Originally Posted by Crazydad

"Diets" are evil and very rarely work.....You lose weight while eating to the plan but you are miserable and if you don't break and/or binge you just go back to eating the same way after the diet is over and gain the weight back. There was no real change that will cause lasting weight loss.

I have struggled with my weight my whole life and while I could write a book about why, I have finally accepted that there are only a few things needed to lose weight and keep it off.

1) Balance the meals - put more veggies and fruits on the plate
2) Portion control - A full sized plate of pasta is NOT 1 serving.....
3) Anything in moderation - a small handful of m&ms is ok, a whole bag is not
4) Put the remote down and get moving

While it sounds so easy when you write it down, we all know it is not. But without fundamentally changing who we are and how we view food, few of us will see lasting change. When I finally had reached my breaking point, I started by riding at 6am every morning because that was the only time I could really do it. I just focused on that and really didn't think about the food - I just concentrated on the exercise. That was May 3rd of this year and since I kept that up, I have noticed that my eating habits have changed. Some of the bad foods I used to eat a ton of now upset my stomach or make me feel like garbage (physically, not mentally). Or if I eat too much of something, I hate it.

Of course, everyone is different so what works for me may not work for someone else. But the bottom line is that permanent weight lose is a complete lifestyle change that involves much more than just food.