Never had luck sticking to a plan... ever

i always have had trouble...somedays are good some not so good..for me staying low carb always works seems to cut down on my wanting food all the time...i do have my days (like yesterday when i gave into chuck cheese pizza)but this works best for me i have less cravings..but problem now is moving...i need excerise motivation since i no longer have a gym membership!

doesn't require luck. It requires commitment

Aristotle said: “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

Take it from one who was your age once thinking what you're thinking now: "Diets" and "plans" are doomed because they're short term. Think of it as a lifestyle. . . . a habit. . . -- something long term. Your patience will be rewarded.

I think the biggest help is changing your mindset and not "going all out."

Start by making small, purposeful changes. Once you master one thing, like tracking everything you eat every day, then add another thing, like meeting your calorie goal or meeting your protein goal. Once you have that down, add in exercise 2 or 3 times a week. When you find something you like, increase the number of times a week or the length of your workout.

The most important thing is to remember that it's not all or nothing. If you mess up, start again that day. If you fail one day, re-start the next. Remember that living a healthy lifestyle is forever, not just until your scale shows you a favorable number.

It might not just be motivation. It might also be trying to change too much too quickly. If you've tried fad diets, those tend to not work because you're not learning and developing lifetime habits. Or if you like certain foods but have forbidden them and you are unhappy with your diet, then that also eventually leads to giving up and overeating those foods once you allow them.

Strict diets work for some people but not for everyone. As someone who used to fad diet and has a really hard time banning foods, that doesn't work for me, personally. Instead of banning foods, I try to find healthier versions of them. Hungrygirl.com and skinnytaste.com have great recipes for healthy versions of typically unhealthy foods. I also try to eat cleaner- not 100% clean all the time but now I try to make my own soups instead of buying them, and I eat fruit and veggies with hummus as snacks, instead of "100 cal packs" and baked chips...salads or meat and veggies for lunch instead of Lean Cuisines (though I still have those occasionally on super-busy days), etc.

It's easy to start off really gung-ho about something but it's hard to keep that motivation long-term. Maybe try slowly changing things. For example, if you're mostly sedentary, instead of swearing you'll go the gym an hour every day, try just walking 15 minutes every day, or going to the gym three times a week for 30 minutes. For food, try making small changes such as having veggies with your meal instead of rice or pasta. If you have time, try one new recipe a week- that helps keeps things mixed up, and fun, so weight-loss doesn't feel so much like a chore.

For SOME people, even having ONE cheat meal a week helps because it gives you a chance to still enjoy those foods (but maybe have a smaller portion, or if you eat at a restaurant, ask for a box up front and box up half before you start to eat).

Again, these things don't work for everyone. But what you described is VERY familiar to me, so these are some things that helped me.

Aristotle said: “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

Take it from one who was your age once thinking what you're thinking now: "Diets" and "plans" are doomed because they're short term. Think of it as a lifestyle. . . . a habit. . . -- something long term. Your patience will be rewarded.

Exactly this. I always tell my clients/customers "The only common denominator with every thing you've tried and failed at in the past is YOU!" Do not TRY to lose weight or TRY to get in better shape. "Do or do not - there is no try". As a personl wellness coach, I;m in the business of changing habits. It can be done but the client/person has to have the will to change..

doesn't require luck. It requires commitment

^ and patience.

Wanting to lose weight wasn't enough for me. I needed a reason, a goal for why I wanted to lose it. Find a specific reason, not just I want to be healthy, I want to be skinny.

Understand the simple concept of burning more calories than you consume and find YOUR way to do it.

Try different types of exercising. Maybe you haven't really found the one you like. The right one is enjoyable and makes you want to go back.

Kill flavored beverages. Don't drink you calories or sugar. It's such a waste and does nothing for you.

My most reliable source of exercise, by far, is the volleyball team I joined. It's not necessarily a grueling workout, but I go play with friends, run around some, and because it's on my calendar and my friends are relying on me, I don't skip it. The hour or two passes by quickly, whereas a half hour in the gym can seem like forever. And going to the gym is way too easy to avoid...

Finding something that's guaranteed exercise in your week helps a lot. I still try and lift weights and do other active things, but even if that doesn't happen, at least I've played sports once/twice in the week, you know? Get something on your calendar that you just assume you're going to attend, and anything else you talk yourself into doing on top of that feels like awesome bonus.

And if you're like me, trading a weekly happy hour for a weekly sports day really adds up, calorie-wise, after awhile. If you bring friends, you probably won't be the only person appreciating the extra activity in your week. Good luck!