I Am On The Last Twenty!!!!! I've Heard It's The Hardest

I Have Been Low-carb And It Works But If I Do Eat Carbs My Body Holds Water For Days After. Even A Piece Of Fruit! I Don't Want My Body Like That So I Need To Switch My Way Of Eating.

So I Have Been Searching All The Diets And Am Curious What Everyone Else Is Doing And If They Have Any Advice For The Last Twenty To Be Easy.

I Work Out Five Days A Week And Drink Tons Of Water So I'm Good In Those Areas. I Need A New Way Of Eating, One That Can Be Long Term.

Thanks For The Imput....

I've been counting calories, watching my fat intake, and just generally trying to make healthier choices. I eat a lot of chicken, vegetables, fruit, fish, and whole grains, and I've done this since the beginning. The only times I stop losing are when I stop paying attention to what I put in my mouth (like I did for the whole summer ) It's absolutely a way of eating that I can maintian for the rest of my life, because I can have treats, I just have to ration them. I generally stick between 1200 and 1400 calories per day, and find I'm not hungry at all on this amount. Basically I think it's trial and error for awhile to find out the calorie level that works best for you. Overall, though, if you're making smart food choices and watching portion sizes, you shouldn't have any problems.
Oh, and exercise makes a huge difference in how quickly you tone up.

I count WW points (basically a simpler version, for me, of calorie counting). It works great if you stick to it, and nothing is "forbidden", everything is just in moderation.

You know I am so not good with diets...I really have trouble with restricting myself...if I know I cannot have something I only want it that much more. I calorie count...I don't try to be under a certain amount per say but just do the best I can throughout the day to make healthy choices and then log the amount of calories in my nutridiary. I find that although I may not lose 2 lbs a week I consistently LOSE when I do this...meaning I don't start binge eating when I don't make my 2 lb goal but rather see an improvement everyday. This also allows me some flexibility...if I have an event come up and I eat more than I should then the next couple of days I try to be a little more strict...

Congratulations on getting down to your last 20!

I'm doing South Beach because I've heard that it is especially effective with tummy fat (my biggest problem area) and because my roomie is willing to do SB with me.

I lost the weight initially and am now maintaining by counting calories. I eat a balanced diet so far as food groups are concerned with the bulk of my intake being wholegrains, legumes, nuts, vegies, fruits etc. I also eat a lot of low-fat yoghurt and I switched to calcium enriched lot-fat soy milk (more for taste preference than anything else!). I don't eat much meat so my protein and iron come from a wide variety of sources, basically if I feel like a big steak I'll have it lol otherwise i'm not fussed with meat. I do eat fish a few times a week.

I still indulge in the occasional treat...the other day for example I had a massive craving for caramel slice...so I had a piece with my afternoon coffee. Complete satisfaction, haven't needed to look at anything sweet since lol.

When I was losing weight my calorie intake was between 1200 and 1500, now that I am maintaining (have been for about 2 years) it's between 1800 and 2000 a day. I run 4-5 times a week for 40-60mins a go, walk as much as I can, dance etc etc...I always just find ways to move heh!

Livi