We've all heard the same old diet tips to lose weight: eat right and exercise. But for some of us, those last few pounds seem impossible to lose no matter what you do. After trying so hard to drop the last few pounds, some new pounds start to creep back on.

Weight loss is a source of a lot of stress for people who struggle with a ton of diets and find little success. The added stress often triggers weight gain, especially for people who eat as the result of stressors. Finding a new starting point and simple methods for success is a way to incorporate a new perspective on weight loss and your ability to achieve it. Once properly motivated, you are more likely to stay on track with your efforts, leading to a better overall lifestyle.

Here are the five simple weight loss tips you may (or may not) have known about:

Big meals before bed is a bad idea

This tip we may have heard about but aren't sure why eating before sleep is a bad idea. The trick to losing weight is to burn as many calories as you take in during a day. If you eat big before bed, your body doesn't have a chance to burn off the calories and instead stores the food as fat. If you need a snack, do it earlier in the evening or have a piece of fruit or something low in calories and fat.

Eat spicy appetizers

Before sitting down to a full meal, try eating something a little spicy. Research suggests that eating a teaspoon of chili powder or fresh chili pepper can reduce the amount of food you eat at the meal. As an added health benefit, chili peppers contain capsaicin, which has been shown to be effective relieving pain associated with arthritis and other nerve disorders. It has also been shown to protect fats in the blood from being damaged by free radicals. In men, chili peppers used in a regular diet has been shown to reduce the resting heart rate of subjects while increasing the amount of blood accessing the heart.

Soup it up

People have been shown to eat less if they eat a bowl of hot soup before a meal. It is likely because hot soup is eaten more slowly, giving the body time to digest the food and tell your brain you've had enough. It can be tempting to eat those delicious cream-based soups, but it's in your best interest to stick with low calorie, healthy soup before your meal.

Forget you live in suburbia

People who live in a city benefit from all of the walking you do each day. While it may not seem like a conscious effort, many people who live in the city literally run (or walk) errands every day and the movement does add up. For those who don't live a city lifestyle, it's a good time to start acting like it. Ditch the car and walk over to the post office when you need a stamp.

Of course, not every outing is walkable, but you can make up for it by committing to at least 30 minutes of walking a day even without a specific destination in mind. A simple change added to your daily routine can make a big difference in the long run. If you have to drive, park far away from the store and walk.

It's in the drink

Big-time calories live in the most popular drinks today. You may not be able to imagine life without a Starbucks coffee drink or your extra large fountain soda, but make no mistake, big drinks are full of calories and sugar. By cutting down in the empty calories from a beverage, you can eat more healthy foods. Plus, studies show if you drink one of your favorite calorie-laden drinks before eating, you will be inclined to eat more during the meal. Even though we've consumed a lot more calories with a drink, our stomachs do not feel as full as they would if the same amount of calories were consumed in food form.

Replace your caloric drinks with water and reap the overall health benefits from the switch. Allow yourself one indulgence a week and start stashing all the extra cash you are saving on drinks. It will come in handy when you need to update your wardrobe to a smaller size.

While no one solution works for everyone, these are some simple tips to fend of weight for the long-term. These tips are so easy anyone can incorporate them into their daily life. Adding regular, calorie-burning exercises to the mix increases your chances for successful weight loss and keeps you on track for achieving your ideal weight goals.