Each day we make small choices that make a big difference to your body weight. Because we think little about these minimal decisions, the weight multiplies until it’s time for a full weight loss plan of action. Rather than waiting for the inevitable, start spotting these 6 diet saboteurs that may be steadily adding inches to your waistline.

Uncontrolled Weekends

Researchers have found that people take in significantly more on weekends without even noticing it; especially on Saturdays when fat consumption is at its highest. Those extra weekend calories can quickly add up.

To stay clear of overindulging on the weekends, control portion size and limit your alcohol usage

Eating On the Run

Eating on the move can lead you to eat too rapidly for your body’s hunger and satisfaction signals to keep up.  If you take less than 20 minutes to eat a meal, you could be setting yourself up for cravings and over indulgence.

Over-Sized Portions

Cook at home instead of eating out and use a smaller plate for your meals.  Don’t forget that 1/2 your plate should be filled with vegetables and 1/4 with a lean protein.  If you must eat at a restaurant, ask for a doggie bag before you eat and pack up the excess portion to avoid digging into too much food.

Costly Coffee Shop Beverages

Those specialty drinks can cost you about 370 calories and 15 g of fat. As a substitute, opt for a regular coffee with two tablespoons of sugar and you’ll strip about 17,000 calories a year from your diet, which is almost 5 pounds.

Skipping Meals

Skipping meals is another way to wreak havoc on your metabolism.  Your body might store extra fat to prepare for other missed meals.  Instead of skipping meals, eat small nutritious snacks such as a handful of nuts or fiber rich cereal when you can’t get to a complete meal.

Population studies show that consuming 2 cups of green tea a day for 10 years is associated with a lower body fat percentage, suggesting that green tea could be an effective weight loss aid. Particular interest has been given to green tea catechins which are antioxidant compounds also found in chocolate and red wine.

Green Tea Catechins with Caffeine

7 Trials involving Green Tea catechins and caffeine showed an average weight loss of 3 lbs when compared to those taking caffeine along.  Surprisingly, 6 trials involving Green Tea catechins with caffeine showed even less weight loss of 1 pound compared with those who took no caffeine.

Green Tea Catechins without Caffeine

2 trials involving Green Tea catechins alone showed no significant weight loss.

Discussion

I should say that these studies used different forms of green tea. Some involved actual green tea drinks and others used green tea extracts. The combination of green tea catechins and caffeine looked to be the most effective for weight loss considering that green tea catechins alone showed no weight loss.

Green tea already has caffeine in it so perhaps there is an additive effect of the catechins and caffeine responsible for weight loss since the combination was more effective for weight loss than caffeine alone and catechins which showed no weight loss.

Is Green Tea an effective strategy for weight loss?

Green tea itself will not result in significant weight loss. Remember that weight loss with green tea was 1-3 pounds over an average of 12 weeks. For pharmaceutical weight-loss products on the market, patients are considered to have failed treatment if they have not achieved a loss of 5 pounds after 4 wk of therapy.  So by this measure green tea would have failed as a weight loss drug.

What do I recommend?

If you drink 2 cups of green tea a day you should expect to lose about 1-3 pounds over 12 weeks. By all means drink green tea; just don’t think you’ll drop a couple pant sizes because of it. Oh…  one more thing..  “diet tea’ is no more effective than regular green tea.

Also stay away from Green Tea Extract Products! There have been reports of green tea extracts causing acute liver failure and some patients even required liver transplants.

Some examples include:

• White bread
• White pasta
• White potatoes
• Pastries
• Doughnuts
• Cookies
• Cakes, pies, and other sugary baked goods
• Candy and candy bars
• Potato chips and other packaged and fried snacks

Why do these foods give you that irresistible urge to raid the fridge or pantry? It has to do with their composition.

The more fiber is removed from your food, the harder and more rapidly it hits your bloodstream. The sugar and refined starch it contains cause your blood sugar to soar sky high.

In response to that sugar surge, your body churns out insulin–so much that it drives your blood sugar below where it was before you ate anything. When blood sugar is that low, you feel tired and hungry, and in need of another quick pickup–often in the form of something sweet.

The Lure of Fat and Sugar

These ups and downs, coupled with the wrong food choices, can wreak havoc on your attempts to manage your weight loss. When a food contains both fat and sugar, as many of the foods listed above do, it can be downright addictive since many of us crave the taste of fat and sugar.

Make a habit of reaching for natural, wholesome, high-fiber foods and snacks instead. The Biggest Loser recommended whole foods are digested more slowly, causing fewer spikes in your blood sugar.

