles 1 slice bread; 1/2 hamburger bun or English muffin; 1 small roll, muffin, or biscuit; 5-6 small crackers; 1/2 cup cooked cereal, rice, pasta, noodles; 1 ounce ready-to-eat cereal.
Vegetables 1/2 cup cooked/raw vegetables; 1 cup leafy raw vegetables; 1/2 cup cooked peas, beans, other legumes; 3/4 cup vegetable juice.
Fruit 1 medium apple, banana, orange; 1/2 grapefruit; melon wedge; 3/4 cup fruit juice; 1/2 cup chopped fresh, cooked, canned fruit (in juice); 1/4 cup dried fruit;
Milk, Yogurt, Cheese 1 cup milk; 8 ounces yogurt; 1.5 ounces natural cheese; 2 ounces processed cheese.
Meat, Poultry, Fish, Dry Beans, Eggs and Nuts In this group 2-3 servings equals 5-7 ounces of cooked lean meat, or poultry without skin, or fish. Note: 1 egg (or 2 egg whites), 1 tbsp nuts, or 1/2 cup cooked peas, beans count as 1 ounce of meat.
Fats, Oils and Sweets Use sparingly. Note: Use fats/oils low in saturated fat. Unprocessed vegetable oils are best. Avoid fats with hydrogenated fat or trans-fatty acids.

Alcohol is not included in the Food Guide Pyramid. But official advice is to limit consumption to two drinks a day (male) or one drink a day, (female). [One drink = 12oz beer; or 1.5oz spirits; or 5oz wine.]

Good Eating Habits

* Drink water, little and often throughout the day.
* Eat something in the morning – it does not have to be first thing as you jump out of bed, but eating something when you get up will replenish your blood glucose levels and fuel your brain and your body.
* Eat at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day – they’re great as snacks and if you have at least 1 serving per meal, you’ll easily make this target.
* Go for colour. Check you are eating a variety of colourful fruit and vegetables – think yellow, red, green and orange.
* Eat as wide a variety of foods as possible. If you can count up the number of different foods you eat on your 10 fingers, you need to add more kinds to your diet. This will help you get a greater choice of nutrients and fibre sources.
* Avoid long periods without eating. This will help stabilise your blood glucose levels and make you less likely to over-eat, or grab an unhealthy snack, later.
* Rate your food hunger. On a scale of 1-5 (1= starving, 5= stuffed). Aim to eat before you reach “1” and stop eating before you reach “5”.
* Take time to eat. It sounds obvious, but it will help you eat more balanced diet and avoid excess calorie intake. Studies show that individuals eat up to 15% more calories when they are in rush at meal times.
* Chew your food. Proper chewing can aid your digestion, and has been shown to reduce symptoms off irritable bowel syndrome.
* Avoid fad diets. There are no miracle foods – good health requires you to eat a variety of quality food in moderation.

Eating with awareness

"If we eat wrongly, no doctor can cure us;
If we eat rightly, no doctor is needed."

--- Victor G. Rocine

Good eating habits are a strong foundation to good health. It's important to eat what you like and also to experiment with a variety of new foods.

You also need to set aside enough time to sit down and enjoy your meal. Don't get into the trap of eating in front of the open refrigerator, rushing down the street or driving the car.

Eating slowly will allow your body's natural enzymatic mechanism to tell you when you have had enough. When you eat with awareness, you enjoy food more fully.

You notice how food affects you and you are less likely to overeat.

Eating with awareness also means eating whole, pure, natural foods. Without the proper balance of a variety of nutrient-rich foods on a continuing basis, good health cannot be achieved and maintained.

Remember, if you neglect your health through poor eating habits, it spills over into every aspect of your life. Eating with awareness will make you aware of other aspects of your inner life, including your emotional and spiritual side.

Five Ways to Guarantee that You'll NEVER Quit Smoking

You're hearing it from all directions: "Quit smoking!" But the heck with that! You're going to smoke until the day you die, right? Here's how to "fight back" against the tyrants and authority establishment that is trying to make you quit.

First, you must never believe that quitting smoking is possible. On the contrary, no one has ever quit smoking. Once you've had one puff, you're hooked for life. Might as well just start smoking even if you only inhale some second-hand smoke. You see, if you believe you can quit smoking, then you might actually try to do something about it. Believing is the first, most important step to becoming an evil "non-smoker". So don't believe what you hear from anyone else. Don't believe your own gut-instinct that tells you that you do have the ability to quit. You don't! It's impossible! Forget it!

Second, don't set a date for quitting. The winners in life are the people who never plan their life. They just get lucky. Money falls from the sky whenever they need it. They get around to doing things "someday".

The losers in life spend time planning their day, planning their goals and dreams; planning, planning, planning. Don't do that! It's a waste of your time. You don't need to know when you are going to do anything. You'll be just fine letting life "happen" to you. Free love, man! Peace!

Don't set a date for quitting smoking. That way you'll never know when you should put the cigarettes down for the last time. That way you can just smoke one right after the other, with no thought of when you want to become smoke-free.

Third, to guarantee you'll never quit smoking, don't talk to your doctor about quitting. He or she will just give you a load of hogwash. They think they know everything, those doctors. They say smoking will shorten your life, make you sicker more often, cause sexual dysfunction, give you heart and lung disease, plus a whole bunch of other unsubstantiated claims. Everyone knows that smoking never hurt anyone.

