Small Tips for Big Weight Loss

If you're a snacker throughout the day, the best thing you can do for yourself is to have a power snack prepared. Mix three different kinds of beans and sprinkle in some low-cal Italian dressing for a delicious snack all week long.

Also, whenever you eat, be mindful. Eat without doing anything else- no TV, no reading, no working. Try chewing a strong-flavored gum like cinnamon while you're cooking to make sneaking a taste less appealing.

Another small trick to stay mindful of snacking? Tighten your belt. When you feel a craving and temptation to gorge, tighten your belt a notch as a reminder of the size you'd like to be.

Small Tips for Big Weight Loss

One of the biggest culprits of weight gain is not what we eat, but what we drink. Unfortunately, so many of the beverages, even those with healthful looking advertisements, contain high amounts of sugar, causing us to pack on the pounds.

Be mindful of what you're drinking, and try to make it count. Have a V8 or tomato juice instead of a Diet Coke. If you can't live without your favorite fruit juice, dilute it with water to reduce the calories.

Small Tips for Big Weight Loss

Get Watered Down

A recent German study showed that drinking water burns calories. Drinking two cups of cold water- no warmer than 72 degrees- used roughly 25 calories. Drink a liter a day and you're talking five pounds a year.

Go Smaller

This is one of the best little secrets for big weight loss. Use a salad plate instead of a dinner plate. Studies show that putting your portions on smaller dishes means you’ll end up eating less at a meal.

Small Tricks for Big Weight Loss

Drink More Milk

Milk does do a body good. Consuming 1,800 milligrams of calcium a day could block the absorption of about 80 calories. Fill your coffee mug with skim or 1 percent milk, drink it down to the level you want in your coffee, and then pour in your caffeine.

Buy Cut Veggies

They may cost more, but they'll pay off in the long run- you're much more likely to grab a palmful of veggies for snacking than other, less healthy food.

Small Tricks for Big Weight Loss

If you're watching what you eat and hoping to drop a few pounds or many, every calorie can count. The following tips and tricks may not seem like much, but they can actually have a huge effect. If you add up these small changes over time, they'll translate to a leaner, stronger you.

Blot.
Use a paper napkin to blot a teaspoon of fat off a pizza slice. At one slice a week, that's more than a whole cup of fat you won't eat this year.