21 tips for lean living which will easily reduce those extra pounds.

There is a term in the business world called lean manufacturing, but lean living can be adapted to reduce your weight similar to how lean manufacturing reduces business inefficiencies.

Below are 21 tips for lean living which will easily reduce those extra pounds.


1. Never watch television and eat. It is too comfortable and more food will be consumed than sitting down.
2. Use smaller plates. Sounds silly, but it works.
3. Drink two glasses of water 10-15 minutes before eating. You will get full on less food, not feel deprived, and become lean in no time.
4. Stop eating before you are full. You know the feeling after you keep eating until full. Thirty minutes later you can’t move.
5. Walk up and down stairs rather than taking the elevator. It burns calories, provides exercise, and helps you become lean without working at it.
6. Exercise at least 3 times per week and follow the advice of a physician. When possible, alternate intensity levels to burn more calories.
7. Join a gym. It is much easier to sustain working out in a gym atmosphere rather than at home.
8. Clean your house. It burns lots of calories and gets your house clean. Remind yourself of the calorie loss and cleaning isn’t nearly as much a drag.
9. Walk anywhere and everywhere. Commit to walking around the block, to the store, a friend’s house, and anywhere else. You’ll be leaner in no time.
10. When you eat meat, choose lower calorie types, such as turkey or chicken. For sandwiches, use the same in lunch meat.
11. Never use mayo or butter. Find something you like. For example, there are hundreds of different types of mustard with various tastes that have minimal calories.
12. Don’t fry anything.
13. Find a whole grain bread that you like. Don’t keep the fattening kind in the house to tempt yourself.
14. Add toppings to sandwiches that have few calories, such as peppers, pickles, onions, lettuce, and tomatoes.
15. Every couple days, eat one meal that has hardly any calories, such as a salad with minimal dressing.
16. Eat only fruit and vegetables for occasional meals.
17. Switch to no fat butter or stop using any.
18. Find a drink you like without calories (such as water). Carry a water bottle at all times. Drinking water throughout the day hydrates, keeps you fuller, and helps to eat less.
19. Pick a goal. Visualize what you will look like in that suit, dress, skirt, pants, etc. Remember the book “You Become What You Think About”. The brain can’t think about something without doing those things that help you get there.
20. Pick a buddy. Don’t hang around with someone trying to gain weight or those without a care in the world. Find someone with the discipline you admire. It will rub off.
21. Think positively. Negative thoughts will hurt your chances of success. If you fall off the wagon, don’t worry about it. Pick yourself up and get back on.
22. Eat an apple, 2 bananas, or other fruit in the morning.

It’s not as tempting to each junk in the morning (for most people), fruit provides energy to expend calories, and you’ll eat less for lunch.