Tips for  starting your new healthier approach to  eating.

Before you begin - getting motivated:

• Sit down and decide whether or not you are ready to make a significant lifestyle change.  Your heart has to be in it.  Make a conscience decision to gain control of your eating and your health.
• Make an appointment with your physician.  For those of us that are significantly overweight, this is critical. 
• Make a list of all the reasons you need to change your eating habits.  Weight loss is only one of the potential benefits.  With a 10% reduction in overall body weight, you will see many of the following:

• Have someone take a picture of you before you start.  Those of us who have gained significant weight are often very skilled at avoiding mirrors and seeing what the results of our overeating truly look like.  Take a good long look at that picture - many folks are actually surprised at how they look. (We would love to post before and after pictures if you are willing to share)
• Each time you feel like making a bad food choice, try on last year's bathing suit.  Causes immediate appetite loss in many.
• Set a goal of trying to lose 10% of your body weight.  It is a manageable goal, and it will bring noticeable results.  It is much less daunting to set an achievable, interim goal.
• Find a healthy eating "buddy".  Working with a friend that shares your goal of following a more healthy lifestyle makes it easier.
• Decide that you are not dieting (which tends to indicate deprivation).  You are choosing to change the manner in which you select foods for your overall health.  This needs to be a total lifestyle change.
• Tell everyone that you are about to change your eating habits.  It will be much harder to bring a Whooper to the cafeteria table when you have just announced that you are going to start watching what you eat.
  

• Pause before you eat.  Determine if you are really hungry or just eating out of habit, boredom or routine.
• Always eat breakfast.  It will help you to resist temptations throughout the morning and gives you the energy to burn more calories. 
• Include protein at every meal.  Protein is more satifying than other food groups - hopefully resulting in a lower calorie intake overall.
• Drink 6-8 glasses of water each day.  These fluids help your body function well, flushing toxins from your system.
• Eat 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables per day.  The fruits and vegetables should help you reduce your intake of high calorie foods.
• Each night, prepare some healthy snacks for the next day.  It is much easier to reach for these, if they are all portioned out in baggies.  You can grab a few to take to work.  Good choices are sliced up fruit, carrot and celery sticks, mini rice cakes.  Have one of these readily accessible for you to eat at your lowest point of the day.
• Create a diversion:  In the early days, it may be hard for you to adjust to your new, portion controlled intake.  The hardest point for me is after I have consumed my dinner.  It often takes a while for your body to register that it has eaten and so overeating can occur.  I have found that if I brush my teeth and take a shower right after dinner, my urges to consume more have subsided.
• Once you have been on your new eating plan for 3 weeks (hopefully without cheating), you are on your way.  Introduce one day in the week when you will consume whatever you want.  Look forward to that day, plan for it.  You may find that when you reach it, you consume less than you thought you would.
• Choose a sensible diet - not a fad diet or unhealthy diet (low carb).  One of the best ones out there is Weight Watchers.  It allows you to eat normal foods in smaller portions.  No need to buy special prepackaged foods or eat in a high fat, unhealthy way.  You can join their meetings, join on-line or just buy their book.  An exceptional way to get to where you would like to be.
• Take a bite.  If you do not love it, do not consume the calories.  Many times we find that we eat things that are put in front of us, without really enjoying what we are eating.
• Watch your alcohol consumption.  This is a big source of empty calories and it often looses inhibitions so that wrong food choices are more easily made.
• Look at the sources of hidden calories and try to eliminate or find substitutes.  Often small changes can mount up.  Do you use cream in your coffee?  Swap a plain bagel for a higher calorie muffin.  Substitute a salad for a sandwich. 
• Take small portions on a small plate.  Many times, we just eat the amount that is put in front of us, without even thinking.  Are you overly full when you push away from the dinner table?  Start with less.
• Eat slowly and eat frequently.  Eating slowly gives our bodies time to tell us they are full before we've eaten more than we need.
• As you get older, you may find that you are able to eat less.  The huge meal that you used to enjoy may be hard to finish.  Be aware of your body's signals that you are full.
• Research dieting and healthy eating on the internet.  Often reading about the success and approach of others will increase your enthusiasm and resolve.
  

• When you are feeling the urge to consume more than you should, take a step back.  Remind yourself how good you will feel in the morning if you have made it through the evening without a misstep.
• If you eat too much one day, let it go.  Take it one day at a time.  You did not gain your weight overnight...you will not lose it overnight either.
• Celebrate small achievements!  Treat yourself (in a non-food way) when you have lost even 5 pounds.
  

Social issues:

• Watch for sabotage...it comes from strange sources.  It is surprising, but not everyone will truly support your efforts to pursue and maintain a healthy weight.  For some reason, many people are intimidated when a heavier person tries to lose weight.  Identify these people and steer clear!
• In order to have a good time, one does not have to eat and/or drink to excess.  Learn to enjoy parties and other social events without feeling like you need to over consume to have a good time.

Miscellaneous suggestions:

• Join an online support group.   There are numerous good ones out there and they help you keep on track without having to go to a meeting.