Let’s just be honest here.  Most of us truly want to lose weight at some point in our lives.  Whether it be for health or vanity reasons, it is a goal that many of us embark on and will struggle with, and rarely is it an easy task.  These 5 Easy Diet Changes That Promote Weight Loss are simple and easy to make into habits.  They allow you the chance to make positive changes without feeling deprived or stressed about every little calorie or hour on the treadmill.

Cut the Starches In Half.  Instead of having the whole baked potato, all of the rice with take out or 2 pieces of toast cut your serving in half.  This is actually what a regular serving is closer to being.  You can replace the missing portion with more vegetables or simply leave your plate a little more sparse for extra calorie savings.

Skip Dessert.  Make dessert a rarity rather than the norm on your menu.  Save 200-300 calories a day if you skip desserts and treats.  You can apply this as you would the no soft drink rule.  Make week days no dessert days but allow treats in limits on the weekends.

Skip Creamy Salad Dressings.  Ranch Dressing is by far the most popular salad dressing and dip in the United States but it is also laden with fat and calories.  While low fat varieties may offer the flavor you want they are often still high in sugar and calories.  Skip the creamy dressings and top your salads with salsa, lime juice or a flavorful vinaigrette.

Don’t Clean Your Plate.  It has been proven time and again that we as a society have inflated our portion sizes to astronomical proportions.  The average meal out at a restaurant contains easily 3 full portions for an adult.  Make a rule of eating only half or less of an entree you order in a restaurant.  At home use the smaller plates in the cabinet or even invest in a portion control plate that will help you visualize what healthy portions are. We love using the healthy portions plates that make it easy for us to see how much of each item we should be eating to be in a healthy portion range.

Don’t Eat Seconds (Except of healthy vegetables).  Skip the second portion of protien or grains.  If you are still legitimately hungry have another portion of healthy (steamed, roasted, baked or boiled) vegetables. 

Still hungry? Push your plate away, sip water and chat with your friends or family at the table.  Allow your body to digest what has been eaten and send the proper signals to your brain telling you that your need has been satisfied.