The No "Diet" Diet

Let's face it, diets stink. No one likes cutting carbs out of their diet or eating a grapefruit as an entire meal. Our society is constantly telling us to diet in order to achieve our ideal physique. Perfection seems like a bit of a stretch, not to mention putting yourself on a pedestal, but a healthy body and a trim waist are something we can all achieve without cutting out all the flavor.

Follow these tricks, tips, and techniques to slim down to a healthier you, no diets necessary, in only a few weeks.

Wonder Bread is Not So Wonderful After All:
White flour is an old enemy of the bathing suit, as it puffs up your body in all the areas revealed by that new two piece. White flour has little nutritional value and a plethora of calories, as well as sugars, making it a less than healthy decision. Nutritionist Fran Gare says that if she could ban one food it would be "white flour," as it is no good for the body. By simply switching to whole wheat you can nourish your body better and lose weight without skipping on the pasta. Swap white rice for brown, white bread for whole wheat, and white potatoes for sweet potatoes. If whole wheat pasta leaves you reaching for a salad, try the Barilla Plus, which is multi-grain pasta that has all the flavor and texture of regular pasta without the carbs and calories. Whole wheat flour has even more flavor than white flour, so substituting is not only the healthier option, it's also the tastier one.

Satiating Sweetness:
A life without chocolate is not a life worth living. Cutting out all the candy, cookies, and ice cream from your diet may make you lose five pounds, but it may also make you miserable, which will cause you to gain back eight pounds. Bikini season is no reason to skimp on the sweets. Instead, make some healthy substitutions, like sugar free cookies or low fat granola bars, and watch the weight melt away.

Ice cream should be a treat, not a daily indulgence, so put down the pint of Ben and Jerry's. Reach for diet ice cream, like Skinny Cow or Weight Watchers, or opt for low fat frozen yogurt. Haagen Dazs makes a low fat coffee fro yo that is out of this world. Fat free sorbet, which comes in a large range of fruity flavors, is super low in calories and light enough to act as a refreshing, yet satisfying dessert.

Brown Bag It:
Buying lunch everyday not only places a burden on your wallet, it also places a tire around your waist. Heros dripping with sauce or fries saturated in grease are a sure fire way to guarantee you'll be wearing a cover-up all summer. While it is okay to treat yourself to a cheesy panini once a week, try to cut back on both the fat content and the spending for the rest of the week by making your own midday meal at home.

Buy whole grain bread, a low fat cheese of your choice (skip the fat free cheeses, as cardboard has more flavor), some lean turkey or chicken breast, low fat mayo, roasted red peppers, and bam! You now have more than a weeks worth of lunches for the same price as two Big Macs. Up the flavor without adding any calories by chopping up a handful of fresh basil and adding it along with a few drops of lemon juice to the jar of mayonnaise; it'll add a cool and fresh dimension.

Breakfast In Bed:
Most of us do not have the time during the work week to fry up a couple of eggs before dashing out the door, so the weekends become a time to sip your coffee without spilling it on your newspaper as you run down the subway steps. While French toast may sound absolutely wonderful on Sunday mornings, you'll be regretting that extra dollop of syrup when you have to loosen your belt notches Monday morning. Stick with the idea of a big Sunday breakfast, but cut out the fat, leaving only the tasty flavor behind.

Ditch the yolks, and make an egg whites only omelet, which has all the protein from the egg with only a third of the calories and no fat. Fry a few pieces of turkey bacon, which has less than 1% of fat in an entire package. Remember bacon releases its own oil so no oil required. Once it is crispy, crumble it up into your omelet mixture. Next, dice up some turkey breast, a few pieces of broccoli, and grate a handful of cheese. Mix together, pour into your hot fry pan, and bing, bang, boom -- breakfast. Toast up a few pieces of whole wheat bread and cut up a piece of fresh fruit for a super satisfying weekend treat that will fill you up and slim you down with each forkful.

Oil Up:
Oils serve so many wonderful purposes from deep frying to sauteing to amping up your tan and making your hair shinny. Oils contain healthy fats which help to regulate the body and slim down the waistline. Substitute butter whenever possible for olive oil, sunflower oil, grape seed oil, or any other oil that you prefer. Olive oil in particular is incredibly versatile, as it can be used for salads, vegetable stir-fries, and pasta sauces like basil pesto, which is an excellent summer pasta. Sesame oil is a great way to add flavor to a marinade without loading up on calories or saturated fats. Soybean oil, which has complete proteins, contains all the amino acids that are crucial to human nutrition, making it a heart healthy culinary substitute.

Now, are you ready for the number one way to lose weight and shape up without dieting? Well, here it is: no soda. Soda is full of empty calories, body attacking sugars, and caffeine. If you are dying for a root beer with your slice of pizza, make it a diet root beer. Other than the occasional treat, cut soda completely out of your diet, pump yourself full of water, and watch as the pounds effortlessly peel away.

— Written by Alexis Popov

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