some 10 steps to lose weight

1. Be realistic. One pound of fat equals 3,500 calories. To lose a pound, you need to consume 3,500 fewer calories. A realistic weight-loss goal, one pound a week, means cutting back just 500 calories per day. You may want to lose more than a pound a week, but if you cut your calorie consumption too drastically, your metabolism slows down, and your body starts storing calories instead of burning them.

2. Don't even call it a diet. Some people don't mind the word diet. To others, it conjures up visions of torture and misery. If you're in the second group, don't say you're "going on a diet" - say you're "starting a new eating plan" instead.
Think of a diet that is not as deprivation but as cleansing your body from the inside out, freeing yourself of fat.

3. Make your dieting/eating plan healthy. The best weight-loss plan, according to experts at the American Dietetic Association, should:
provide all the nutrients you need;
fit your personal tastes and eating habits;
keep you from feeling hungry;
keep you from feeling fatigued;
allow you to eat away from home; and
be something you can follow for the rest of your life.
This last point is the most important. Your goal is to establish new eating patterns, not simply to lose weight and then revert to the same old patterns that put on the weight in the first place.

4. Forget fad diets. They may help drop pounds quickly, but they exact a heavy price. Low-carb diets (lots of meat, skip the rice) can cause severe fatigue and headaches. Worse yet, most of the weight you lose will be water weight, which is quickly regained once you go off the diet.
Before you go on a fad diet, ask yourself:
Can you follow it for more than a few weeks?
Is it nutricious?
Does it fit into your lifestyle?
Is it reasonable?
Can you shop in your usual store or does it require foods that are expensive or difficult to obtain?
5. Show a little restraint. You don't have to go on a full-fledged diet to change your eating habits. Some restraint - eating a little less of this, skipping a little of that - during your regular meals can help you cut way back on calories.

6. Conduct research on yourself. Behavioral scientists say the mere act of recording a behavior often leads to a change in that behavior.
Try it. For two weeks, record what you eat, the amount you eat and the time you eat. Be honest. Make your notes every time you eat. You may "forget" if you wait until the end of the day. Don't try to alter your eating habits - after you are aware of what you really eat you can start to make changes.

7. Eat a well-balanced diet. Knowing the food groups help you plan a well-balanced weight-loss diet.

8. Cut back on fat.If you make just one change in orer to lose weight, this is it.
An ounce of fat has twice as many calories as an ounce of protein or carbohydrate, and dietary fat actually turns into body fat more quickly. Fat to your lips, in other words, is almost instant fat to your hips.
Which brings up another interesting point: Fat actually contributes to food cravings.

9. Take your salad naked. How much fat is in a tablespoon of salad dressing? Try 7 or 8 grams for most types. Even sour cream has half the fat of sald dressing. And let's be honest: When was the last time you used a single tablespoon of dressing on your salad?
Lose fat instantly by substituting low-calorie dressing for the regular stuff. Better yet, pass on the oil and sprinkle your salad with wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar or a squeeze of lemon juice and a little pepper and salt. Or skip the dressing altogether and use saucy foods as a culinary counterpoint. Spaghetti, chili and pizza are great with naked salad greens. Undressed salad takes a little getting used to, but your taste buds will soon thank you.

10. Use whipped butter or margarine. As much as you're trying to cut down on fat, some things just don't taste right without a little butter or margarine. Use the whipped varieties sold in little tubs. Because their fat molecules are mixed with a lot of air, they contain about half the calories and fat grams of sticks.