Understanding your diet and nutrition is 75% of your battle if you want to lose weight, I guarantee that if you conquer this you will lose weight, and this also means you don't need to be going to the gym every night, which is a big plus for most people trying to lose weight.

Your body works in cycles, so every three to four hours your body needs food, so instead of munching at a chocolate bar, or a pack of crisps try taking some nuts, fruit, or just even a healthy snack bar, these things don't need any special preparation. If you have time to make something just try making a quick sandwich but make sure its multigrain bread and try peanut butter on it. Did you know that eating an apple everyday will stop you from craving anything which is bad for you?

You also need to understand what Protein and Carbohydrates do for you and when to eat them. Protein foods are Tuna, Chicken, Roast Beef, Egg Whites, Cashew Nuts, Skimmed Milk…etc. Carbohydrates foods are Low Carb Pasta, Fruits, Porridge, Multigrain Bread…etc.

One of the biggest myths of all time is in trying to lose weight is to cut out your meals through out the day, this is just rubbish. You need to start to eat more often, but I must stress not big meals everytime. Your body needs to refuel and running on an empty tank is no good.

The first meal of the day and the most important is your breakfast, you need to eat as soon as you wake up, next you need to try and eat around 10ish, just an fruit will do here, next is your dinner, here you can have a mixture of carbs and protein, but don't over fill your plate, next try another quick snack just before your tea, Then it's your teat, again mix your carbs with protein, then just before your going to bed try eating something which has protein in it, this way while your body is asleep it's still burning off fat. You should start to eat around five to six small meals a day if you want to lose weight. 

In order to lose weight and become healthier, you will need to plan a diet that you can stick to. Your diet plan is not a crash diet that you will give up after two weeks; it should be a LIFESTYLE change. Your diet changes must be reasonable or you will not be able to stick to them. That's why making a few subtle changes to your eating and exercise habits may help you develop a healthy diet plan that will, in turn, help you lose weight. Sometimes, the littlest things make the biggest difference.

Look at your diet patterns and decide if there are some nasty patterns that you can break. For instance, are there certain times of day when you just have to have a candy bar? Or are there certain times of day when you can't go without that bag of chips? Think about what you can reasonably give up or even better what can you replace with healthier food choices.

Here are some little habits that you might consider changing. The key is, you are breaking a BAD habit and instilling a GOOD habit in its place. This should be a PERMANENT change. Ask yourself, "Can I maintain this change for the rest of my life?"

Fast Food. Do you eat out everyday for lunch? Start to bring your lunch to work at least 4 days a week Even stopping by McDonald's twice a week can have a big impact on your diet. When you cook at home, you know what's going into your food.

Drinks. When you're thirsty, choose drinks that don't have any calories (water, tea, or diet soft drinks). If your drink choices do have have calories, they should have nutrients. Alcohol and soda both contain useless calories.

Snacks. Do you have a certain time of day that you just HAVE to snack? Fill your cupboard and refrigerator with low calorie snacks. Get rid of those high carbohydrate and sugary snacks.

Dinner. Maybe your hardest time of day is when you sit down to have a big meal. While you're cooking, eat a healthy snack - like a piece of fruit or a few low calorie crackers. Cook only what you will eat (no leftovers). If you make more than you're supposed to eat, serve from the stove, and put leftovers away before you sit down to eat. In other words, do not have extra food sitting in front of you on the table. Do you know that a meat serving should be only as big as a deck of cards?

Exercise. Exercise MUST be a part of your daily routines: When you're shopping, park your car far away from the store. Plan for this and do it EVERY time - especially in the cold weather! (The colder it is, the more calories you will burn.) Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Play a game of hide-and-seek with your kids. When you take the dog for a walk, make it a brisk walk. Can you find some way to sneak in some exercise everyday? Look carefully at your routines and plan something that you don't mind doing. If you like it, chances are you will continue to do it.

Renee Kennedy may be contacted at http://www.nutricounter.com

1. The first step you should take is to adopt healthier eating habits. Not only will you gain more food volume this way but you can use natural low calorie seasonings such as onions to improve the taste. This is proven for long term health and fat loss while removing the strain of dieting itself.

2. When preparing meat, always trim the fat off of it. Or if it is something like chicken, remove the skin. If that is too bland chop it up and add it to something like rice!

3. Find someone to 'report' to. People tend to be more dedicated when they know after a week or two they need to check in with someone. Find someone to walk with for example, a close friend or even a diet buddy. Share your goals! Trying to do things on your own can sometimes be a lot harder.

4. Write down what you eat and stick with it. You'd be surprised at how many extra things you might be eating if you don't write your menu down. Either plan ahead with your food intake or start keeping a food journal just to see!

5. If you must fry things, use a non-fat cooking spray. This will save you many calories versus cooking with oil. For example, one tablespoon of cooking oil contains 120 calories! Whereas a 2.4 second spray of PAM contains only 16 calories.

6. Don't ever give up! Never view yourself as a failure. The only time you fail is when/if you quit. It may take more research or a different approach but it 'will' happen. Statistics show that most people do not succeed their first time trying. Nothing can take the place of persistence! Not intelligence, not talent, nothing! Everything else is secondary.

