For Your Health

Sometimes simple changes can bring about big results. When it comes to losing weight, more often than not, it's all about numbers.

It takes 3,500 calories to build a pound. If you have a deficit of 100 calories every day for a year – either by eating less or exercising more – you can lose 10 pounds in a year.

Here are 25 ways to pull it off.

1. Switch from whole-milk products to skim milk products. If you consume three servings a day, you can save up to 200 calories a day. That's 20 pounds you can lose next year.

2. When you go to a restaurant, ask for half of your portion to be put in a doggie bag right away. If you go out twice a week, that will work.

3. Reduce the use of butter and margarine. Use applesauce in recipes instead of oil. Try fat-free, butter-flavored spreads or sprinkles (unless you're watching your salt). Just eliminating a pat of butter on your morning toast gets you there.

4. Chilling soups, gravies and stews and skimming the fat can save you up to 100 calories.

5. Use extra-lean ground beef, ground chicken or ground turkey. Instead of bacon, use Canadian bacon.

6. Is a tall glass of juice your morning ritual? Swap that 20-ounce OJ for a real orange.

7. Meatless products, such as imitation hot dogs, bacon, burgers and sausage, often have half the calories.

8. Switch from a 16-ounce cappuccino to regular coffee with artificial sweetener.

9. Switch from fried potato chips to the baked ones.

10. Add 10 minutes of exercise a day. The goal is 30 minutes a day. If you walk for just 30 minutes – even just three 10-minute walks a day – you will lose 13 pounds.

11. Switch from sandwich bread with 100-plus calories to light whole-wheat bread.

12. Replace the 11/2 ounces of cheddar or American cheese on your sandwich with 1 ounce of nonfat mozzarella.

13. Switch to low-fat mayonnaise on sandwiches.

14. Cut back on egg yolks, which contain virtually all of the fat and cholesterol. Try using egg substitutes. In most recipes you can use two egg whites instead of one whole egg.

15. If you love microwave popcorn, switch to the light kind and save tons of fat and calories, enough to lose 10 pounds if you've been eating it every night.

16. Use sugar substitute instead of sugar in all your baking. If you use a couple of teaspoons in your iced tea and a couple on your cereal, you could lose 10 pounds by switching to a substitute.

17. Switch your afternoon soda to a diet soda to save 150 calories per 12-ounce can.

18. If you don't like diet soda, just downsize your soda portions. If you usually pick up a 44-ounce soda in the morning, switch to a 24-ounce size and save about 200 calories a day.

19. A portion of meat is 3 ounces – the size of a deck of cards. Most people eat two to three times this.

20. Replace your regular beer with light beer and save about 50 calories per bottle.

21. Take the stairs every day at work. If you go up and down often enough (say up and down five flights three or four times a day) you've got your 100 calories.

22. Forgo regular bottled salad dressing (2 tablespoons, about 150 calories) for an equal portion of fat-free dressing (about 40 calories) or a spritz of lemon juice.

23. Don't supersize anything. Switching from the 6-ounce fries at McDonald's to the 2-ounce size saves you about 300 calories. Do that just twice a week and lose weight.

24. Remove the skin from a chicken breast after cooking and save 100 calories.

25. Instead of topping ice cream with crumbled cookies or hot fudge, top it with 2 tablespoons of fresh berries and save about 100 calories.