Measure your foods. Doing this tedious chore for a dew days can help train your eye to recognize portion sizes. 

Don't count calories. Opinions differ on this one, but most experts suggest changing the way you eat, rather than allotting yourself only so many calories a day. 

Cut out the alcohol. You could say a martini is "empty calories" - it has no nutritional benefits. Despite that, alcohol may encourage fat distribution around the waist. The average American gets ten percent of calories from alcohol, so abstinence for some could mean a substantial drop in calories. Some people can lose weight just by giving up beer. 

Eat breakfast. And lunch. And dinner. Skipping meals lead to binge eating. It's the body's attempt to make up for lack of food intake as it goes into starvation mode. If you get one-fourth of your calories at each meal, you'll lose the urge to snack as well. 

Make sure you eat enough. That's music to any dieter's ears. Starvation diets may lead to bingeing and lowered metabolism. 

Don't make a lapse a collapse. Just because you fail one day and pig out on the wrong foods doesn't mean you should give up for good. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start over again the next day. 

Get your nutrients. You need two servings a day of meat, fish, poultry, ot meat substitutes like eggs, legumes, or nuts; two servings of dauty products (three for children and four for teenagers); four servings of fruits and vegetables; and four servings of breads, cereals, pastas and other grains. 

Cut the fat. Fat is where it's at if yu want to target on enemy of your waistline. And cutting our highfat foods can benefit much more than your figure - you'll lower your risk for heart disease and some cancers. Fat is nature's way of crowding a lot of calories - or energy - into food. A gram of fat (one-fourth of a teaspoon) caontains nine calories, while a gram of protein or carbohydrate has four. High-fat foods can fool you, too. They are small in amount but high in calories. 
Follow these pointers to cut the fat:  Switch to reduced-fat or nonfat salad dressing. Buy nonstick pans and use tiny amount of oil or nonstick spray. Eat less meat and cheese; both can be high in fat. But lean cuts of meat and trim the fat before cooking. Remove the 
   skin from poultry.  Don't fry. Instead, roast, bake, broil, or simmer meat, poultry and 
   fish. Choose low-fat dairy products, such as skim milk. Fill up your plate with vegetables, fruits, and grains, and don't 
   drown them in butter. Experiment with spices; use them to add flavor to your foods. Avoid nondairy creamers and topppings, which often contain high 
   amounts of saturated fats from palm or coconut oils. 

Exercise. Even nutritionists agree: Exercise appears to be the key in losing weight. The leanest people eat the most food, but they're the most active. Obviously, exercise burns calories. But according to some researchers, it may also increase your metabolism, possibly for as long as 18 hours after you've worked out. So you end up burning more calories, even after your workout.

        It's    very    likely    that television has contributed to the creation of a generation   of fat kids. Obesity  is on the increase    among   children. 
       Although  following  the weight-control     guidelines for adults can certainly help, you may  want  some  advise specifically targeted to kids. 

Teach   them  how  to  select foods.  If  you  can't  change where  they  it,    then  teach them to make  more  healthy choices. Encourage them to choose pizza with vegetable toppings   instead   of   meat toppings, us low-fat  cheese   and so on. 

Set a good  example.  Don't   just  tell  them  what  to   do, show them by adopting  the same healthy habits. 

Give them low-fat milk.     Once your children are over the     age    of    two     years, encourage  them   to   drink low-fat milk. 

Kick kids out of the house.   Get     them    to       exercise. Encourage   them   to   play; they'll burn off calories and excess weight that way. 

Take the children with you while   you  exercise.  Make    sure   you're   getting   some exercise on a regular basis. Walking  is one  way.  Take   the kids with you.