# Diet tips that actually work **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 16, 2012, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860 "2012-09-16T08:22:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2012, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/61 "2012-09-18T20:49:49Z")
One of my favorite diet tips came from a four year old who was trying to leave the table against her mother’s wishes to have her eat some more. Mother: You should eat more because you’ll get hungry later. Child: If I get hungry later, I’ll _eat_ later. The mother took this to heart and lost forty pounds. ---
**Author:** ![Tapiotar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3be4f8/32.png) [@Tapiotar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapiotar)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2012, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/62 "2012-09-18T23:04:01Z")
> [@badger5149](#): > > Years ago I got a new apt and had no cooking set up. Everymorning I headed to the donut shop and picked up a cinnomon roll and coffee. The sweet breakfast seemed to kill my apetitie and I lost about 40# in 5 or 6 months. This same breakfast would leave me ravenously hungry and overeating all day. Glad it works for you, though. Human bodies are built to different specs. ---
**Author:** ![nashiitashii](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7c8e57/32.png) [@nashiitashii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nashiitashii)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2012, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/63 "2012-09-18T23:47:43Z")
I’ve found that, for me, having one or two light meals really helps. My usual go-to light meal? Soup and salad or half a sandwich and a cup of soup. Usually the sandwich has a lean meat or a lot of veggies, and the soup is in a reasonable portion (1-2 cups at the most). Additionally, if I have salad, I need a high protein oily fish to go with it. ---
**Author:** ![Rand\_Rover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/db5fbb/32.png) [@Rand\_Rover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rand_Rover)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2012, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/64 "2012-09-19T00:58:47Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > Ladies, don’t be afraid to lift weights and lift heavy! It’s beneficial for weight loss, bone health and a ton of other stuff that I don’t even know about. > > You will not get bulky (unless you want to). Women who bulk up put in more time and effort into their lifting and diet than anyone could ever imagine. They weren’t one day trying to lose a few pounds then became world-class bodybuilders against their will. > > You don’t have to be relegated to the treadmill floor or the zumba room - get in there and lift! Word. I hate it when I’m in the gym and see a personal trainer (blech! but that’s another thread) taking female trainee through a bunch of useless bullshit. She’d be much better served squatting and deadlifting and benching and overhead pressing, but many personal trainers don’t even suggest those things for women. Also, as far as diet tips go, I’m afraid I’m not much help–I’m usually concerned about not eating enough. But when it comes to eating well, I can really only follow big broad rules, like “don’t eat anything fried” or “don’t eat a bunch of sugar.” I just lift a bunch and try to eat enough. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2012, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/65 "2012-09-19T01:26:12Z")
Blargh. But lifting weights is hard and is sucks. Cycling rules! ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2012, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/66 "2012-09-19T01:59:14Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Blargh. But lifting weights is hard and is sucks. Cycling rules! Cycling is for sissies. And it sucks. It most certainly does not “rule”. ---
**Author:** ![MeanOldLady](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/meanoldlady/32/10737_2.png) [@MeanOldLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MeanOldLady)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2012, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/67 "2012-09-19T02:41:53Z")
Heh. I’ll give you a pass, but for everyone else, no dice. ---
**Author:** ![Max\_Torque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Max\_Torque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_Torque)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2012, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/68 "2012-09-19T15:32:04Z")
> [@MeanOldLady](#): > > Bada bing. People are complete psychos (myself included) when it comes to eating what’s in front of them, no matter how much is in front of them, so do not place a lot in front of you. One will often be sated well before finishing the plate, but will continue eating because it’s there. So I only have small plates in my apt which makes it easy to eat small meals. Also, because I am the “eat it if it’s there” type, I’ve learned to Tupperware what I’ve cooked and put it in the fridge right away. If it’s sitting on the stove just hanging out, I’ll go up to it with a fork and just eat a little bit more, and more, okay let me put one more giant scoop on my plate, oh one more bite, and so on. If I put it away, then I can’t be bothered to bring it back out, heat it up, etc. I’ll only bother with all of that if I’m actually hungry. > > Another thing is just don’t buy junk snack food. Period. Again, I have poor impulse control, so if there are Doritos in my home, I am going to eat the shit out of them. I cannot control myself; I will just eat every fucking chip in that bag, and then lick the cheese dust off my fingers after. So I just don’t do it. I have zero junk snacks in my home at all. Doing this has reprogrammed my mind to not even want to eat just because. Eating in my mind is now a process that involves doing a lot of shit, so I don’t even bother unless I actually want to eat. > > Yeesh, typing this makes me realize how bad I am at saying no to things I like, so maybe this doesn’t apply to you. But if you’re like me, the short answer is create an environment that eliminates temptation to stuff too much of and/or the wrong things into your face. And along those lines, my favorite diet tip is: **never eat anything out of the package it came in.** You want a cookie? Fine, we all deserve a cookie now and then. Go get a cookie, _close the package and put it away_, and walk away and enjoy your cookie. You want some chips? Great, chips are yummy. Get a little bowl, put a handful of chips in it, _close the bag and put it away_, then walk away and enjoy your chips. When you eat from a package, there’s no line telling your where to stop, so you won’t. Everyone feels snacky now and then, and that’s fine. But get one serving, enough to satisfy your urge to crunch or whatever, and then close that package before you eat a single bite. In the chips example, you can reinforce it by making yourself wash the bowl before you eat any more chips; the more work is involved in snacking, the less snack-prone you’ll be. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2012, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/69 "2012-09-19T16:34:26Z")
Good points, **Max** - if I keep my junk food by the couch, I sit and eat it. If I keep it in the kitchen cupboard, it lasts a lot longer. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2012, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860/70 "2012-09-19T16:52:28Z")
Make your own food with ingredients you bought for yourself. Don’t eat out, don’t eat out of boxes or your freezer. Figure out for yourself what works for you, what kind of changes in your diet you’re comfortable with, and find a cuisine that caters to that. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/diet-tips-that-actually-work/634860.md?page=3)