Many people say they want to lose weight but they never do. They come up with excuses about why they can’t work on weight loss, instead of realizing the first step to losing weight is to make a commitment. Here are some really good weight loss tips that you can use to get serious about your weight loss.

When you want to lose weight, don’t focus only on real foods in front of you that may derail your diet. Reading high calorie recipes, and looking at high calorie food photos may tempt you into preparing or buying those foods you don’t want. Choose cookbooks, websites, and food magazines with recipes that better reflect your weight loss goal.

A useful tip for anyone attempting to lose weight is to avoid relying on processed foods that boast about being fat free. It is often the case that in order to remove the fat from such products manufacturers add extra sugar so that the items have a pleasing taste. This generally results in additional calories, often in excess of those contained in the regular, full fat versions of the same product. Those extra calories only serve to hinder weight loss efforts.

It may seem hard to find time to exercise when trying to lose weight, but you can burn calories by doing your regular household chores. Vacuuming, washing dishes, and doing laundry are all regular chores that burn fat. Since everyone finds time to do housework, it is easy to do some exercise every day.

If you find yourself going to the fridge when you are bored and indulging in sweet treats, write a note on the fridge that has suggestions for activities you can do like taking a walk, drawing or writing a poem. Cutting down on snacking when you are not hungry takes out hundreds of calories.

Before giving into your cravings, have a drink of water. The body can’t tell whether you are hungry or whether you are just in need of a drink; so before assuming that you are starving, try a glass of water and wait about 15 minutes. This can save your waistline and your pocketbook as well.

When you are eating out at a restaurant, don’t automatically consider the serving on your plate to be “one serving”. Most restaurants serve food that is two or three times the amount dietary guidelines recommend. Take half of your plate and instantly put it in a to go box so that you don’t end up consuming more calories than you want to.

To help you stay on a diet or healthy eating plan, tell your friends and family. By not keeping it a secret you will feel accountable every time someone asks how the diet is going. Sometimes this extra little push is enough to help you stay on a diet during a rough patch.

Blot your pizza with a napkin to remove excess grease. Pizza is usually healthier than other types of fast food, but even so, you don’t need to eat a ton of grease.

Calculating the exact number of calories to eat per day can be long, hard and tedious work. S,o instead of counting the calories of every single food item and entering it into your calculator, round the numbers off to the nearest hundred, and strive to come in at 100 calories under your intended goal for the day.

Committing to weight loss can make all the difference to actually losing weight. By committing to it, you are already leaps and bounds beyond what other people can do. And if you are sure that you are vigilant every day about losing weight and keeping it off, you will inspire everyone around you.