What’s more, they tame your hunger, rather than drive it wild with those crazy blood sugar ups and downs. Before long, you’ll lose your sugar/fat/starch tooth and be in better control of your cravings.

Incorporate these techniques into your daily butt busting routine to get better results…in less time! Remember: while there’s really no such thing as spot training, incorporating a creative workout strategy, while eating right and getting in some cardio several days a week, will have you in double-take worthy shape in no time.

Keep your butt in plain view.

When targeting a problem area, people are usually inclined to cover that spot, but experts suggest exposing it in the workout clothes you wear. Exposing your bottom will allow you to focus in on that area and allow you to watch your muscles work while you sweat. You will also be able to see your results as they manifest.

Use weights, not just your body weight.

Adding weight to basic moves like squats or lunges will maximize your results.

Try the 30-second rule.

Instead of rushing through squats and lunges, freeze in the lowest position for 30 seconds. This will allow you to take an extra-deep contraction through your glutes and core and stabilize your body before standing up again.

Take it slow.

When doing strength training, don’t rush through your repetitions. It’s true the faster you do the reps the quicker you will get done, but doing this will stunt your results.

Do mini workouts all day long

Try and make the most of your breaks all day. Try keeping a set of ankle weights in your drawer and doing standing leg lifts or leg extensions during phone calls.

Tone While you walk

With each step, when one leg extends behind you, keep your heel on the ground as long as possible. When you do lift your heel, roll through the foot and press off with your toes. You’ll feel your glutes contract with every step.

Now, try any one of these, and you’ll boost your metabolism for up to a whole day afterward. One small workout, one giant payoff in losing a jelly-belly.

1. Inline skating

Burns 425 calories in 30 minutes

While skating might be so much fun you forget you’re actually working out, it actually burns the most fat and calories than any other exercise on this list. The big burn stems from the side-to-side movement of your thigh and butt muscles (demanding more from your body than the straightforward motion of our number-two activity — running). And your core gets involved in a big way to keep you balanced.

2. Running

Burns 374 calories in 30 minutes

To get the most out of each stride, swing your arms close to your body, don’t lean forward, and keep your feet low to the ground. To lessen impact, land on the middle of your foot, then roll through to your toes.

3. Jumping rope

Burns 340 calories in 30 minutes

To get the most from each jump, use a rope with handles that reach to just under your armpits when you stand on the middle of it, and follow these top-form tips: Jump with your feet slightly apart and body upright, and keep your jumps low to the ground. Don’t have a rope? You’ll get the same benefits by doing the movements rope-free.

4. Tennis

Burns 272 calories in 30 minutes

Simply find a flat area near a wall or garage door that you can hit the ball against. Alternate forehand and backhand shots — then see how many you can do in a row without goofing. Stand 10 to 25 feet away, which will force you to hit harder.

5. Dancing

Burns 221 calories in 30 minutes

The key is to keep the tempo high, choosing songs with fast rhythms like Latin or Bollywood, and don’t rest between songs. Download a workout’s worth of your favorite tunes. Begin with an upbeat inspirational song, then move on to songs with increasingly faster tempos. Slow the beat toward the end to cool down.

6. Walking vigorously

Burns 170 calories in 30 minutes

A leisurely stroll with a friend won’t cut it. You should be walking briskly enough that it’s difficult to keep up a steady conversation.

To get the most from your biggest calorie-burning muscles — legs, butt, and core — take short, quick steps, keep your torso upright, and pump your arms back and forth in time with your stride. With each step, land on your heel and roll through to your toes.

Since you’re reading this Blog, I know that you actually do care about your health and the appearance of your body.

Surprisingly, many people falsely believe that “diet” soda is in some way a good thing for losing body fat.  In fact, I hear people all the time proudly state that they eat so healthy and only drink diet soda.

So let’s set the record straight…

There is NOTHING even remotely healthy about drinking diet soda. In fact, I’ve even seen several studies that showed dedicated diet soda drinkers got even FATTER than their regular soda drinking counterparts.

Here are some findings from an 8-year University of Texas study….

An excerpt from the study’s author:

“What didn’t surprise us was that total soft drink use was linked to overweight and obesity,” Fowler tells WebMD. “What was surprising was when we looked at people only drinking diet soft drinks, their risk of obesity was even higher.”

“There was a 41 percent increase in risk of being overweight for every can or bottle of diet soft drink a person consumes each day,” Fowler says.

Ok, as if we didn’t already know how bad regular soda was for us, and now they’re showing us studies that diet soda makes us even fatter than the already bad stuff!

