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Some people want the weight to come off as fast as possible. Personally, I think that what the scale says five, ten, or forty years from now is a lot more important than what it says a month from now. And don't forget, your health is gauged by a lot more than just a number on the scale. Skinny people can be unhealthy, too.
I always remember what Pa Ingalls said to Laura in one of the Little House books - I think it was "Little Town on the Prairie" - paraphrasing here - "Rome wasn't built in a day, and neither was anything else worth having". Originally Posted by Autumn Night
There is no easy way. There is no easy way. Say it again, and again, until you believe it. What you weigh is a combination of what goes in your mouth and out of your body as physical effort. It isn't easy, but it is knowledge that will last you a lifetime. It also doesn't matter how long it takes, as long as you keep going in the right direction. Some people want the weight to come off as fast as possible. Personally, I think that what the scale says five, ten, or forty years from now is a lot more important than what it says a month from now. And don't forget, your health is gauged by a lot more than just a number on the scale. Skinny people can be unhealthy, too.
But hard work doesn't need to mean 'bad' or 'something to avoid'. Remember reading "The Good Earth" by Pearl S. Buck in high school? (one of my all time favorite reads, BTW). During the entire book, Wang Lung was always happiest when he was working hard on his land. His wife, O-lan, was always most content when she was working - in her home or by her husband's side in the fields. It was the satisfaction from that hard work - and the results - remember the part where Wang Lung, O-lan, his father and their baby son were sitting in their house filled with the results of their hard labors - their bountiful harvest and 'richness and reserve' of the silver hidden in the wall?
I remember just recently (about 5 years ago) when I was first learning to ride English and I just COULD NOT GET the posting thing down (you know, rising out of the saddle at the trot - specifically getting the right diagonal). It was SO FRUSTRATING! for MONTHS I couldn't get it...but now it's just second nature. Sure it took a lot of hard work, but it was well worth the effort.
IMO a lot of your results depend on the JOY and positive energy you put into it. How boring would life be if everything came easy? Pretty darn boring IMO!
(Thanks to Mel for bringing these to my attention!). 
. And despite middle school health class, etc. I never *got* the fact that food is fuel. Food was something my mother never ate (she was anorexic), something my father OVER-ate (he was obese), and something I never learned how to prepare beyond the boil-water-insert-macaroni level. But when I first started out and she had me doing food logs, she went over absolutely everything I was and WASN'T eating. So I learned that my desperate need to sleep every day at 3pm was linked to the fact that all I ever ate was carbs. Etc...
