The secret to successful weight loss is a winning combination of efficient exercise, a healthy lifestyle and smart eating. Each one by itself, with total disregard for the other is a sure recipe for disaster and frustration. Going on a starvation diet while spending time on your couch glued to the TV is as fattening as running a few hundred laps round the track and then tucking into a bowl of creamy chocolate mousse.

Moderation and consistency are keys to successful long-term weight loss. Make a doable plan and stick to it. Don’t rush out to buy hundreds of pounds worth of fitness equipment in an attempt to look as svelte as the model advertising for it. You’d just end up losing the wrong pounds.

Here then are a few weight loss tips that are simple and easy to keep up with:

Act Now: Thinking yourself thin is great for the psyche but that fat will not budge till you actually act

Set realistic goals: Aim to lose weight slowly and healthily. Weight loss does not happen in a day. It takes months of consistent exercise and proper eating.

Shake a leg: Make sure you get at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day. Don’t start pounding the pavements if the thought horrifies you. You’re more likely to give up an activity that you do not like. Instead could join an aerobics class, go swimming with the kids or join a belly dancing class. Anything that gets your heart-rate up.

Watch what you eat: A moment on the lips; a lifetime on the hips. Every mouthful counts when you are trying to lose weight. Eat smaller meals more frequently. Increase your intake of fruits, vegetables and complex carbohydrates. Refined carbohydrates such as white breads, cookies and cakes have empty calories that you could do without.

Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of good old fashioned water- it helps the muscles stay hydrated and flushes out those unwanted toxins. 8 glasses of water a day is the minimum recommended amount.

Get your zzz’s : Unless you are a sleepwalker you are unlikely to be eating while sleeping. So go ahead and sleep your weight off. It will leave you more refreshed the next day and you will have more energy for another round of beach volleyball.