Eat smart, eat more frequently!
If you eat more frequently, your metabolism speeds up because your body "learns" that more food will be on the way, thus burning off calories instead of storing them and absorbing less cholesterol and fat. Eating breakfast is a great way to jumpstart your metabolism each day. An even flow of food into the body keeps blood sugar levels level, and also works in keeping the metabolism set on an even channel. Frequent eating also aids in combating hunger pains, which we all can be miserable while dieting and are a key reason many people quit their diets.

Weight Loss Tips:
Did you know that one of the most common reasons for fatigue is mild dehydration? If you have a hard time keeping track of how many glasses of water you consume, fill a 2-liter bottle of water and drink over the course of a day. If you finish the bottle, you have reached the goal of 8 glasses per day. This way you can visualize your daily fluid intake. Ironically the less water you drink, the more water you will retain.

Tips for eating out...
Food is relatively cheap in this country, and as a result portions are often overly large, especially in fast-food restaurants. But if youre smart about what you order, you can get a healthy meal - including dessert - when eating out. Here are some guidelines:

• Avoid fried foods. Frying adds more fat to a food than broiling, baking, or sauteing. Restaurant fryers almost always use hydrogenated oils, a source of harmful trans fat.

• Avoid dishes prepared with gravy and heavy sauces. Because gravy is often made with fatty pan drippings from meat, it is relatively high in saturated fat. Many sauces are made with cream, which is also high in saturated fat.

• Ask for a doggy bag! And I mean at the same time as you order. Get one of those square styrofoam containers and put half your meal in it right away. Take home your "leftovers" for tomorrows lunch. Most of the time, the entrees we order are bigger than the meals we usually eat, (or at least SHOULD eat). Also consider ordering an appetizer instead or sharing an entree with someone else. And lets break those conditioned ways....you dont have to eat everything on your plate.

• Find out how dishes are prepared. Ask whether a meal youre interested in is made with butter or animal fat. If it is, consider asking that the dish be prepared with olive oil instead, or that it be baked, steamed, or sauteed with less fat. Steer clear of meals that are prepared with a lot of cheese or cream. NO ALFREDOS OR CREAM SOUPS LADIES!!

• Eat a light, healthy snack. Munch on a piece of fruit or some carrots before going out. That way, you wont be so ravenous when you arrive at the restaurant that youll gorge on the bread served at the table (which will probably be white bread and, therefore, have a high glycemic load).

• Share desserts. If you want a sweet dessert, consider sharing it with others at your table. Youll get the full taste, but just a fraction of the calories, sugar, and bad fats.

The Truth About Carbs
You have seen how many diets have demonized carbohydrates in recent years and tried to ban them from a healthy lifestyle. Its not that theyre all bad; its just that some are healthier choices than others. When digested, carbs are broken down to their simplest form, the sugar glucose. Highly processed carbs (like those in white bread, soda, cookies, and candy) are broken down quickly, causing a spike in glucose levels in your blood. This signals the pancreas to release more insulin, a hormone that allows the cells to absorb the glucose. Unfortunately, high levels of insulin also lead to increased fat storage and decreased fat burning.

Eating lots of processed carbs continually will keep your blood levels of insulin high, whereas eating healthier carbs (like those in whole grains, fruits, and vegetables) will lower them.

A Constant Failure While low-carb diets may seem to provide good, fast results, over the course of time, theyre all failures. The reason people turn to a low-carb diet in the first place seems to make sense: They think that when you limit the amount of carbs you eat, the body will burn its stores of fat for fuel - but thats wrong! Many of these diets replace dietary carbs with fat, and instead of burning the fat already stored in the body, your metabolism burns the fat youre ingesting. You may see quick results, but the lost weight is mostly water weight and muscle mass, leaving you with just as much fat on your bones as you had before.

Good carbs:
Fruit: rich in fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, potassium and often vitamin E.
Vegetables: fiber, protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, often vitamin E, potassium and a wider variety of minerals than fruit.
Whole grains and grain foods: rich in fiber, protein, and some B vitamins and are very rich in minerals.
Legumes: an excellent source of protein, fiber folate, potassium, iron and several minerals.
Dairy foods: protein, vitamin D, calcium, phosphorus, potassium, riboflavin, and vitamin B12.

Bad carbs:
Processed foods and foods high in sugar/high fructose corn syrup, such as soda pop, cookies, candy, cakes, chips, some condiments, some yogurts and alcohol.

Great Tip Courtesy of the Womens Only Bootcamp