There’s a lot of complicating factors as to why this occurs…

One reason is that the artificial sweeteners in diet sodas create a negative hormonal response in the body that increases fat storing hormone production and increases cravings for more sweets and refined carbohydrates in the time period after consuming the diet drink.

Another reason is that people may subconsciously think that because they are drinking a diet soda, that gives them more leeway to eat more of everything else, hence consuming more calories overall.

I’ve said this all along, but the bottom line is that if you’re serious about your health and body, soda of any kind (and artificial sweeteners in anything for that matter!) should be avoided at all times, except for very rare occasions when you can’t avoid them.

So what is a good alternative to diet sodas?

The best alternatives are good old water with lemon or unsweetened iced teas… you have plenty of options with teas – green, white, black, oolong, red… be creative in making your iced teas and you’ll enjoy it more. Plus you’ll get a more diverse array of antioxidants.

Notify Others You Are On a Diet.

Making your diet public is a form of affirmation. It is not an easy thing to keep your diet a secret from others and there is no motive for you to do that anyway. Telling others that you are on a diet can really benefit you in the long run. More people would be able to help you on your mission and you can depend on them more for morale support.

The key to a successful weight loss is motivation. You can get this from those around you, especially from your loved ones. If you hear negative comments, just brush them off and think of the positive effects of what you are doing.

Don’t Forget to Drink Lots of Water.

Water is obviously very important to the body. It can even be more helpful during diets. Water doesn’t only help the body get rid of toxins and functions properly, but also eliminate cravings. A sudden shift in eating habits can cause unexpected cravings and hunger pangs. Water is very beneficial during these tough times.

A glass of cold water can effectively reduce any of your cravings even for just a moment. Whenever you feel like eating before meal time, grab a glass of water and drink until you feel the cravings melting away.

Buy a Weighing Scale.

You don’t have to buy those large weighing beams that they use at the hospitals. There are a number of digital scales available at your local hardware and electronic store. This is an important step in any diet; how else can you monitor your progress if you don’t own a scale? Always remember to choose a brand that is known for its reliability.

You can either go for a straightforward weighing scale that only has the basic ability to tell you how much you weight or one that has extra options like weight logging and comparison programs. The latter type of weighing scale is very useful in telling you just how you are developing through the diet.

Weigh Yourself Every Day.

Once you have acquired a weighing scale, position it in your bedroom where you can easily access it after waking up. Some people only weight themselves once weekly. Though this method is still effective, weighing yourself every day can tell your daily progress. This is even more evident if you purchase a weighing scale that is accurate to the last detail. Bear in mind that a 180.8 yesterday is different from 180.0. A weighing scale that can’t tell your accurate weight even to the last decimal is less useful.

Losing as little as .8 in your weight is significant because it shows you exactly how your diet is working. Keep in mind that the diet is only as good as its results. Continue to find more guidelines for a 10-pound weight loss or be creative and make one. You don’t know how much they can help you achieve your goal.

I was reading a statistic in a nutrition book recently, and this is going to shock you…

Now before I tell you the statistic, let’s keep an important fact in mind… according to well renowned nutrition author Michael Pollan, and his amazing book called In Defense of Food, humankind has historically consumed approximately 80,000 different species of edible plants, animals, and fungi, and approximately 3,000 of those have been widespread foods of the human diet.

Now get ready for a shocking and appalling statistic…

Currently, the average adult in the US consumes approximately 67% of their total caloric intake from only 3 foods — CORN, SOY, AND WHEAT (and their derivatives).

What would be considered a reasonably healthy amount of corn, soy, and wheat in the human diet?  Based on 10′s of thousands of years of human history, and what the natural diet of our ancestors was (indicating what our digestive systems are still programmed to process), this would probably be in the range of about 1% to 5% MAX of our total calories from corn, soy, and wheat.

Considering that modern humans are eating 67% of their total calories from corn, soy, wheat… you can see why we have massive problems in our health, and our weight!

It’s not a surprise that we have so many intolerances and allergies, specifically to soy and wheat (and gluten intolerance)… the human digestive system was simply never meant to consume these substances in such MASSIVE quantities.

Keep in mind that these massively high levels of corn, soy, and wheat in our modern human diet is a relatively new phenomenon that originated from the economics of the multi-billion dollar corn, soy, and wheat industries.  It really HAS been all about the money… NOT about our health!

By “derivatives” of corn, soy, and wheat, this means the food additives such as:

* High fructose corn syrup (HFCS)

* Corn oil

* Soybean oil (hydrogenated or plain refined)

* Soy protein

* Refined wheat flour

* Hundreds of other food additives such as maltodextrin, corn or wheat starch, soy lecithin, mono and diglycerides, etc, etc

This doesn’t surprise me… consider how much soda or other sweetened drinks (with loads of HFCS) that the average person drinks daily… this is a LOT of calories from just 1 sole corn derivative.  Even marinades, salad dressings, ketchup, breads, and 100′s of other foods contain loads of belly-fattening HFCS!

