Order Two Appetizers According to a study at the   University of North Carolina, the average hamburger is 23 percent larger today   than it was in 1977. Choose a pasta dish and salad or soup from the appetizer   column, instead.

Visit the Vending Machine Nibbling on single servings   is better than digging your way to the bottom of a megabag of chips.

Start with Salad... and eat less during the rest   of the meal, says a study from Pennsylvania State University. When salads were   topped with low-fat mozzarella and low-calorie Italian dressing instead of high-fat   alternatives, women ate 10 percent fewer calories over the course of the day.

Stick a Fork In It If you prefer your salad dressing   on the side, dip your fork into it before stabbing your greens. That little   maneuver could cut hundreds of calories.

Watch Coffee Calories The fancy concoctions that   are now the javas of choice for many people can contain as many calories as   an entire lunch.

Walk and Talk When your cell phone rings, slip   on your walking shoes and stroll the halls at work or hoof it outside. If you   did this for 10 minutes every workday at a moderate 3 mph pace, you’d burn about   1,000 calories a month and lose 3 pounds a year.

Crack a Nut Dieters in a Harvard University study   who ate a handful of peanuts or mixed nuts daily were more likely to keep weight   off than a group whose regimen didn’t include the high-fat snacks.

Don't Just Sit There The average person burns   100 calories per hour sitting and 140 per hour standing. Get on your feet 2   hours a day while you work, and you could drop an extra 6 pounds over the year.

Sleep Well, Lose More Insufficient shut-eye appears   to increase production of the stress hormone cortisol, which regulates appetite.   High levels seem to worsen bingeing and hunger; moreover, too little sleep could   keep your body from burning carbohydrates, which translates to more stored body   fat.

Double Your Protein The high-protein, low-carb   approach may help keep you from losing muscle along with fat, according to a   study published in The Journal of Nutrition. According to study, the amino acid   leucine—found in beef, dairy, poultry, fish, and eggs—may help preserve muscle   tissue.