7. Remember that diet and exercise are a 50/50 ratio. If one or the other is missing you will be less likely to succeed! You can exercise until you pass out but if you are taking in too many calories you won't see dramatic changes in your appearance. And if you don't exercise your body will more likely use muscle for energy rather than fat. Aerobic exercise burns fat! Starvation eats up muscle!

8. Concentrate on fat loss, not weight loss. Your appearance is what counts, not how much you weigh. Since muscle is heavier than fat you might be surprised! And remember, muscle burns calories! So eat regularly and don't skip meals. If you wait more than 4 hours your metabolism starts to slow down.

9. Women tend to gain fat around the glutes and thighs. Men gain it on their stomach and around the waist. The reason is due to a lack of circulation in those areas. Fat is not taken into the bloodstream as efficiently as other areas. That is why besides a long term fat loss program, fat burning agents such as ephedrine help. Blood thinning agents such as aspirin also help. But make sure to read the labels, instructions and warnings before using any supplement!

10. The real key to losing weight is consistency. If you start missing meals or skipping workouts your progress will slow down to the point of discouragement. How bad do you want it? Find a good program and stick with it. Remember, you get out of it what you put into it!

Randy Mclean may be contacted at http://www.weightlossguidance.com

To lose weight it is essential to burn more calories than you consume. That is much easier said than done, of course. Fad diets, pills, and gizmos are all the hype of infomercials and internet ads, but their benefits are weak at best. To lose weight you need to reduce your caloric intake and up your calorie burning activities. Some small changes can save you some serious calories each week.

To lose a pound of weight you need to burn 3500 calories. It is best to do this gradually. With the following tips below you can potentially shave 2400 calories from your intake a week. That's not quite a pound, but in two weeks it adds up to over a pound. In a month it adds up to roughly two and a half pounds.

It certainly isn't a get thin quick scheme, but it is a gradual change in diet that can help you maintain your weight loss. If you increase your activity level as well as trying the tips below you can easily shed two pounds a week; doctors and dieticians recommend not trying to shed more than two pounds a week for health reasons.

Tip #1: Green tea
Even if you don't like tea, you can still reap the benefits of this calorie burning drink. Green tea extract is available in the vitamin section of most pharmacies and grocery stores.

If you enjoy drinking tea then you'll like the facts about green tea's calorie burning properties. Studies have shown that drinking six to seven cups, or taking the recommended number of capsules, of green tea can burn 70 calories a day.

You don't have to cut any foods to get this benefit. Just take the capsules as recommended or drink the tea. Green tea is also full of antioxidants that help fight heart disease and the signs of aging.

Tip #2: Don't lick that spoon!
If you make a sandwich or prepare any kind of meal or snack that you spread a condiment or topping on don't lick the spoon. Just a teaspoon's worth of a condiment or food can add substantial amounts of calories over a week's time.
Some examples are:
1 tsp of peanut butter has 33 calories
1 tsp of maple syrup has 16 calories
1 tsp of chocolate syrup has 17 calories
1 tsp of caramel topping has 20 calories
If you lick the spoon after each snack or meal you make, using a low estimate of once a day, in seven days you could add 147 calories a week.

Tip #3: Half and half
If you love regular pop and don't want to trade it in for diet, try mixing half diet and half regular pop. The taste is much better than a diet soda, and you get only half the calories of regular pop. For an eight ounce serving that can save you 50-55 calories.

Tip #4: Milk
If you switch from regular to skim milk you can save 55 calories per serving. If you prefer the taste of whole milk to skim you can try two percent or one percent instead. It'll still shave about 30 calories a serving.
Reduced fat cheeses also have lower calories than their full fat counter parts. Try different blends of cheeses or brands until you find a compromise you're willing to stick to.
Recent studies also suggest that having three servings of low fat dairy products a day can help reduce weight. This is without any dieting or increase in exercise.

Tip #5: Sprays vs. Oils
If you have to eat fried foods try using a non-fat cooking spray. A tablespoon of olive oil has 120 calories, while a nonfat spray has only 1-5 calories.

Tip #6: Measure portions
If you measure out a portion of chips, pretzels, or any other snack you're less likely to eat as much. If you just eat out of the container you might look down and be surprised to realize you've eaten half the bag. This is especially easy to do with salty snacks.
You can save hundreds of calories a week by measuring your portions. For instance, a portion may only be 20 chips. It's hard to eat only twenty chips when you are eating them by the handful from the bag.

If you put the chips in a small bowl you'll see how few there are as you eat them. That way you're more likely to eat more slowly and savor the taste.
Another tip, although it doesn't cut calories, is to drink water everyday. The recommended amount is 64 ounces; that's eight cups. If you decide to drink green tea as recommended above that takes care of six or seven of your servings of water for a day.

Drinking water actually helps reduce water retention. If you aren't getting enough fluids your body will hold onto its reserve because it is prepping for dehydration. If you drink enough water everyday your body will release its excess fluids.