{Avoid these mistakes and you might be in your skinny jeans sooner rather than later!}

Because the pressure is stronger than ever and because there are more weight loss options than there have ever been, it is not surprising that women often make some weight loss mistakes that have the opposite effect. Let’s talk about the most common women’s weight loss mistakes and what you can do to avoid them.

Keep reading for more information.

Diet Soda

Women (it seems) are much more into diet soda than men, mostly because they believe that they can still have the soda without the calories for weight loss. Unfortunately for the ladies who believe that diet soda can help them reach their weight loss goals, recent research has shown that participants who consumed diet soda “experiences 70% greater increases in weight circumference” than those who did not consume diet soda.

If you drink more than 1 diet soda each day, the results were even more staggering; 500% increase in waist size than non-diet soda drinkers. This is one of the most dangerous women’s weight loss mistakes because calorie free doesn’t mean ‘sugar-free’, and sugar contributes to abdominal fat which can put you at risk for heart disease, diabetes, cancer as well as other chronic illnesses.

Instead of reach for diet soda, reach for tea. Tea has less caffeine that soda, but it has enough to energize you, along with the many other health benefits associated with drinking tea.

Generic Calorie Intake

This is perhaps one of the biggest women’s weight loss mistakes because it directly impacts whether you actually lose weight or continue to gain weight. Most of us, women and men, know that to lose weight you must burn more calories than you consume, but the problem is that many women don’t know exactly how many calories they need. Rather than do the math, most women attempt to consume about 2,000 calories which may not be what their bodies need.

In order to find out what your daily calorie intake should be, you need to take into account your goal weight, your age, height and level of activity. You can find a calorie calculator by doing a cursory search on the web, which will help you figure out how many calories you should be eating to reach your goal weight.

[Just because you add a diet soda doesn't mean you're being "good".]

Portion Sizes Matter

One of the biggest mistakes that women make regarding weight loss is that you choose lots of diet foods and low-calorie processed foods in an effort to reduce calories, only to double up on portion sizes because your hunger hasn’t been satisfied. Doubling portion size, even on low calorie foods can increase your daily calorie intake, rather than decreasing it.

Instead of loading your shopping cart with so-called diet and low calorie foods, get the regular full calorie (full taste) version and enjoy it in a smaller portion size. If the recommended portion size seems too small, take a look at the nutrition chart and find out how much will satisfy you—reasonably—and calculate the calorie count so you know exactly what you’re getting.

Skipping Meals

If I had a dime for every woman I know who has skipped a meal throughout the day in the hopes that it will help her burn calories a little faster, I’d be a very rich fellow today. Ladies: skipping meals is NOT the way to achieve your weight loss goals. In fact, it usually has the opposite effect because you usually overcompensate for those uneaten calories at your next meal, or worse in between the meals you do eat…usually at night.

Instead of skipping meals and depriving your body of much-needed fuel, try eating 3 healthy meals each day with no more than 2 snacks thrown in throughout the day. This way you never get to the point where you feel famished and eat an entire bag of Doritos.

Food is not your enemy; foods with empty calories are your enemy!

Diet Foods Overload

Ok, so this is one of those women’s weight loss mistakes that has more to do with taste and reality, than facts. Women often load up their refrigerators and cabinets with low calorie, fat free, low carb foods that are, honestly, tasteless. Let me be the first to say ‘kudos’ for trying something, anything, that will help you shed the excess weight.

But the truth is that these overly processed foods are not very palate pleasing, which means that after a week (maybe 2 or 3) you will be sick of these foods and rather than reach for an apple you’ll reach for something like a brownie or your favorite fast food meal.

In your effort to lose weight, don’t forget that your body needs things like fat and carbs, just the right ones and in the right quantities. Don’t try to eliminate these things from your diet, just get smart about which foods provide your body with the best sources, and put those in your fridge and cabinet.

Too Much Cardio & Not Enough Resistance

Ok ladies this is perhaps my biggest workout pet peeve for men and women, but women seems to be more guilty of this than men; spending an hour on a cardio machine and then bypassing the weights to hit the shower.

[Strength training makes weight loss easier, well easier than not strength training!]

Yes, cardio is a great way to help you burn calories so you can create a calorie deficit for weight loss. Good for you. BUT resistance training is a great way to help your body burn a few calories while you’re sitting around watching a movie or sitting in boring meeting at work. Besides, you’ll need some muscle mass to give your body that tight, lean look that you want when you’ve reached your weight loss goals!

Cut down your cardio workout and add some strength training to your regimen for a well rounded workout that will give you the body you want.

Constant Scale-Hopping

This is a demoralizing women’s weight loss mistake that can set back weight loss efforts by at least a week. When it comes to undertaking a healthy weight loss program, there is no need, let me repeat that NO NEED to weigh yourself more than once each week. Your weight will fluctuate throughout the week, particularly at different times of the day depending on what you’re doing.

When you weigh yourself more than once a week you almost certainly will not like what you see. Losing a pound requires a calorie deficit of 3,500 calories and you can’t lose that between Monday and Wednesday.

Instead of getting on the scale each time you enter the bathroom, set a specific day and time to weigh yourself each week so that you can document your progress.

[Can sugar from corn make you forgetful?]

Their new study reveals that it isn’t just sugar that you have to worry about but a certain type of sweetener and it could be hurting a lot more than your weight loss efforts. Keep reading to learn more.

High Fructose Corn Syrup

If you’ve been trying to get rid of excess weight or you’re simply concerned about your health, you’ve probably heard much about the negative side effects of high fructose corn syrup. The use of high fructose corn syrup as a food sweetener has increased over the years, along with the increase in obesity in the United States, leading a 2004 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition to conclude that HFCS has played a role in the obesity epidemic.

Although the studies have been mixed on directly linking high fructose corn syrup to obesity or other illnesses, the dangers of this product lie in the fact that they are added to many processed foods and drinks. These highly processed foods include a wealth of ingredients that you don’t need to lose weight or might simply gross you out.

This particular study however, has focused on how HFCS can affect your brain.

The Study

This study, published in the May 15 edition of the Journal of Physiology, used 2 groups of rats. Both groups were given a high fructose corn syrup solution in the form of drinking water for 6 weeks, but one group was also given omega-3 fatty acids (you know, brain food) that included flaxseed oils and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid). DHA protects the brains synapses from damage.

