Summer is coming and most of us will think about getting our bodies ready for summer clothes. Problem is that most of us are too busy working and raising children to get to the gym. Here is a list of ways to make small daily changes in your diet to cut calories and fat and help you get fit and healthy at the same time!

Easy Calorie Cutters

1. Avoid packaged convenience foods. Yes, they do save us some time but if you actually read fat and calorie content for these foods they are very high in comparison to foods made fresh, not to mention all those added preservatives.
2. Try to reduce or omit the amount of added butter to vegetables and potatoes. Sure, butter does taste good, but you will get used to tasting the real flavor of the vegetables instead of the butter.
3. Try substituting fat-free chicken stock or broth for butter in your mashed potatoes.  I use an electric mixer to whip them until they are light and fluffy.
4. Try unsweetened vanilla flavored almond milk in your cereal. One cup of almond milk is only 30 calories, and it tastes great with cereal.
5. Trim the fat off your meats before you cook them.
6. Try substituting ground turkey for beef in meals like chili and tacos.  You won’t be able to tell the difference, especially in spicier dishes.
7. Buy plain yogurt and add your own fruit or even just a touch of honey if you need the sweetness.  Sugar is added to most flavored yogurt cups, even in the fat-free varieties.
8. Read labels constantly.  Check your favorite spaghetti sauce jar, or peanut butter you may be surprised to see sugar as one of the ingredients.  There are many brands that don’t have added sugar.  I buy my store brand marinara that only has tomatoes, olive oil, garlic and onion, and spices.  I use Teddy peanut butter, no added sugar or palm oil, only peanuts, and salt.
9. Buy reduced-fat cheeses instead of full fat or leave the cheese off entirely.
10. Buy 100% whole wheat bread.  Again, check the sugar content.  Some manufacturers use terms like fructose or cane syrup to disguise sugar in the ingredients.
11. Watch for so-called fat-free salad dressings,  so many of them have added sugar.
12. Measure out your serving sizes, and if your still hungry opt for an extra serving of vegetables.

These are just some of the ways you can cut some of your daily calories without too much effort and time.