Ten Diet Tips For Easy Weight Loss

Six months ago, if someone had suggested to me I'd be on a diet and happy about it, I would have smiled politely and walked away to find someone sane to talk to. Then, after years of menstrual problems, during which I begged several doctors for a hysterectomy, my ob/gyn gave me the news: no doctor wanted to risk an abdominal hysterectomy on me because I was too fat. She told me if I lost thirty pounds, she'd do the surgery. In two seconds I went from couch potato to motivated dieter.

While I was dieting, I learned some easy tips for quick weight loss. Some of them are pretty obvious, some less so. For what it's worth, I here's my formula for an easy weight loss diet.

Preparation

Step 1: Keep a food diary for one week before you start your easy weight loss plan. Record what you eat, how much, and when. Be honest! If the amounts shock you, don't despair. That's probably a good sign because it will take less of a change to make your body ready for easy natural weight loss.

Step 2: Decorate your refrigerator and cabinets. If you're a teen looking for easy weight loss, you'll need to get permission from your parents. Perhaps you can decorate a wall of your room instead. Post pictures of clothes you'd love to be able to wear and pictures of yourself at a thinner weight. Don't post pictures of starving supermodels. No woman should aspire to have the body of a prepubescent boy.

Step 3: Set realistic goals. Even if your weight loss is fast and easy, it's not realistic to expect to lose ten pounds a week. Two or three pounds per week is a much more reasonable goal.

Beginning

Step 4: Once you're ready to start your quick, easy weight loss diet, take a look at your food diary. Notice when you tend to eat the most. Now plan to make yourself unavailable to food during these times. For instance, if you always munch chocolate peanuts while watching the news, turn the television off and walk around the block or work in the garden instead.

Step 5: Don't starve. Many women think the key to an easy diet and fast weight loss is simply to stop eating, but your body doesn't work that way. As far as the part of our brain that controls metabolism is concerned, we're still cavemen. Well, cavewomen. When you starve, that ancient little part of your brain thinks your body is experiencing a famine and signals the metabolism to slow down dramatically, thus burning fewer calories. Unless you're on a program supervised by a doctor, you should always try to eat at least 1200-1500 calories per day.

Step 6: Drink plenty of water. The key to weight loss made easy is to stay well hydrated. Water will fill you up, and since it's not sugary or caffeinated, you won't have to experience the highs and lows brought on by energy drinks and sodas.

Step 7: Cut calories gradually every week. Always be on the lookout for an unhealthy food you can replace with a healthy one. For instance, about halfway through my diet, my bag of gummy bears turned into a bowl of grapes. A couple of weeks later, they became a plate of celery sticks. Meanwhile, my thick hot fudge sundaes became Weight Watcher's Ice Cream Sandwiches.

Step 8: Slightly increase the amount of exercise you do each week. When I started, I was huffing and puffing after walking 1/5 of a mile. Now I can do two miles, easy. The key is to build up slowly. Even if all you do is walk across the house, it's still better than nothing.

Maintenance

Step 9: Give yourself a non-food reward for reaching and maintaining goals. This easy weight loss tip may sound like a no-brainer, but so many women never think to reward themselves for accomplishing a goal like losing weight. I usually gave myself a small reward (say an extra half hour playing on the computer instead of writing) every day I stuck to my diet, and a big reward (say a $50 shopping spree on Amazon) for each ten pounds I lost. Your rewards may be different from mine, but make sure they are something you truly look forward to.

Step 10: Join or create an easy weight loss support program. This could mean going to meetings of Overeaters Anonymous or just touching base with a few friends who are also struggling with their weight. Many people find weight loss support on the internet, too. Just remember that what you're doing is difficult, and that you have every right to be proud of yourself for taking steps to shed the unwanted pounds.