Weight Loss Tips for Chocolate Lovers

5) Drink plenty of water. Drinking a minimum of 8 - 10 eight ounce glasses a day or 64 ounces per day keeps mind & body sharp & helps you eliminate fat.

6) Structure your eating plan. Balance your meals as much as possible within your diet plan.

7) Cut out salt either entirely or down radically. You'll loose both water & weight.

8) Eat essential fats & fiber: Good fats are the omega-3 and –6 essential fatty acids which will give you more energy. Fiber increases bulk & helps reduce your appetite by produces feelings of satiety. Flax seed is great! It is a tiny seed that resembles a sesame seed. It must be milled or ground for the nutrients to be released. Eat 4 to 6 tablespoons daily. You can use it in a variety of ways. You can also eat it by itself or sprinkle ground flaxseed on food such as hot or cold cereal, salads, pasta, noodles, or in shakes.

9) Cut your portion size down gradually. You won't notice the fact you are eating less as much or at ALL if you cut down slowly.

10) Try cutting out wheat products in your diet. Eating them triggers inflammation & you put on false fat (i.e. you get a big tummy). The gluten in wheat is difficult to assimilate & causes you to bloat & feel fatigue. Use rice, oat or millet flout for baking. Eat pasta made with rice or buckwheat. Eat bread made with oat, rice or soy.

11) Good fat burning foods include: grapefruit, green tea, apples, oatmeal, pears, broccoli, low fat yogurt, lean turkey (ground turkey too), & hot peppers.

12) Beware of magic diet cures such as pills, formulas, etc. They could harm you.

13) Get plenty of sleep but not TOO much. Keep a regular sleep schedule as much as possible. Eight hours every day is still a good rule of thumb. Your metabolism needs time to rest in order to work more efficiently. Sleep loss increases hunger & messes up your body's metabolism.

14) Divide your exercise time into 2 times a day burns more calories & jumps your metabolism up.

15) Exercise your whole body will burn more fat than just exercising 1 part. (Example Your stomach will loose more if you exercise your whole body than if you just exercise your abdominal muscles.)

16) Do aerobic exercise 3 times a week for a minimum of 30 minutes. Start slow (even 5 or 10 minutes if that is all you can do) & build up the time to 1 hour when you can.

17) Add some muscle-building exercises in your weight loss plan. Muscle burns more calories than fat.

18) Do NOT do the same kind of exercise every day. It is not as effective.

19) Find ways to walk more – keep moving. Examples: Use the stairs as much as possible, park further away from the door, walk the dog instead of letting them out in the back yard, etc.)

20) Always warm up before exercising. Make sure your muscles are ready to work.

21) Move. Don't be a couch potato. Move around MORE each day. Find ways to incorporate more movements into your daily activities. Bend to pick things up – do it 2 or 3 times instead of just once. When you stretch to reach something in the cupboard reach further & take an extra stretch or two as you do it. Take small loads so you have to walk more to do the job. Play ball or other sports with the children that make you move. Take up gardening or biking for your hobby. Think what would fit into your own daily routine.

22)Try to have dinner completed by 8 p.m. My favorite saying is that if "you eat after eight, you gain a lot of weight!" Try to finish eating dinner before eight o'clock at least four to five days per week. If you must eat dinner after eight, eat lighter and eat before you go to dinner.

23) Studies show you'll likely eat more when breaking bread with others than when eating by yourself. That's partly because you mimic your pals' eating habits; if someone else has seconds, you tend to follow suit. Eat-smart strategy: If you've already had your share, and start to reach for more, ask yourself: Am I really hungry, or is cousin Al's eating-marathon influencing me? If it's too hard to sit and chat without ingesting anything, order a low-calorie drink (like herbal tea or sparkling water) to sip while others are finishing up.

24) Fast music speeds up the pace of your eating, so you eat about eight percent more than you would without up-tempo music. So...at home, try eating without any background tunes. If you're out to eat and don't have control of the stereo, ask to have your plate removed when you're feeling full, or you'll continue picking at it.

25) The larger the plate, the more you'll eat, period. Use a smaller plate.

26) One of the great things about activity is that any and all exercise you do trains your body to be ready for an even greater challenge. The hardest part is getting started; after that, it gets easier. Try to keep active.

27) Tempted to nibble while sitting in front of the tube? When watching television find something else to do with your hands like knitting or crafts. Portion out snacks to eat. Try to eat the right kind - like carrots, celery, grapes etc and keep them handy. Skip the TV and read or take a walk or call a friend.

REMEMBER: Sticking with your weight loss plan pays off in the end. Use your Sweet Diet Delights Sweets as a treat or dessert in your meal plan. –or- as a reward for meeting a weight loss goal you have. You can also try our Free Sugar Free Dessert Recipes & get on our list to receive Sugar Free Recipes each month in your e-mail.