It's time to start over. Again.

I have made changes. Little ones, that no one notices but me. But I'll state it again. I LOVE FOOD, and when I come to a food that I really love, I eat a lot of it. I am having trouble with self control. But let me go through your list.

1. don't trust the initial setup that MFP provides. If you put in the wrong/inaccurate information, it'll tell you to eat an amount that may not be applicable.
I don't. I give myself about 200+ extra, but I can tell you if I'm eating good foods or junk food.

2. Make sure you eat enough.
I am. This is not the problem.

3. Figure out what works for you and is sustainable/healthy/long term.
Changing my lifestyle.

4. avoid fads. don't buy in to any "Hey, try the twinkie and vodka diet"
Yeah, I don't go there. They don't make sense a lot of the time.

5. Don't cut out anything now that you don't plan on literally giving up forever.
Well, I understand this, but I know I SHOULD give up candy and limit my cookies. I'd be better off without them. But I'm going to try just limiting them, instead of cutting them out entirely. The other side of this coin is that I'm still cooking meals for my family. So what I eat, theoretically needs to fit in with their meals.

6. GET A FOOD SCALE. Weigh everything. No, seriously.
Have one. I weigh when I'm paying attention. I haven't been paying attention lately.

7. Get an HRM with a chest strap. You'll at least have a better idea of what you're burning. It'll be more accurate than the generic info in the exercise database.. and even more than the cardio machines. This is great for steady state cardio (run/walk/etc)
Not in my budget right now. Maybe in the future, but not right now. I'm linked up between Endomondo and MFP right now.

8. Don't go balls out. You'll burn out. I see 300 lb people show up here, instantly start working out and cutting their intake SEVERELY... trying to cut out all of their carbs at once.. whatever. Take it slow. Figure out how much you need to eat FIRST in order to lose.. then incorporate exercise.
Yeah, I've BTDT. I'm really trying to focus on overall health rather than "do it all right now!"

9. Don't cardio yourself to death.
Not a problem. I've been fighting shin splints for a year.

10. Take the information on the forums with a grain of salt. A lot of people that have been here for a while.. and have been successful, may seem jaded. They give out GREAT advice day after day, only to be met with people that refuse to listen.
That's my mantra through life. I live off salt. (not really, but...)

11. Eat real food. Not diet food. Not "low fat, sugar free, now without X." It's easier to get/find/count.
Diet food doesn't taste good. The hardest part for me right now is that I'm trying to eat less processed foods so I'm getting quite the recipe collection in my foods list.

12. don't set time restrictions.
Nope. I want to be healthier today than yesterday. I want to be healthier next year than I am this year. I want to move forward, not backwards.

13. measure yourself weekly. Don't just weigh. Measure and take pictures.
I will try to remember this. I would actually prefer not to weigh, because I get caught up in the number, but I do need to remember to measure.

14 BE PATIENT.
Yes, sir.

15. Avoid forum topics that have "1200" in the title. It's just full of butthurt. Lots of it.
Will do.

16. If you ask a question on the forum, give as much information as you can ("yes, I have a food scale and weigh my food" is worlds better than "I eat a palm full of miscellaneous boiled chicken parts..sometimes.")
17. Be honest with yourself and honest with us.
Okay, I can do that. I will do that. I'm an open book!

18. This isn't a game, it's about changing your lifestyle. Do that.
I agree. I'm tired of "the game" of diet and weight loss. I'm ready to change my lifestyle. Or at least work on it as much as I can.

Here's what else I can tell you. I'm hypothyroid, but that's not an excuse, just an extra hurdle. I try not to drink soda anymore, but will have one or two a week. I do drink coffee however. Like I said, I'm trying to stay away from processed foods. I like whole eggs, not egg whites. I do have a weakness for fast food. I am not new to MFP, only to the forums and the groups. I am trying to exercise regularly, but I'm only up to about 2 times a week right now. Slowly trying to increase that, since I have perpetual shin splints. I'm 37 years old. I'm a stay at home mom. I homeschool. I have a bachelor's of arts in theater. I'm 225 pounds at last weigh in, and I wear a size 2X in men's shirts.

And I've actually considered going back to school to become a dietician, even though it would be for purely personal reasons.

I know what I need to do. I just need to do it, instead of talking about it. I don't want my weight to control my life, but this current path is not a very healthy one.

So, anything else you need to know about me? Oh, and lunch was very good. Broccoli Cheese soup, but it was only about 140 calories the way we made it.

Alright, back to teaching math.
Hugs,
Melinda

I know this is coming late in the day. For years, I have tried to lose weight. For years I have lost weight - only to gain it back. Someone that I respect told me, "When you are ready to lose the weight - you will." I love that person - but was totally convinced that they were full of _________. Well, turns out, they were right.

When I got serious and was ready to put in the work, I started losing. That was 23 months ago. I've lost a little over 100 pounds and have about 40 left. You can do it, too. You just have to be ready. Teaching is a very stressful job (I'm a retired teacher) and even when you love your job, there's stress. Change things slowly. Don't beat yourself up if you're not perfect. Just get up everyday and be ready to do what you need to do. Good luck!

Thank you. I appreciate it.