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If you are dreaming of a new wardrobe or maybe just fitting into the one you already own when the holidays are over, there are some basic "rules" to memorize and internalize. When you decide to rid yourself of the extra poundage it will help if you keep these rules in mind when that very important "day one of my diet" arrives.

The first thing to remember is that fad diets rarely work. We have all heard that the only way that really works to get rid of extra weight and then to keep it off is to do it slowly with your food choices and exercise. Many fad diets are also missing key nutrients that we need for good health, so diets that were all the rage in the past are suddenly known to cause huge health problems.

No matter what type of healthy diet you choose to follow, there are some basic things that can help us with weight loss while also keeping us successful with reaching whatever goal we have set.

The first tip is most likely something we all learned in high school health class. Drink a lot of water when you are dieting. This is for a variety of reasons, two of which are that it keeps us healthy and it also helps us feel fuller when we have put less food into our tummies than we are used to eating. Try to have at least six 8-ounce glasses of water when you are dieting, but eight 8-ounce glasses is definitely better.

Be sure that you don't have too many diet soft drinks or fruit juices during this time. Granted they have no calories, but there are other additives that you will not want to put into your body in large amounts. It is fine for once in a while, but try to have water for most of your drinks.

Another helpful thing that we all learned in school classes is to eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. It is always important to eat a proper number of servings of these foods, but it becomes even more important when trying to lose extra weight. Fresh fruit has few calories, but often vegetables have even fewer. Of course this doesn't mean we can soak the cooked vegetables in melted butter or cheese sauce. One thing many dieters consider a godsend is the spray butter available now. Give your vegetables a squirt or two and you will not have to add more calories onto your daily tally.

Probably the most important thing you will be doing is to remember your portion control. If you are used to having a huge bowl of cereal each morning, as one example, you will need to actually measure out the amount the box says is a serving size. It may surprise you to find out that you had been eating two or maybe even more servings at a time in the past.

Sit down and make a list of ways you can change the former eating habits. Anything, no matter how small, will help you in this journey. Sometimes even the smallest change will be something that you will see makes the biggest difference. Be sure to keep a food diary of everything that you eat so that you will have a true count.