Break through your dieting roadblock

5. Drink lots of water

Remember what I said about thinking of the body from the inside-out? Muscles and other tissues are made up of approximately 80 per cent water. If you limit your water intake, the body will retain water and make you feel like the 'queen or king of bloat.'

We all know how absolutely awful it feels to be bloated. It doesn't take much for this to happen. The body only needs to be dehydrated by approximately two per cent for this to take place. Staying hydrated will release some excess water trapped in the body and most likely reduce your weight by a few pounds.

6. Exercise in the morning

If you can fit it into your schedule, exercise in the morning. People who exercise consistently in the morning find that exercise at this time regulates their appetite all day long. They don't get as hungry and they start the day with a boost to the metabolism.

7. Perform cardio interval training

Cardio interval training is simply short bursts of high-intensity exercise combined with more moderate intensity within the same workout.

Studies have shown that people who perform interval training twice a week (in addition to two other days of lower intensity cardio) lose twice as much weight as those who do just a moderate cardio workout.

You can easily incorporate interval training into your workout by inserting a 45-second burst into your stationary bike workout every four to five minutes. You can also add a 45-second super brisk walk to your treadmill workout in the same time frame. Your body will be working harder and will be forced to burn more calories.

In addition, you won't need more than 25 total minutes for your workout. Try to get two additional days during the week of lower intensity cardio as well.

8. Boost your metabolism by reading instead of watching TV

Researchers at Memphis State University monitored 32 girls as they watched a half-hour-long television programme. They found the metabolic rates dropped as much as 16 per cent below resting metabolic rate. In other words, they burned fewer calories watching TV than they did just by reading!

9. Drink green tea

Green tea is a popular tea from Japan that has numerous health benefits, including weight loss. It's not 100 per cent certain how green tea helps one to lose fat, but it appears to increase the amount of calories the body burns, not necessarily because of the small amounts of caffeine it contains, but due to a compound abbreviated as EGCG.

10. Practice hydrotherapy

This could have been placed in the 'drink lots of water' section but deserves its own section due to its efficiency. First thing in the morning, drink a glass of very cold water on an empty stomach.

Don't eat breakfast for at least 30 minutes. The cold water will force your body to raise its core temperature, thereby stimulating your metabolism and excreting any excess water.

You may find that you lose two pounds the first month you try this. If you want to take it a step further, do the same thing at lunch. Just make sure to wait the 30 minutes prior to eating.

Remember though, if you're consuming excess calories each day, this tip won't work! Try several of these easy-to-use tips and start getting your fat burning metabolism revved.