NEW YORK (Wall Street Journal) — It’s the time of year when most people make sweeping health resolutions, promising to eat right, exercise and lose weight. I make those same resolutions every New Year, but I always end up feeling like a failure 12 months later. The solution, experts say, is to choose small steps toward better health rather than sweeping resolutions that require dramatic lifestyle changes. Here are six easy resolutions that will help you cut calories, move more and end 2007 in better health.[box] Eat at the table. I often find myself eating in the car or in front of the computer. Numerous studies show that meals consumed at the dinner table are more likely to be healthful and contain fewer calories than meals eaten elsewhere in the house or on the run. A study of more than 18,000 adolescents found that kids who sat down to evening meals with parents consumed more fruits, vegetables and dairy foods than kids who didn’t. Several studies show that kids and adults ingest more calories when eating in front of the TV or at the movies, possibly because the distraction makes us less aware that we’re full. Food eaten on the go tends to be high in calories.

[box] Play with your kids. Recently, a personal-trainer friend gave me a jump rope, suggesting it might help me squeeze exercise into my day. It’s been a huge help and has inspired me to use playtime with my daughter as a way to exercise. Burning calories is easy with 20 minutes of jump rope (240 calories); touch football (195); bike riding (156) or backyard soccer (166). A resolution to play a 40 minute game of soccer or a bike ride with your kids once a week burns the caloric equivalent of about five pounds a year.

[box] Downsize favourite foods. We all have favourite foods we eat almost every day. Instead of giving them up, look for ways to trim calories. If you love a Starbucks Grande Latte (260 calories), switch to a no-fat tall latte (120 calories). If you drink coffee three times a week, you’ll save 21,840 calories, or about six pounds, a year. If you eat salad for lunch, skip the shredded cheese twice a week. You’ll save 50 to 100 calories a salad, or about 10,000 calories (equal to about three pounds of weight gain a year.) If twice a week you eat an Au Bon Pain bacon, egg and cheese bagel for breakfast (560 calories), switch to the egg with cheese (480 calories). That’s adds up to a savings of 8,000 calories a year or a little more than two pounds.

[box] Eat more soup. Years of talking to nutritionists have convinced me that soup is one of the most underrated health foods. One of my favourite nutrition books is “The Volumetrics Eating Plan” by Pennsylvania State University researcher Barbara Rolls. It’s a common-sense approach, backed by science, that shows how eating higher “volume” foods like soup leaves you feeling full on fewer calories. Check the labels for low-sodium soups.

[box] Use the kitchen. Restaurant and take-out foods have far more saturated fat, calories and sodium than foods cooked in your own kitchen. One way to cut calories is simply to commit to home cooking more often. Studies show a direct relationship between cooking at home and body mass index.