Also think about how many processed foods we have that are either fried in soybean or corn oil… and even if the foods are not fried in these oils, these oils are additives to almost every processed food… chips, candies, cakes, salad dressings, tomato sauces, burrito wraps, corn chips, breaded chicken, etc, etc.  This is a LOT of calories from these 2 other corn and soy derivatives… both of them EXTREMELY UNHEALTHY!

On top of that, think about how much breads, cereals, pastas, muffins, and other highly processed wheat products that most people consume each day.  Again, this is LOADS of unhealthy, blood-sugar spiking, nutrient-poor calories, that more than half of the population has some degree of intolerance to anyway.

It gets even worse!

Not only are we eating 67% of our total calories from corn, soy, and wheat… but because of the economics involved (specifically with cheap corn and soy) we are also feeding most of our farm animals corn and soy now too… again amplifying the amount of corn and soy that passes through the food chain and (from a biochemical standpoint) ends up in our bodies.

Probably the 2 worst examples of this blatant mismanagement of our food supply is how our factory farmed chickens and cows are fed.

Cows are fed mostly corn in factory feedlot farms, even though their digestive systems are only meant to eat grass and other forage. This makes the cows sick (hmm… E-coli anyone?), alters the omega-6 to omega-3 ratio of the fats to unhealthy levels, and also diminishes the healthy CLA fats that would occur naturally in grass-fed beef.  All of these problems go away if our cows are fed what they were made to eat naturally – grass!

Our chickens are also fed a diet of mostly corn and soy and crowded in tight pens in horrendous conditions… when the fact is that a chicken was meant to roam around the outdoors eating a mixture of greens, insects, worms, seeds, etc.  When chickens are kept inside in tight quarters and fed only grains, it leads to an unhealthy meat for you to eat, and less healthy eggs, compared to free-roaming chickens that are allowed to eat an outdoors diet.

Our food supply has gotten so screwed up that we’re even feeding our salmon and other farmed fish corn and soy…again because of the economics involved.  How ludicrous is this, considering that fish are meant to eat a diverse diet of smaller fish, worms, bugs, etc.  Again this makes farm raised fish unhealthy in terms of nutrition compared to the wild counterparts.

So even when you’re eating chicken, beef, and fish, you’re still essentially getting even MORE corn and soy into your body…considering that the cows, chickens, and farmed fish ate mostly soy and corn.

So it’s actually WORSE than just 67% isn’t it!

Why is it so unhealthy to consume 2/3rds of our calories from corn, soy, and wheat?

Well, this section could encompass an entire book, so to keep this short, I’ll just throw out a few random reasons…

* Skews the ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 fats in our diet to as high as 30:1, when a ratio of 1:1 to 2:1 is considered healthy.

* Problems with gluten intolerance (related to heavy wheat consumption)

* Problems with weight gain, blood-sugar swings, and reduced insulin sensitivity (and progression of diabetes) due to excessive refined corn and wheat flours, as well as HFCS in our diet

* Soy and corn are the most genetically modified crops (which also allows more pesticides and herbicides to be used, which are usually “xenoestrogens”)

* Many of the pesticide and herbicide residues in these crops are xenoestrogens, which can increase “stubborn” belly fat

* Soy products and derivatives contain a double-whammy of xenoestrogens as well as phytoestrogens… again creating an environment in your body for fat storage, carcinogenic effects, and even “man boobs” for some men in very severe cases

* The feeding of corn and soy to animals reduces the health and nutritional benefits of those animal products

* and the list could go on and on and on…

So how do you avoid this overwhelming amount of corn, soy, and wheat in our food supply, and finally take control of your weight and your health?

1. Don’t purchase processed foods!  It all starts with your grocery cart discipline… choose only 1-ingredient foods such as fruits, veggies, beans, eggs (free roaming), nuts, seeds, and meats from grass-fed or free roaming animals that are raised correctly.  Only resort to junk foods or processed foods on a 1-day per week “cheat day” but ONLY when dining out… that way, the processed foods aren’t in your house to tempt you.

2. Get most of your carbs from fruits and veggies instead of grains.

3.  Avoid store bought salad dressings as they almost always contain soybean oil and HFCS.

4. Make sure that your tomato sauces don’t have HFCS and soybean oils… look for sauces made with olive oil instead.  Remember to avoid unhealthy canola oils too!

