First timer here

Hey everybody I am joining this board looking to not just lose weight but to gain some knowledge and friends from this board. I have been trying to drop weight for a long time, and have had mixed results. Im 27, and I used to play alot of sports, including football, so there was a time when extra weight was a benefit. I was about 220lbs at my peak in high school and pretty muscular with a stomach too, but not really fat. Now I'm 27 about 242 and im fat lol. It sucks.

Growing up I had a great metabolism and I could eat whatever I wanted, but thats not the case anymore...sad times. So I tried to compensate by running alot and exercising. About 3 years ago I was running around 3 miles a day multiple times a week. Over the past 3 years I've logged probably close to 1,000 miles of jogging. I say all this to say that I enjoy exercising. Still I have managed to gain weight. Its so disappointing. No doubt it has to do with my late night eating habits.

So now I am looking to really do it this time. I want to set a goal and get to it. How do I start? To make matters worse I recently tore my achilles tendon so I can't run right now. I crank out a few hundreds situps every morning to get the blood flowing, but I can't do much else. I need guidance and a friend. I'm hoping something will click this time so I can stay committed to a new diet and lifestyle, or else I fear that when I am fully recovered I might be superduper fat.