10 Diet Don'ts That Do Us In

By Amy Paturel, M.S., M.P.H.

Most women claim they eat healthy. But according to Elizabeth Somer's new book, '10 Habits That Mess Up a Woman's Diet,' most women are actually delusional. Dieting is an American obsession. Yet according to recent obesity statistics we're as heavy as ever. Why?

"Women are unintentionally eating more calories than they think," says Tara Gidus, M.S., R.D., of the American Dietetic Association. But if you can kick a few bad habits -- 10 to be exact -- you're bound to drop the pounds. Here's a quick look at Somer's terrible 10.

Mindless Eating: You grab a handful of M&M's from your colleague's desk, test the spaghetti sauce while you're cooking and dig into a few bites of your hubby's dessert. Never mind the kids' leftover PB&J crusts or the hidden oil in your cafe lunch. Unfortunately, these little indulgences add up to weighty matters on the scale.

Putting Others' Needs Before Your Own: You love veggies. Your hubby digs meat and potatoes. What gives? Your man wins, hands down. Throw kids into the mix and hot dogs, hamburgers and French fries win out every time -- unless you put on the brakes.

Not Being Honest: "Most people drastically underestimate the number of calories they eat," says Gidus. We downplay our Krispy Kreme intake and play up our cardio workout. And with restaurant portion sizes on the rise, many of us have no concept of a "standard" USDA serving size.

Skip the Broccoli, Eat the Fries: According to Somer's book, if you do nothing more than double your current intake of fruits and vegetables, you'd be on your way to eating a good diet. 'Nuff said.

Setting Off Without a Plan: It's easy to overeat if you don't have a road map specifying your diet and exercise goals. Gidus advocates keeping a food diary, setting measurable, attainable goals and sticking to them.

Excuses, Excuses, Excuses: Whether it's a sluggish metabolism, lack of time or our poor diets, we're masters of coming up with excuses. Change your outlook, believe you can lose weight (make the time, decompress, whatever) and set priorities accordingly.

I'm Moody -- Let's Eat: "People turn to food for comfort," says Gidus. "They think they deserve a treat." And while overindulging may make you feel good in the moment, it sets you up for diet disaster over the long haul.

Give Me the Quick Fix, Now! We've all fallen prey to the latest fad diet, downing gallons of cabbage soup, eating nothing but grapefruit or loading up on eggs and bacon grease. The end result is always the same: We gain the weight back and then some.

Drinking Away Our Waistlines: People who drink soda consume more calories. Alcohol isn't much better. "It's very common to eat more or make poor food choices when you've had a drink or two," says Gidus.

The All-or-Nothing Approach to Dieting: If you ate a plate of fries, you might feel like you've blown it. But don't let one setback completely derail you. Instead, focus on baby steps and reward yourself along the way.