According to the researchers, DHA is responsible for helping us learn and remember things. Since the human body doesn’t produce enough DHA we must get it through our diets, usually in the form of omega-3 rich fish like mackerel.

Prior to the start of the study the rats were fed a traditional rat diet and trained twice a day on a maze for 5 days. The goal was to test how well they navigated through the maze, which had just 1 exit but plenty of openings. Several visual landmarks were placed throughout the maze to help the rats remember the proper route.

After the HFCS regimen ended, the groups were tested again on the maze.

Results

The second group of rats who were given the DHA and the high fructose corn syrup navigated the maze faster than did the first group. The first group however were slower and had a decline in synaptic activity. The first group was not able to remember the route learned just six weeks prior and they even showed signs of insulin resistance, which suggested to researchers that perhaps the insulin had lost its power to impact brain cells.

One of the researchers indicated that the problem could be that insulin penetrated what’s known as a ‘brain-blood barrier’, which can trigger certain reactions that may interfere with learning and cause a loss of memory recall.

[This may be convenient but it's also packed with high fructose corn syrup.]

Conclusion

The most important finding in this study is that high fructose sugar is not only bad for your waist line but also your brain. So even if you’re thin and you think that you don’t have to worry about the impact of HFCS; think again.

Eating too many foods high in high fructose corn syrup can cause insulin to disturb our memory as well as our ability to learn.

Sugar Free Life?

Does this study mean that you have to get used to a life without any sweet treats?

Not at all.

In fact what this study should encourage you to do, is find naturally sweet food products to get your sugar fix. If your goal is weight loss you should already be seriously decreasing the amount of processed foods and beverages in your diet. The goal should be to eliminate these foods in your diet over time, so that you have them once in awhile.

[Learn to love dark chocolate and keep your memory in tact!]

But the good news is that there are plenty of food options that will allow you to enjoy sweet treats without too much high fructose corn syrup. Some treats you can enjoy include:

• Fruit & Greek yogurt
• Dark chocolate (processed yet, but has very little sweetener added)
• Lindt Lindor truffles (dark) no HFCS & just 73 calories per ball!
• Applesauce

These are just a few of your options, you can find many more foods and beverages without high fructose corn syrup by looking at the ingredient list before you purchase your foods.

HFCS-Free Foods

Many people have no idea what their favorite foods are sweetened with and the easiest way to find out is to simply look at the ingredient list on the nutrition panel before you put these items into your shopping cart. In general a good rule of thumb is to minimize the amount of food you eat that has more than a few ingredients. A long list of ingredients means that you’re eating food without a clue as to what is in it.

Many processed foods—which often feature high fructose corn syrup—have long ingredient lists that are unpronounceable and that means that you don’t know what is making you gain weight.

This doesn’t mean that you should run to your kitchen cabinets and get rid of all processed foods with HFCS immediately. You should however gradually begin to erase these foods from your diet, getting healthier whole foods with each trip to the market.

Because high fructose corn syrup is not recommended as part of recommended dietary guidelines, the American Heart Association has come up with recommendations for the amount of sugar added to your diet. Women should consume 100 calories or less each day from added sugar and men should consume 150 calories or less a day. This means you should add no more than 6 to 9 teaspoons of additional sugar to your diet, but of course less than that is always better.

Next time you reach for that soda, microwave dinner or package of cookies remember that it isn’t just your weight and health at risk, but also your brain!

Right, but the hard part is fitting those healthy habits into your everyday life. That means making smart choices when you’re out eating (or drinking) with friends, and choosing to do things that are more active rather than keeping up those same sedentary activities that lead to weight gain in the first place.

Keep reading for healthy weight loss tips that will help you lead a healthy lifestyle for weight loss.

Weekends Count

One of the most important things to remember after a long week of counting calories and watching what you eat, it’s tempting to throw it all out the window on the weekends. One of the healthy weight loss tips you need to remember is weekends count! This means that you should get up early enough to eat breakfast and find time to do something active.

Sure you can catch up your television watching, just make sure you spend a few hours working out, dancing, or doing something active each weekend. This will make it easier for you to implement other healthy weight loss tips during the week. Taking a break every weekend only makes it more difficult to maintain during the busy week.

Be Busy

In addition to making sure you’re implementing healthy weight loss tips on the weekends, you also need to find ways to keep yourself busy during downtime. This is especially true if you struggle with eating due to boredom. Even if you’re not out hiking or mountain climbing, you should read a book, plant some flowers or even take time to catch up with your friends and family online.

Whatever you choose to do to keep yourself busy, just make sure that you’re doing things that won’t allow you to snack out of boredom. This means avoid simply sitting down and watching television for hours on end, which can lead to endless hours of snacking. Instead, watch an hour of TV and then go do something else, particularly something out of the house where the fridge isn’t calling your name.

Keeping busy isn’t just part of healthy weight loss tips; it is also a great way to help you lead an overall healthy lifestyle so you keep the weight off in the future!

Get Over It

This may be one of the harshest healthy weight loss tips you’ve ever heard but finding ways to get over the stress will help you lose weight and be healthy. Contrary to popular belief many of us actually do gain weight when we’re stressed rather than lose it, because we eat junk we wouldn’t if we weren’t stressed and we don’t do one of the few things guaranteed to help alleviate the stress: exercise.

Find something, anything to help you get over your stress. If you want to relax the stress away, consider yoga or spend an hour in the pool doing laps. Both burn calories and can help you focus on something other than your source of stress. If you prefer to pound out the stress, taking up kickboxing, tennis, racquetball or even martial arts.

{Stay busy and do what you can to avoid mindless snacking!}

In terms of healthy weight loss tips to help you get over stress, finding which method of coping works for you and doing it can help determine how much stress-induced weight gain you experience according to a study in Obesity Research.

Leave Celebs Out Of It

I know that many people suggest turning to your favorite celebrity for healthy weight loss tips, but that can often have the opposite effect on your weight loss efforts. Sure, Oprah, Seth Rogen and even Jennifer Hudson have shed a ton of weight and kudos to them. They had to do the same things we have to do to lose weight; eat less and move around more. But they also have access to personal trainers, chefs and nutritionists making sure they get their bodies in tip top shape.

