I was so embarrassed for her. After a grueling 45 minutes on the Stairmaster, Kathy rewarded herself with a bag of Ruffles and a Diet Coke. Yet still insatiable, she drank two breakfast drinks and finished off little Emily’s last five Oreos.

Kathy’s post workout binges are nothing new. Neither are the extra 10 pounds living around her hips that she can’t seem to lose. But once Kathy puts these simple three steps to good use, she'll smile gaily as her last 10 pounds will melt away.

Step 1: Eat at least 45 minutes before you exercise.
Ok, if you are now envisioning guilt eating and compensation exercising, stop. This is not about eating a chocolate bar now and exercising it off later. It’s about, giving your body the energy it needs to sustain a good 45-60 minute workout.

Eat a light snack consisting of 300-500 calories. This could be a bagel, with a slice of turkey and a whole tomato. Or it could be a protein bar.

The point is to get some carbohydrates, proteins and fats in your system now so that it has something to run on later. With this pre-workout meal, carbohydrates are critical because you want energy for your workout. Eating 45 minutes before a workout will not make you fat. If anything, it will speed up your metabolism if you do this regularly.

Step 2: Drink lots of water while exercising
Your body should be 70% water and it knows this. When exercising, you could easily lose up to three pounds of water during one exercise. Please don’t beat yourself up if you don’t lose three pounds. I watch women get upset at the gym everyday after their post-workout weighing ritual, if they haven’t lost weight. The weight will come off.

If you drink while exercising, you may be able to exercise longer. But more importantly your body will not have to cry out for water after you finish exercising.

Also, water can give you the sensation of fullness so that you can calmly wait for your post workout meal without getting ravenous.

Step 3. Eat a meal at least 45 minutes after you workout.
Even if you are not hungry after your workout, you should train yourself to eat within 45 minutes of exercising. The body is patient and it will take a lot of mistreatment up to a point.

The problem with waiting until you are hungry to eat is that the body continues doing gazillion operations until you decide to eat. This usually happens when you get the “Gosh, I'm hungry now!” feeling.

In truth, at this stage, you’re not hungry, you’re famished and you have no time or patience to be judicious with what you eat. What’s more, you’re more likely to overeat.

So, feed your body with a 300-500 calorie meal within 45 minutes of exercising. Again, make sure that this meal has carbohydrates, proteins and fats.

For the post-workout meal, eating a lean protein proves critical because your body is in repair mode and it needs protein to rebuild your body.

If you can avoid post-workout binges for the next five weeks, yu can certainly melt away those last 10 pounds. Here’s the secret to never having an excuse for not eating your pre and post-workout meals: Make your meals simple and place them in your purse or gym bag.

On occasion, your can even replace a meal with a well-balanced protein shake. Now, no more embarrassing post-workout pig fests, you know what to do instead.