Sustainable weight loss doesn t happen overnight (and if it does, it s probably self-destructive). But if you re anxious to lose weight for a legit reason, follow these painless tips to improve your diet, streamline your workouts, and shed weight *the healthy way. 1. Pregame for meals with water. Drinking water throughout the day and during your meals promotes proper digestion so you don t get backed up and bloated. But some research suggests downing two glasses of water glasses before meals can make you feel fuller when you take that first forkful, leading you to eat less overall. 2. Eat breakfast. Skipping breakfast tricks your body into thinking it is starving — and it is (at least since last night!). In response, your body conserves energy by slowing down your metabolism and increasing its insulin response. The next thing you eat will spike your blood sugar big-time and leave you feeling hungry shortly after. Meanwhile, you work up a major appetite that causes you to scarf down food impulsively — bad news if you re trying to make smarter decisions. 3. Don t make dinner your heaviest meal. Research suggests that people who eat their largest meals later in the day lose less weight than people who eat their heaviest meals early on, mostly because the body digests food differently at different times — and more slowly at night. 4. Focus on eating more fruits and vegetables instead of eating fewer carbs or less fat. You ll fill up on the nutrients you need to function and fiber to keep you full, so you ll feel satisfied instead of sorely deprived by a bunch of restrictive rules, according to registered dietitian Holley Grainger. 5. Take a break from soda and other sugar-sweetened drinks. Of course water and unsweetened tea doesn t hit the same spot as a Coke or Frappuccino, but getting rid of liquid sugar in your diet is the only way to drastically reduce your caloric intake without changing a single thing you eat — a pretty good deal when you think about it! 6. Eat fruit for dessert. No one said your sweet tooth has to suffer when you clean up your diet — but you ll fill up faster and stay that way longer if you punctuate your meals with fiber-rich fruit. 7. Phase out salty snacks. Instead of pretzels and chips, which promote water retention that puffs you up, snack on carrot sticks or hydrating cucumbers dipped in hummus or guacamole, Grainger suggests.you ll feel more full and less bloated. 8. Avoid sugar-free gum, bubbly drinks, beans, and other salty, gassy foods. Stick with water, fresh fruits and vegetables, unsalted nuts, and lean protein, and you ll feel energized without residual bloating, Grainger promises. 9. When you eat, slowwww downnnnn — and nix distractions. It takes time for the food in your stomach to tell your brain that you re no longer hungry, . To help your brain register fullness and prevent the overeating that makes you feel not-so-hot, set a 15-minute phone timer before you take your first bite, then focus on the food in front of you, not the deliciousness cropping up in your Instagram feed, whatever show is on TV, or the snap you just received. If you re feeling like going for seconds, wait until the buzzer goes off to ask yourself whether you re actually still hungry, and dig in only when the answer sounds a little bit like,. 10. Focus on high-intensity workouts. When you alternate between periods of high-intensity exercises (like burpees, squat jumps, or straight-up sprints) and short recovery periods, you burn body fat more efficiently during and after the actual workout session, according to certified personal trainer Adam Rosante. 11. Get all up in those weighs 12. Make exercise a regular thing. Some unfortunate facts of life: Doing one set of crunches will not give you a six-pack any more than doing one set of squats will give you a Beyoncé butt. The only way to see real changes in your body is to pick a fitness program (like the 28-day butt challenge) and stick to it, then practice it on the regular. 13. Put workouts on your social calendar. The best time of day to work out is the time of day that you re actually going to workout, . So if you know you get E-X-H-A-U-S-T-E-D after school or work, that s probably not your hour to shine. Once you figure out when you can sweat like you mean it, put at least two or three sessions a week into your phone calendar to make things