I will be doing one per day, or more depending on the demand. They will be common knowledge, my own personal tips, or tips I pick up from the outside sources. You can submit any ideas in the ask box! Good luck guys.. we can do this!

1.) If you have a craving for something unhealthy, immediately go brush your teeth, eat a mint, or chew minty gum. Most things taste awful with mint, so even if you do succumb to your craving, you’re likely to just have one bite.

2.) Try to do a workout in the morning. It will speed up your metabolism, make you more health-conscious throughout the day, and give you an energy and motivation boost. You’ll also be more likely to work out later again because your body will have time to recuperate. Even if it is just 20 jumping jacks, 100 crunches, or 5 minutes of aerobics, it will really help!

3.) When you’re done with your meal, immediately put your dish in the sink & cover the food on the plate with soap so you do not eat the remaining food. Keep yourself occupied for 15 more minutes- wash your face, talk to a friend, watch a TV show, etc. You are more likely to feel full after waiting a bit. This way, you will not overeat.

4.) Stock up on vitamins and supplements that boost your energy & metabolism while lowering cravings and hunger levels. I personally use: B-Complex vitamins, Acai, Green Tea, Kelp, Fiber, Cayenne Pepper, and Ginger. It is better to take these through a natural food source, but this is more for people who want to save calories. Just eat all vitamins & supplements with a bit of food because your body absorbs them better this way and you are less likely to feel nauseous. I recommend Luckyvitamins.com. They are really cheap (usually I can get things like kelp & cayenne pepper for $3 for a 1-2 month supply. I also got 120 capsules of acai for $7!) and trustworthy. 

5.) Increase the reps you do on every exercise, every day, even if it is only by one. For example, if you start off only doing 50 crunches a day, aim for at least 51 crunches the next day. If you can do more, definitely do more. Pretty soon you’ll be up to 500+ crunches/day and your body will be able to handle it. Also, make sure you do each exercise till you “feel the burn”. Pushing yourself will burn more calories and increase your metabolism while really working your muscles.

6.) Fiber! Eat fiber, take fiber supplements, drink fiber, etc. It fills you up and helps you use the restroom a lot safer than laxatives. I usually take 2 fiber capsules in the morning and 2 in the afternoon, plus I eat lots of fiber-enriched foods. Make sure to drink a lot of water (you should be doing this already) when you take fiber. I consume 33% less calories when I take fiber, from what I have observed. 

7.) When choosing fruits and vegetables, try and eat more of the dark green and orange ones. They are the ones that speed up your metabolism. And its a low calorie way of craving your hunger! ALSO! In the morning, when all you want to do is drink that cup of coffee, go for an apple instead, studies show that 18/20 people found that they were more awake and alert after eating an apple, then drinking coffee. But, if you do drink coffee, black coffee is the best for you. Submitted by: http://bestthingyoueversaw.tumblr.com/ 

8.) When out for a run, walk a minute, then jog a minute, you burn more fat and more calories doing this when you slow down instantly and speed up instantly. And, your endurance levels go up :) Good luck to everyone! Submitted by: http://bestthingyoueversaw.tumblr.com/ 

9.) Only weigh yourself & take measurements once a week. This will make you feel more motivated because you will see bigger results. It is also more accurate. Get a body fat monitor as well so you can use it as another way of measuring your progress. I also try on a pair of jeans & feel how tight/loose they are. There are many ways to see how far you’ve gone than just reading a number on a scale!

10.) On scraps of paper, write down a list of rewards that you want: movie marathons, mani-pedis, new clothes, new makeup, etc. (NO FOOD unless you are treating yourself to something healthy). Put those scraps of paper into a bowl and every time you reach a goal, pick a piece of paper from the bowl and get your reward! It’s a funner way to reward yourself & will keep you motivated. 

11.) If you get shaky, hungry, or tired during your workout eat about 5 almonds. There are around 7 calories per almond, so that amounts to 35 calories. It may seem like a lot, but it instantly gives you energy & gets rid of the empty feeling in your stomach. I always work out so much longer & harder after I eat a few almonds. 

12.) For school I made collages on all my binders of pretty and thin models so I’m constantly thinking about my goals and it keeps me from eating any nasty stuff at school! Submitted by Anonymous

13.) This may seem obvious, but this tip is incredibly crucial. Remember to do both cardio & strength/weight training! Cardio will help you burn fat and lose weight, and strength training will sculpt your body so you look great. I have seen girls that people would consider thin with flabby bodies because they never took strength training seriously. I have also seen people who are very strong who have extra weight on them because they didn’t think cardio was necessary. Aim for at least 30 minutes of cardio & 20 minutes of strength/weight training a day.

14.) Most cravings only last around 10 minutes. Find something to keep you busy for ten minutes- talk to a friend, exercise a bit, surf on the web, watch part of a TV show, etc. If the craving is still there after 10 minutes, it usually means that you are hungry. Eat something high in fiber and filling (such as a big salad with vinaigrette, a piece of fruit, beans, or nuts), then allow yourself to a small portion of a HEALTHY version of what you’re craving. If you are craving chocolate, go for a piece of dark chocolate (~50 calories), a sugar-free fudge bar (~60 calories), or a chocolate rice cake (~60 calories). If you are craving hard candy, eat 1-2 jolly ranchers (~15 calories a piece). If you are craving bread, try a low-carb fiber-enriched version (I love EarthGrains bread with 35-40 calories a slice). If you are craving peanut butter, have a spoonful of natural almond butter, unsalted. There are a lot of alternatives. It is healthy to indulge  your cravings (if you have waited the allotted 10 minutes) so you will not binge later on.

