A COMMON THEME when working with clients is their desire to lose weight, what I like to refer to as the elephant in the room. Many have gone up and down on the scale, tried all kinds of diets, and still can't seem to reach their goal. Fat jeans, thin jeans, swimsuit season panic, I've heard it all and, I understand it completely because I have lived the cycle of dieting failure.

FOR YEARS I TRIED EVERYTHING imaginable; exercised like crazy, used supposed diet-drinks, energy bars, and still gained weight. I would hide my eating and just fool myself into thinking I was really trying. And then, one day, I heard a statement, by who I don't even remember; "Your body doesn't know what you're eating, it only responds to the calories you are ingesting. Ingest more calories than you burn and you gain weight, period."

WANT TO LOSE WEIGHT, eat fewer calories than you burn. Want to gain weight, eat more. Want to maintain weight, balance the calories with the burn-rate. When athletes need to gain weight they exercise and eat like crazy to consume more calories than they burn.

FOR THE PAST 30 YEARS, Americans have been spending roughly $5 billion dollars a year on diet plans, pills and gizmos, and every year for the past 30 years Americans have been getting heavier. Every one of those $5 billion dollars, wasted.

HERE IS MY SECRET TO WEIGHTLOSS SUCCESS...MINDFUL EATING. I changed the WAY I was eating, not necessarily what I was eating. It is as simple as being conscious of what you are eating and, the portions you are consuming, MINDFUL eating, not depressing dieting.

MINDFUL EATING is a lot easier than any diet and the best part is, IT WORKS! I guarantee it. There are only 2 simple rules to follow and weight loss success and/or maintenance, will be yours, forever.

LET'S UNDERSTAND THERE ARE TWO TYPES OF MINDFUL EATING: One type is for the purpose of initially losing weight and the second type, is to maintain your desired weight. I will start by addressing the first type of Mindful Eating, getting rid of those extra pounds. To lose weight, you simply have to eat fewer calories than you burn.

RULE 1:
READ FOOD PACKAGE LABELS at the supermarket. Virtually every package lists calories, fat, protein, carbohydrate and sugar grams, per serving. Don't be fooled; one brand of yogurt 30 grams of sugar, same size in a different brand, 12 grams of sugar. You must learn to read labels and you will be amazed what you discover.

RULE 2:
CONTROL YOUR PORTIONS. A serving of meat should be about the size of a deck of cards, not the size of a catcher's mitt. To add a pound of weight to your body you have to ingest 3,500 calories more than you burn. A general rule of thumb for losing weight is to ingest between 1,800 to 2,000 calories per day. Any amount less than that is not healthy and can actually be bad for you. I ask my clients to get the advice of a nutritionist or doctor to determine the ideal minimum calorie level they need.

RULE 3:
MAKE A PLAN. You wouldn't think of starting a road trip to Cape Cod without directions or a GPS to guide you. You cannot take the journey to a thinner you without directions, a guide. You have to have a plan. You have to count your calories and learn portion control. It is easy and will become as natural as breathing. This will enable you to maintain your desired weight for life.

ALCOHOL? We LOVE our wine. We LOVE our martinis. We LOVE our margaritas, yes we do but they are weight loss saboteurs if you're not careful. Margarita 540 cal., rum and coke 270 cal., pina colada 490 cal., 6 oz. glass of wine 150 calories. You can still have any of your favorites but they can't be served in a glass the size of a fish bowl.

EATING OUT: I am often asked, "We eat out a lot, what should I do? I teach my clients how to use good judgment, make their trade-offs and control the portions. Eating out is a constant challenge for all of us. I give my clients the simple tricks to eat out and lose weight through MINDFUL EATING.

GREAT NEWS: It only takes 90 days to accomplish almost everyone's weight loss goal. Do you think you can modify your eating for 90 days so that the rest of your life will be healthier and happier? Of course you can. Using 90 days as a bench mark will achieve a 25 lb. weight-loss without any starvation dieting. By using my MINDFUL EATING method you will get to eat most of your favorite foods but, in mindful portions.

NINETY DAYS. When you look at it that way, you realize it is a very short period of time to achieve a lifelong inner peace by knowing you are in control. Feeling better, more energy, enhanced appearance and overall better health. A longer life, possibly but more important a better quality of life along the way.