Lose Weight the Celebrity Way with These 7 Tips from a Celebrity Diet Doctor

The fabulous figures of celebrities and superstars make many of us wish that we could afford to have personal chefs, nutritionists, and trainers. If you're using "I can't afford it" as an excuse to skip the diet, get ready to lose the excuses AND your excess weight with these celebrity-smart tips!

Fred Pescatore, MD, author of the best-selling book The Hamptons Diet Cookbook has developed these seven keys to losing weight and keeping it off:

1. Eat fresh, local, seasonal and organic whenever possible '" you can never go wrong eating this way, says Dr. Pescatore. And don't assume that has to be expensive. Grow your own vegetables, visit your local Farmer's Market, and look for signs saying "locally grown" at your neighborhood grocery store.

2. Do you base what you eat on the time of day? Toss that clock out the window! "Don't feel you have to eat a certain meal or a certain snack. Simply eat when you are hungry. I eat only once per day which is essentially the Paleolithic way of eating. It works for me and I almost never get hungry," the celebrity diet doctor advises. Maybe you'll discover that you do want to eat more often, but that traditional meals and mealtimes (e.g. 8 am for breakfast, noon for lunch, and 6 pm for dinner) aren't when you're truly hungry. Learn to tune into your own body's needs.

3. Don't fear a mild sensation of hunger "Hunger is ok!" exclaims Dr. Pescatore. Before immediately diving into the food, he recommends drinking water. What you assumed to be hunger might actually be thirst, relieving what you thought were hunger pangs. "Thin people, at least those who weren't genetically blessed, are often hungry and learn to live with it."

4. Never eat to please someone else (trust me, I grew up with a grandmother whose most frequent statement seemed to be "But you have to eat that - I made it!"). Dr. Pescatore recommends putting yourself and your own needs first. "Don't let anyone pressure you into eating something that doesn't adhere to your new lifestyle," he says. And even if it's a special occasion with a fancy cake, for example, don't feel that your only chance to ever sample that food is that particular even. "Just because it tastes good doesn't mean you have to have it. It's not as if your favorite cookie, cake, ice cream, whatever is going to disappear off the face of the earth '" it will be there when you are ready to have it," adds the doctor.

5. Learn to watch your weight and monitor any gains. Or, as Dr. Pescatore phrases it: "Fear the creep '" those few pounds that go on and then the next few pounds until before you know it, you have added 15 pounds to your waistline. When you've added three, your lifestyle needs to change!"

6. Are there social situations and people in your life that present special challenges? For example, visiting a friend who always insists on making over-the-top desserts and then gets upset and hurt if you decline to partake of her home-baked goodies? You may want to steer clear of such situations and individuals for awhile. "Avoid social situations and people where you won't be able to control your dedication to your new, healthier lifestyle program," Dr. Pescatore suggests. "A recovering alcoholic wouldn't go into a bar '" you probably shouldn't go near a buffet."

7. That doesn't mean that you can never eat in a restaurant. What it does mean: learn to choose which restaurants you go to (an "eat all you want" buffet extravaganza probably belongs on your detour list!). Moreover, "don't be afraid to ask for substitutions when dining out," says Dr. Pescatore. "If your entrée or appetizer comes with something you would rather not eat, then ask for something else. Everyone does it and it's totally acceptable."

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Source: first-person interview by Joanne Eglash with Dr. Fred Pescatore.