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What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the word ‘diet’? When most people think about a diet, they tend to imagine stale meal plans with boring salads, mouse-sized portions and padlocks on all of your favorite foods. When we think about the ‘diet’ word, what comes to mind is the mantra ‘Don’t Imagine Eating This’. This is because the wrong message is being sent by these trendy fad diets and deprivation diets. You should not have to starve your body into submission in order to become healthy. Because really what is so healthy about starving yourself of the things it needs most? Dieting should really be about developing healthful habits, which can be fun and positive if you strive to make it that way.

Every food has its own specific benefits and drawbacks, and all foods have been created to nourish us in one way or another. Even chocolate, which most diets completely outlaw, has been known to protect against heart disease and high blood pressure as well. The biggest, most important key in being healthy while still managing to enjoy your favorite foods is to find the right balance. Too much of any food can hurt, even if all you eat is vegetables. But on that same note, too little of everything can also hurt you.

In order to properly fuel your body for the best performance while still managing to lose weight, there are four main strategies which you should employ when setting up an effective program for weight loss.

- Control all of your food portions. You never need to eat anything in a “biggie” size. It costs more money and it’s a waste of food.

- Make intelligent food substitutions. You can easily substitute healthier, low fat foods in for higher fat options. For example, add mustard to a sandwich instead of mayonnaise and you can save yourself 88 calories a serving!

- Focus on the “power foods”. Power foods are high in protein and high in fiber with a handful of complex carbs, but they are generally much lower in calories. These are the best foods for power-packed meals that aren’t hard on the calories.

- Observe your Eating Habits. Avoid emotional binge eating, mindless eating and over-portion eating by observing all of your eating habits. The more you know about your own eating habits, the better you can learn to control them properly.