Well.....this is kind of long, but the shortest summary of my weight loss history I can give.
I've always been "big", probably since I was 5. By 8th grade, I weighed in at a whopping 232. With high school on the horizon, I managed to get down to 168 over a period of 1 year by eating way too little, and not exercising enough. I think I set myself up for failure later, as my metobolism was probably practically non-existent.
Enjoyed HS, attended every dance, so all was well in Julie-ville. Then college dorm food hit, and the free fast food coupons from basketball games, and whammo, that weight went back on very quickly. I was back up to 210 within a few years. Two kids later, I was up to 235. Last year I hit rock bottom when my scale read 250 and was denied health insurance coverage (my current policy is expensive, trying to get another policy).
I started out on Adkins, but just didn't like it, and switched to Sugarbusters after a few weeks. For 3 weeks, I cut back my portion sizes dramatically, and made a vow to exercise at least 30 minutes every single day with no exceptions. I networked a computer next to my recumbant bike so I could surf the net and chat at the same time I rode my bike. Pretty soon I found myself riding my bike 2 hours per night while I chatted in chat rooms. I wore my bike out! The weight started falling off like mad. I probably lost 5 pounds per week for several weeks.
Now, I don't follow any prescribed diet, but many of the habits I formed on Sugarbusters are still with me. I've gone to cutting my portions in half of what I normally eat when I plateau. Learning restraint has been the biggest part of my success I think, and lots of exercise. I now eat about 1500 calories per day with about 120g carbs, 60g fat (<20g saturated fat), 20g fiber per day.