What's the single most effective change you've made?

I might have to make this kind of change as I eat my b'fast at 6:30 am and I am hungry by 9:30 am at work and start eating my lunch...:( I feel hungry all day long too..:(

Cut out bread in the week- I just have porridge for breakfast and meal soups for lunch. Worked for me.

and on a 'keep sane' point of vview- I have stopped exercising every day, like I did before I was on MFP.
I used to eat anything I wanted 'because I exercise every day'. I now eat less, and exercise less, but allow myself more calories when I do exercise. Far more effective way to loose weight and to keep sane (being in a FT job and having a young family as well).

Although I have just started using MFP, I know that being forced to record my meals has me thinking I will need to make big food changes in my life to match daily exercise. This will be a challenge with my wife, however hopefully she will be understanding and it can benefit both of us.

The last time I was a slimmer version of me, the only thing I did was run 5K every morning. Eventually due to the poor weather where I live, and the lack of a treadmill at that time, I gained weight back over time due to not tracking what I ate in the cold seasons.

Having the numbers shoved in your face makes you more accountable and makes you feel like you should be doing better I have found.

For example, went to grab some chips last night, remembered I'd have to record it, and grabbed something else instead.

Becoming a student of healthful activities be they diet or exercise related. I've learned about timing of various macro nutrients for peak benefit. . .various running injuries and how to manage them AND avoid them. . .useful tips in the kitchen to make changes. . .always learning and never believing I have the ONE tip/trick/method that will work the best. Always incorporating new tools! Tha's the most effective change I've made!

Exercise. Before when I've tried to lose weight I've done a couple of DVD workouts a week and not got far. Now I do at least 2 a day (often only 20 mins each) and walk more (making an effort to walk at lunchtime, or go for a longer walk at weekends). I still count my calories and won't eat what I don't have calories for (so no nibbling a piece of cheese randomly or a packet of crips with a beer before dinner) but eating back exercise calories gives me the motivation for more exercise (motivation - not reward!). I never thought I would enjoy exercise before breakfast or look forward to doing a good workout after a day at work!

Eating MORE has worked for me!!

One single thing is hard, but one of the biggest things for me was not giving up. I never felt I would honestly lose weight or would have the motivation to just do it, but was determined to keep at it this time around. Even when I might have gained and was discourgaed or was stalling in my weight for a bit, I keep going despite what the scale said and knew in the end it would get better. Slowly but surely that has changed this from being a process or "diet" to a way of life I am beginning to enjoy. That coupled with lots of support, less bad carbs, lots of water, exercise and no alcohol during the week, has helped tremendously. On track for my best body ever.

Accepting that I am a "carboholic" and that everytime I give into the sweets craving, that I pay for it for the next 5-6 hours with a huge "sugar letdown", now I try to think about how it's going to make me feel later BEFORE I give in.

Writing it all down and doing the math to see that even though I eat pretty clean, my portion sizes were out of whack.

Finding out my bmr (in a lab) and finding my true tdee through trial and error. It took away all the guessing and hoping. Now I am able to feed my body and lose weight.

Sorry, but could you help me? In what kind or lab and with what kind of exam can we know our bmr?

I did a lot of research and finally stopped kidding myself about how bad processed carbohydrates are, even if they're touted as low fat, etc. So I stopped eating any type of food that was made out of white flour and/or sugar - cakes, cookies, donuts, muffins, 100 calorie snacks, bread, pasta. I also stopped eating sandwiches made with lunch meats and cheeses for lunch. Once I eliminated these types of foods, I started to lose weight consistently.

my single thing comes wrapped in a package -- I had to get a "routine" down. This includes my meals and exercise along with the rest of my mind, body and soul.

The thing that helped me the most is not allowing food in the house I cannot stay away from in my weak times: Potato Chips & Ice Cream! I used to think I just had to be stronger and not touch it, but now I know it's okay to forbid it in my home. Also, being a part of this MFP community has given me so much strength!!! Thanks!!!

Cutting sugars.

I get up and exercise. Period. Even if we have something really active planned for the day, I do at least half an hour of yoga or Wii balance games, or a 20 minute Zumba routine, just to stay in the habit of get up, workout.

I found a good balance of what I call my moderate carb diet. I don't feel deprived, because I get some grains, but I don't have grains like rice and pasta as filler - I use cabbage, spaghetti squash and other veggies for that. A half serving of grapenuts give my yogurt the texture I like; a sandwich thin makes it possible to hold my salad in my hand; fiber one brownies are a reasonable way to have some chocolate.