Melt away the pounds with 10 tips that will improve your habits and put you on the road to making 2010 your best year ever. These are simple and easy strategies to get you on the road to a sleeker, firmer and healthier you.

#1–Journal Studies have shown that dieters who recorded what they ate and how much they exercised everyday lost twice as much weight as those who didn’t. Journaling creates awareness of what you do (did I hear just eating to eat?) and promotes accountability for your actions. It also helps you troubleshoot when you’re not getting the results that you want; you’ve got to know what you’re doing to fix a problem. Record online, on your iPhone, or go old school and use pencil and paper. If you’ve got the time to eat it, you’ve got the time to write it down!

#2– Weigh Once a Week  You’ve got to know where you are to plan where you’re going. You need a starting point and you need to know whether or not you’re making progress towards your goal. How often have you seen a 5 or 10 pound weight gain slide into the 20 or 50 pound range? Nip it in the bud by attacking the problem before it becomes a bigger problem. And remember, no gain is a victory!

#3– Portion Control More important than “who moved my cheese?” is “how big was my cheese?” If the recommended portion for a serving a meat is a deck of cards, how often have you played with 3 or more decks? Invest in a portion platter, or use a smaller plate as your dinner plate. Simple and easy and it works—resist the urge to build vertically!

#4– Keep it Simple Eat food in its simplest form to avoid piling on the calories. Stay away from sauces, gravy, toppings, breading, etc. Broiled (without butter or oils), baked, boiled or steamed is the way to go. Oh yeah, the skin has got to go!

#5–Move Engage in heart healthy fat burning exercise on a regular basis. The current recommendation is at least 30 minutes 5 days a week. Shoot for at least 20 minutes 6 days a week and build from there. Think walking, jogging, knee lifts during American Idol, Step, Zumba or cycling (in door or out). There are 168 hours in a week—you can do cardio for at least 2. When in doubt, get up and move!

#6–Go Green Load your plate with low-calorie high fiber vegetables. You’ll feel full and not have consumed a lot of excess calories. If you go the salad route, watch out for high calorie dressings and toppings (see tip #4, keep it simple).

#7– Be Prepared Have healthy snacks at work, at home, in your purse so that when you’re hungry you can eat and not reach for junk food. Nuts, sliced veggies, low-fat cheese, fruit are all good to take the edge off your hunger and keep you moving in the right direction. When snacking, keep tip #3, portion control, in mind.

#8–Selective Indulgence What do you love to eat—chocolate, potato chips, ice cream?  Whatever it is, allow yourself to eat a small portion so that you can be satisfied. Better to do this than to deprive yourself and then binge on a quart of Haagen-Dazs!

#9–Damage Control If you know that you are going to be in a situation where you’ll probably over indulge, eat lighter in the days before. Plan your spurges so that you can still continue on the road to a firmer and healthier you.

#10– Up Your Iron Boost your metabolism, firm your body with some good old fashioned weight training. Strength training is the Fountain of Youth and the proven way to re-shape your body. One of my favorite sayings is “Who cares what it weighs, as long as it’s not moving!”

That’s it—10 tips you can start incorporating in your life to start your journey to a fitter and healthier you. Stop munching and watching The Biggest Loser and create your own magical moments. Just keep repeating this mantra—“eat less and move more.”

If you need help getting started, call me at 410 964-9858 or email me at mailto:charmain_101@msn.com.