Come on — out of 100 diet tips, you’ve got to find at least one to latch onto …
Ahhh, warmer weather. Booo, no more extra layers of clothes to hide that added winter fat. (Once again, hibernation wasn’t everything we hoped it might be.)
Only six more weeks until bathing suit weather, so April’s the time to kick into gear and come to terms with the fact that the scale isn’t broken and those pants did not shrink … Our affliction is called “weight gain.”
Since we’re over which miracle diet works best these days, we thought we’d share these “100 Smartest Diet Tips Ever” from Yahoo Health — particularly interesting, since its just a very long list that lets us pick what we like (too long for much of a guilt trip).
You can read the whole article here, or just check out our two favorite answers to each question below. You’ll see our comments — we couldn’t shut-ourselves-up — in italics:
I Can Only Handle One Diet Change Right Now. What Should I Do?
Start eating a big breakfast. It helps you eat fewer total calories throughout the day. (SNOETY tip: plus it’s much healthier, makes your brain sharper, and you’ll feel less hungry throughout the day.)
Eat at least two servings of a fruit or veggie at every meal.
Are there Any Easy Tricks to Help Me Cut Calories?
Eat the low-cal items on your plate first, then graduate. Start with salads, veggies, and broth soups, and eat meats and starches last. By the time you get to them, you’ll be full enough to be content with smaller portions of the high-calorie choices.
Eating out? Halve it, and bag the rest. A typical restaurant entree has 1,000 to 2,000 calories, not even counting the bread, appetizer, beverage, and dessert.
SNOETY Tip: Eat a Fiji apple — fills you up, kills your hunger, and is low cal
How Can I Eat More Veggies?
Doctor your veggies to make them delicious: Dribble maple syrup over carrots, and sprinkle chopped nuts on green beans. (SNOETY says skip the maple syrup; carrots are good enough on their own, and go for the organic because they usually taste sweeter.)
Mix three different cans of beans and some diet Italian dressing. Eat this three-bean salad all week.
Can You Give Me a Mantra that will Help Me Stick to My Diet?
“The best portion of high-calorie foods is the smallest one. The best portion of vegetables is the largest one. Period.”
“It’s more stressful to continue being fat than to stop overeating.”
I Eat Healthy, but I’m Overweight. What Mistakes Could I Be Making without Realizing It?
Snacking on bowls of nuts. Nuts are healthy but dense with calories. Put those bowls away, and use nuts as a garnish instead of a snack. (SNOETY tip: Nuts ARE really healthy — limit yourself to six. That will cut your appetite if you wait about 15 minutes.)
Skipping meals. Many healthy eaters “diet by day and binge by night.” (SNOETY says: It’s a fact. People don’t realize that they actually eat more calories when they try to lose weight this way.)
What Can I Eat for a Healthy Low-Cal Dinner if I Don’t Want to Cook?
A peanut butter sandwich on whole wheat bread — (SNOETY says: maybe add in some mushed in banana) — and have an apple on the side.
What’s Your Best Advice for Avoiding those Extra Holiday Pounds?
Remember, EAT before you meet. Have this small meal before you go to any parties: a hardboiled Egg, Apple, and a Thirst quencher (water, seltzer, diet soda, tea). (SNOETY says: Skip the diet soda for many many reasons, but the best for this article is that diet soda makes you hungrier.)
… Wear your snuggest clothes that don’t allow much room for expansion. Wearing sweats is out until January.
How Can I Control a Raging Sweet Tooth?
Eat more fruit. A person who gets enough fruit in his diet doesn’t have a raging sweet tooth.
Once in a while, have a lean, mean salad for lunch or dinner, and save the meal’s calories for a full dessert.
How Can I Conquer My Downfall: Bingeing at Night?
Eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. The large majority of people who struggle with night eating are those who skip meals or don’t eat balanced meals during the day. This is a major setup for overeating at night.
Eat without engaging in any other simultaneous activity. No reading, watching TV, or sitting at the computer.
How Can I Reap Added Health Benefits from My Dieting?
Next time you’re feeling wiped out in late afternoon, forgo that cup of coffee and reach for a cup of [Greek or organic] yogurt. The combination of protein, carbohydrate, and fat in an 8-ounce serving of low-fat yogurt will give you a sense of fullness and well-being that coffee can’t match, as well as some vital nutrients. If you haven’t eaten in 3 to 4 hours, your blood glucose levels are probably dropping, so eating a small amount of nutrient-rich food will give your brain and your body a boost. (SNOETY says: Go for the red Fiji apple!)
Making just a few changes to your pantry shelves can get you a lot closer to your weight loss goals. Here’s what to do:
– If you use corn and peanut oil, replace it with olive oil.
– Same goes for breads—go for whole wheat.
– Trade in those fatty cold cuts like salami and bologna and replace them canned tuna, sliced turkey breast, and lean roast beef.
– Change from drinking whole milk to fat-free milk or low-fat soy milk …
Eating Less Isn’t Enough—What Exercising Tips Will Help Me Shed Pounds?
Think yoga’s too serene to burn calories? Think again. You can burn 250 to 350 calories during an hour-long class (that’s as much as you’d burn from an hour of walking)! Plus, you’ll improve muscle strength, flexibility, and endurance.
When you’re exercising, you shouldn’t wait for thirst to strike before you take a drink. By the time you feel thirsty, you’re already dehydrated. Try this: Drink at least 16 ounces of water … before you exercise. Then drink 8 ounces an hour before and another 4 to 8 ounces every 15 to 20 minutes during your workout. Finish with at least 16 ounces after you’re done exercising.
How Can I Manage My Emotional Eating and Get the Support I Need?
Sitting at a computer may help you slim down. When researchers at Brown University School of Medicine put 92 people on online weight loss programs for a year, those who received weekly e-mail counseling shed 5 1/2 more pounds than those who got none. Counselors provided weekly feedback on diet and exercise logs, answered questions, and cheered them on. Most major online diet programs offer many of these features.
Here’s another reason to keep level-headed all the time: Pennsylvania State University research has found that women less able to cope with stress—shown by blood pressure and heart rate elevations—ate twice as many fatty snacks as stress-resistant women did, even after the stress stopped (in this case, 25 minutes of periodic jackhammer-level noise and an unsolvable maze).
SNOETY says: Do check out the article — “100 Smartest Diet Tips Ever” — in it’s entirety. There’s a lot of short, quick, great, easily doable ideas!
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Yahoo Health, “100 Smartest Diet Tips Ever,” http://is.gd/t0Bs
