By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Just 10 minutes of exercise a day can help even the most inactive overweight women, U.S. researchers reported on Tuesday.

Tests on overweight and obese women, many of whom had high blood pressure, showed that even small amounts of exercise improved their fitness and toned them up enough to lower their overall risk of early death.

The study is the first to reinforce using hard medical data what other studies have suggested -- that exercise does not have to be an all-or-nothing venture, Dr. Timothy Church of Louisiana State University and colleagues said.

NEW YORK, May 8 (Reuters Life!) - Eating a low-calorie soup or salad at the start of a meal to curb hunger could be the key to dieters' success, according to a U.S. rating of eight popular diet plans.

Consumer Reports magazine, published by a non-profit consumer research group, rated eight diet plans that have been studied in clinical trials, with results after three to six months and after 12 months and at least 40 subjects per diet.

Start slow. The biggest mistake that people make when starting an exercise plan is starting too fast or too hard.

Forget about weight loss. Yeah, many of us would like to lose some weight. But if you’re motivated solely by weight loss, exercise will be a tough proposition. The reason is that you might not lose weight right away. Oh, it’ll come, if you can keep it up over time, but in the beginning you might be disappointed (especially if you haven’t changed your eating habits). Just get into the habit of exercise, and worry about the weight later. First things first.