Turning to these celebrities who only give you half the story may leave you with unrealistic expectations for your own weight loss. Besides, you don’t want to measure yourself against anyone else because your healthy weight loss will be different from Kelly Osbourne and different from Jonah Hill.

Learn About Fitness

If you’re reading this article then you’ve already begun phase one of this healthy weight loss tip; getting informed. Don’t simply rely on your neighbor for weight loss and fitness advice; turn to those who actually know what they’re talking about like trainers, nutritionists and other professionals.

The more you know about what you can do to help you lose weight and keep it off, the better able you will be to make it happen.

Tangible Progress

One of the best healthy weight loss tips I ever received was to track my weight loss using something other than a scale. The scale will track how many pounds and ounces you’ve lost, but using photos to track your progress can help you see the progress of your hard work where a scale may not.

Seeing tighter thighs and a smaller waist can help you stay motivated more than a pound of weight loss. Take photos of yourself every 6 weeks or so and hang the photos on your fridge, bathroom mirror or on your desktop so whenever you get the urge to cheat or skip a workout you can see what you’re risking.

Clothes Make the Man/Woman

One of the most touted healthy weight loss tips is to keep yourself motivated, but the question is how do you do that? My answer is to invest in workout clothes that you love, that make you feel good as you work hard working up a sweat. Using baggy sweatpants and t-shirts that remind you of your weight problems just won’t do.

It turns out that clothes make the man and the woman, so just get a little feedback before you start buying your skinny clothes! 

Instead hit up your favorite store and invest in some fitness clothes that make you feel good about taking control of your weight loss. Make sure you choose clothes that fit, flatter your body and make you want to get outside and get active!

These healthy weight loss tips will help you stay invested in your weight loss efforts even when you don’t really want to be.

In the United States the average commute time is more than 25 minutes, and nearly ninety percent of all Americans drive to work. An additional five percent of U.S. workers use public transportation to get to work, meaning that most of us spend an additional hour sitting on our butts in a vehicle.

{If this is what you see every morning and evening, your weight loss could be at risk.}

The recent push by First Lady Michelle Obama to help us get moving is all the more difficult for the weight-challenged population when a long commute is factored in, as a recent study revealed.

Read on to find out how you can overcome commuter fatigue.

Long Commutes & Body Weight

It’s no secret that Americans spend more and more time in their cars. Whether it’s because fewer working Americans live in urban centers or that people simply don’t factor in commute time when they choose a residence, the fact is that we spend a significant amount of time going to and from work.

A new study was published recently in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine looked at how commuter times may contribute to weight gain, in addition to an already sedentary lifestyle. The study looked at 4,297 Texans living and working in the Dallas-Fort Worth and Austin urban areas.

The data studied began with the distance between homes and places of work, in addition to body mass index, blood pressure, waist circumference, cholesterol, cardio-respiratory fitness and fasting blood sugar levels. The study subjects also filled out questionnaires regarding their levels of physical activity in the 3 months preceding the study.

Findings

The findings revealed that those who had the longest commutes were the same subjects that participated in physical activity less frequently and lower cardio-respiratory fitness. Those with long commutes were also likely to have a higher BMI, blood pressure and waist circumference.

The study also found that those with a commute of longer than 15 minutes were less likely to keep commitments to physical activity and had a greater likelihood of obesity. Additionally, commuters who travelled more than 10 miles to work had greater instances of blood pressure.

Although there was a weak association for commute times and other risk factors, there was a significant association with blood pressure and body mass index. The longer time spent in traffic, the less likely commuters are to engage in any physical activity, particularly moderate to vigorous activity.

Sometimes you just need a guilty pleasure to make a long drive bearable; try this one! 

Conclusion

Since commuting is a way of life for many Americans and workers around the world, it is an important factor in overcoming weight loss obstacles and reducing your risk for weight related illnesses like hypertension. Prolonged periods of time driving to and from work present a mostly unavoidable form of sedentary behavior.

There are many health risks associated with sedentary behavior that include a higher mortality rate for those who spend the most time sitting. This is one of the reasons exercise and a physically active lifestyle must be part of a healthy weight loss plan.

Overcome Your Commute

There are other ways that you can overcome that relentless fatigue you feel after spending a long day sitting at work and more time sitting in your car. Of course you will need to do your best to push and motivate yourself to exercise even when you don’t feel like pulling on sweats and pumping iron.

{Pack your suit and bicycle to work to avoid weight gain!}

If moving closer to your work isn’t feasible–for any reason—then you have to be more proactive about what you can do. Of course, moving is a great way to get more free time into your life, which means you can put a greater emphasis on your weight loss efforts. A shorter commute means that you can take time to whip up healthy meals, hit the gym or even go for an evening stroll after dinner.

Some of the things you can do to in lieu of moving include:

• Bike It: If your commute is lengthened due to congestion not mileage, dust off your bike and strap on your sneakers and ride your bike. Bicycling burns calories—654 per hour of moderate cycling—which can help you create a calorie deficit, get more energy and improve your mood all day long.
• Walk: You may not be able to walk to work, if you can DO IT, but that doesn’t mean you can get more strides into your day. After your long commute to work, take the stairs instead of the elevator and walk to lunch or go for a brisk walk on your lunch break.
• Get Healthy: One of the most important factors in weight loss or weight gain is healthy food choices. Instead of munching on fast food and sugary pastry treats while you sit in traffic, pack healthy snacks like raw nuts, apricots and raspberries. This can help you reduce your calorie intake which means you can burn more as you get moving more regularly.
• Public Transportation: Even with public transportation you might still have a long commute, but you can burn a few additional calories by walking to and from the bus/subway stop every day. You’ll spend more time standing and walking, and less time sitting and inhaling high calorie treats.

Although this study looked at commuters in Texas, the problem can be much worse for those in larger, congested cities like New York, Los Angeles and California. Longer commute times are inevitable for many people who can no longer afford to live in close proximity to where they work.

