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Fast Diet Plan!
 Get ready to lose 10 pounds! How? By paying attention to the amounts of food you eat, eliminating unnecessary sugar and fat from your foods and making sure you include absolutely delicious meals and snacks to keep your taste buds happy.
Use this easy-to-follow and superhealthy diet plan to lose the first 10, the last 10, or any 10 in between! Because it's a balanced and flexible program, you can stay on this diet as long as it takes.
We've divided up meal ideas into three basic categories: On the Run, Family-Friendly and Cheap and Easy. Stick with one theme or mix and match these meals to suit your lifestyle. For example, you may choose a breakfast On the Run while you're driving to work, choose a Cheap and Easy lunch, and then prepare a Family-Friendly dinner. You can even make substitutions as long as you stick to the following guidelines: Breakfasts are 300 to 400 calories, lunches 450 to 550 calories, and dinners 400 to 500 calories. Add snacks between meals if you're hungry or need more fuel to keep up with your exercise routine.
Drop 10 Fast Secrets and Suggestions
1. Keep track of everything you eat and drink. Write it down as soon as you swallow so you don't forget! No need to estimate calories -- just write down the type of food or beverage and the amount.
2. Cut your fat intake in half. That means half as much margarine or butter on toast, vegetables and your morning English muffin; half the mayonnaise on your noontime sandwich; and half the oil in the pan when you saute foods. You get the idea!
3. Limit sugary treats to three times per week maximum. On those occasions, make sure you follow our snack suggestions for sweet ideas that won't derail this diet.
4. Include good sources of protein at every meal: chicken, fish, legumes, peanut butter, cottage cheese, eggs or yogurt.
5. Eat at least one meatless lunch and dinner each week to reduce fat, increase fiber, and get yourself into the habit of building meals around whole grains, beans and vegetables.
6. If you're not currently using skim milk, go down one level of fat content in the milk you use. For example, if you currently use two percent, use only one percent. If you insist on whole milk, try two percent.
7. Eat at least two servings of fresh fruit every day. Choose whatever type of fruit is in season.
8. Instead of fruit juice for breakfast or a snack, drink water. Add a slice of lemon or lime for zest.
9. Include two servings of vegetables with lunch and dinner, for a total of at least four servings per day.
10. Choose one to two servings of foods made from whole grains with every meal.
11. Shut off the TV whenever you eat -- that includes meals and snacks. Studies show that we automatically eat larger portions when we snack in front of the tube, and typically those foods are high in fat and sugar, which means excess calories.
12. Choose calories you can chew -- that means drinking only calorie-free beverages (except for milk). Sodas are loaded with empty calories, and fruit juices provide less fiber and vitamins per calorie than the fruit they're made from.
13. Plan ahead for meals and snacks so you know exactly what you plan to eat. Last-minute choices tend to be higher in calories and lower in satisfaction.
Breakfast
On the Run:
1. A breakfast bar, banana, hard-boiled egg (cook the night before)
2. Smoothie: Blend 1 cup fat-free yogurt, any fresh or canned fruit and skim milk to thin to your desired consistency; 1 slice toast topped with 1 teaspoon margarine or jelly
3. Fast food egg sandwich on an English muffin; hold the cheese and meat to save 200 calories and 18 grams of fat; choose skim or 1-percent milk to drink
Family-Friendly:
1. Egg sandwich (one egg fried in a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, placed on a toasted whole-grain English muffin and topped with a slice of low-fat cheese), grapes, skim milk
2. One-half cup instant oatmeal cooked with skim milk, topped with a sliced banana and a sprinkling of cinnamon and brown sugar; 1 cup fat-free yogurt
3. One whole-grain toaster waffle (or use your own homemade waffles or pancakes that you made over the weekend and froze for use during the week) topped with fresh or frozen mixed berries and drizzled with a touch of maple syrup; 1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese; skim milk
Lunch
On the Run:
1. Turkey sandwich you made at home (2 slices whole-grain bread, 2 ounces turkey, lettuce, tomato and a mixture of mustard and low-fat mayo), 1 cup baby carrots, 1 cup grapes
2. Fast-food small burger (hold the cheese!), garden salad with low-fat dressing, 1 cup celery sticks you bring with you
3. Frozen dinner with around 300 calories, 2 cups prepared tossed salad with fat-free dressing, 1/2 cup fat-free frozen yogurt for dessert
Family-Friendly:
1. Tuna-melt sandwich (water-packed tuna mixed with low-fat mayo spread on a whole-grain English muffin, topped with a slice of low-fat cheese), 1 cup mixed raw veggies with fat-free salad dressing for "dip," sliced apple, skim milk
2. One cup chicken-noodle soup, 6 crackers spread with 1 tablespoon peanut butter, 1 cup cherry tomatoes, 1/2 cup melon balls, skim milk
3. Pita sandwich: Stuff a whole-grain pita pocket with 2 ounces sliced turkey or lean ham and as much lettuce and chopped tomato as you can, drizzle with low-fat Italian dressing; mix green, red and yellow pepper slices and serve with low-fat salad dressing for "dip"; 1 fresh pear; skim milk
Dinner
On the Run:
1. Grilled chicken sandwich (hold the dressing), garden salad with low-fat dressing, skim milk
2. One soft bean or chicken taco, 2 cups tossed salad with low-fat dressing, 1 cup flavored fat-free yogurt (cappuccino is sublime!)
3. Roasted chicken from the grocery store (3 ounces is about the size of a deck of cards or the palm of a woman's hand), 1/2 cup rice pilaf, 1 cup green beans with 1 teaspoon margarine, 1/2 cup pineapple (fresh, or canned in water), skim milk
Family-Friendly:
1. Spaghetti and meatballs (your portion should include 1 cup of cooked spaghetti about the size of your fist, 1/2 cup spaghetti sauce and 2 large meatballs), 2 cups tossed salad with fat-free vinaigrette dressing, 1/2 cup grapes, skim milk
2. Half a chicken breast (about the size of the palm of your hand), sauteed in a nonstick pan and seasoned with pepper, garlic and basil; 1/2 cup packaged rice mix; 1 cup broccoli (fresh or frozen) topped with 1 teaspoon margarine and a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese; 1/2 cup mixed fruit (fresh, or canned packed in water); skim milk
3. Three ounces grilled steak, 1/2 cup baked sweet potato (sprinkle with cinnamon and add a touch of brown sugar), 1 cup carrots (raw or cooked, your choice), yogurt parfait for dessert (layer 1/2 cup fat-free yogurt, 1/2 cup chopped fresh fruit and 1 tablespoon granola in pretty glasses)
Snacks
On the Run:
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One small box raisins
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Fresh fruit
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1 small bag pretzels
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1 cup sugar-free frozen yogurt
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6 small rice cakes
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Fat-free yogurt
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Cereal or breakfast bar
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1 cup trail mix (make your own by mixing nuts, seeds, cold cereal and dried fruit)
Family-Friendly:
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Baked apple (microwave an apple stuffed with raisins and sprinkled with cinnamon; top with 1/4 cup fat-free vanilla yogurt)
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20 reduced-fat tortilla chips with 1/3 cup salsa
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Fresh fruit
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1/2 cup sorbet
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Chunks of fresh fruit with fat-free yogurt "dip"
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Celery stuffed with peanut butter
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