7 Effective Ways to Lose 5 Pounds Quickly ...

1. Kick Your Routine up a Notch

If you're having a hard tome losing that last (or first) five pounds, you may just need to kick up your work out routine a little! Add extra weight, resistance, or a steeper incline while you're doing your routine, and that will help you burn a little more, and lose a little more!

2. Give up Soda

You'd be amazed how many empty calories a single serving of soda contains, and those calories, my dear, add up quickly and can make a huge difference if you're wondering why you can't lose that pesky 5 pounds. Switch to water, or at least diet or zero-cal soda, and see if it makes a difference for you!

3. Give up Fu-fu Coffee Drinks

Just like soda, coffee drinks can be loaded with unnecessary calories, calories that may be sabotaging your diet! One peppermint mocha has 520 calories — that's almost as many calories as a McDonald's double cheeseburger!

4. Drink Water before You Eat

Are you really hungry, or are you just thirsty? Before you eat a meal or a snack, try drinking a glass of water and see if that relieves your hunger. If not, then go ahead and have a sensible meal or snack. If so, excellent! You just saved a snack, and all those calories.

5. Add Lots of Fruits and Veggies

Speaking of snacks, what have you munched on today? If you went through your mental menu and didn't list four or five servings of fruits or veggies, and happened to note a bag of chips or candy bar, here's an easy way to lose 5 pounds — swap the 100 calories snack packs for a banana (fewer calories and more nutrients) or a handful of berries.

6. Eat Smaller Meals, More Often

If you're always hungry, you're probably having a hard time losing 5 pounds. Chances are, you're also probably eating too much at once! Rather than eating three large meals a day, eat five smaller meals. This will keep you from feeling hungry, and will keep your metabolism running on high all day!

7. Look at the Calendar

As much as I hate to say it, we women tend to gain a little water weight around the end of our menstrual cycles. So if your jeans are fitting a little tighter, and you're thinking you need to lose 5 pounds, look at the calendar and see if it could just be water retention and bloating associated with your period. If so, no worries! It will melt away on its own.

These are my favorite tried-and-true ways to lose 5 pounds quickly, but there are so many other ways to get your diet going, or keep it going strong to the end... remember, the key is that vital combination of exercise and proper diet... keeping that in mind, which of these tips do you think you can use to lose 5 pounds quickly? Do tell!

Top Photo Credit: glclinic