15.) What Do I Do If I’ve Binged?

First of all, the absolute worst attitude to have is: “I already ruined it today, so I should just eat more junk”. If you are in the middle of a binge and this idea pops into your head, push it out immediately. Throw away the food you have left. I do not encourage vomiting because this will just trigger future binges. 

I like to think of punishments and rewards when it comes to binges. If I binge, I may do 50 crunches for every 100 calories I ate, or 1 jumping jack per calorie, etc. Make sure it is a big enough punishment that it will make you think twice about binging, but not TOO big that you do not follow through the next day. I also reward myself for going 1 week, 2 weeks, 1 month, etc. without binging. NOT WITH FOOD, but with a hour of pampering, watching my favorite movie, a small purchase, etc. This reward/punishment system should help with binges.

The next day (or later that day if you binged early), focus on cardio workouts to burn excess calories & carbs. Do not completely restrict your food or you run the risk of greatly decreasing your metabolism. If you do restrict, only cut back on a couple hundred calories for a few days. Try not to beat yourself up for binging. Focus on the future & not the past. 

In the future, eat very small meals throughout the day. Eat a big breakfast (if you can tolerate the calories). This will help you have a lot of energy, your metabolism will go up, and you are less likely to binge. Eat 25-100 calories healthy snacks every 1-2 hours, or a 200-400 calorie meal every 3-4 hours (or combination of both). The trick is to keep yourself satisfied, but never full and never hungry. 

If you have the willpower, avoid all sugar and artificial sugar (except natural fruits) for a week. If you can do this, your palette will be refined and you will not crave sugar as much. I used to have a very bad sweet tooth- now the idea of eating certain sweets makes me sick to my stomach.

16.) Make sure to eat before and after your workout. A lot of people do not like doing this, but it is necessary for a few reasons. Before your workout, you should eat something with carbs and a bit of protein, such as a light protein bar, yogurt, fruit shake, cereal with skim milk, etc. This will make your workout easier, so in-turn you will work harderand longer. The key here is to think long-term rather than short-term. Of course you’d like to save those 100-250 calories, but when you workout longer and harder you will benefit SO much more than if you are too weak to put your all into a workout. Your body will definitely burn those calories and then some when you put in 110%. Afterwards wait 30 minutes to an hour, and eat some carbs and protein. I usually stick with lean meats such as chicken or turkey and a piece of fruit or veggies. You can eat healthy carbs, but try to avoid unhealthy fats.  Make sure to drink plenty of water before, during, and after your workout. I try to drink 1.5 Liters during this time, though 1 Liter should be plenty.

17.) When you are doing a set of a specific number of repetitions, make the last 1-3 reps the best you can. Don’t start off doing great & end it doing sloppy. Do your best and if you can’t do them fully or perfectly it’s fine.. as long as you make those last few reps (or even the very last rep) count the most. This is when your muscle is fatiguing & working at it’s hardest so you really experience the benefits at this time. You will grow stronger exponentially faster than you would if you do not do this step. So squeeze your abs in tight for the last few crunches (maybe even hold the last crunch in an asymmetrical flex for a few seconds), make your last minute of running your best, and push yourself in the last couple minutes of cardio by exaggerating every move. You can do this! Good luck lovelies! 

18.) Build muscle. You won’t end up bulky if you use low weights (3-8 lbs) with lots of reps, or resistance bands. Muscle continues to burn calories during the day unlike fat. This is why muscular people eat so many calories (some eat up to 5000/day!) & still stay fit and people with a large percentage of body fat have a hard time losing weight. The lower your body fat percentage is, the more calories you are burning doing nothing. Building muscle is more important than cardio because of this!

19.) Develop a Pack-a-Day habit. NO.. not ciggies (that is up to your discretion), sugar-free gum! No only does gum help keep the cravings away, it also tones your jawline to get rid of that nasty double chin.

Here are some other exercises to help with a pesky double chin (taken from: http://www.wellbeing-information.com/double-chin-exercises.html)

Hardly a double chin exercise, but none the less very beneficial is the chin slap, yes the one you see the aging actress do in the movies!  Just slap under your chin with the back of your hand, starting slowly and gently, then increasing speed. do this for a couple of minutes each time and two or three times a day.

Here are some more double chin exercise that you can do every day.  These you can do at any time, but as with any exercise, a routine is preferable since you are less likely to forget, and you will make time for something you do every day. 

  1. Stand comfortably.  Slowly raise your head from your chest and tilt it back as far as possible.  Do not strain.  Close your mouth tightly so that your feel the neck muscles stretch.  Count to ten and relax, bring your head back to normal.  Start by doing this exercise once or twice a day than gradually increase until you are doing ten a day.

  2.  Stand comfortable with your head at a natural angle.  Open your mouth wide and put your tongue out as far as possible.  Count to ten and then relax. Does this as many times as you comfortable can, again building to ten.

  3.  Stand comfortable with your head at a natural angle.  Bring your lower lip- up as far as possible, count to ten and relax. Repeat ten times.

  4.  Stand comfortable with your head at a natural angle.  Pull your chin upwards so you feel your muscles stretch.  Count to ten and relax.  Build to ten.

  5. Sit upright, then tilt your head back as far as you can manage, now open and close your mouth several times feeling the muscle stretch each time.