Can't seem to get "un" stuck from vicious cycle. Help!

I think the best thing to do is to start with one change at a time. Instead of thinking "I need to only eat 1200 calories and work out 5 days a week and only eat fresh organic food, etc" just start with simple things. Swap white bread for whole wheat. Order the steamed veggies instead of the fries when you go out. Look up menus of restaurants you frequent and figure out healthier choices. Order the entree without the cream sauce. Order water or unsweet tea to drink. Exercise wise, start taking the stairs. Park farther from the building. Small changes will become habits over time and then they can lead to bigger changes. Good luck!

I think the best thing to do is to start with one change at a time. Instead of thinking "I need to only eat 1200 calories and work out 5 days a week and only eat fresh organic food, etc" just start with simple things. Swap white bread for whole wheat. Order the steamed veggies instead of the fries when you go out. Look up menus of restaurants you frequent and figure out healthier choices. Order the entree without the cream sauce. Order water or unsweet tea to drink. Exercise wise, start taking the stairs. Park farther from the building. Small changes will become habits over time and then they can lead to bigger changes. Good luck!

This ^^

I have struggled with a lot of the same thing. Fast food queen, every weekday for lunch. The first change I made was not getting fries or soda. Yeah, it was hard because it's the same price to just get the sandwich and an unsweetened iced tea instead of the "meal" that comes with the fries. But I had to get over that "have to get the best deal" and decided it is more important for my health than my wallet. I lost 15 pounds in a few months, just with that change.

MFP is really helping me with this because I can plug in what I think I want to eat ahead of time and see if there really is something else I could choose instead that would be better. My big thing now is sodium. Even the "healthier" choices a lot of places pack a huge amount of sodium. Yesterday I was going to have a Wendy's baked potato with chili for lunch, and we planned to have Chinese food for dinner, that would put me way over double or more the amount of sodium I should have. I had to cut sodium somewhere, so I decided no on the chili and had two Wendy's baked potato with sour cream and chive instead. At only $3, can't go wrong there. I would never in a million years would have eaten two baked potatoes with sour cream before. But the numbers looked fine in my food journal so why not?

So identify what is your biggest downfall, is it just too far over calorie goal in general? Is it portions? Is it snacks? Is it the meals out? And then think about ways you can reduce or make better choices in that one biggest problem area.

I am also changing the way I think about food. I started working out, which is also a huge change for me. And my attitude food is starting to change to thinking of it as fuel. What makes my body run better.

I have an unusual suggestion: if you are prone to snacking at night, change your routine. If you are prone to munching while watching TV, sit in a different chair. Sometimes just shaking up your usual routine can make all the difference.

I have a friend who created a "go to" meal for whenever she eats in a restaurant. She told me that almost all restaurants have shrimp cocktail. She ONLY orders shrimp cocktail and a glass of white wine. And if they don't have shrimp cocktail, then they will most likely be able to do plain chicken wings. (My friend weighs 112 lbs)

Another suggestion for restaurants is order the biggest salad you can but instead of regular or even "light" salad dressing, ask for oil & vinegar. You can carry a little shaker of Mrs. Dash no-sodium seasonings to give it some added flavor.