Five Painless Ways to Cut 500 Calories!

Congratulations! You've done an amazing job sticking with your Meal and Fitness plans, and you've seen results! Now, you may be experiencing something that is all too common on a weight loss journey — plateau. Don't stress! A slowdown in weight loss is totally normal at this stage in the game. Cutting a few hundred calories a day is a good place to start, and you may not even notice that they're gone! Here are some ideas:

• Downsize it! Order a small instead of a medium. Go for the smaller-sized tortilla instead of the large. Grab a smaller handful of nuts. All these little changes add up in big ways!
• Avoid the fat. Fat calories add up quickly, so cut them when you can. Buy tuna packed only in water. Skip the oil entirely if you're sautéing onions or mushrooms. Use herbs and spices for flavor instead of butter, margarine, or spreads. You won't even notice the difference!
• Don't clean your plate. Leave behind just a few bites from every meal. You'd be surprised how just a few bites of food can suddenly become hundreds of calories saved!
• Go for whole! Fruit and vegetable juices can be loaded with calories, especially if they contain sugar! Choose the whole fruit or vegetable instead. Not only will you save tons of calories but you'll get a lot of valuable fiber! Now, that's smart eating!
• Skip the extras. Dressings, croutons, cheese, mayo, sour cream: All these extras — even the low-fat varieties — can add up, even in small portions. Forget about them! You can do it!