Do you want to lose fat? Have you tried different diets and failed consistently? If you answered yes to these questions, you are in good company. There are a lot of people who have been trying fat loss diets over the years and have failed. The reason they have not succeeded is that they used gimmicks and lose-weight-fast diets that do more damage than good. Here are some sensible things to keep in mind when you try to lose weight.

1. Watch what you eat. Keep a watchful eye on every thing that goes in. Sometimes the garnishes can richer than the food itself. Accompaniments too can be very rich. Remember that it is the easiest thing in the world to eat something without realizing that it was something that you should not have eaten. Selective memory you know.

2. Fix times to have meals and stick to it. Try to have food at fixed times of the day. You can stretch these times by half an hour, but anything more than that is going to affect your eating pattern, the result will either be a loss of appetite or that famished feeling which will make you stuff yourself with more than what is required the next time you eat.

3. Try not to snack between meals, but if you must have a snack make sure it is a healthy one. If you travel a lot try to find healthy snacks and not junk food.

4. Go easy on coffee and tea. They are safe by themselves. It is if you add the sugar and cream that they get fattening. Do you know drinking a cup of coffee or tea that has at least 2 cubes of sugar and cream is as fattening as eating a large piece of rich chocolate cake?

5. Count the calories as you eat, but don't overdo it. It's a good idea to have an idea of the calories that most food items have. If it is a packed thing then the label is sure to have the calories that the substance has.

6. Stay away from all things fried. If it is breaded, it is better that it is baked. Fried foods are immersed in fat and oil. Even after the excess oil has been drained away, there is still oil absorbed into the food item itself.