By giving a little direction to one's lifestyle and making simple protein and carbohydrate combinations in one's diet, one can lose weight and stay healthy throughout his/her life.

Nutrition Pearls to Lose Weight

• Increase your physical activity: Daily one hour brisk walk is must or go for aerobics/ yoga lasting 20-45 minutes depending on your health, fitness and overall commitment to lose weight.
• Try strength building activities on a regular basis. Strength training increases muscle mass and muscles keep fat burning mode on, in our body while we are completely at rest.
• Stop taking excess of fried food items
• Drink 10 to 12 glasses of water in a day – try warm water
• Eat less but don’t starve yourself, otherwise you will lose more muscle and water than fat.
• Skipping a meal slows metabolism to conserve energy. And when you lose weight too quickly, your body takes it as threat (starvation) and goes into survival mode. It fights to conserve your fat stores, and then weight loss comes mostly from water and muscle wastage.
• Never skip a meal, especially breakfast, and eat healthy snacks between meals. Eating frequently prevents hunger pangs and the binges that follow, provides consistent energy, and is the single most effective way to maintain metabolism efficiency.
• Increase fiber intake. Fiber makes us feel full sooner and stays in our stomach longer than other substances we eat, slowing down our rate of digestion and keeping us feeling full longer.
• Plan the week's family menu in advance and purchase those ingredients once at a weekly shopping trip.
• Avoid removing the skins of fruits and vegetables - most of the nutrients are concentrated just under the skin.
• Try eating 3 hours or more before bed time.
• Cut up a whole watermelon and leave it in the fridge to snack on over a few days. It is sweet, juicy, yummy and filling.
• Limit salt in cooking.
• Avoid soft drinks and adding sugar to the fresh juices
• Don't lose control in a restaurant or a friend's home, and just don't eat everything that's put in front of you.