Many Americans are overweight or even considered obese. Those carrying extra weight are more at risk for serious health problems that those that are fit. However, changing to a healthier lifestyle is difficult. Especially for those who have lived their whole lives in an unhealthy way.

Healthy choices can be made if that choice is done in small steps as opposed to trying to radically changing a lifetime’s worth of unhealthy habits all at once. Additionally, many people are confused about how to lose unhealthy weight.

The first thing people have to do is to set up some realistic goals starting with diet and nutrition. This is true for those who have additional problems with cholesterol, blood pressure, heart disease and/or diabetes. Whatever the reason, those who have to change their nutritional habits need to set attainable beginning and intermediate target goals. The best way to create goals is to write them down.

The next step is to change eating habits with small steps at first: Some examples of small steps that can lead to better health by doing something like these suggestions:

• Soda drinkers should try substituting fruit juice for half the time they would normally drink soda.
• Whole milk drinkers should substitute two percent or fat-free milk once in a while.
  
• People who most often fry food, should try to substitute baked, broiled or roasted foods
  
• Those that enjoy cooking in butter should try substituting olive or other vegetable oils
  

The idea is to look at each of the unhealthy eating habits we all have and to pick one or two to change – small steps toward reachable goals. As the habits change and some results are noticed, it becomes easy to add more healthy choices, until, at the end, a healthy lifestyle has become the habit.