Most people who try to lose weight have good intentions. They start strong, but end up losing steam and any weight they may have lost comes creeping back. We looked into the latest science to find out how people can actually lose weight the right way and keep it off. Instead of crash dieting and burning, here are 10 weight-loss tips that really work. Visit Observer.com for more info about.

Plan It Out: Meal Plans to Lose Weight

You may have convinced yourself that you can overhaul your diet and start exercising every single day, but that’s kind of like hopping on a plane to Antarctica with no itinerary. “You need a plan,” says John Norcross, Ph.D., a psychologist at the University of Scranton, who has studied New Year’s resolutions. “What, specifically, are you going to do differently?” Experts recommend doing a brain dump of all the changes you want to make, then starting with one tiny, doable tweak-packing a healthy lunch or walking 20 minutes a day. Once that’s a comfortable part of your routine, put a bold checkmark on your list, then add another small change. Sure, baby steps take longer, but they work: a recent study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicinefound that people who made one small change a week lost nearly twice as much weight as those who followed broader “eat less, move more” guidelines. And imagine how gratifying it will feel to see those checkmarks add up as the pounds fall off.

Pictured Recipe: Greek Kale Salad with Quinoa & Chicken

The fewer complicated restrictions you have around your eating and exercising, the better. You need to find a plan or style of eating that works for you.

When researchers compared women on two different diet plans-one that gave dieters a list of foods they could eat and a few easy-to-follow rules, and another more-complicated diet that allowed dieters more food choices, but required them to carefully track all of their eating and exercise-they discovered that those who found the latter plan difficult were the most likely to give up. “Complex diets can be burdensome, so opt for one that seems manageable,” says study coauthor Peter Todd, Ph.D., a professor of cognitive science and psychology at Indiana University in Bloomington and director of the IU Food Institute. “Everyone has a different tolerance, so the diet that works for your best friend might feel challenging to you. And if you’re feeling overwhelmed by a diet, switch to a simpler approach. That’s far better than quitting altogether.” Read more about at https://www.amny.com.

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If you have a big long-term goal to lose 20 or more pounds, it can be helpful to celerbate the smaller steps along the way.

Let’s face it: the prospect of losing 20 pounds-or more-is daunting. That’s why Rachel Beller, M.S., R.D.N., author of Eat to Lose, Eat to Win, recommends setting a nearer-term goal weight that’s around half of the total amount you want to lose-and focusing on that. “Having an easier-to-reach goal can help keep you motivated,” she says. “And when you hit that first milestone, it gives you a chance to celebrate, re-evaluate your strategy and re-up your enthusiasm for the next stage.” Check out this exipure review.

Researchers at the University of Minnesota did a series of studies in which they had participants eat vegetables before they put any other food on their plates-and even the researchers were surprised by what they found. “People consumed up to five times more veggies than usual,” says Traci Mann, Ph.D., who led the study. And participants who munched carrots before being offered M&Ms subsequently ate one-third less candy than those who were just given the candy first. Why does this trick work? Because when any food is put in front of us, we generally go for it-and the veggies aren’t competing with other foods on our plate (which we tend to go for first, if given the option). So start with a salad or crudités.

And, save the bread for the end of the meal. Eating simple carbs first dramatically increases blood sugar, which causes your body to pump out insulin and store the calories as fat-the opposite of what you want if you’re trying to lose weight, says obesity expert Louis Aronne, M.D., a professor of metabolic research at Weill Cornell Medical College. “Having some vegetables and protein before simple carbs blunts that unhealthy blood sugar response,” he adds.