Avoid sugar (including artificial sweetners), juice, grain, starch and sweet fruit (berries are fine). eat enough fat and protein to feel full. get plenty of sleep (8+ hours / night).
Exercise will improve strength, muscle tone and metabolic conditioning, but diet is far more relevant to body composition.
As Gary Taubes taught us in "Good Calories Bad Calories" this is a hormonal issue, not a thermodynamic one.
Sidenote: my best pick-me-up when I haven't eaten for too long are Triscuits, with a few glasses of water.
There are also 'non-conventional' views on the aspect:
http://heartscanblog.blogspot.com/2009/11/grazing-is-for-cat...
Also, a decent article on the subject here: http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/meal-freque...
Such a bad habit, plus I'm so late getting out that I just hit up fast food and eating after 10 is terrible for your metabolism..
I've found that walking is underrated as an exercise. If you live in a suitable area (like NYC) it's easy to walk 2 hours a day, and you can also use the time to talk on the phone, listen to podcasts or books on tape, or just be outdoors.
Plus it's a viable alternative to getting somewhere, you can't walk to work unless it's within 2 miles, otherwise you're going to spend all day walking. Running to work is OK but it's hard to carry things with you.
With biking, the constant air flow keeps you cool, so you won't have to shower at work unless it's really hot out. That's assuming your work has a shower (which mine doesn't).
The health and productivity benefits will outweight the lost time in food preparation and exercise.
Anything can be taken to the extreme, even productivity ;-)
But from a diet point of view, a lot of people aren't eating enough fruit and veg. Salads > junk food.