You can, however, do things so that your commute does not interfere with your ability to lose weight and stay healthy. Finding ways to stay active when you can will help you combat the long periods of time you’re stuck in your car. Adopt and stick to a healthy diet—even in the car—and burn calories when and wherever you can.

The longer you let your commute stand in your way to weight loss, the more difficult it will be to change and reverse health problems.

Before starting any weight loss program you should talk to your doctor about how much weight you need to lose, dietary restrictions and health concerns. Once you have had an in depth discussion with your physician you can start looking for a healthy weight loss program.

[Are you going to have to buy pricey food you've never heard of?]

Keep reading to find out what questions all healthy weight loss programs must answer before you sign up!

What Does This Weight Loss Program Require?

Before you sign up for any healthy weight loss program you should know what you’re getting yourself into. This means you should know what the program requires for success. Do you need to keep a food journal or take supplements or attend meetings?

Finding out this information before you join will make it easier for you to find a healthy weight loss program that fits easily into your current lifestyle. Be realistic about what you can and can not do to lose weight and this will allow you to find a weight loss program that can help you reach your goals.         

Do I have To Buy Food?

The decision to start a healthy weight loss program that requires you to purchased special food is one that should never be undertaken lightly. Do you honestly have no time to cook or are you just not that handy in the kitchen?

Find out up front if food purchases are required so you can factor that into any costs and figure out if you can afford a healthy weight loss program that includes food purchases until you reach your goal weight.

What Is The Recommended Exercise Program?

You should never begin a healthy weight loss program without knowing what type of physical activity is expected of you as this will have a great impact on whether or not you experience successful weight loss. Find out immediately if this is an intense workout program like Insanity or P90X, because these programs may not fit where you are right now in terms of physical fitness.

Also by asking what the exercise program is, you will know immediately if it is a healthy weight loss program that even endorses exercise for weight loss. As you’ll find there are plenty of weight loss programs on the market that simply ignore the importance of burning calories in the weight loss equation.

[If exercise isn't required you should find another weight loss program.]

What Are The Risks?

Whether your healthy weight loss program requires supplements or intense exercise, you should find out if there are any risks associated the program or if any side effects have been reported by other dieters. Your health is the most important factor in any weight loss program so make sure you choose one that isn’t going to put your health at risk.

You should make sure that you don’t have any physical or medical conditions that may put you at risk if you participate in certain healthy weight loss programs. Make sure any supplements won’t interact dangerously with any current medications, and make sure the exercise programs are safe for your current weight.

How Much Does It Cost?

This is one of the most important questions to ask before starting any healthy weight loss program because for most of us, cost is what determines whether or not we join a particular program. Find out any costs in addition to the cost of participating in the program.

You may have to purchase a book which describes the weight loss program, but make sure that you all costs associated with any extras like recipes, workout plans, journals and the like. You want to make sure you know exactly how much this healthy weight loss program will cost you until you’ve reached your goal weight and are capable of maintaining your weight loss on your own.

What Are The Qualifications Of The Creator?

If the healthy weight loss program you’re considering has a book or creator, do as much research as you can to find out the qualifications of this person. Ask the following questions:

• What type of formal training does this person have in fitness or weight loss & nutrition?
• Do they have any certificates to indicate special training?
• Is this person qualified to advise on exercise programs?
• What is the scientific basis for their weight loss program?

These questions will let you know if this is a professional who has created a healthy weight loss program for success or someone who stumbled into a successful way to lose weight. Although you may choose a program headed by either type, it helps to know prior to starting a healthy weight loss program which person you are following.

We all ask tons of questions when it comes to cars, cell phones, shoes, but how many questions do you ask before starting a weight loss program? Don’t be this guy when it comes to your fitness!

Is There Any Support?

If you’re like most people you have participated in at least one weight loss program in the past, and probably without very much success. That is why you should find out before you give your credit card information out, if there is any type of support involved in the healthy weight loss program you choose. Whether it is a traditional meeting like Weight Watchers or virtual online support groups, having a support system is crucial to successful weight loss.

You want to make sure that you have some place where you can communicate with others in your situation about how to deal with setbacks, ways to update your exercise program or diet for continued weight loss success.

Knowing you aren’t alone in your weight loss battle can be the difference between the same old you and a new & improved healthier YOU!

What Are The Results Of Others?

Does the healthy weight loss plan you’re considering have testimonials from real people or just blurbs on the book and website? You should find out before you join what are the expected results of participants, just so you have an idea. Most reputable weight loss programs should be able to tell you what type of weight loss you should expect if you follow their guidelines.

Remember though, that most results are not typical and only those who have done exceptionally well are used for promotions. However that does not mean that you can’t or won’t lose weight; it just means that you shouldn’t compare yourself to others.

When you finally choose a healthy weight loss program, remember that weight loss can only occur if you’re willing to try it their way. If it doesn’t work, you can always try something else.

Believe me, I know that sometimes those excuses really are ‘reasons’ and on occasion they are even legitimate reasons. But there is absolutely no excuse for weeks and months on end of consuming unhealthy garbage and skipping workouts. There just isn’t.

{If weight loss was easy, we’d all be skinny!}

Once we can stop making these excuses, or at least acknowledging them for what they are–obstacles to weight loss—we can actually do something about it so the numbers on that scale grow smaller by the week. Keep reading to find out why these excuses are hurting your fat loss.

“I’m Too Tired”

This is perhaps the most pervasive of all excuses because it encompasses everything from “I’m too tired to spend 45 minutes in the kitchen” to “I’m too tired to hit the gym”. The truth is that sometimes fatigue is a perfectly legitimate reason for taking a short cut once in awhile, but if you allow this excuse all the time, you should be asking a more important question: why am I so tired?

The truth is that your diet and regular exercise are two things that could actually give you more energy not less. If you constantly feel tired then try getting up early and working out before work or on your lunch break for a boost of energy to get you through your day. Also, stop relying on sugary junk food for temporary energy highs.

If you are too tired, go to bed earlier and set up a nighttime routine to help you fall asleep easily and stay asleep.

”I’m Too Busy”

This is another of those excuses that makes us feel good that we’re being so selfless and putting the company, our friends, and pretty much everything else ahead of our health and weight loss but in the end it’s just another excuse.

