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"### Improve your eating\\n\\n__Write off weight.__ To lower BMI, keep a food journal. Jotting down all bites is the top predictor of weight loss. [Keep your own free diary here at Self.com](/community/logs).\\n\\n__Befriend a farmer.__ Shop at a farmers' market to balance your diet (lots of produce, no packaged snacks!). Locate one [here](http://apps.ams.usda.gov/farmersmarkets/).\\n\\n__Eat heartily in the A.M.__ Make your morning meal the main one. Aim for up to 500 calories. Studies show big breakfasts can keep you small.\\n\\n__Start cookin'.__ Prepare at least half of your meals at home. It's one of the best methods to ensure you take in more vegetables and less fat.\\n\\n__Snack smarter.__ Stop smoking and munch right to help your body stay at a healthy weight. For every cup of fruit and vegetables quitters add to their daily diet, they reduce their chances of gaining weight by 13 percent, a study in *The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition* reports.\\n\\n__Cut calories in your cup.__ Limit yourself to one glass daily of soda or alcohol. Replacing caloric beverages with water can help you drop up to 20 pounds in a year, Popkin says.\\n\\n### Get your brain on board\\n\\n__Chill.__ Relaxing daily can lower the stress hormones that spur overeating, a study from Harvard Medical School in Boston finds. Carve out 20 minutes each day to commune with nature: Regular visits to areas with trees reduce stress.\\n\\n__Swap reruns for sleep.__ Replace half an hour of television watching with additional shut-eye daily and you'll wake up with lower levels of hunger hormones. Plus, it's easier to make healthy choices when you're rested and energized.\\n\\n__Pace yourself.__ Slow down at meals so your mind has time to register fullness before you go back for seconds.\\n\\n### Move more\\n\\n__Hoof it.__ Can't change your commute from car to foot? Achieve a similar effect by delivering news to coworkers in person, not via email.\\n\\n__Firm up.__ Muscle burns calories even as you rest, but women older than age 35 lose about a quarter pound of muscle per year. Fight the loss by adding three sessions of metabolism-revving strength training to your weekly routine.  \\n  \\nPhoto Credit: Photonica/Getty Images"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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