Weight Loss Advice You Haven't Heard Before

The Advice on What to Do When Everybody Else's "Safety Snack" Becomes Your Trigger Food

Identify which nutritionist-recommended, diet-friendly snacks are your weight-sabotaging downfalls—and dump them (a tip learned the hard way by David Kirchhoff, who's not only the president of Weight Watchers but also a long-term member). "I have spent some time thinking about my triggers, and [here's one] I'll pull almost every time: hummus. I can pack away a third of my day's calorie allowance in about five minutes of mindless munching. So how can I keep my finger off the trigger foods? For the most part, I need to say no—not because they're bad foods, but because my brain has a bad interaction with them ... I had to find a new crew of snack-food friends to keep me out of trouble. Here are some basic criteria: 1. They should take a while to eat. 2. They should look larger than life—that is, the food should occupy a significant amount of space and create the illusion that it is a boatload of food. 3. They should taste good and stay in my belly for a long time. So let me introduce you to [my replacement for hummus]: bean dip. [It] has a scary-good calorie value, because most brands are processed without oil. [And I] never, ever eat directly from the container."

Reprinted from Weight Loss Boss: How to Finally Win at Losing—and Take Charge in an Out-of-Control World by David Kirchhoff, President and CEO of WeightWatchers. Copyright (c) 2012 by Weight Watchers International Inc. By permission of Rodale, Inc. Available wherever books are sold.