Dieting - Good Night Nurse!

Want to drop a few pounds or accelerate your current weight loss plan?

It's certainly no secret that losing weight is one of the most difficult things to do. It's an unwanted task - and when we have to drop weight, we like to drop it as quickly as possible.

But quick weight loss with lasting results is a rare thing. The good news is that it's achievable.

Here's a tip that might help with weight loss. When it's time to wrap up your long day and climb into bed for the night, your diet plan should have been tucked away hours prior for quick weight loss results.

Foods consumed late in the evening are difficult to burn off as your body winds down for the day and they may easily fly into your fat cells to be used another day.

The Big Three Dieting Mistakes

Diet Mistake #1 - Dieting without planning. This includes having a diet plan, a weight loss goal, and an activity schedule BEFORE setting out on a diet.

Diet Mistake #2 - Expecting too much in too little time. It takes a good while to pack on the pounds, and those " packed on pounds" unfortunately come off much slower than they were packed on. It's not nearly as much fun, either.

Diet Mistake #3 - Not having a back up plan in place. When a good back up plan is in place, dieting continues and weight loss ensues. It's hard to fall far when you've got a Diet Safety Net in place.

In Summary, it's vital to your weight loss success - and in dropping those unwanted pounds as quickly as possible to plan your diet around a caloric total. Weight is based on caloric intake and balanced via energy needs. Any excess calories become stored in the fat cells, thus generating weight gain.

With this said, the following provides a capsule of the caloric values of popular dieting foods:

Calories in Popular Raw Vegetables:

Carrot - 1 small, about 20 calories

Cucumber - 1/2 cup of slices, 8 calories

Celery - 1 small stalk, 3 calories

Potato - 1 small potato, about 130 calories

Lettuce - about 5 calories per cup

Tomato - 1 small, about 16 calories

Calories in Popular Raw Fruits Based on 1 small fruit:

Banana - about 90 calories

Apple - about 80 calories

Strawberries - 1 cup whole; 45 calories