weight loss

If Friday night means heading to the nearest pub for a beer and a burger, you probably don't want to know that your simple order of a burger and fries can run you over 1,400 calories. That's a day's worth of calories in one meal, not even counting the added calories of a beer or dessert. You don't have to give up on your burger entirely — just follow these calorie-saving tips.

Make it a veggie patty (100) instead of beef (306):
Calories saved: 206

If going veggie doesn't do it for you, eat half the beef patty instead of the whole (306):
Calories saved: 153

Skip the cheese:
Calories saved: about 100 per slice

Can't enjoy your burger without cheese? Add a slice of provolone (98) instead of cheddar (113):
Calories saved: 15

Side salad with dressing (140) instead of fries (395) with ketchup (20):
Calories saved: 275 calories

Only eat half the bun instead of the whole (160):
Calories saved: 80

Two tomato slices (7) and mustard (5) instead of ketchup (20) and mayo (90):
Calories saved: 98

Sweet and creamy ice cream pints fly off the shelves in the Summer months, and while Ben & Jerry's is a popular brand, you might like the more basic yet scrumptious Häagen-Dazs flavors. Below shows what 100 calories of raspberry sorbet looks like, but chances are one little scoop just won't be enough. Check out the chart below to see how many calories are in your favorite flavors of ice cream, gelato, sorbet, and frozen yogurt, so you can arm yourself before polishing off an entire pint.

Don't see your favorite flavor? Keep reading to find out the calorie amounts of other ice cream flavors as well as gelato, sorbet, and frozen yogurt.

Want to turn your body's fat-burning potential up a notch? Check out these five ways to wake up and up the calorie burn.

1. Exercise: That dawn workout doesn't just put a pep in your step; exercising in the morning also helps boost your metabolism, more than exercising at other times of the day. Studies have shown that people who exercised in the morning burn more calories than those who exercise at other times of the day, so lace up your sneaks and greet the sun for an added calorie burn.
2. Add intensity: Good news for the time-strapped: a recent study found that a simple intense 2.5-minute burst of exercise can lead to an increased afterburn all day — up to 200 calories worth, in fact. Need ideas on how to add intensity to your workouts? Here are five short exercises that will help you burn extra calories fast.

Three more ideas after the break!

You were happily losing weight eating right and exercising, but with five more pounds left to go, the scale stopped budging. Find out what can cause weight loss to hit a wall and what you can do about it.

1. I'm all about breakfast, lunch, and dinner: When counting and restricting your calorie intake, it makes sense to eat fewer times a day. The problem with this is it can make blood sugar levels rise and fall like a roller coaster, which slows down metabolism. Keep that metabolism going strong by eating throughout the day, every few hours. Keep those three meals, but sprinkle 150-calorie snacks in between.
2. I'll just have a salad: Just as eating too many calories can cause you to hit a weight-loss wall (or even gain weight), not eating enough calories can also prevent you from slimming down. If your body senses that it's not getting enough, your metabolism will slow down and hold onto fat. So be sure not to skip meals or go below 1,200 calories a day.
3. I eat 1,200 calories a day, I think: If you've figured out a set number of daily calories with a nutritionist, you're one step closer to dropping pounds. It's easy to underestimate calorie amounts, or forget about those handfuls of M&M's you innocently grab off your co-worker's desk, both of which can contribute to going over your daily calorie limit without you even realizing it. Keep yourself honest by writing everything down in a food journal. We're talking every single sip, lick, and nibble you take. If you have a hard time not cheating, share your food journal with a friend.
4. Oh, let's try that new restaurant: Eating out while trying to lose weight is possible, but it's much harder. Since you're not preparing the food yourself, you really have no idea how many calories you're consuming, plus you tend to eat more than you would in your own kitchen. So keep the meals eaten out to a minimum of once a week, and follow these tips to save calories when you do dine out.
5. I'm heading out for another run: Yes, running is a wonderful workout that burns calories and strengthens your muscles, but doing the same exact workout every single time you exercise is a surefire way to hit a weight-loss plateau. Your muscles need to constantly be challenged in order to keep your metabolism from slowing down. You can keep running, just beef up the intensity and mix it up with hills and sprinting intervals. Also include other forms of cardio such as biking and swimming to work other parts of your body. It's also important to include strength training three times a week since lean muscle burns more calories than fat.

In order to lose a pound in seven days, you need to cut out or burn 3,500 calories in a week. That's 500 fewer calories per day. If you just can't squeeze in a workout, then here's how you can cut those calories out of your diet — a little bit at a time.

Please note that this is not a full day's meal plan, but rather examples of where you can cut calories in your daily diet.

Breakfast

• Choose vanilla Greek yogurt (120 calories) instead of blueberry-flavored (140 calories) to eat with your granola: save 20 calories.
• Top yogurt with half a cup of fresh berries (42 calories) instead of adding a quarter cup of raisins (108 calories): save 57 calories.

Breakfast calories saved: 77

Continue reading to find out how to cut the rest of your calories from lunch, dinner, and dessert.