The bad news? Women are evolutionarily designed to gain weight more easily than men. It may not seem fair, but the ability to gain weight increases the chances for a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby, so it really is in the best interest of our species for women to be able to put on the pounds faster than men.

The good news? Keeping the weight off before and after pregnancy does not have to be a 24 hour a day commitment, and can be done with just a few tweaks to your daily lifestyle. Here are a few fitness tips for women on the go, and weight loss tips for women struggling to “find the time” to stay healthy.

• Portion Control. How much you eat can be every bit as important as what you eat. Need a handy measuring guide? You can literally use your hand. Chopped fruits and vegetables, as well as grains and pastas, should equal the size of a closed fist. Chopped nuts or grated cheese should fit in the center of a cupped palm. And meat portions should be the size of your hand, minus the fingers and thumb.

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• Add Intensity. One of the best exercise tips for women has nothing to do with the kind of exercise you do, and everything to do with the intensity level with which you do them. Intense exercise, even just for a couple of minutes, can bring kick your metabolism into gear, regardless of the activity. Even mall walking can get your heart pounding, if you push it hard enough every now and then. Intensity never needs to be maintained for more then two or three minutes, and always be mindful of any medical limitations.

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• Water, Water, and More Water. Some weight loss tips for women involve adding, not subtracting. You can always add more water to your life. Not only does hydration maintain nearly every system in your body, but it also can help curb your appetite. Drinking a glass of water right before a meal can help you more easily recognize when you are actually full, instead of realizing it well after the fact and suffering from that “heavy” feeling. In fact, the thirst instinct is so weak in Western culture that many people mistake it for hunger. So the next time you feel like grabbing a snack, try a glass of water instead, and see if that was what your body actually wanted.

Weight loss tips for women are not all doom and gloom and sacrifice. By making a few small changes to the things you already do, you can begin to see results in as little as a month. And seeing progress is the surest motivation for a continued healthy lifestyle.