How to Lose Weight Without Trying

Losing weight doesn't have to be a painful experience wracked with cravings and crabbiness. Nor do you have to go broke buying diet books, or hit the gym 7 days a week like Britney Spears preparing for a concert tour.  Here are a few easy ways to lose weight without even trying.

Avoid the “low fat” foods. While "low fat" foods have fewer calories than normal food, the difference is not that great, calorie-wise. Many “low fat” foods actually replace fat with carbohydrates that your body digests quickly, giving you a sugar rush and rebound hunger. Soon you'll want to eat more of these “low fat” foods (more calories).

Read the labels of packaged and canned foods carefully. Many times they will list the calories as “per serving size,” but you need to check to see how many servings are included in your package or can. For example, if a can of spaghetti has 230 calories per serving, but a single can includes 3 servings, then you could be eating close to 700 calories.

Drink less soda. The average American reportedly drinks a gallon of soda per week, which accounts for thousands of empty calories. You can literally lose weight just by cutting back on this liquid sugar, but you don’t have to give it up cold turkey. Why not drink half a soda today and the other half tomorrow?

Drink more water. This may seem obvious, but most people do not drink nearly enough water. H2O keeps your organs healthy and hydrated, and can help you lose weight. If you drink just two cups of water before each meal, it will help fill your stomach so that you don’t eat as much. Drinking water can also help boost your metabolism so that you burn more calories (up to 50 a day).

Do not skip meals. Skipping meals may seem like a good way to lose weight, but when you skip, your metabolism (which burns calories) slows down. Your body goes into “fat storing” mode as it thinks that food must be scarce. So your body works to retain fat for survival, not lose it. In the long run, skipping meals is not sustainable, but switching to health eating habits is.

Eat what you can gather. Imagine you’re living in the woods, far away from civilization and you can only eat what you can gather: fruits, vegetables and nuts. Try making those foods part of your regular meals. If you like to munch on food, try a head of lettuce. You’ll fill up quickly with few, if any, calories. 

Stop eating when you feel full. This can be a tricky one, but the moment you feel full, drop your fork or spoon. Your body is telling you something: game over. Pack the rest of the food away as a leftover. You really have concentrate for this "full" feeling, but if you are looking for it, your body will signal when it’s full.