Harsh statistics reveal that obesity is at record levels in the USA, with many European countries following where America leads. Those of us who aren't obese could probably do with shedding a few pounds as well, but the thought of giving up our beer or reducing our snack intake doesn't bear thinking about.

Before we look at the easiest way to lose weight it's useful to look at some of the facts about being overweight. Being overweight increases your chances of a heart attack or stroke, type 2 diabetes, back problems, high blood pressure, gallbladder problems, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea, respiratory problems and some forms of cancer.

The first step on the road to loosing a few pounds is to condition your mind to the fact that you DO really want to lose weight! It is important to realise that you didn't put these extra pounds on in the last week or the last month but over a period of time. It is therefore important to condition yourself to the fact that you are not going to lose those extra pounds in a few days or a few weeks! TO BE SUCCESSFUL AND KEEP THE POUNDS OFF IT'S GOING TO INVOLVE A LIFESTYLE CHANGE.

That's the bad news, but the good news is you can cheat and make it easy on yourself. The secret of losing weight is really very simple - you eat less! Researchers in the UK were confounded by the Atkins diet. How could people eat as much as they wished so long as it was in the diet plan? After years of analysis they stumbled across the answer - people on this diet actually did eat less and so lost weight.

Your body is like a finely tuned machine, it needs energy to function. This energy is derived from the food we eat. If we eat more food than we 'burn' off it is stored as fat. Simply sitting around doing nothing uses energy - but not much, walking uses more and aerobic exercise uses even more. That's why combining exercise with eating less will increase the rate you will shed those unwanted pounds.

The first step is to make diary of what you eat and when. If you can't be bothered to write it down you can go over it in your mind. Do this for about a week. It is important you become aware of your eating habits and how you are going to change them.

Once you have made your diary select something you can cut out or reduce the quantity you eat. Your ideal would be to replace all between meal snacks with fresh fruit and try hard not to have such large helpings at your main meals. The best diet is to leave the table just before you get that full up feeling.

Set yourself a realistic target of losing 12 to 30 pounds over the next year. Ideally the lower the target the more likely it is that you will achieve it. Your skin will readjust to a modest weight loss a lot easier than it would to shedding a lot of weight. You will be changing your diet gradually and so it will be much easier to stick to.

Imagine after making your diary a typical days eating went something like this:

Breakfast - fruit juice followed by bacon and egg and toast.
Mid morning snack: candy bar with cola.
Lunch - Pizza and cola.
Mid afternoon snack - coffee and doughnut
Dinner - Chinese take away
Evening - 2 to 3 beers and some snacks.

Although this may be nothing like your eating habits for illustration purposes we will assume it is. Your eight step plan would then be something like this.

Step One. Start off by cutting out either the candy bar in the morning or the doughnut in the afternoon. See how this goes. Check your weight regularly. After a month if you haven't lost weight you are cheating too much!

Step Two. After a month now that you have shed a pound or two it is time to start easing in diet drinks or water instead of fizzy drinks.

Step Three. Try to eat at least five pieces of fruit and vegetables each day. Introduce fruit in place of your mid day snacks.

Step Four. If your main meals are mostly supermarket convenience meals or take away meals start looking for healthier options. Look for low fat, low salt and low sugar content in the supermarket convenience meals and go for average portions in take away meals. Cut down on the amount of French fries you have with meals.

Step Five. Reward yourself with 3 squares of dark chocolate each day, preferably with a high cocoa content (70%). The flavanoids in dark chocolate are important for a healthy heart. Use this as a substitute for your mid-day snacks or to replace after meal desserts.

Once you've adjusted to a modest change and hopefully a few pounds lighter then its time to consider a lifestyle change.

Step Six. If you do not have enough fibre in your diet it's time to start introducing some and what better time of the day to begin than at breakfast. Replace the fry up with high fibre cereal. Eat multigrain or whole wheat bread. Don't forget to cheat at the weekend and have you favourite fry up!

Step Seven. Drink only diet drinks, replace sugar with no sugar or use a sweetener in coffee or tea. Introduce a glass of red wine into your daily diet - swap this one for one with one of your preferred alcoholic drinks. Week-ends tend to be a big self reward time. Try to moderate the food and drink input at these times.

Step Eight. Ensure you have a good workout at least twice a week to get the heart rate up. Walk , cycle or run at least one mile a day.

Once you've done all this examine the lifestyle changes you've made and find out the best healthy eating diet and exercise plan to suit your needs in keeping your weight under control.

This information in this article should not be used to treat, or prevent any disease. You should always consult with your health care professional on matters relating to your own dietary needs and on all health matters that may require diagnosis or medical attention.