One of the most straightforward ways to lose weight is to reduce your caloric intake. As long as you’re consuming fewer calories than you’re burning off, you will be maintaining a deficit and you will lose weight.

The problem with this plan though is that counting calories is inaccurate, overly simplistic and incredibly dull. Keeping tabs on everything you eat is impractical and restricting yourself to bland foods with low calories is soul destroying.

Thankfully, this isn’t the only way you can cut calories. In fact, there are plenty of ways you can cut calories from your current diet that will almost go unnoticed. And as long as you use these methods, then you can be sure that you’re at least reducing the amount of calories you can take in. Seeing as most of us are maintaining some kind of equilibrium with our weight, there’s a good chance that making these changes will put you in a deficit so you can start losing. And at the very least, it’s a step in the right direction that will make larger changes easier to make down the line.

Here are some of the best ways to ‘trick’ yourself into eating fewer calories…

Decant Your Crisps

If you like eating crisps out the bag, then you’ll likely be familiar with just how difficult it is to put them down and to just stop. The trick then is to stop eating directly from the bag. Instead, decant a certain amount of crisps into a bowl and put an elastic band around the top of the bag. This way, you’ll eat a smaller portion and it will be much easier to stop dipping in.

Share and Share Alike

Try to make it a habit to offer a generous amount of your food to other people eating with you. If you have a plate of chips then say ‘take as many as you want’. It might hurt a little at the time but in the long run it will do you good. And as an added bonus, you’ll look really generous in the process!

Buy Smaller Crockery

One of the simplest things you can do to start eating less is to buy smaller plates and bowls. This way, you’ll be limited in terms of how much you can dish up – and as a rule we eat what’s in front of us without going up for seconds.

And Small Cutlery

Likewise, a small spoon and a small fork will force you to take smaller mouthfuls. In turn, this helps you to slow down with your eating which gives your brain more time to register your stomach filling up.

Drink a Glass of Water Before Every Meal

This is a very simple rule that can make a big difference to your health and to your weight loss. Drink a whole glass of water before each meal and you’ll find you feel fuller as you eat. What’s more, you’ll produce more saliva thus enabling yourself to break down your food more efficiently for digestion and absorption of nutrients.

Avoid Soda Drinks

Speaking of drinks, make sure you avoid soda drinks when you’re trying to diet. These contain tons of sugar and lots of calories and actually make us feel hungrier. You won’t feel more hungry if you swap that Coke for water instead but you’ll dock your intake of calories by a couple of hundred!

And Fancy Coffees

Even worse are fancy coffees like mochas, cappuccinos and the like. These contain tons of cream and chocolate sprinkles and can equate to upwards of 200 calories. Have an Americano instead and you’ll get 0 calories per drink.

Share a Dessert

Eating desserts out is one of the biggest issues when it comes to losing weight. Restaurants often make massive desserts that are incredibly rich and most people will feel a very full after eating a whole one. Share your next restaurant pudding with a fellow diner though and you’ll turn it into a social occasion while at the same time halving your calories! Another option is to opt for a coffee instead.

Always Leave Something

Most of us have been brought up to clear off our plates. That may be polite but it’s not so kind to our waistlines. Try a new rule then to always leave at least one small thing and you’ll drop a couple of calories from each meal at least, while simultaneously training yourself to be ‘okay’ with leaving some food. Which is kind of a big deal.

Take the Sugar Out Of… Everything

Forget fancy sweetener, just stop adding sugar to things! You’ll get used to tea, cereal and fruit without sugar and when you do you’ll find it lessens your sweet tooth at the same time as further reducing your calorie count.