Tip #1 - Water LoadWhen it comes to losing weight, there's no more powerful weapon than water. Making this your number one beverage will allow you to see results much faster. The typical person is recommended to have at least 6-8 glasses of water daily. For real weight loss, you can drink 8-10 glasses of water each day. It may seem hard to down that much water when you aren't used to it. There are several ways you can add water that will make it easier to swallow.-Keep a water glass on the kitchen counter. Make this a special glass that's one of your favorites. Fill it up each time you walk into the kitchen.-Drink a glass of water before meals. This will help to make you feel full and get more water in your body.-Carry a water bottle with you wherever you go. If you have water with you, you'll be more likely to drink it.-At restaurants, skip the soda and stick to water. It's better for you and it's almost always free.-Drink a glass of water as soon as you wake up each morning. It will help to hydrate you and give you a pick-me-up.-Add lemon to water. Sometimes the taste of water keeps people from enjoying its health benefits. Adding a squirt of lemon or limejuice can help to perk up the flavor.-Drink water cold. While some people enjoy room temperature water, many people find it more palatable when it's cold.Why is water so important? You are made of more than 70% water. Every cell in your body requires water in order to carry out its processes. You need water to dissolve important vitamins and minerals.Water helps to regulate your blood pressure, your body temperature, and keeps things running smoothly. When you don't give your body enough water, it holds onto it. When you give it plenty, you're less likely to retain water.Your body also gets rid of fat through sweat and urination. If you're not providing it with water, you're not giving that fat an easy exit. But by drinking plenty of water, you'll lose weight faster and you'll feel better.Tip #2 - Ditch the Diet SodaIt's pretty common for someone to go on a diet and then immediately make the switch to diet soda. And while diet soda is free from calories and fat, it isn't the best thing you can do for your waistline or your health.Diet soda is full of chemical sweeteners that have been shown to have some negative effects. For example, saccharine is a known carcinogen - which means it can cause cancer. And other sweeteners, such as aspartame and sucralose, can actually cause your blood sugar to spike.While your body isn't actually receiving sugar, these sweeteners trick it into thinking it is. This can make you feel hungrier - something you don't want when you're trying to take off a few extra pounds.Drinking soda also decreases the amount of water you consume. This can also have negative effects on weight loss and dieting. If soda is your regular drink, you'll want to look at ways to limit consumption.Instead of drinking diet soda, there are many things you can do: -Drink regular soda. If you have to have the flavor of soda it would be better to drink a real one and account for the calories in your diet plan.-Drink carbonated water such as Perrier and Pellegrino. These have the slightest taste of citrus, but don't have the calories or artificial ingredients.-Making a mix of half juice and half club soda can give you a sweet soda flavor and the feeling of bubbles without the artificial ingredients.-Make iced herbal tea. This can be a satisfying, flavorful drink that you can use to replace the need for soda with a meal.For some people, ditching the soda habit can be tough. You may be addicted to the caffeine as well as the flavor. You may not want to quit cold turkey. It's a good idea to cut back if you're someone who drinks several sodas daily.Instead, try to limit soda to once each day. Look at it as a treat, rather than your main beverage.Discover more tips from 50 Diet Tips eBook.