The Fatness has Taken Over

Start eating the right foods again... TODAY! No need to start tomorrow of the next day.

Good luck!

I find that logging my food intake really helps... When I'm thinking about every bite that goes into my mouth, and how many caloires I am targeting for the day, it helps me make better food choices. There are lots of web-sites that allow you to log food intake, I use fitday.com, I know others us the Daily Plate, and I'm sure there are more.

Try this:

Step 1. Start logging your food to get an idea of what your current diet looks like, including total calories and the breakdown of macronutrients: carbs, protein, & fat.

Step 2. After you've tracked your food for a while (maybe a week or two), figure out what your basic caloric needs are. There are lots of on-line calculators which, while not 100% accurate, will give you at least a ballpark estimate of how many calories you need.

Step 3. Start to modify your diet so that you keep yourself in calorie deficit. Shoot to take in somewhere in the range of 500 - 1000 calories less per day than you estimate you are burning. Don't feel like you have to get to that deficit right away. If it means your cutting back your calories a lot from what you're used to, it might take a few weeks for your body to get used to the idea of taking in lesser calories. As you begin to modify your diet, think about trying to maintain a healthy balance of carbs, protein, and fats. The right balance varies from person to person, and there's a lot of different thinking on what balance is "right". I shoot for somewhere around 50 - 55% carbs, and a fairly even split of fats & proteins, though sometimes protein is higher than fats for me. Some people prefer a lower carb ratio than what I eat, but I do 8 - 12 hours of training per week, so I really feel like I need my carbs that high. You'll have to figure out what balance works best for you.

Also as you begin to modify your diet, try to shift yourself off of highly processed sources of carbohydrates (sugar, white flour, etc.) and begin eating healthier sources of carbs, such as fruits, veggies, whole grains, etc. Try to keep your protein sources lean, and your fat sources mainly from "healthy" fats.

I hope that helps at least some..... I know for me food tracking was a real eye opener, and has helped me a great deal with working steadily toward my ultimate weight loss goal. Good luck on your journey! You can do it - but only YOU can take the first step!!

I second the vote for logging the food.... all of what was said above. If you can balance your calories with your exercise and create a deficit of 1000/day then you should be able to lose 2lbs a week. Just make sure your accurate with the food logs and aren't over estimating how much calories you burn.

Everything that's already been said - plus make a meal plan. Take 5 or 10 minutes and sit down and plan your next few days worth of meals - then go to the grocery store and buy ONLY THE STUFF ON YOUR LIST. Don't be too strict - allow yourself a cheat snack every other day or so, but by keeping only healthy stuff in the house and having on hand only what you need to make healthy meals - it'll be easier to get out of that rut.

I concur with the others on the log. What I would suggest is that when you cook, cook enough for the next couple of days. That way, when hunger comes knockin, you have some healthy protein foods to snack on.

Thanks for the info...it's something I already knew, but is definitely something I need to work on. I was looking more for a kind of boost workout, but think I've got that, too.