I'd like to know if you have a weight loss tip that might not be well known. Not drink plenty of water or the everyday things but something that isn't common. What is your best unusual weight loss tip?
Give me some ideas that I don't know. Thanks!

Give yourself a manicure when you feel like munching away mindlessly. It gives you two hours of focusing on something else and it forces you to not ruin your new polish by diving into a bag of chips.

Chile peppers. The capsaicin in them dulls your appetite and raises your metabolic rate by as much as 25% for up to 3 hours after you eat them.

eat light mozzarella string cheese for snacks.
Per 1 ounce serving: 60 cal, 9 grams protein, no carbs
Tasty, satisfying, and it won't raise your blood sugar to cause cravings later.

What worked for me is to make sure I had removed any unnecessary stressors before beginning any major permanent changes. This might mean changing jobs, moving, etc. For me, it meant going to a therapist, establishing clear boundaries with relatives, and waiting until I was well past cigarette cravings (after quitting). I made sure I had the resources and means to change my eating and exercise habits.

The other thing that I think helps is to make researching nutrition, health, and exercise a hobby.

Fun thread!

Eat protein with every meal/snack/whatever. One of the best tips I've ever learned. Keeps me full and satisfied.

Permission to be a ***** about food. If I don't want it, I'm not going to eat it. I don't care if not eating Mary-from-Accounting's birthday cake hurts her feelings or makes people think I'm unsociable. I will smile politely and sweetly decline, twice. If someone keeps pushing, I tell them on no uncertain terms they are being rude. I also have no problem declining invites to places I know serve nothing healthy. We are socialized to be nice and eat things to be nice - I had to break that habit, because it was so easy to yeild to peer pressure and eat things just to be easy to get along with.

Knitting. I was a horrible snacker. I'd sit and watch tv and munch munch munch. I wasn't really hungry, just bored. I learned how to knit, and now that my hands are occupied, I don't feel the need to snack. It took a couple of weeks to stop looking at my hands, but now I watch tv, and knit and I'm completely engrossed in both. Best part about it is, as I'm keeping myself from snacking, I'm also making something. So far I've made scarves and blankets for several people, and if I ever run out of people to make things for, then there is always Project Linus, a group that collects blankets for children who are hospital bound.

I like to brush my teeth well before bed time so that I think twice about eating anything because then i will have to brush them again

T

I also go with the tooth brushing, I will also floss while I'm at it, if I'm having a really bad craving -- by the time I'm done with it all -- there is usually no way I'm going to "ruin" all that work with junk food!!

I completely agree with Tiffany - PROTEIN is the key to my success. I eat low salt ham, low fat cheese, lean chicken etc as a snack and it really works to keep me full for longer. In fact I saw a programme on the BBC called something like the science of food in which they did experiments and proved that high protein meals keep you fuller for longer than every other type of meal.

I also think soup is a great help - I tried this after watching the same Science of Food programme. They explained that your stomach is like a sieve, if you drink water and eat solid food the water can filter through the food and out of your stomach quickly so you stop feeling full. However, if you eat soup the food / water mix sits in your stomach and drips out slowly (in the same way it would if you put thick soup into a sieve) and this means you stay fuller for longer.

Instead of asking myself, "Is that TASTY?" I ask myself, "Will that food help me get to my goal?" For most of my life the only question I ever asked myself about food was, "Will that taste YUMMY?!!!" Now I consider if the food is nutritious and will help me be healthier. If the food isn't going to be HELPING ME, then I know that it may be HURTING ME. I certainly have hurt myself ENOUGH over the years! Enough of that!

Cheryl

Play video/computer games or do sudoku puzzles....anything that will keep your hands busy not filling your face.

Another tidbit about protein... I've read that protein has the highest thermic effect of any food. If you eat 100 protein calories, you burn 30 calories just to digest it, so you are really netting 70 calories.

One trick that I use is that I put a teaspoon of Benefiber in my hot tea everyday. It helps me to keep from feeling like I am hungry!

I also cut ALL sugars out of my eating. I used to be a terrible sweet craver - and by NOT eating any of it (real or artificial) that miraculously has stopped all my cravings for it. ( I still have a hard time believing it, but I sure am thrilled about it!)