How Barley, Vanilla & Soup Can Help You Lose Weight!

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Losing weight and keeping it off is hard. That is the plain and simple fact for anyone who has tried to do it including the writer of this post. That said, Dr. Mehmet Oz, iVillage's Guest Editor and host of the Emmy-award winning The Dr. Oz Show, says that people who have been successful at losing weight often say it wasn't that tough. "That is probably the most common thing I hear on the show," said Dr. Oz during a casual conversation in his New York City office. "When I ask people how they lose 30 pounds or 50 pounds or 150 pounds, they say, "It was really easy. Much easier than I expected. I just did a few things right, but I did them every day."

So, Dr. Oz, what are those few things? Well here are some of his favorite weight loss tips and tricks.

Barley for Breakfast

"The reason I love barley for breakfast is because it's very high in fiber," said Oz. "It has about six grams per serving. The average American woman gets about seven to ten grams of fiber. The average American woman needs 25 grams of fiber."

Soups Before Entrees

"The reason I love soups prior to any meal is because they tend to be digested more slowly... They fill you up... It turns out that people who eat soup will eat on average a lot less food at the meal," he added.

The Smell of Vanilla

"No matter what body type you have, there's one constant among folks who are gaining weight and don't want to, which is that they have this continuous craving for food," said Dr. Oz. (Yes, I can relate to that as I dream about what I'll soon be having for lunch!) "Vanilla works centrally, it works in your brain... that scent will immediately give you that deep sense of calmness. This is the deep, emotional center of the brain that's being calm where our cravings live. And when those cravings are satiated, you don't go out there and sabotage your diet."

Want to hear more of Dr. Oz's weight loss tips and tricks? Watch here:

 

One of our fabulous mom contributors, iVoice Sharon Rowley, creator of the blog, momof6.com, shared a great question for Dr. Oz. She said she listens to his show when she can and loves his tips, but asked if she were only able to do three things, what should they be? Great question! Here's Dr. Oz's response:

What are the top 3 things you can do to lose weight? Listen to Dr. Oz:

 

Finally, check out this sneak peek of Dr. Oz's Friday, February 8th show with another nugget to help you lose weight: slice your food!

 

It's been such a treat to showcase all of Dr. Oz's great tips and tricks this week to rev up your weight loss. What's the top tip you picked up? (Mine is to use coconut oil in place of butter!) Chime in below -- and be sure to check out all of Dr. Oz's weight loss tips, tricks and advice as iVillage Guest Editor here.

Via: How Barley, Vanilla & Soup Can Help You Lose Weight!