Hey again, Char!
I think the boards move fast cuz there's so many folks on here! It can seem overwhelming at first but the positives are that there's so much info and different points of view. And you can ask just about anything and somebody, or several somebodies, somewhere will have answers!
I've been here since January myself. It's great for support, for education, for sharing info and for braggin', too!
I echo what Mama suggests. Perhaps your first step can be to assess what you are eating. Whether you use the computer, or write it down, or just do it all in your mind, take a good look at what you are eating. Consider what foods you can add, eliminate, substitute or modify. Try to find lower calorie options for things that still taste good to you. For instance, I went from eating a lot of swiss cheese sandwiches on regular white bread to eating turkey, lettuce, lo-cal mayo on lo-cal white bread. That knocked that calorie count down! I stopped buying cans of Pringles but, where some folks have a sweet tooth, I have a salt tooth, so I found lower-calorie alternatives like pretzels or pre-portioned snack packs. I've also been doing well with Lean Cuisine, Lean Pockets, etc. This is not for everybody, this is part of what's working for me and making this something I can do on a daily basis. Like Mama, I'm not restricting anything (although there have been things I was eating before that I'm not eating now simply because I haven't wanted them)...I'm sort of teaching myself and learning from myself at the same time.
I think if you do that food assessment, and continue to read the info on here, you'll start to form a plan for yourself...whether it's calorie counting or one of the others. Only you know what sounds doable for you and whether you'd do better on your own plan or someone else's.
And get movin' and shake your booty.
Seriously, I was doing 10-15 minutes of exercise a few months ago. Last night before midnight I jogged through my house for 40 minutes with my mp3 player on.
Whether you go to a gym, or go for a walk, or do it all in the privacy of your home, start movin'. Make it fun, play some music.
Little changes can add up...or should I say subtract down?
Likewise, don't think about losing the "big 7-0". Think about the first 5 or 10 pounds. Break the weight loss down into mini goals which you can achieve sooner and will spur you on to repeat the achivement!
I'm not thinking about my goal weight now, I'm thinking about the next 2 pounds needed for me to hit 30 pounds lost.
You *really* can do this and it doesn't have to be a miserable experience!