Most of us need to move more and eat less in order to stop gaining weight. By making little changes in the kinds of foods you choose and the amounts of food you eat, the calories saved will add up quickly. These simple steps can help you to make a series of small changes that will help you to cut calories and burn off more pounds.

When you are trying to lose weight, focus on the positives about food, not the negatives. Don’t think about cutting out the “bad” foods; think about all of the good things on the healthier foods you’ll be eating. This will make you feel better about the food choices you’re making, instead of regretting the loss of the junk foods.

If you are accustomed to using large amounts of sugar in your food (coffee, tea, baking, etc.), one way to help yourself lose weight is to consider switching to a sucralose-based sweetener like Splenda. You will get the sweet taste you crave without all the calories, which will lower your daily caloric intake.

Trying to lose weight? Try cutting out meat. In general, vegetarians are leaner and lighter than meat eaters. There is much less saturated fat in fruits, vegetables and legumes than there is in animal products. Try skipping the burgers and the hot dogs, and you are likely to drop a few pounds.

If you are serious about losing weight, drink at least two glasses of water before you sit down to eat a meal. Water can help you feel full, and you will consume less calories because you won’t be as hungry. You are also less likely to drink high-calorie soda or juice because you have already had plenty to drink.

A great tip to lose weight is to invest in a shaker bottle. Shaker bottles are very useful because you can make your own protein shake on the fly. All you have to do is add protein powder and any liquid of your choice, and just shake it up a few times.

You should try to make it your goal to lose at least one pound each week. If you are not losing this you should try to make an adjustment to reach this goal. One pound each week ensures that you are slowly losing weight at a healthy rate.

The timing of your meals is critical when it comes to weight loss. You should never eat right before bed, and you should divide your meals into smaller meals separated throughout the day. In this way, no excess of fat builds up over a period of time. By eating late at night you don’t give your body a chance to utilize any of the calories, and your body ends up storing them as fat.

A great nutritional tip is to start eating nuts as a snack, instead of potato chips or cookies. Nuts are a fantastic source of healthy fats and scientific studies have shown that eating a handful of nuts can help your body recover from exercise. Nuts will also leave you feeling full longer.

When fall comes, instead of using a leaf blower to rid your yard of leaves, try using a rake for your yard and sweep your drive. This is a little bit of exercise that you can add to your daily routine. You will be burning more calories because you will be using more effort than using a leaf blower.

When watching what you eat, know what’s a portion and what’s a serving. A serving is what’s shown on the Nutrition Facts label. But a portion is how much of that food that you consume. For example, if you eat a 5 ounce bag of cookies, your portion is one bag of cookies, but there could be 2 or 3 servings in that bag.

If weight loss is on your mind, then look to certain spices when you cook to aid you in your effort. Turmeric has a compound called curcumin, which is thought to be a good fat burner, and it is believed to suppresses fat tissue growth. So eat your food, but spice it up with turmeric.

If you are friends with healthy, fit people, that will help you. They can serve as great role models. Also, you may be able to pick up tips and tricks on how to lose weight.

Increasing your exercise, and decreasing the amount of food you eat, is the best combination for weight loss success. Revving up your metabolism will help enable you to burn calories much quicker and, when you have fewer calories to burn, you will begin to lose weight and keep it off.

The tips you just read will make it easier for you to reduce the number of calories you eat each day. They will also help you to get up and get moving so you burn off more calories. This combination can help you to achieve and maintain a healthy weight for life.