You are never too busy to take 5 minutes to go and fill up a glass with water or go buy a bottle of water, you’re not. You probably have coffee or soda or juice sitting on your desk all day long, but you need water. The health benefits of water have been well documented, and that is doubly true when it comes to water’s ability to help us lose weight.

There’s always an excuse, if you’re looking for one. Here are a few more.

“I Deserve This!”

While it is true that you probably do deserve rewards for working hard, achieving goals or simply to end a long week, how you reward yourself may be directly impacting your ability to lose weight. Since a recent study indicated that obesity rates will increase by 33% in the next 20 years, you need to find a new reward system or risk being one of the 33%.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy a glass of wine or beer or even a Mojito; it just means that you have to do so in moderation and never as a reward. Life is always going to be busy, dramatic and stressful and you can’t run for the nearest bar or dessert plate when it does. Instead you should find other ways to reward yourself: a new outfit, tickets to a concert, a massage or a French cooking class.

If you continue to reward yourself with food and alcoholic beverages you will continue to suffer sleepless nights, bloating and excessive food intake—none of which are recommended for healthy weight loss.

“I’m Not A Cook”

You don’t need to be Bobby Flay in the kitchen in order to cook for weight loss, you don’t even need to be Paula Deen; all you need is to know the basics of cooking like what to eat and what not to eat, and the healthiest cooking methods. Very few of us start out as master chefs in the kitchen, but I can assure you that I am a much better cook today than I was before I got healthy and shed those extra pounds.

The biggest problem with using this excuse to get out of spending any time in the kitchen is that you’re relying on food heavy with meat and cheese. And you probably already know that you should be reducing your meat and cheese intake if you want to lose weight or if you simply want to be healthier.

[You can't learn how to cook without a few mistakes.]

The research that was documented in The China Study found that those who ate the most animal food products (like meat & cheese) were most likely to suffer from chronic disease compared to those who consumed a diet made up of mostly plant based foods. And we all know that a compromised immune system can make weight loss more difficult, and if you’re already overweight you’re at risk for many illnesses exacerbated by animal products like: hypertension, heart disease, cancer and diabetes.

Do your weight loss and health a favor and eat more fruits and vegetables and legumes.

“Fresh Stuff Doesn’t Last”

If I had a dollar for every time someone said this to me, I’d be sitting on a beach somewhere sipping coconut water through a straw. We all know how essential fruits and vegetables are to a healthy diet for weight loss, and the fresher the better. Yet we still skip the produce aisle under the mistaken impression that the fresh stuff will go bad in a few days.

Well the “fresh stuff” will go bad if you never eat it, but if you buy enough to last just 3 or 4 days it will not go bad before you’ve had a chance to eat it. Fresh fruit is the quickest and easiest thing to eat when you’re in a hurry—even quicker than fast food because you don’t have to wait. Grab a peach and a napkin and you’re out the door with a healthy snack that won’t make you hate yourself later. Fruits and vegetables are low in calories and high in water and fiber and that is a winning combination for weight loss!

Try this fruit salad recipe for a low calorie midday snack!

“But It’s Healthy AND Quick”

I too used to be guilty of this excuse and I paid for it for years, stuck at the same weight despite exercising and eating more salad than I could bear. But those prepackaged, particularly frozen, meals are not doing your weight loss any favors. These packaged meals that claim to be low in calories hide one little secret from you: they are off the charts high in sodium.

The sodium serves 2 purposes: it lengthens the shelf life and hides the cardboard taste of these low calorie wonders. The amount of sodium can lead to high blood pressure or heart problems, even in dieters in their 20s.

Forget these faux healthy packaged meals and find something equally quick and healthy like spice rubbed chicken breasts and garlic kale, it’ll be ready in 30 minutes and it’s less than 300 calories!

Don’t let these or any other excuses stand in the way of reaching your weight loss goals. More than your pride is at stake; your health is impacted as well.

[Breakfast is a non-negotiable part of weight loss so...DO IT!]

Whether your weakness is healthy eating, regular exercise or consistency, we have put together a list of lose weight tips that will help you over daily hurdles. Keep reading to learn more about these weight loss tips.

Make Time For Breakfast

If you’ve noticed that your weight loss efforts have stagnated even though you’ve cut calories and added more exercise to your week, then chances are good that you’ve decided breakfast isn’t the most important meal of the day.

The reason this is the first of the lose weight now tips is because so many people simply ignore breakfast because they don’t have time or simply “aren’t hungry” in the morning. Make time for breakfast and you’ll notice that you cut down a lot of mid-morning snacking on foods high in sugar, fat and calories.

Give your weight loss efforts a boost by getting up 20 minutes early and eating breakfast.

Take A Day Off

In our zeal to get those extra pounds off, we often go overboard; exercising every single day, eating very few calories or just salad for every meal or salivating over desserts we’ll never allow ourselves to enjoy. While these things are a testament to your commitment to lose weight, they are also surefire ways to make sure you fall off the wagon.

One of the lose weight tips you must follow on occasion is to take a day off. This doesn’t mean take a day every single week to indulge in greasy fast food or binge drinking, it does mean that you should allow yourself to have a day off from your workout routine or strict diet. These days off will remind you why you’re doing what you’re doing, and allow you test your resolve when it comes to high calorie foods and drinks.

Enjoy A Hearty Lunch

Finding healthy food for lunch can sometimes be a difficult task, especially for most of us who are also racing against the clock. Instead of finding something light to eat for lunch, consider this lose weight tips; eat a hearty lunch.

Grab pasta or fish and enjoy a hearty lunch and have a light dinner. This is one of the most helpful lose weight tips for those of you who don’t have time to make dinner at night. Instead of getting dinner from a drive-thru, whip up a quick yet low calorie salad or soup for dinner because you had a satisfying lunch.

[There's no rule that dinner has to be your big, fun meal...]

This will take the pressure off finding something simple and healthy for lunch, and give you a more relaxing evening free from spending time in the kitchen!

Try New Things

If you’re tired of the same old exercise routine or the same old salad of lettuce, tomatoes and cucumber, try something new. The best way to make sure you stick to your weight loss plan without getting bored and reaching for something that won’t help you lose weight is to try new things.

