Grab your sparklers, sunglasses and a pen topped with a red, white & blue feather because you just might want to take a few savvy Diet Notes - and Diet Notes we have to help keep your Fourth of July holiday lean and fun.

For anyone who has ever been on a diet before, the holidays commonly present the greatest challenge. A simple holiday can be the stick in the Diet Trail that can dislodge the best of dieters from meeting their weight loss goals.

Given such, it's important to prepare yourself for 'battle' before the holiday commences. Here are a few snazzy diet tips that we hope will keep your Diet Sparkler lit until you cross over the Weight Loss Finish Line.

4th of July 'Diet' Menu

Needless to say, the challenge is keeping calories low without starving yourself on the holiday. So many times, food choices are mined with sugar and fat, thus sending calories to Venus and beyond - much higher than any manmade bottle rocket. The following COOL food choices can help satisfy your appetite and taste buds without blowing the numbers off your weight scales. All the links lead to recipes embedded within Diet Bites:

low fat cottage cheese, coleslaw, chilled veggie platter, light sour cream for dipping, pickled beets, three-bean salad, carrot & raisin salad, crisp salads with light dressing and the minimal of cheese.

The following HOT food choices can also keep calories at bay:

grilled meats, oven-roasted meats, pan-seared meats that are fully-cooked in their own juices or with a bit of olive oil or cooking spray, baked potato with a dab of butter and/or light sour cream, and any vegetable that isn't taking a bath in butter or margarine.

4th of July 'Diet' Tips

When preparing meat, choose the leanest cut OR at least remove all visible fat before consuming.

If you're firing-up the grill, make life easy. Wrap corn in foil and roast on grill; place a small pot of canned beans on the grill burner, grill some veggie shish kabobs.

Decide what you're going to eat BEFORE you settle in at the table.

There are a couple of ways to approach the holiday dining experience. 1) enjoy full servings of only the foods you really like on the table OR 2) try a spoon or two of everything on the table. If your holiday table is like most holiday tables, a bounty therein lies.

The foods that are dazzling with color tend to be foods lowest in calories: orange carrots, red tomatoes, green lettuce. However, watch out for some color-dazzlers such as yellow butter brown chocolate.

If you make homemade ice cream, opting for the manual crank method will help burn off a few calories.

Desserts that are fruit-based tend to be one of your best choices. At least the fruit provides a bit of nutrition. A very light and refreshing Red, White & Blue dessert is to fill a dessert shell made of sponge cake with fresh sliced strawberries and blueberries, then top with light topping. If more sweetness is desired, add a bit of sugar or Splenda. Sprinkle top with red, white & blue sprinkles.

Barring rainstorms, July 4th generally presents an opportune time to offset food with activity - so be sure to take advantage of that. A few fun suggestions include: horseshoes, volleyball, a hula-hoop contest, jump rope contest, or a fun walk with the family or friends. Grab a few punch balls, drag out the water hose for shower bath fun or have a water balloon fight.

In Summary

Please keep your holiday safe whether you're shooting off fireworks or traveling on the road. The news continues to be filled with incidences of drivers drifting off to sleep which end in tragedy - so let's learn from that and use that knowledge. If you get tired, please pull off the road and catch some sleep.

Diet Bites also has a Fourth of July Party Planner for dieters located here.

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