Easy Weight Loss

Easy Weight Loss

The No-Effort Diet

We'd all love to lose a few inches -- if only it weren't so much work. Here are some easy, no-sweat solutions that, over time, can add up to a big loss.

Chew Gum

Smacking gum twice for 15 minutes a pop between lunch and an afternoon snack helped people consume 36 fewer calories per day, according to a study in the journal Appetite. Do this every day, and in one week, you could scrub a total of 252 calories from your diet.

Go Green

One study found that men who drank a bottle of tea fortified with green tea extract (GTE) every day for three months lost more body fat than men who drank tea without GTE. To get the benefits, researchers suggest drinking several cups of green tea each day.

Think Small

Using small salad plates and bowls can help you eat 30 percent fewer calories at meals, says Brian Wansink, Ph.D., author of 'Mindless Eating.' Likewise, drink out of skinny glasses (versus short, wide glasses), and you'll serve yourself 28 percent less.

Fidget

One study found that doing mundane activities throughout the day like fidgeting during meetings and getting up to change TV channels separated lean individuals from obese ones. Slimmer people moved at least two hours more a day with these activities, burning 350 calories a day without working up a sweat.

Nosh Grapefruit

It's no myth: Grapefruit could be a weight loss aid. In a 12-week study from the Journal of Medicinal Food, people who ate half a grapefruit three times a day (before each meal) lost an average of 3.6 pounds. Researchers believe grapefruit may lower insulin, a fat storage hormone.

Get Some Shut-Eye

Women who slept less than seven hours on average per night put on more weight during middle age than women who slept more, reports a study from the American Journal of Epidemiology. In fact, women who slept only five hours a night were one-third more likely to gain weight (33 pounds or more) during the 16-year study.

Slow Down

When women took more time to eat, they consumed 70 fewer calories than women who ate more quickly, according to a study from the University of Rhode Island. If you eat three meals a day, that could mean slashing 210 calories just by eating slower.

Crunch Through Commercials

Here's a no-sweat get-fit tip: Do ab crunches during commercial breaks of your favorite shows. A 155-pound person who does a total of 15 minutes of ab moves burns about 50 calories.

Skip Seconds

Rather than going back for seconds or thirds, put everything you're going to eat on your plate before you indulge. The payoff? You'll eat about 18 percent less calories.