Sign up for a new exercise class or play a sport you’ve never tried like jai alai. Commit yourself to finding one new healthy dish each week that you can add to your meal rotation. By trying something new, your new healthy way of life stays exciting which means you stick to it.

Eat Salad For Dinner

This probably seems like the most boring of all the lose weight tips, but eating salad for dinner can actually take the pressure off those of you who despise being in the kitchen. Making salads is a simple task that takes no longer than a few minutes, and this frees up your calorie count so you can enjoy something more satisfying at lunchtime.

More importantly a salad for dinner can help ensure that you get plenty of vegetables (and fiber) into your diet each day. Rather than reaching for a pre-made salad at the grocery store for lunch, you can learn to like salad by making it at home just the way you like.

And by making your own salad, you can reinvent what it means to you. If you prefer something other than lettuce, experiment with different vegetables until you come up with a salad you’re actually excited to eat!

Invest In Resistance Bands

If you prefer to workout at home, either because you don’t have time for the gym or simply aren’t ready to sweat in front of strangers, you need to invest in resistance bands. Rather than pretending that everyone loves going to the gym, this is one of those lose weight tips that addresses reality.

[Get your workout when you can so you can still lose weight!]

Resistance bands can help give you a full body workout without the cost of purchasing a home gym. Get different colors for different levels of resistance, so you can get a light or intense workout as you deem it necessary. A study published in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research found that for certain populations, resistance bands can be as effective as weight machines for strength training.

Congratulate Yourself

One of the most important lose weight tips that you can ever get is to congratulate yourself when you’ve accomplished something big or small. If you step on the scale and you’ve lost weight, congratulate yourself whether it’s a few ounces or a few pounds. If you’re out to dinner and you opt to skip dessert, give yourself a “way to go”!

There is nothing wrong with being your own cheerleader when it comes to losing weight, after all who is more aware of your successes and failures than you? By congratulating yourself when you’re successful, you are more likely to keep up this good behavior that is helping you reach your goal weight.

Learn To Make Low Calorie Favorites

One reason that many dieters often go back to their old, unhealthy habits with abandon is because they see no alternative to eating or drinking the things they love. This is one of those lose weight tips for which you will be forever grateful: learn to make low calorie versions of your favorite foods or drinks.

If you love unwinding after a long day at the office with a cocktail, all you have to do is learn how to make it without quite so many calories. The other option is to learn how to make other low calorie cocktails, and test them out until you have a new favorite.

The same is true of foods too; learn to make a low calorie version of your favorite nachos or fries so that you don’t gorge yourself on a 1,000-calorie meal. The best way to avoid a nasty night of calorie overload is to find sneaky ways to enjoy what you love without sacrificing your weight loss efforts.

Before you begin your low calorie transformations, read our Eat Stop Eat review to see how intermittent fasting can help you determine what foods you actually love, and what foods you just think you love!

[Calling this 'lunch' won't help you lose weight in the long run.]

These allegedly healthy eating games that we play with our weight loss not only can cause weight loss setbacks but also increase our risk of many weight related illnesses. Keep reading to find out if you play any of these healthy eating games and how to avoid them.

Skipping Breakfast To Cut Calories

This is one of the most pervasive healthy eating games that many of us play. We skip breakfast in an attempt to cut calories, using every excuse under the sun; I don’t have time for breakfast, I’m not a breakfast person, I don’t like any breakfast foods and so on. I’ve heard and said them all, and none of them were true then and they’re not true now that I regularly eat breakfast.

The truth is that this healthy eating game you think you’re playing is sabotaging your weight loss efforts because you skip breakfast and then you replace it with junk during the day. Then at night you consume hundreds of additional calories to make up for the breakfast you didn’t eat this morning.

Instead: Give yourself time each morning to have breakfast, whether it’s just toast & jam or an egg sandwich. The point is that you need to take the time to eat breakfast if you’re really serious about losing weight. The excuses are easy, but how will you feel six months from now when you should have reached your weight loss goal?

Eating Less To Burn More Calories

To have a successful fat burning workout you need to give your body the fuel it needs to complete a grueling workout. Without the right fuel your body will flounder and you’ll feel exhausted much earlier than you would if you had eaten properly. Once fatigue begins to set in you’ll either give up, or risk injury trying to speed through a workout that you don’t have the energy to finish.

This is actually a dangerous healthy eating game that can cause injury and weight loss setbacks. Don’t skimp on the meal you eat prior to your workout in hopes of burning more calories because it will have the opposite effect. You won’t have enough energy to complete the workout so you likely won’t even burn enough calories to create a calorie deficit for the day.

You need the right combination of foods to help you burn fat and build muscle so you can get rid of the fat and shape your new body, and eating less or no food prior to a workout is not going to help you accomplish these goals.

Instead: Give yourself a balanced meal that has carbohydrates (complex), lean protein and a little bit of fat. Make sure you don’t eat a heavy meal that leaves you sluggish before a workout because this is just as dangerous and not eating or eating very little before a workout.

Some eating games do more than mess with your weight loss efforts, as evidenced by this video! 

Overeating After A Big Workout

If I had a dollar for each time someone tells me that they’re eating a huge meal because they “worked out hard,” I’d be quite a wealthy man today. This is a healthy eating game common with dieters just beginning to workout and eat healthy. They aren’t used to that feeling of burning calories and eating less, so after a workout they eat way more than they should because they feel hungry.

This is one of those healthy eating games that can cause you to just give up on your effort to lose weight because you work out regularly yet you haven’t dropped any pounds. The reason is that overeating after a workout generally replaces all the calories you burned and then some, so rather than create a calorie deficit you actually added more calories to your day than if you hadn’t worked out at all.

Instead: Eat a small meal that includes carbohydrates and protein within 2 hours after your workout. This will satisfy the hunger you feel and give your body what it needs to repair and build the muscles you worked so hard. Keep your meal simple and don’t use your workout as an excuse to over indulge in the things you miss.

Liquid Calories Don’t Count

This healthy eating game is common among those who have recently begun counting calories. They write down what they eat or keep an estimation of the number of calories they’ve eaten throughout the day. But in an effort to make themselves feel better about their new diets, they conveniently forget to count the liquid calories they consumed throughout the day.

