I think this is EXCELLENT advice. You may hate counting calories, but if you really want to get into those size 10's, you may just have to. It's pretty simple when you guess used to it. If losing weight is of the utmost of importance to you, then your calorie intake should also be. You should really count it accurately. Why would you leave something that's so vital to your health up to a "guess"? Why?

You also mention you love gravy and love this and that. I think if you are really serious about this long term - you may have to find different foods to love. Ones that taste absolutely delicious - but they're nutrient rich and lower calories. Let your food do double duty - they should taste good while you eat them while BEING good for you - long after you're done chewing. I no longer settle for foods that just "taste good". They've actually got to accomplish something more then that. They've got to provide me with a slim, trim and healthy body as well. Luckily I found foods that accomplish this for me. I made that a conscious effort to do so.

Keep in mind that what you are looking to do is to establish a new normal. Because the old normal is what go you to be overweight.

It takes time to get everything down pat when embarking on a journey of this nature. Your methods and food choices will evolve. I urge you to be open to it.

A few comments:

• I think it's great that you're making breakfast a habit.
• I wouldn't worry too much about drinking water, for now. Lots of people lose without drinking tons of water
• I would try to get in more fruits and veggies. I know it's not easy, and that's what I'm working on too, but they're so good for you!!

Also, are you really enjoying your food plan? Is this something you can commit to? Because to me, it doesn't look too thrilling or like very much food. I have to admit that since I changed my way of eating food has lost a lot of appeal, but I still try to make it as appetizing as possible. Make sure you're eating food you really like, and are eating enough or you may have trouble sticking with it.

I actually see this as progress. It's requiring me to eat and normally I would just skip breakfast and lunch then chow down at dinner. What I'm eating is actually causing me to be extremely full by dinner time. How weird is that?
As far as what I'm eating, it's all stuff that I like. I've discovered I can't believe it's not butter spray and that Brummel and Brown yoghurt based butter and I'm pretty happy with both. Adds just enough flavor so I don't feel like I'm eating cardboard.

Any suggestions on places to go to find out what a good calorie amt is for someone my height and bone structure?

Not weird at all. I think you'll find eating more consistently through the day will help you manage hunger much better than the one meal per day plan.

I wanted to applaud you for recognizing that this is progress. Incremental changes ARE worth making and I found that the culmination of all those incremental changes are what got me rolling and allowed me to build a manageable lifestyle. I couldn't have made all the changes in one day....I had tried that and failed time and time again. This is where the 'on the wagon' vs. 'off the wagon' mindset comes from and it foils me every time. My criteria for being on the wagon is a pretty low bar. That may mean I don't stay at the very lowest of weights that I might or lose as quickly but it does mean I am doing a lot of the right things and it is 'good enough'. the criteria has also changed at various times in my weight loss and 'real life'. That's ok too.

I personally don't count calories and believe there are other ways to manage eating. I wanted to suggest that you take a look at the DASH plan or the Food Pyramid plan (let me know if you need links). These are based more on exchanges so as long as you eat the right number of exchanges of different food types, you'll be in an appropriate calorie range AND get a balanced diet. If you have been eating one meal per day for a long time, you might need some help with understanding what would make a complete day of food. Boosting your fruit/veggie intake jumped out at me as something you might look at and both of these plans will help you do that.

Peg

Great advice. I would really appreciate the links. Oddly enough, I think my metabolism is kicking up. I haven't really exercised and I've lost weight. Though I get exercise at work, it's not a concious "go work out" thing. I'd rather just eat healthy but not have to count the calories.

I'm lazy wht can I say? LOL

SB96

Here's a link for DASH plan. Here is the weight loss area of Mypyramid Here is a simple worksheet you can print out to help you at the beginning at least.

HTH!

Peg