Welcome!
First suggestion. Quit dieting! When you go ON a diet, it means eventually you will go OFF!
A few things I believe.
It's a lifestyle change.
No food is off limits.
Choose wisely!
I never say I CAN'T have a food, I simply say I DON'T want it at this time.
That gives me control, and the option.
Plan.
Plan some more.
Track your food, this is important. Does not matter how you do it, just do it.
Planning and tracking keep us from mindless eating, this does get easier with time.
Weight loss is done in the kitchen.
Fitness is done through working out.
Both are important.
I get grumpy, without my workouts.
Portion control and serving size are important.
Read labels, weigh, measure.
If I remember correctly, a can of Campbells tomato soup, if prepared according to the label, has 2 1/2 servings! The whole can is not a serving. Anyone with a handy can, feel free to correct me on this one.
Healthy food can be tasty!
For breakfast this morning, I had 3 slices of turkey bacon on 2 slices of Sara Lee 45 calorie whole grain bread with a bunch of spinach leaves and tomato slices. It was yummy!
It takes time, a lot of time at first, to learn about food, to find and or create recipes. Get creative! Try new stuff!
Another reason planning and tracking are important, is it will help you figure out how certain foods affect your body. So be sure, while you're tracking your food, you also track, mood, hunger levels, were you satisfied, or not? And so on.
For instance, I am a lifetime WW member. They are big on fruit and veggies. That is good, however over time, I have figured out that me and fruit, don't mix well. I like it, however, I can eat an apple or banana or orange for a snack when I'm hungry, 30 minutes later, my blood sugar is whacked out and I'm more ravenous than a mama grizzly on her first day out of hibernation.
Therefore, I don't eat a lot of fruit. But I can eat veggies by the truckload! And protein is my friend! Currently, I'm on a fat free cottage cheese in the morning, and a boiled egg in the afternoon, for snacks.
This will change. Most likely next will be rice cakes with a bit of peanut butter in the morning, tuna packets in the afternoon.
It just varies with my mood.
Ok, rambling over!