Your doctor would try to offer you his professional advice, and maybe even try to prescribe some "helpful" medications for quitting. They go to school for a million years and all of a sudden these doctors think they can help heal people! Imagine. Oh sure, studies may show that smokers who consult with their physician are more likely to quit, but then everybody knows that no one every quit smoking, right? (See the first method, above.)

Fourth, don't exercise. Exercise is hard. You have to burn calories. You have to discipline yourself to move your muscles three or four times per week. You have to stop watching TV for 30 minutes. No way!

Stay seated and smoke another pack. Or two.

Exercise is good for you, they say. It can help you take your mind off smoking. It can relieve stress. But you have cigarettes to relieve stress, right?

Who wants to exercise when it gives you bulging muscles and a tone body? The "experts" will try to tell you that you might feel pretty good about yourself when you start to get in shape. You just might want to take better care of yourself and quit smoking. Your self-esteem will improve, your sleep will improve, your stamina will increase, your sense of purpose will rise, your weight will drop, your performance at work will improve. That's what the "experts" say. Nonsense. You're doing just fine right now, smoking your cigarettes on the couch, in front of the TV, right?

Finally, the fifth way to guarantee that you'll never quit smoking is to just give up trying to quit. Don't take any action toward quitting. It's not necessary. Oh sure, you've tried to quit before. Did it work? Of course not. So forget it. It's just not worth the effort. You're a slave to cigarettes.

You don't want to live five or ten years longer anyway, do you? No, quitting isn't possible. Quitting requires that you actually try. So don't try. Don't make plans to quit. Don't read about how to quit. Don't talk with your doctor. Don't learn from other smokers who quit. Don't try to quit cold turkey or to gradually reduce the number of cigarettes you smoke. Don't do any of that weird deep breathing stuff. Don't drink plenty of water. Don't exercise. Don't eat healthier foods. Don't try to find a quitting buddy. Don't remove all the ash trays and lighters and matches and cigarettes from your home and office and vehicle. Don't talk to strangers!

Face it, you're a smoker. You love smoking. You love the coughing and hacking. You love freezing to death when you have to smoke in the designated smoking area outside. You love being stared at every time you light a cigarette in public. You love spending hundreds or even thousands of dollars each year on your habit. You love smelling terrible. You love having bad breath. You love paying more for your insurance. You love spending time in the hospital.

Remaining a smoker is easy, now that you know the five simple ways to guarantee that you never quit smoking. Get started today (or whenever you feel like it--or never--see step 5)

Brought to you by the Good-For-You-And-Your-Children Tobacco Company.

MOST IMPORTANT,YOU CAN DO IT.

If you have tried to quit smoking and failed before, take comfort in the fact that most smokers fail several times before quitting successfully. Your past failures are not a lesson that you are unable to quit. Instead, view them as part of the normal journey toward becoming a nonsmoker.

The information below will ease your way and help insure that this is the last time you ever need to go through the quitting process. You can do it!

Why Should I Quit Smoking?

Make a List of Reasons Why You Want to Quit Smoking

Most people who smoke wish they didn't. They live with a hatred for the habit. The fear of serious illness is usually there too, lurking in the background, and always that awful feeling of being powerless to quit. Addiction does that to a person.

As smokers, we live in denial about what cigarettes are doing to us. We have to. Yes, we know that smoking causes cancer and emphysema - we know smoking kills and that we're playing roulette with our health...our lives.

For all that we worry though, most of us don't think anything will happen to us - we have time! We'll quit in time... The bad stuff happens to other people.
Right?

Keeping that layer of denial in place between ourselves and the harsh realities of smoking gets harder to do the longer we smoke. For most of us, there comes a time when the "smokescreen" starts to wear thin. It's inevitable.

The fact that you're reading this article means you're thinking about quitting - probably a lot. You're unhappy enough to be seeking out some help. Good for you. You're a step ahead of the game because you're looking for information about how to quit smoking.

Be practical in your approach to smoking cessation. Much of the process of release from this addiction comes down to plain old practice. We taught ourselves to smoke one day at a time until it was interwoven into just about every activity in our lives. It only makes sense then that we should allow ourselves the time to retrain old habits into newer, healthier ones. Arm yourself with knowledge and support, and be patient. You'll grow stronger by the day.

Start your quit smoking program with a list of reasons for quitting. We all have them.
Why do you want to quit smoking?
My own 26 year addiction turned me into a person I didn't much like.

I was fearful that a smoking-related disease would catch up with me before I found a way to quit smoking. I was worried sick, so to speak.

I hated the smoker's cough I had developed and the shortness of breath that I knew was a signal of lung damage.

I hated the smell, the embarrassment and the need. I especially resented the need. Nicotine dependency made me feel weak and helpless.

These were some of the first things I put on my own list of reasons, and it didn't take me long to add a long line of other things I hated about smoking as well.

What are the reasons behind your desire to quit smoking? Get out some paper and a pen, and list them out. Every single thing you can think of, from the largest, most obvious, to the smallest. Write them all. Carry that list around with you, and add to it when something else comes to mind. Think about the pros and cons of smoking as you compose your list.

By focusing your thoughts on your own personal reasons for quitting, you are laying the foundation for successful smoking cessation. It all starts in your mind, and once you get your thoughts moving in the right direction, taking action will come more easily.

It's like a snowball rolling downhill. Channel your thoughts onto that sheet of paper, and you'll begin to gain momentum. Once you start that snowball rolling, you'll be amazed at what you'll be able to do to change your life for the better. Make it happen!

"If you want to change your life, change your mind."

From Terry Martin,
Your Guide to Smoking Cessation.