The easiest one! It doesn’t matter which weight-loss plan you choose—Zone, Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, etc.—so long as it’s one that you find easy to stick to. You’ll lose twice as much weight on it as someone who’s trying to shed pounds on a diet they don’t like, reveals a study out of Tufts-New England Medical Center in Boston. So, ignore what works for your friends and family and pick the diet plan you prefer the most.

[photo: Foxtongue]

Have a yen for chocolate, Skittles, cotton candy and other tempting sweets, but are trying to slim down your waistline? Nibble fruit instead! “For every kind of candy you love, there’s a fruit that can give you the same satisfying taste and mouth-feel,” says registered dietician Lyssie Lakatos, R.D., co-author of Fire Up Your Metabolism. In fact, a Cornell University study shows that candy lovers are also the biggest fans of fruit, making it a natural candy alternative. Even better: Because fruit contains less insulin-spiking sugar and is packed with fiber, it keeps your hunger under control.” So, what’s your candy craving?

* You crave: Chocolate
Eat this: Fresh dates or figs rolled in cocoa powder

* You crave: Tangy sweets, such as Starburst, Skittles or Mike and Ikes
Eat this: Kiwi, pineapple or mango

* You crave: A tart candy, such as SweeTarts or Smarties
Eat this: Grapefruit, tart dried cherries or pomegranate

* You crave: A soft and gooey treat, like marshmallows, jelly beans or caramel
Eat this: Dried apricots or dried plums

* You crave: Pure sugar, like cotton candy
Eat this: Sugary fruits, such as ripe bananas or raisins

[photo: The Bridge]

Turn off the television! In a recent study, volunteers who cut their TV time in half for three weeks burned an extra 120 calories a day—the equivalent of walking eight extra miles a week—even when they replaced their TV viewing time with low-energy activities, such as playing board games, reading or organizing photo albums, reports the Archives of Internal Medicine. By comparison, volunteers who didn’t cut down on TV time ended up burning about 100 calories less than before the study. Turns out, virtually any activity other than sleeping uses up more calories than watching television, the researchers say.

[photo: schmilblick]

The empty wrappers! In a recent study, Cornell University Food and Brand Lab director Brian Wansink, Ph.D., found that people ate about half as many mini-sized candies when they kept the wrappers in plain sight. Turns out, having a visual cue is key for sending the message to your brain that it’s time to stop snacking. “Your stomach can’t count, but your eyes can when they see the empty wrappers,” he says.

You probably know that loading up on fruits and vegetables helps you lose weight since they’re low in calories and high in filling fiber. Yet, getting produce in juices and smoothies can have the opposite effect on your waistline, making you gain unwanted pounds. The reason? Your body doesn’t register liquid calories the same way it registers calories from solid food, which makes you hungrier, say Purdue University scientists. As a result, you end up eating up to 20% more calories from other foods on days you indulge in fruit and veggie sips. A better bet? Eat your produce whole and stick to zero-calorie water, tea and coffee.

[photo: Paldavo]

There are easy tricks that can stretch your food budget and make your favorite foods healthier—without sacrificing flavor, says registered dietician Tammy Lakatos Shames, R.D., co-author of Fire Up Your Metabolism:
* When craving creamy soup… Use potato flakes or puréed potatoes instead of milk and butter as a soup base. It creates the same thick, smooth consistency—but at a fraction of the cost and fat.
* For better burgers, meatloaf and meatballs… Replace one quarter of the ground beef with cooked enriched white rice or whole grain rice. You’ll make your meat go further while upping your intake of fiber, a nutrient proven to help lower cholesterol and reduce your risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and certain cancers.
* To dress up a sandwich… Blend half a tablespoon of mayonnaise with the same amount of Dijon mustard. You’ll get a creamy, zingy French Mayonnaise dressing for $2-$4 less than the store-bought kind; and you’ll consume 47 fewer calories and 5.5 fewer grams of fat than if you ate a full tablespoon of mayo alone.

[photo: closari]

The secret? Slow down as you eat. Not only does it make you enjoy your meals more by helping you focus on the flavors—for instance, the basil in your pasta sauce or the chocolate frosting on your cupcake—you’ll automatically eat less, according to new research in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism. Eating slowly raises your body’s level of two gut hormones—peptide YY (PYY) and glucagon-like peptide—that send an “I’m full” signal to your brain, which curbs your appetite. On the other hand, rushing through a meal quickly actually lowers these hormones, leaving you feeling hungry even after you’ve eaten.

[photo: iLoveButter]

…how much money is in your bank account. And you spend less when you think of how much money is in your wallet. The reason for the difference? According to a recent study in the Journal of Consumer Research, an item seems more affordable when you compare it to a larger pool of money rather than a smaller one,  making you more likely to buy it.

Tip: Watching your waistline? The same study found that folks who thought about how many calories they allotted themselves for the week ate more than twice as much candy from a bowl than those who thought about how many calories they allotted themselves for the day. And the same reason holds true: When you think of a larger pool of calories, one dinky handful of candy doesn’t seem like such a big deal. But, when you think of just one day’s allottment of calories, what you eat suddenly seems to make much more of an impact on your weight goals.

[photo: ToastyKen]

You won’t just save hundreds of dollars a year by simply eating at home, it’ll also help you whittle down your waistline. In fact, the typical restaurant meal packs even more calories than fast food, a recent study in the journal Review of Agricultural Economics reveals. Blame goes to the oversized portions, which make us consume far more fat and calories than we realize.

[photo: Tony Crider]

Ever notice that your hunger spikes after watching certain television commercials for chips, cookies, cheeseburgers, fries and other tempting treats? It’s no coincidence. A new study in the Journal of Consumer Research reveals that  pyschology-savvy advertisers are now adding more words and sounds to their images to describe the taste, texture, smell, sight and sound of food—for instance, the crunch of a potato chip, the sizzle of bacon and the smooth velvety texture of cheddar cheese sauce. Turns out, engaging more of your senses makes you remember how much you enjoy the advertised morsels, which instantly amps up your desire for it. Easy way to avoid this craving trigger: Simply hit the mute button during food commercials.

[photo: yumyumbubblegum]