Six Small Changes to keep off pounds

Six Small Changes to Keep off pounds
by Consumer ReportsHealth.org

Those who start with small changes often end up able to make more and bigger changes and lose more weight.

1. Stop drinking calories- When we consume energy in beverage form, we don't get the same fullness as when we consume solids," Richard D. Mattes, Ph.D., professor of foods and nutrition at Purdue University

2. Eat more protein - Substitute a bit more lean protein for some of the fat and starches in your diet.

3. Eat more fiber - Fiber is the good guy of food. It may help protect against colon cancer and heart disease and it is your weight-control friend. It slows digestion, helping you to feel fuller longer, and displaces other caloric foods. Best of all, it comes in fruits, vegetables and whole grains that are loaded with beneficial vitamins and minerals. Grow the amount of vegetables on your plate and shrink everything else.

4. Lead yourself not into temptation - A century ago, to consume 400 calories, you had to go buy the meat, vegetables, and rice and come home and cook it. Now you can consume the same amount of calories just by downing a bag of cheetos. Choose the better calories.

5. Add 2,00 steps a day - That's 20-25 min. of walking - covers about a mile and will burn about 100 calores. That's enough to prevent gradual weight gain in most people.

6. Cut your screen time - When we are sitting, we are burning almost as few calories as we do when we're sleeping. The more you sit, the higher risk of weight gain, type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. If you can find 6 or 7 more hours a week to spend standing instead of sitting (washing dishes - talking on the phone, even standing in front of the computer), you've done something good for yourself.