Removing the second “t” off the word “diett” will reduce its weight by 20%.

I track my macros. I have a jar of Chilli Crisp and a jar of hot honey on hand at all times.

If I make my lean chicken tacos for dinner and Ive got a bunch of carbs left i put the hot honey on, if I have fats left over I use the Chilli Crisp, if Im running light on both just a small pinch of chilli powder.

You have to figure out a diet you can comfortably maintain forever, eat for your target weight. It’s no use just losing weight, you have to stay at a healthy weight.

So it’s going to be individual. For me, increased activity is the only factor, apparently I eat the same all the time. So walking everywhere or adding extra exercise works better.

I had a friend who lost weight by just reduced portions - she literally just took 1/3 less of everything. Like left more space on her plate. And another who ate popcorn for supper. Regular breakfast, regular lunch, then in the evening just popcorn. So again was eating 2/3 of what she had been. But then you have to keep it that way to maintain the weight.

Eat less. It sounds obvious, I know. But prepare your meal as normal, divide it in half and put half in a container in the fridge. Eat the other half, then distract yourself for half an hour. If you’re still ravenous, heat up the other half and have it. But you probably won’t be. And you’ve got your next meal ready to go!

I’ve tried a dozen ways.

All diets work, if you stick to them.

Try a few and go with the one you find easiest to stick with.

Long term you’ll have to figure out how to change your habits if you don’t want to stick on the diet forever. Or you’ll regain it again.

Not eating works pretty well, though I understand it’s probably harder for someone with a desire to eat.

Saw dad lose a cannonball of a beer belly. He had run into an old friend and was embarrassed by how fat he had become in comparison. Asking his friend how he lost it, John replied:

“Easy Bob, I just brainwashed myself into thinking being hungry was a good thing.”

Worked for me as well.

You’re not telling yourself food is bad, that way lies eating disorders. You’re simply telling yourself that being low-key hungry is a normal state of affairs for a homo sapien. Because it is a normal state of affairs. Stop horking down pork rinds every time a little hunger pings you. Fucking ignore it, go on. That behavior can become a habit.

People see my skinny ass eat like a hog and marvel at my “metabolism”. No, hard no. I only put calories in my face two, maybe three times a day. Zero snacks, zero soft drinks. (OK, time to fess up. Many calories from beer. There, I said it.)

I went vegan and bitch is skinnnay now, although it’s not why I did it. Also low fat high carb, NOT keto, but just paying attention to your carb intake, and having a diet high in healthy fats will keep you full. Keto is for specific genetic epilepsy syndromes and not good for anything else no matter what people tell you.

Drinking much more water instead of diet soda all the time. I’ve never felt so hydrated and sated in all my life.

1. Plain oats with chia seeds for breakfast (no more than a teaspoon of honey[real honey from bees or don’t bother] because you still need to enjoy food). Table spoon on Saturday

2. this is dependent on your budget: Bananas are cheap AF. Eat one whenever you have a craving. Drink a glass of water, eat a banana, then take your supplements (fish oil and multi v) in the morning after oats

2a) Apples/pears/berries. An apple can kill a craving for sweets so quickly. Plus the fiber will clean you out. Other fruit is more expensive and goes bad quickly. But seriously apples can help to be one of those fillers in your diet

3. Tea. If you don’t drink black coffee, switch to tea. No need for sugar and milk, tea is pretty good on its own. More importantly, it tastes just as good cold

4. Drink water. When I get up in the morning, I try to drink 1 1/2 pints of water. Then start breakfast. Just walked the dog? Chug a pint. Out of the shower? Slug a half pint. Cooking lunch? Drink a pint before you eat. Yes, you will pee a lot. But you skin will look better and you won’t have those moments of “shit, I need coffee” A pg* a

5. Rice and Beans. Make one pot a week. Use oil instead of butter. Lots of beans. Chop up one large onion. Put equal parts quinoa to rice. Last a while and you can spice it or add hot sauce. Use it as a filler for eggs or chicken or whatever

6. high volume food with low calorie density. Need a snack? Rice cakes, to raw carrots and celery, pickles, cucumber, . Chips and salsa is a good one

Ice cubes peppermint gum. To chew when others are having dessert. I’ve eaten, I don’t need empty calories, but my teeth are still hungry. Gum gives them something to do, and the little crunch of Xylitol helps it feel more like eating than other sugarless gums.

I find it easier to maintain a hard no-snacking policy, than to try to reduce snacking but with case-by-case exceptions. Stick to eating at mealtimes only, rather than allowing yourself to rationalise that slice of cake (it’s a colleague’s birthday, rude not to), bag of chips (I only had a small lunch) or dozen donuts (they’ll go stale if I don’t eat them, that’s wasteful).

I was also gonna say fasting, intermittent fasting to be specific, and cooking at home more. But it seems that’s not answering your question because it’s a “food habit”. So instead, I would recommend:

• Sugar substitutes. Yes they can make you gassy/poopy. It’s trial and error to find the right substitute and right amount to use, but once you get it, you’ll be able to avoid a ton of sugar. For example, a teaspoon of stevia on my coffee is fine. Monkfruit instead of sugar but only half as much for savory dishes works for me. Allulose for home made ice cream is fine as well. And so on.

• Eat water-rich food to make you feel full but not consume a lot of calories. Celery and cucumbers are good snacks and can be paired with other food.

• A bit more pricey, but shiratake is basically zero calories and comes in noodle, rice, or cube form.

Track your calories, macros, and any micronutrients that you’re concerned about (e.g., sodium, fiber). Set a goal and stick to it. I use the LoseIt app and a digital kitchen scale.

Drink a lot of water. Half your body weight (in lbs) in ounces. So if you weigh 130 lbs, drink 130 ÷ 2 = 65 oz of water daily. This is your baseline; add more for exercise. Don’t go overboard because too much water is bad for you.

Aim for 45-60 minutes of vigorous exercise 3-4 times a week. I like weightlifting for this. On the other days, be active, but don’t push yourself too much. You need rest for recovery.

After your workouts, don’t eat back all your calories, but do consider having something protein-heavy.

Sleep. I can’t emphasize enough how important sleep is. Try to get 7-8 hours every night. This is the hardest one for me personally; I don’t have a ton of advice. But developing a bedtime routine helps.

Weigh yourself every day first thing in the morning, after you’ve used the bathroom and before you’ve had anything to eat or drink, with no clothes on. I like my Withings scale because the app tracks my measurements over time.

Have a mindset of lifestyle change - otherwise, if you go back to old habits, you’re likely to gain back any weight you lose.

Good luck!

One extra tea.