5. If you like guacamole (one of the healthiest snacks on the planet!), try veggie sticks with guacamole instead of genetically-modified, oil-soaked corn chips

6. If you like hummus, try veggies sticks with hummus instead of pita chips or other bread.

7. Reduce your cereal, bread, and pasta intake by having these foods only on “cheat days” and stick to more of the 1-ingredient foods I mentioned in #1 above.  Try some healthy snacks as good alternatives.

I could go on with more examples, but I think that’s good for now.

So with all of this said… Is my diet perfect?  Well, no of course not!  Nobody is perfect, and I can give in to temptation on occasion just like anybody else.

However, I’d estimate that my corn/soy/wheat consumption is only about 2-4% of my total caloric intake compared to 67% for the average person.  The way that I achieve this is to simply not bring any corn, soy, or wheat products into my house, so I’m never tempted by it.  Therefore, at least 6 days/week, I eat virtually no corn/soy/wheat, except for the occasional piece of sprouted grain toast a couple times a week (which is a better option than typical “whole grain” bread).

I do, however, give in and sometimes eat breads, pasta, and even corn chips, etc. when I’m dining out.  I see these as my cheat meals and try to do this no more than once per week.  I still completely eliminate sodas and deep fried foods though…they are just TOO evil!

Here’s an article by Mike Geary, Certified Personal Trainer and Nutrition Specialist

I bet you didn’t know that there is a specific class of vegetables that contain very specific phytonutrients that actually help to fight against stubborn belly fat.

Let me explain what these unique vegetables are and why they help to burn stomach fat…

Chemicals that force your body to hold onto belly fat

Something you may have never heard about is that certain chemicals in our food supply and our environment, such as pesticides, herbicides, and certain petrochemicals from air and water pollution, household cleaners, cosmetics, etc can react with your body and make your body store excess abdominal fat.

These chemicals are known as xenoestrogens.

Xenoestrogens are chemicals that you are exposed to (and are hard to avoid in the modern world) that have an estrogenic effect in your body.  Excess exposure to these can cause hormone balance disruptions for both men and women. So these can wreak havoc in the body for both guys and gals.

These estrogenic chemicals that we are exposed to on a daily basis can stimulate your body to store belly fat, along with many other problems (including cancer risks in the long term).

So here’s where this specific class of vegetables comes in handy…

One of those cool tricks that I teach my clients that hire me for nutritional counseling is the use of cruciferous vegetables to help fight against stomach fat.

Cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, kale, cabbage, etc. contain very specific and unique phytonutrients such as indole-3-carbinol (I3C) that help to fight against these estrogenic compounds…

And by fighting against these belly fat stimulating estrogenic chemicals, this is just 1 more step in helping you to win the battle against abdominal fat!

So there you go… just another excuse to do what mom always told you and eat more broccoli!

I’ve really learned to like brussells sprouts in the last year too… Melt a little grass-fed cheese on them and some garlic and they’re great!

You’ll need a yoga mat (or a bath towel and a chair)

90-Degree Lift … Targets: Butt, Outer and Inner Thighs

• Stand with feet shoulder-width apart, holding one end of rolled-up mat (or chair back) in front of you with both hands.

• Bend knees slightly and hinge forward from hips, extending arms to plant vertical mat on floor a few feet in front of left foot so that back is parallel to floor.

• Keep both hands on top of mat for support and extend right leg out to side, toes pointed.

• Keeping abs engaged, back flat, and mat upright, exhale as you lift right leg out to side as high as possible. Hold for 3 seconds, then lower leg.

• Do 10 to 15 reps, holding the last leg lift for 10 seconds. Switch legs and repeat.

Heaven and Earth … Targets: Back, Abs, Butt, and Quads

• Stand with feet together, holding one end of rolled-up mat (or towel) in each hand, palms in, arms extended at shoulder level in front of you.

• Lower into a squat, then exhale slowly as you fold upper body over thighs, forming a ball: Tuck chin and bend elbows to pull mat to knees.

• Maintaining squat, uncurl upper body as you extend arms diagonally overhead.

• Return to tucked ball position. Do 15 reps

Open and Shut … Targets: Shoulders, Back, Abs, and Quads

• Stand with feet together, toes pointed out to sides, holding rolled-up mat (or towel) near ends in front of thighs with both hands.

• Extend right leg in front of you, toes on floor. Reach arms overhead, leaning back to form a diagonal line from right hand to right toes

• Bring mat to shoulder level while lifting right leg to hip level in front of you. Hold for one breath; lower leg and lift arms.

• Do 10 reps. Switch legs and repeat