This is where it starts.
The best diet is the one you can stick to. This cannot be said enough. The basic rule that science tells us is that if you eat less calories than you need to maintain your weight, you will lose weight.
How do you know how many calories you should eat?
Got it? Now eat less calories than that*. You will lose weight. The end.
I started with calorie counting using the Myfitnesspal app on my iPhone. I did this for the following reasons:
1. I was in denial. I really didn't think I was eating that much. Imagine my surprise when I tracked my food for a week without dieting. I was eating 2500-3500 calories in a day, while sitting on my ass every day.
2. I really didn't know how many calories were in my food. I thought sandwiches were a great, healthy meal. The bread I was eating had 200 calories in each slice. After tallying up the meat, cheese, mayo and bread, those healthy meals were over 800 calories.
3. Accountability. I'm just competitive enough to meet goals I set for myself. I needed to make sure I didn't overeat, but I also needed to be careful not to under eat either. I have a sordid history with food and body image issues. It would be very easy for me to slip back into very bad habits and destroy my quest for health before I even got started.
Start with simple, easy changes. Count your calories. If you completely change everything about your daily routine, what you shop for, how you cook, what you eat, start exercising, and weighing every damn thing... you will fail. One change at a time. Slow it down. Its not a race. The weight will come off or on, the muscles will build, the energy will increase and you will sleep better. These things happen when you eat a healthy amount of calories and you move your ass. Its not magic, it doesn't happen better for one person than it will for you. You are made of the same things I am, those things mean that good choices will have good results. Take a deep breath. Eat.
After eating healthy for a month and seeing the results, start reading labels. Start making food choices on the fact that food is fuel. Look for that lean protein, nutrient-dense veggies, and heart healthy fiber. Count the calories, meet your goals and fill up on stuff that works for you.
Your taste buds will change.
All I can say on this topic is that I tried to eat a McDonald's french fry a couple weeks ago. I used to LOVE these things. I would eat these fries a few times a week and have a weekly Quarter Pounder with Cheese. I couldn't even swallow it. It tasted like grease and salt and it coated my mouth with this nasty feeling. I couldn't do it and as soon as I bit into it, I just didn't want it. It wasn't worth it.
Cheat Meals?
I hate cheat meals. That's not to say I don't have a piece of cheesecake or ice cream. I do. I just make them a part of my calories for the day. Or I don't. You need to live your life and if celebrating a birthday means cake and ice cream... knock yourself out. I don't eat this stuff every day. Hell, I don't even usually do it once a week anymore. But I did in the beginning. I needed to have permission to have something special. It worked for me for a while, it doesn't any more. Referring to a treat as a "cheat" takes the fun out of it for me. It makes it sound like eating ice cream is bad. Eating ice cream is frigging AWESOME. So, eat the ice cream... but in moderation. Portion size and frequency are what matters.
*Eating less calories than your TDEE will result in weight loss. It is as unhealthy to severely under-eat as it is to over eat. The starvation mode myth has been dis-proven, but that's not to say any human being should try to subsist on 1200 calories a day. If you are constantly hungry and constantly denying yourself food, you will fail. If you are in it to win it, slow and steady always wins the race.
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