Put away the flavor-free food, quit counting calories, and say good-bye to guilt.

Give Yourself Ample Time to Eat
People who say they eat quickly right up until they feel full are three times more likely to be overweight than those with slower dining habits, according to a 2008 study. Researchers suspect that fast eaters don't give the brain's fullness signals time to kick in, which can take as long as 20 minutes after the first bite, according to research.

Advice in action: Check the clock before you start eating, even if you're having a meal on the go. Then stretch that meal out for at least 20 minutes. If you're still hungry after finishing, take a 20-minute time-out (sip tea; relax; take your mind off eating). Then check your hunger signals. Go back for seconds only if the signals are still strong.

"Legalize" All Foods
Research indicates that cutting out your favorite flavors sets you up for trouble. When you label a particular food as "bad," you're implying that it's desirable, so you'll instantly want it more, making it easy to break down and overindulge.

Advice in action: Instead of focusing on do's and don'ts, make all foods permissible. Incorporate flavors you love into each meal. Sure, it's always best to seek out the healthiest version of dishes, but when absolutely nothing except, say, Grandma's lasagna will do, don't forbid yourself. Cut a reasonable portion (about the size of a deck of cards) and relish it.

Recognize Fullness
Technically, you're full when you've eaten enough to fill your stomach and given your body adequate fuel to run on for the next several hours. At that point, your stomach tells your brain it's done, and your brain starts producing fullness hormones that make you intuitively know this. But fullness is a subtle concept. Mostly it involves a physical heaviness and a vague sense that you don't want to eat any more. And it can be easy to ignore accidentally. A good way to avoid overindulging is to get reacquainted with your hunger signs.

Advice in action: Midway through your next meal, with half your food left on your plate, pause and place your hands on your belly. Close your eyes and ask yourself how full you feel on a scale of 1 to 10, with "just right" being six or seven on that scale. Three should mean "Eat a little more," and nine should signal "Have more and you'll be uncomfortably full!" Over time, you'll train yourself to stop automatically.

Mind Your Meal
If you switch from a 12 1/2-inch plate to a 10 1/2-inch one, you'll eat 22 percent less—without feeling any hungrier or less satisfied.

Advice in action: Use the half-plate rule: Fill 50 percent of your dish with salad, vegetables, and fruit. These foods all have a lot of mass but little fat and calories. That way, you cut down on the amount of room left for more caloric foods, such as meats, pastas, or sweets.

Check Your Mood
Data from the University of North Carolina indicate that stress, loneliness, anxiety, anger, boredom, guilt, and sadness can all make people crave food when their bodies don't physically need it. Research also shows that people eat more when they're experiencing joy, excitement, or anticipation. A 2007 study found that most people can stop an episode in its tracks by being aware of it and not beating themselves up for the slip.

Advice in action: Create a list of coping mechanisms that don't involve food—taking a walk, calling a friend, reading a book. Each time you're tempted, act on the list. And if you've already leapt into a pizza binge before you looked, remind yourself that it happens to everyone, then turn to the list. And plan ahead: If you know you snack because of stress or nerves (staring down a deadline, say) or out of habit (watching a favorite show while crunching chips), have something healthier on hand. In time, you'll wean yourself away from mindless munching when you realize you have no desire to devour crudités with the same abandon.

Eat a Little, Often
It bears repeating: People who skip breakfast are 4 1/2 times more likely to be obese than others. In fact, studies overwhelmingly link any kind of meal skipping or irregular eating patterns to obesity.

Advice in action: Eat something small and healthy every few hours. Then you'll never be so famished that you lose control at the sight of food, and mealtimes won't feel like the last supper.