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HOW TO EAT THE FOODS YOU LOVE AND STILL LOSE WEIGHT

Going cold turkey with your diet — no more candy, no more fries — may work for some women, but let’s face it, not most. Banishing your most-loved foods can be the fastest route to weight-loss failure. Instead, put them to work for you. Here’s how.

Your weakness: Junk food

Your plan: Memorize this phrase: Pay attention to portions. It’s OK to buy that bag of chips or cookies, but before you put it in your cupboard, open it and divvy up the contents into single-serving containers. Also, avoid eating these foods until after you’ve had a healthy meal or snack, such as an apple. Finally, choose “healthier” junk foods — toasted pita crisps instead of chips, for example.

Your weakness: Raging sweet tooth

Your plan: Go ahead and eat your sweets, just eat them smart! Carve out about 150 calories per day for your favorite sweet, says Susan McQuillan, a registered dietitian in New York City. That amounts to about an ounce of chocolate, half a modest slice of cake, or a half-cup of regular ice cream. But before you automatically reach for the decadent sweets, try taking advantage of the low-calorie treasures known as fruit.

One favorite trick of dietitians is to pair larger amounts of fruit with smaller amounts of other desserts, such as low-fat ice cream or whipped cream. And every once in a while, have a lean salad for lunch or dinner, and save the meal’s calories for a full dessert.

Your weakness: Comfort foods

Your plan: A little strategic ingredient swapping can help you continue to enjoy your favorite comfort foods, says McQuillan. For all of those mouth-watering meat dishes, she suggests using lean cuts of red meat such as top round, sirloin and London broil. Cuts like those, she says, average 240 calories per 3-ounce serving compared with fattier prime rib, filet mignon and T-bones, which have 340 calories for the same-size portion. For variety, pork tenderloin or tuna steak are hearty red-meat substitutes.

If pasta is your go-to comfort meal, switch to whole-grain pastas. Even using half whole-grain, half regular can make a big difference. Red sauces are the healthiest option, but cream sauces can still taste delicious when made with low-fat dairy. Where you can splurge with pasta are the vegetables. Virtually every vegetable goes great with pasta.

For both pasta and meat dishes, it’s important to pay attention to serving sizes. “Don’t eyeball it,” McQuillan warns. “Get out the measuring cups and food scale so you don’t overdo a good thing.”

Your weakness: Take-out food

Your plan: Convenience foods can also be slimming ones, if you order and plan wisely. For example, at the pizza parlor, order just one slice and ask for a side salad. Another pizza trick? For fewer calories, order a Sicilian slice, or deep-dish pizza. That’s because you’re more likely to eat fewer slices when it’s extra thick.

Having Chinese tonight? Don’t eat it right out of the container. Instead, transfer one serving to a plate and pass on the extra sauce (and calories). At fast-food restaurants where you can pick among several side dishes, ask for small half-cup portions of a few different items, instead of just one. “That way, you’ll get a more appetizing variety of colors, nutrients and calories,” says McQuillan.

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