We’ve all done it at least once, this so-called healthy eating game such as this will not lead to weight loss and you’ll be left wondering why the scale hasn’t moved in weeks.

[Liquid calories, whether orange juice or a Screwdriver, count! Always.]

Liquid calories count. All calories count. The only way to lose weight is to burn calories through exercise and reduce the number of calories you consume. This means that the calories in the sugar and cream in your coffee count, the honey in your tea counts, the sodas you drink throughout the day count, the glasses of wine with dinner count, the juice you had with breakfast counts and those cocktails you had after work, count. Anything that has calories that you put in your body, counts in your daily calorie totals.

Instead: Reduce the amount of liquid (read: empty) calories you consume each day. Add a few cups of tea with Stevia to your diet. The tea will curb cravings and fill your stomach without adding more calories to your day.

Stocking Up On Low Fat/Fat-Free Foods

Front loading your diet with low fat food products is a good first step to weight loss, but most dieters play this healthy eating game to get around eating the food they should be eating. Don’t try to find “healthy” ways to keep junk food in your diet because it won’t have the results you want.

There is one fact you should remember about low fat food products; low fat does not mean low calorie. Sure, you do need to eat less fat in your diet but the healthy eating game of eating plenty of low fat food products can be dangerous to weight loss because they don’t satisfy your hunger so you end up eating larger portions of these low fat foods, which ultimately increases your calorie count.

In fact many low fat or fat free food products have slightly fewer calories than the regular version, if they have any at all so make sure you compare nutrition labels before you stock up on low fat or fat free food products.

Instead: Work on controlling your portions with regular food products, instead of going overboard with these low fat products. If there are more than 3 grams of fat per 100 grams of food, then it is not a low fat food according to the Food & Drug Administration.

Don’t allow these healthy eating games that you play to continue to sabotage your weight loss efforts. Be honest (with yourself) about your motivations and find a way to overcome these games. Your weight loss success depends on it!

The truth however is that reducing your salt intake and learning to love a low sodium diet can help you regulate high blood pressure, something which many overweight people suffer from or are at risk of getting.

{Contrary to what most of us think, there is more to cooking than THIS.}

Because May is Hypertension Month we dare you to live a low sodium life for just 1 week and see if you don’t feel (and look) better, using these 8 tips.

How Much Is Enough

The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends that we have no more than 1,500mg of sodium each day. This information can easily be found on the nutrition labels of nearly all food and drink products.

Hit The Spice Aisle

Many inexperienced cooks mistakenly believe that salt is the only way to season food, and while it does have its place in cooking, salt should not be the only seasoning you use. Many of us simply eat too much sodium in our diets, for a wide variety of reasons, and we are reluctant to change because we don’t know any other way.

Well I’m here to tell you there is another way: spices. The spice aisle can provide you with a delicious way to flavor your dishes without increasing your sodium intake. Items like cayenne pepper, curry, allspice and even cinnamon add layers of flavor without adding tons of salt. Forget the salt, peruse the colorful bottles to give your food flavor.

Careful Snacking

It would be awesome if we could all simply stop that midday snacking altogether, but if that were the case then we’d all be thin and toned and completely healthy. Instead, look for low sodium version of your favorite snacks.

Don’t just grab the first package you see that indicates ‘low sodium’ or ‘sodium-free’ however, instead turn it over and look at the nutrition labels to make sure it is low in sodium. Whether it’s chips, crackers, dips or even pickles, there are low sodium versions available. All you have to do is look.

Don’t Take It Easy

Convenience foods that are pre-packaged, pre-seasoned and canned actually make up the majority of our salt intake, according to the AHA. These foods that shave minutes from our meal preparation time are actually doubling or even tripling our sodium intake, which can have a devastating impact on our health and weight loss efforts.

Reduce your reliance on convenient, pre-packaged foods until you have eliminated them from your diet whenever and wherever possible. Whole, fresh foods are your best option to living a low sodium lifestyle.

{These foods are fast, no doubt, but they are also very high in sodium!}

Do It Yourself

When it comes to weight loss and good health, do it yourself is the best advice you can receive. No one else cares more about your health and weight loss than you, so its time you took control of what goes in your body as well as what goes into the food that goes into your body! A mouthful, I know.

Make healthy, low sodium meals whenever possible using fresh foods in their natural state.

For example, 8 ounces of tomato sauce has 1,284mg of sodium which is almost your entire recommended daily intake of sodium. Although it’s easier to just open a jar and heat it up, it would be better for your health if you took 10 medium tomatoes and pureed them in a blender or food processor, because it would just be 62mg of sodium and the taste would be far better than the canned stuff.

Add a few herbs like oregano and basil and you’ve got a homemade tomato sauce that is low sodium AND delicious.

Plan To Eat In A Hurry

As much as we plan our lives to prevent rushing through things, it is inevitable. You need to leave during lunch to go to the doctor, get an oil change or pick up dry cleaning, leaving you little to no time for a healthy low sodium meal.

Make your life a little easier and simply admit that sometimes you will have to eat on the go. Once you do that you can pack little low sodium snacks in your car, briefcase or purse for those times. This way you don’t have to get those salty pre-packaged or fast foods that will dehydrate you and make you feel and look bloated.

A good option for these on the go snacks: raw nuts that have no salt added to them.

Ask The Chef

Learning to live on a low sodium diet doesn’t mean that you have to stop enjoying the occasional night dining out. What it does mean is that you’ll have to do a little bit of extra work to find a nicer restaurant that makes their dishes fresh, so you can get them without the extra salt.

If you have to, call the restaurant ahead of time and ask if they make their food fresh, and specify that you want to know if the ingredients are fresh. Many large chain restaurants claim “fresh” but when pushed on their vegetables for example, will be forced to admit they are canned. Once you have this information you can ask if a low sodium version is possible, and usually it is.

Just make sure that you reward their flexibility with a kind letter of thanks, a great tip and customer loyalty and you can get low sodium meals whenever you like.

Can’t find the herbs you want? Grow them, you don’t need a lot of time or space!

Don’t Fear The Herbs

Using herbs in cooking is a great way to enjoy low sodium meals, particularly when combined with the right spices. In the spice aisle you can find dried herbs that have a long shelf life or you can simply hit the produce aisle for fresh, fragrant and flavorful herbs.

