Enjoy a low-calorie soup or small salad at the beginning of your meal to satiate your hunger and help you control your calorie intake for the rest of the meal. Soups like vegetable soup and broth-based soups are low in calories, and a small salad with fresh, raw vegetables provides a nutrient-dense starter.  Avoid cream-based soups like clam chowder or lobster bisque, which can pack a lot of calories and fat. Visit the soup station at a buffet and grab a cup of tomato puree soup or an egg-drop soup. If there is a salad bar available, look for dark, leafy greens to serve as your base. Add raw or steamed vegetables like broccoli or peas, and avoid adding cheeses, croutons, and heavy, creamy salad dressings. Head back to your table and enjoy your starter before plating your main entrée. Skip the fried chicken legs or fish and chips at a buffet. Choose a healthier grilled chicken breast seasoned with herbs or fish that has been broiled with vegetables. At a Chinese buffet, skip the fried vegetables and load up on steamed broccoli, snow peas, and carrots. Avoid piling your plate with noodles or pasta dishes that have been pan-fried or stir-fried.  Fried foods absorb a lot of calories and fat from the hot oil. Over time, consuming them can increase your weight and risk for diseases. Grilled, baked, and broiled dishes are lower in fat and calories, and they retain much of their nutritional content during cooking. Marinades, salad dressings, and heavy or syrupy sauces can be deceivingly high in calories, fat, sodium, and added sugars.  Look for dishes that are seasoned with herbs and mixed with steamed vegetables, and avoid salads that are already coated with dressing.  A cup of creamy pasta carbonara, for example, can contain almost 400 calories and over 400 milligrams of sodium. Look for a pasta dish that is lightly coated with a tomato-based sauce instead. A tablespoon or 15 milliliters (1 fl oz) of ranch dressing can contain around 16 grams of fat and 143 calories. Select a vinaigrette dressing or drizzle a small amount of extra virgin olive oil on your salad. An average cup of soda can contain around 300 calories and 19 grams (0.67 oz) of sugar, and lemonade and other fruity drinks can also pack a lot of calories and sugar. Order a glass of water or an unsweetened iced tea while dining at a buffet to minimize your calorie intake. A meal made up of many different flavors may stimulate you appetite, causing you to eat more. Try to harmonize and simplify the flavors on your plate, which may help you feel full and satiated. For instance, instead of cheesy broccoli, salad with ranch dressing, and beef with red wine sauce, choose a salad with a citrus-based dressing and fish with lemon or a similar citrus marinade. Your food does not need to fit the same flavor profile from meal to meal — variety between lunch and dinner is great. Just try to keep the flavors within each meal simple and harmonious. Waffle and pancake stations are often found at hotel breakfast buffets. Although they are tasty, these sugary breakfast items can contain a lot of sugar and carbs with minimal nutritional value. Topping them off with 1 tablespoon or 15 milliliters (1 fl oz) of maple syrup can add an additional 52 calories.  Opt for an egg-white omelet or a bowl of oatmeal to load up on protein and fiber that will fuel you throughout the day. If you do wish to indulge but don’t want to consume all those calories and sugar, opt for a multi- or whole grain waffle or pancake and use a minimum amount of syrup.

Summary: Start your meal with a cup of soup or a small salad. Opt for grilled, steamed, or broiled dishes. Avoid dishes covered in marinades, heavy sauces, and salad dressings. Say no to soda. Harmonize your flavors. Pass on the waffle or pancake station at a breakfast buffet.


Although generally you can make a simple living trust by yourself, you may need assistance if you have complex or significant assets.  You also may be able to buy a book or use an online trust preparation service, either of which typically cost less than $100. However, if you hire an attorney to prepare your trust documents for you, expect to pay upwards of $1,000. Keep in mind you can always draft your documents and then have an attorney look over them to make sure you've met your intent. Typically attorneys charge less to review documents than they would to prepare them. Each state has its own requirements for creating a living trust. While most forms will be sufficient, an experienced estate planning attorney licensed in your state will be able to determine immediately if your trust documents meet your state's requirements. If you want to draft your trust documents yourself, you should be able to find free templates or sample living trusts on the internet. Make sure the form is approved for use in your state, and that it will cover the assets you plan to include in your trust. Some forms may not work if you have a large estate that exceeds federal estate tax exclusion limits. The first sections of your trust include your name, the name of your trust, and the type of trust you are creating.  Since you are creating the trust for your property, you will list your own name as the grantor. The name of your trust doesn't have to be fancy. Just use your own name and identify the type of trust it is. For example, the name of your trust could be "the Sally Sunshine Revocable Living Trust." If you're using a form or sample as a guide, you can largely copy this language – but read through it and make sure you understand what it means.  While you are alive, you are considered the trustee of your own living trust. After you die, your successor trustee will take over and distribute your property to the people you've listed as beneficiaries. As trustee, you have the same rights and abilities to use, transfer, or sell your property as you did before you created the trust. After you die, your successor trustee will manage and distribute that property to the beneficiaries you've named. Your successor trustee will be responsible for reporting any income earned from the trust assets and transferring property ownership from the trust to your listed beneficiaries. The trust's beneficiaries are the people who will inherit the assets you place in the trust after you die.  You can list the property separately on your declaration, or you can create a separate schedule of property and refer to that document. For example, you might write "At the death of the grantor, the trustee shall distribute the trust property in accordance with Schedule A, attached." To list the property and assets included in the trust, write a separate document and attach it as a schedule to your declaration of trust.  By creating a separate document, you can easily amend it later on without having to execute an entire declaration all over again. You generally have the ability to change the assets in your trust whenever you want. If at any time you decide to take something out, or if you acquire a new asset you want to add, just update your schedule and change the property ownership documents to reflect the trust.
Summary: Consider consulting an attorney. Search for forms or templates. Name and identify the trust. Establish the identity and responsibilities of the trustee and successor trustee. List the beneficiaries of the trust. Create your schedule of property.