Thanks all! Well, when I started and for the first 3 months, I was HARDCORE! I read everything I could on losing weight and eating healthily, I exercised EVERY day, drank a TON of water, etc. etc. I lost a good portion of the weight in the first 3 months. Now, I do cardio 3-4 times per week and I do my strength training like every other day. At first, I counted calories and all that, but now I pretty much know my serving sizes and stuff.
I don't eat fast food at all...the last time I had McDonalds or Wendy's or anything (except for the low-fat Subway sandwiches) was in like December. Granted, now I don't eat as much as I should be eating. I also don't stop eating at a certain time of night. If I'm really hungry, I eat. When I eat now, it's usually only if I'm hungry. I've noticed that it makes no difference in my weight if I eat before I go to bed or late at night. I've come to learn to look at it as a lifestyle change and NOT a diet. That way, if I "fall off the horse", I can forgive myself and start a new the next day. I don't eat ice-cream, potatoe chips, cheese steaks or anything greasy and fried, candy/candy bars, cake, pie, etc. etc. Granted, I treat myself once in a blue moon.
And I can't live without pizza....so, when we do order it, I make sure I get veggies on mine. That's another thing that doesn't really affect my weight. I eat a lot of yogurt, steamed veggies, fruit, cereal (I'm now a cereal-holic!). Pickles are an awesome snack, and I eat peanuts and peanut butter to get in some good fats!! I also ALWAYS read labels. If something has 3 grams of fat and 2.5 of those grams is saturated fat, I won't eat it. Lean Cuisines are your friend!! I love them!
All in all, it's just a matter of changing your way of thinking and changing your lifestyle. It's discipline and after you do it for a while, it becomes natural.
Man, I used to gorge myself on ice-cream, fast food, chips, junk food, etc. All it took was a small change. Well, not so small of a change, but I look at it that way because it really wasn't all that hard.
You don't need to spend a ton of money on diet pills, gym memberships, etc. etc. It IS possible to do this on your own!!