Contrary to what you’ve been told, herbs are for more than soups and sauces; you can use dill, basil, parsley or oregano to proteins for lots of flavor without salt. Learning to use these herbs, which are generally super cheap, can help you have a low sodium diet that has plenty of delicious flavors.

Make The Effort

Perhaps the most important thing that you can do to reduce your sodium intake and enjoy a low sodium diet is to make an effort to find low sodium foods and learn to cook with herbs and spices. The one common factor you’ll notice in our tips for a low sodium lifestyle, is that they all require you to work for your good health.

Cooking your own food, not taking the route of convenience and planning all ask more of you than it does of others. But if you really think about it, not making an effort and doing things the easy way is probably why you have a weight problem or high blood pressure.

If you don’t make an effort for your health…who will?

[Nothing says "May" quite like colorful and sweet berries, especially boysenberries!]

You can increase your water intake and get more fiber, which will fill you up longer so that you don’t turn to high sugar, high fat and high calorie foods between meals. Having a snack when you’re hungry is fine, as long as it’s healthy and low in calories.

Now that May is here, let’s take a look at some of the foods that should make their way onto your plate for the next few months.

Why In Season?

Eating foods when they are in season is a great way to ensure they taste as delicious as possible, which makes it easier to eat them regularly. If you think you don’t like a certain food, try it when it is at its peak season and see if your opinion doesn’t change.

Of course the seasonality of different foods depends a lot on where you are. Click on your state or region on this list, to see what foods are in season in your area any time of year.

Boysenberries

If you’re sick of people telling you to eat berries because you don’t like blackberries or blueberries, then stop at a Farmer’s Market this May and try out some boysenberries. This hybrid berry (blackberry + raspberry + loganberry = boysenberry) may be just up your alley thanks to its unique flavor and bright color.

When you find boysenberries during peak season they will be tart, sweet and juicy and low in calories. Just one cup of boysenberries has 66 calories and nearly 30% of your recommended fiber allowance. These tangy berries are also rich in vitamin K, B6, E and C as well as manganese, potassium and iron. So you get great flavor and tons of health benefits from just 1 cup of these delicious berries…not to mention the obvious antioxidant benefits of this super berry!

TRY: Eat them as a snack, or put them in a pie or cobbler, or grab tons while they’re in season and make jam for your morning toast.

Radishes

Next time your walk down your local produce aisle or Farmer’s market stand and you see those bright pink bubs with bright green tops you’ll know that radishes are now in season. Whether you chop them up and add them to your favorite salad or slice them into discs and use them to enjoy your favorite low calorie dip, radishes have a lot to offer in addition to their bold color and crunch.

There are other reasons to enjoy radishes this May is that 1 cup will give you just 19 calories and more than 17 grams of Vitamin C. You will also get significant amounts of iron, magnesium and phosphorous in just 1 cup of radishes.

TRY: Slice radishes thickly and grill several minutes and serve alongside hummus or baba ghanoush.

Avocado

If you’re looking for a delicious way to get healthy fats into your diet this Spring, then look no further than the avocado. Sure avocado often gets a bad reputation because of its high calorie count (1 slice = 50 calories) but the truth is that when eaten in moderation you can get tons of health benefits.

Avocados are high in fiber so you can feel satisfied after you eat it, and for long after to help you eat fewer calories. But avocado also contains an important antioxidant called lutein that can help you maintain good eye health, as well as many other antioxidants. Finally, if you need to increase your good cholesterol (HDL), adding avocado to your diet can help you do just that!

TRY: Mash up avocado with lime juice and 1 tbsp. grated onion for a sandwich spread.

Arugula

When it comes to certain greens you either love them or hate them, and warranted or not arugula is one of these foods. But the truth is this spicy green gives you much more than a unique flavor profile, it is a superstar among leafy greens. Arugula gives you far more nutrients—8 times the calcium, 5 times the vitamin A, C and K and 4 times the amount of iron—as you get other types of lighter, plainer greens such as iceberg lettuce.

Whether you consider yourself a Romaine person or you love your inexpensive  iceberg, give arugula a try this May when it is sure to be delicious. And since you need more high fiber foods in your diet, this nutrient-rich green is a great place to start.

TRY: Chop up ½ cup of arugula and add it to your bruschetta instead of parsley, or mix it in with your favorite salad greens.

Dandelion Greens

Losing weight is all about the leafy greens and if you’re not a fan of the dark leafy variety, give dandelion greens a try. This tangy green has plenty of health benefits and a unique flavor that you will appreciate. Although dandelion greens don’t particularly have a vibrant color, they are still rich in beta-carotene to help you ward off many types of cancer.

Dandelion greens are a great calorie saver too, with just 188 calories per ½ cup serving. But it isn’t just what these tasty greens will do for your weight loss that makes them so appealing; it is also the vitamins and minerals. You will get plenty of vitamins K, A and C as well as potassium, iron, manganese and calcium.

TRY: Chop them up and make a salad or enjoy them warm, sautéed with garlic, paprika and lemon juice.

Apricots

When apricots start to hit the supermarket shelves around mid-May then it’s time for you to scoop them up. This succulent and sweet fruit is a great way to satisfy a craving for something sweet without reaching for your nearest candy bar or sugary pastry, and best of 1 fruit has just 19 calories!

[Add apricots to your diet in May to satisfy a sugar craving!]

Thanks to the vibrant color of the skin, apricots are helpful tools in the fight against cancer. Combine that with the high levels of vitamins A and C, and you can see why this is one of May’s super foods.

TRY: Grab a few to enjoy throughout the day or chop them up and add them to your favorite cobbler, pie or smoothie recipe.

Getting Super Foods

The more you know about what foods are in season the more prepared you will be to eat for weight loss. If your local grocery store doesn’t carry some of these foods, Farmer’s Markets or local farms are a great place to look. And you city dwellers like me, can stop worrying; many farms are more than happy to sell you farm fresh food!

You don’t necessarily have to go to an expensive health food store to find these May super foods, although they will certainly be there. Small local farms are a cost effective way to not only get these foods, but to support local businesses in the process!

Happy eating this May!