CaN'T LoSe WeiGhT?

Dear Diet Tip,

I don't know why I can't lose weight. I eat healthy and exercise and I still can't lose this weight. Please tell me what I'm doing wrong. I got on the scale after 1 month of dieting and exercise and I didn't lose a pound. All I could do was cry.

~~ Sandy

Dear Sandy,

As bad as you feel, you need to pick yourself up, dust yourself off and start over again. We know the frustration of trying to lose weight because we hear it all the time.

First of all, just because you eat healthy and exercise doesn't mean you will automatically lose weight. To lose weight, you need to keep track of your calories each day. Without a good diet plan, it's difficult to know how many calories you're really consuming.

To lose weight, you have to burn more calories than you take in. Unless you keep track of the foods you eat, you're probably over-eating just enough to keep you from losing weight.

We recommend that you limit your calorie intake between 1200 and 1400 calories per day to lose a pound per week. Men should stay between 1500 and 2000 calories to lose the same weight.

The problem with exercise is that we subconsciously eat more than usual to make up for the calories spent during the exercise period. Your body will naturally demand more calories to maintain your current weight so it's mandatory that you have a good eating plan to control the amount of calories each day to lose weight.