No-Fail Fat Fighters

1. Watch homecooked portions

Restaurant serving sizes aren’t the only ones growing. According to a study of 18 recipes published in The Joy of Cooking ($49.95; Simon & Schuster), home-cooked meals have 63 per cent more kilojoules per serving today than they did when the cookbook was first released in 1936. One of the reasons is a 33 per cent increase in serving sizes since 1996. The solution: halve recipes. Or plan for leftovers, and store half the food as soon as you cook it.

2. Say no to sweet drinks

People who eliminated just one sugar-sweetened beverage from their diets every day lost more weight over six months than those who reduced the same number of kilojoules from solid food, found a US study. Researchers speculate that liquid kilojoules are less satisfying, leaving you hungrier.

MORE: 7 SECRETS OF THE NATRUALLY SLIM

3. Eat protein at every meal (and with each snack)

In a European study of 205 slimmed-down men and women, those who got about 25 per cent of their daily energy from protein (about 100 g for a 6,700 kJ, or 1,600 cal, diet) found it easier to maintain their weight loss. Protein may help because it keeps you feeling full longer and uses more energy during digestion than carbohydrates and fat do, concluded researchers. Good choices at each meal: 85 g of chicken (26 g protein), 85 g of tuna (20 g protein), 1/2 cup of low-fat cottage cheese (16 g protein), 1/2 cup of edamame (12 g protein), 1 cup of quinoa (8 g protein).

4. Begin with broth

Research shows that you’ll eat about 20 per cent fewer kilojoules if you start a meal with soup instead of diving right into the main course. Just skip rich cream-based varieties.

5. Have a V8

Vegetable juice may help quell your appetite and control your eating. When US researchers put a group of men and women on a low-kilojoule, heart-healthy diet, those who drank at least 235 ml of low-salt vegetable juice per day lost four times more weight than those who skipped the healthy beverage.