new to MFP

I'm really surprised in the mental aspects to taking control and losing weight. The real answer is you can do anything if you set your mind to it. For me I guess it was an easy decision to set my mind to it. When you wake up and somebody tells you there is Type 2 Diabetes in your future if you don't do something about your weight and your body mass index tells you are obese, it's about time to listen. Sometimes you need to get serious. So how do you prepare? First I'd say relax. Make this not a failure. Make this your life going forward. If you can't stick with a diet then don't. Make the diet stick with you. Who's in control anyway? Do you expect the diet to force you into something you really don't want to do? What really needs adjusting here, your dietary intake or your attitude? Right, its your attitude. Now I'm not trying to play with your head. You want to slim down so don't play mind games and get depressed. I know that's easy for me to say. So let me tell you a secret. You can actually do this! How? Try by not trying. Try by working at it seriously. It isn't going to be easy, you've started bad habits. But you know what? The information and feedback you get from this MFP app will help you guide your progress. Stop tracking your intake and exercise at your own peril. Become a cereal success, rather than a fat burger muncher. It isn't really rocket science here. If you reduce or replace fat in the diet (1 gram fat = 9 calories) and maintain a given level of exercise (move around dammit) then you will lose weight. Want another secret answer? Lose weight s l o w l y. Nobody is sticking a gun to your head saying you need to lose 20 lbs. in 30 days. So relax and program your weight loss to a gradual pace say 0.5 lbs per week. The key is not to lose weight fast because then if you quit, you will gain it right back fast. Lose weight slowly so you get used to lower calorie intakes. Make this a permanent lifestyle change, not a crash diet. If it's a permanent lifestyle change, then it's really no longer a diet. It's what you live by. Don't address your weight first. Address the bad habits you talk about. Your weight might start to correct itself. Realize that we are surrounded in this modern world with bad dietary choices. Fast food = fat foods. There are smart choices and smarter choices. Learn what the bad choices are (by calling them up in this app and looking at the fat and calories) and decide what your choice will be. I've lost weight this past year. Diabetes is now not in my future. I'm out of the obese range and now I'm in the normal weight range. And you know what? I'm eating the same volume of food as before. It's just better foods for me. I've substituted and have changed what I eat to what's good for me. I haven't sacrificed taste or quantity and I haven't had to increase my exercise levels at all. There is such a thing as healthy eating. Become interested in habits that are good for you and focus on them. It's not that you shouldn't have habits, it just to substitute good for bad. Hey, it's your life. Why not you beat the failed dieter trend starting now? I just want to tell you it can be done. It can be done by you. Will diet contributed disease or degeneration of a once healthy body be in your future? I hope not. it certainly doesn't have to be. People look at me now and ask me if I've been sick. And it's the best laugh I have when they say that. I say no, I've got well. Your mind is your greatest enemy at times, make it your #1 ally. Adjust the attitude and get to it. There can be a better future. It's just your choice. I can't will it on anybody. I made that choice. It's worked for me. I feel good, I got a new wardrobe out of the deal, I have more energy and my heart has a dramatically reduce workload. I didn't need the weight and I convinced it that it didn't need me either. I got convinced that I didn't need diabetes either. I took charge and found out it didn't need me. Time is not your enemy, time is your goal, good health is your goal. You've already realized you don't need your weight and that you'd like to really wear smaller sized clothes. So go buy something two sizes too small and make it your goal to fit into it in a year or maybe less. If you're like me, you'll find you've dropped more than two sizes. Time is really on your side. MyFitnessPal could be your best friend, it was mine. I basically lost all my weight in the first 6 months but I still track today. Because hey, it's my life now. Give it a shot and make it yours. All the best.

Wow buzzerj - great words of wisdom, :flowerforyou: