When it comes to counting calories, what do these words have in common:

• Bowl
• Glass
• Plate
• Bag
• Scoop
• Handful

Give up? These are typical serving sizes used by most people. People who underestimate how much they eat in a day.

I bet you use these serving sizes, too. How many times have you served yourself a bowl of cereal, a glass of wine, a plate of spaghetti or a bag of chips?

Hate to break it to you, but these are just words; not serving sizes. Not in this universe, anyway!

When it comes to cutting calories to lose weight, you need to know the proper serving size for the foods you eat. And once you know the right serving size, you need to take it one step further. You need to measure out your portion of food each time until you can estimate the right amount of food to serve yourself.

Bottom line, you need to stop mindlessly dishing out the food and know the actual serving size instead.

Here are six foods where you need to get the serving size right if you're going to drop the pounds:

Usually, when you think about ab exercises, you picture yourself on the floor, grunting through a variety of grueling crunches. Hardly something you'd do anywhere, anytime -- and definitely not something you'd do in a room full of people outside of the gym, right?

But there's one ab exercise you can do while grocery shopping, giving a presentation at work, sitting on the bus, walking down the street -- really, anywhere, anytime.

Have you ever had that weight loss "moment"? You know the one I mean. That "moment" where you realize that if you keep doing what you're doing, your weight is going to continue ballooning to the point of no return? That moment where you say, "Enough is enough!" That moment where you realize you need to make changes now. Not tomorrow, not 'starting on Monday,' but N-O-W.

Maybe it was when you couldn't breathe while bending over to tie your shoe, maybe it was a number on a scale that you thought you'd never see. Whatever the moment, it's there and it's real. Here's an easy 8 step plan to help you use that moment as a starting point to break out of that weight loss rut that you're in.

These are top ten things you don't want to hear about losing weight but what you need to know if you want to get fit. When you truly take these to heart, you'll reach your weight loss and fitness goals much more easily.

When you're looking for a way to stay cool in the summer while still breaking a sweat, a swimming pool is the obvious choice. Not only do you get to beat the heat while having fun, swimming is a great way to burn calories while using the resistance of the water to stretch and strengthen your muscles. You don't have to settle for just lap swimming, though! Instead, hit the waves for a few other forms of aquatic exercise.

Did you know that the most stressful environment to exercise in is a hot and humid environment? The problem is that your body can't cool down properly when it's humid. When that happens the chance of heat exhaustion or heat stroke becomes very real. If you're overweight, unfit or older you may be even more heat-sensitive. And all that heat puts an extra strain on your heart.

If you can't work out indoors, here are five important tips to follow when exercising in the heat:

You've made the commitment. You've cleaned up your diet and are eating fresh fruit, vegetables and lean protein to kick start your weight loss journey. Fabulous! How's your exercise program? Not sure what you should be doing? Bored with your workouts?

The two biggest obstacles when trying to lose weight with exercise are boredom and injury. You're probably wondering what are the best exercises to lose weight.

You look down at your stomach and give it a pinch. You think to yourself, I wonder what my body fat percentage is, and I wonder if it's normal. I can't tell you how many body fat tests I've given to my clients over the years and the conversation starts out something like this:

Danny: "Mary, you're body fat is at 21.7%."

Mary, looking at me a little confused: "Okay. Is that normal?"

Going for a walk is one of the easiest ways you can start incorporating fitness into your life and make progress towards your weight loss goals. It's easy to do and very low impact, making it a great option for almost everyone. Walking not only can help you lose weight, it also has the added benefit of lowering blood pressure, decreases your risk for type 2 diabetes, and releases endorphins.

The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that healthy adults get 150 minutes of moderately-intense aerobic activity over 3-5 sessions. Walking is the perfect way to fulfill this recommendation. Here are five ways you can burn more calories while walking: