12 Tips for Cutting Back on Calories

Cutting back on calories is something that many people would like to do but find it difficult to do. Changing daily eating habits is one of the simplest and easiest ways to cut back on calories. The changes do not have to be earth shattering nor do they have to be permanent. However, it is possible that once you incorporate some of these calorie-cutting strategies into your life, you will just decide that you like them and continue with them.

Twelve simple tips for reducing calories in your diet:

• Slice one half of a cucumber and add it to one meal a day. Do not use any type of salad dressing or condiment, as that will only add calories. Cucumbers are very high in water content yet they are satisfying to the appetite.
• Drink a full 8-ounce glass of water with two meals a day to reduce the amount of food that you eat at each sitting.
• Substitute water for those diet sodas or juice beverages that you would normally ingest. If you find that you cannot give up juice, reduce the calorie content by cutting it with water.
• Reduce the amount of alcohol that you drink each week. If you have a nightcap every night, try to reduce it to every other night.
• Avoid eating after 8 pm at night. Not only will this reduce the number of calories that you ingest, but also, it should aid digestive processes.
• Eliminate as many condiments and gravies from your diet as you can. If you cannot eliminate them, then reduce the amount that you use.
• Substitute applesauce for sugar in baking recipes.
• Substitute fat free milk for whole milk.
• Substitute artificial sweeteners for the sugar that you typically add to your tea or coffee.
• Omit the cheese. A hamburger tastes almost as good as a cheeseburger so why bother adding more calories?
• Try pizza without the extra meat toppings for a change and avoid extra calories.
• Reach for an apple instead of a candy bar. Too difficult? Reach for half a candy bar and save the other half for the next day.

Try to implement as many of the above strategies into your diet as you can. Remember that following these strategies part of the time is better than not following them at all. As you begin to slim down, look for alternative methods for cutting calories so that you can add some variety into your plan. This will increase the likelihood that you continue with it.

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