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We've got all sorts of things for weight loss: pills, diet books, surgery, and even vibrating machines you strap around your belly. But, who would have thought the answer would be as simple as drinking milk.

A new study claims consuming milk and calcium helped people lose more weight, regardless of diet.

But, before you go out and buy your own personal dairy cow, take a look at who sponsored the study.

Writing in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, experts found study participants (300 overweight men and women, ages 40 to 65, on either a low-fat, Mediterranean, or low-carb diet) with the highest dairy calcium intake, 12 ounces of milk - equal to 580 milligrams of dairy calcium - lost 12 pounds at the end of two years, regardless of the diet style.

On the flipside, people with the lowest dairy calcium intake, 150 milligrams of dairy calcium, about half a glass of milk, only lost seven pounds.

The magic might not just be in the milk or the calcium. The researchers say vitamin D levels were higher in the people who lost the most weight. Vitamin D is a nutrient that acts like a hormone, and helps facilitate calcium absorption. Other sources of vitamin D include fatty fish like salmon and algae supplements.

But, the research has a fatal, and sadly all too common flaw, it was supported by the Dr. Robert C. and Veronica Atkins Research Foundation, i.e. a fad diet company. Atkins advocates a high-fat diet for weight-loss, eating foods like bacon, steak, eggs, and of course milk, so you've got to raise an eyebrow. It's the same as a cigarette maker backing research that claims inhaling tobacco smoke actually improves lung health. Fail.

Ever wanted to know the techniques and tricks used by those who successfully lost weight, and kept it off?

Thanks to a scintillating survey conducted by popular weight loss site SparkPeople - we've now got some road-tested tips to give you the best chance at managing weight.

As part of an updated paperback version of the bestselling book The Spark, (new edition here), the authors at Sparkpeople undertook a comprehensive survey of over 2,000 members. Why do 50% of people report losing momentum within 2 weeks of starting a diet? And why do 18% fizz out within just 3 days?

The answer is the 'strong start'. These strong starters lost twice as much weight in the first two weeks, and were five times more likely to reach goals than the false starters.

Secrets of the Strong Start

1. Track Food and Calories

Both strong and false starters ranked "food tracking" as the one action that made the biggest difference in their programs. 82% of strong starters tracked food every day vs. 65% of false starters, and strong starters were twice as likely to track their calories.

2. Don't put certain foods off limits

Strong starters were less likely to label foods "good" or "bad" and forsake certain foods, and were three times more likely to use portion control techniques that supported consumption of unhealthier foods in moderation.

3. Spend LESS time exercising

On average, strong starters exercised for 30 minutes during the first two weeks; false starters for 60 minutes, suggesting that false starters burned themselves out.

4. Focus on both diet and exercise

74 percent of false starters made both fitness and dietary changes from the outset, compared to 50 percent offalse starters.

5. Engage more with others/have a support network

Strong starters were more than twice as likely to communicate with other members online.

6. Weigh yourself weekly, not daily

Most strong starters weighed themselves weekly, while the majority of false starters did so daily.

7. Focus first and foremost on developing healthy habits, not losing weight

Most strong starters viewed their #1 goal as "building a strong foundation of healthy habits." A majority of false starters made losing 3-4 pounds in their first two weeks their #1 goal, which backfired.

For every computer game available, on-line or offline, there are secret codes or cheats to get players ahead in the game quickly. Google "Facebook Mafia War cheats" and the reader will be rewarded with a barrage of sites claiming to have the secret cheats or codes.

There are some scripts out there to automate a few actions of the game. One script touts that it automatically sends friend invites to players in the fight window. It may or may not work all the time. Players can advance faster by strategizing instead of hunting cheats.

Grow the Family

In Mafia Wars, players form mob families by inviting other Facebook members to join. The more family members a mob has, the stronger they are. The first and ultimately most important key to advancing is to keep the mob family growing. This can be done in a couple of ways:

1 Players invite all of their friends to join
2 Link to other players on one of the many ‘add me’ pages in FB, thousand of players network on these pages
3 Reciprocate when players join their mob family – Mafia War players can be members of more than one mob

Family Defense

Family members need to be able to defend themselves. It is up to the Boss to make sure each team member has defensive tools. As the family accumulates wealth, the boss should make sure each member has weapons, vehicles, etc.

* Initially, funds will be low, the Boss should focus on growing wealth in order to take care of family
* As wealth is accumulated, Boss should purchase each member of family more weapons

Increase the Wealth

Each Mob Boss will have different strategies for accumulating wealth. Some families focus on more jobs and payouts while other families are more involved in property acquisitions. These strategy tips will help increase the family wealth regardless of the ultimate goal:

* In the early levels of game play, purchase properties with a low investment cost and decent return rate. Mafia Mike’s Delis are an excellent choice; however, the number available for purchase is dependent on the number of family members.
* As the money increases purchase high end properties – the key is to purchase as many as possible at one time. Once a purchase is made, the price increases for the next purchase.
* Beware of the upkeep cost of some high end weapons and vehicles. Make sure money flow is sufficient to cover the costs.

Using Points Strategically

With each level up, players are given reward points by the Godfather. These can be used to increase a variety of attributes, such as attack, defense, energy and more. Where to apply these points depends on the Mafia Boss’ strategy.

* Knocking off rivals and going for kills: this strategy requires using reward points to increase attack, defense, and stamina attributes. This allows the player to knock off other mobs and engage in more fights while staying strong themselves.
* Money Accumulation: this strategy requires putting most reward points into the energy level. Energy enables the family to do more jobs, thus acquiring more money.

Mafia War players also have the option of buying reward points from the Godfather, if they so choose. Additionally, there are often special weapons or incentives available that can only be purchased with reward points.

Mafia Wars is an extremely popular game that has become the rage around the world. Players who are looking for shortcuts to bypass the actually playing of the game might not find what they are looking for, however, employing a few secrets to advancing their mob can prove to be just as valuable.