Weight Loss Tips

Here's why...

If you want a smaller, healthier you, keep it simple. Start seeing food as fuel. There are YES foods that fuel your body and NO foods that exhaust your body. Make it a habit to choose YES foods and you'll be well on your way to a slimmer, healthier, and more energetic you.

There are hundreds of diets, tips, books, and techniques out there for losing weight. Despite this, those who sustain long-term weight loss are few and far between.

In this post, Ranae shares some pearls of wisdom that have helped her achieve her own weight loss, and in turn, have helped others.

If you're finding your weight loss efforts are stalling, don't take weekends off your diet. According to a new study out of Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, weekend eating patterns could be a key reason for sluggish weight loss.

This is the first study to carefully monitor daily body weight, calorie intake and calorie expenditure for several weeks throughout a year, and to demonstrate that increased caloric intake is a problem on most weekends.

There has been much talk lately about the obesity epidemic which is sweeping the world, and the ensuing panic has resulted in an avalanche of books and articles packed with ideas about why we are growing larger and what we can do about it.

As a physician struggling with making sense of all this over the past few decades, I have come up with a few suggestions concerning how best to view the constant stream of data about diet, weight loss and lifestyle

As a nutritionist who was once fat, I have examined the weight issue from every angle. I have worked with thousands of clients in successfully fighting fat and I am now, myself, tiny and fit, a mere fraction of my once fat self.

A big part of the problem is that dieters do nothing to change their mental state. Your body's set point is created first in your mind. New research in cell biology shows our perceptions activate our genes, health and behavior. You can't get your body to change without getting your mind on board.

The second problem is low-calorie, low-fat diets slow metabolism, block fat-burning and stimulate appetite, making weight loss more difficult on multiple levels.

Here are three common mistakes:

This is for all the Diet Blog readers who've been subscribed for a while because they keep meaning to get round to starting that diet. All the readers with the site bookmarked because they had great resolutions on January 1st ... but who somehow, have lost motivation. And all the people who've landed here after desperately searching the net for a healthier life.

If the thought of "going on a diet" sends you straight to the fridge to scoff all those foods you'll soon be forbidding yourself, read on...

If you are having a hard time getting motivated to eat right and exercise, take note of how a toddler goes about their day.

If your aim is weight loss, then you will be conscious of your eating habits.

Whatever you call it - diet or healthy eating program - here are a few simple habits that you will need to pay special attention to.

Say you've recently resolved to lose weight and eat healthier, and you've been doing a great job. You've been eating the right foods in reasonable portions, and when you have an occasional treat, it's small and it's part of your overall plan.

But then one day your friends drag you to a fast food restaurant, and instead of choosing the grilled chicken salad like you were going to... somehow you end up ordering a double cheeseburger and fries like everyone else. Or you're at home and you find your spouse's stash of Oreos and you're pretty sure you could eat the entire bag...

Is this the beginning of the end of your weight loss resolution?

Have you ever wondered if weight gain is seasonal?

Some years ago, researchers determined that most weight gain occurs between Thanksgiving and the New Year.

Unsurprisingly, the fat doesn't automatically drop away during the rest of the year.

Rather than trying to go on a diet every year - doesn't it make more sense to prevent fat gain in the first place?

Recently I received an email bemoaning the woes of the weight loss industry. The author refers to the number of weight loss programs around and complains:

There are two ways of going about weight loss:

Dog ownership appears to have "a positive influence on health," according to a research review in the British Journal of Health Psychology. The author, Dr. Deborah Wells, found that while pet owners were healthier in general, dog owners in particular got more of a boost than other pet owners.

She discovered that dog owners had lower blood pressure and cholesterol, fewer minor physical ailments, and were less likely to have serious medical problems.

Another study of dog ownership and physical activity out of the University of Western Australia found that dog owners were 68% more likely to get the recommended amount of physical activity per week than non-owners. People with dogs racked up about 55 minutes more exercise a week. Possibly, people who choose to own dogs may be somewhat healthier to begin with. But let's assume the benefits of dog ownership are real and substantial. Do these studies mean everyone should run out and buy a dog?

If you know where to look, there are some helpful visual guides that can help you "eyeball" serving sizes of various foods.

Here are some examples.

It seems odd to use the word "indulge" on a blog about diets. Developing a healthy relationship with food is critical if you wish to avoid falling into disordered or harmful patterns of eating.

However... asking some people to simply moderate their intake of certain foods is akin to asking the alcoholic to take only take one sip from their glass.

Here are 6 steps to help you enjoy your food and diet.

Diabetics who used a special "diet plate" were 3 times more likely to lose weight than non-plate users.

What is this plate?

I'm sure you heard it before: "Ninety-five percent of all dieters gain the weight back." There is little evidence to back this up.

Many dieters can - and do - keep the weight off.

With so many different diet regimens around - it's no wonder that people get confused.

Are there any common threads among the diets and what are they?

An increasing number of books advise eating slowly - but what evidence is there to back this advice? Finally a small study has shown that eating slowly really can lead to reduced caloric intake and an increased sense of fullness.