I have lost almost 40 pounds since December and I have continued to keep the weight off by making the following simple changes in my life when it comes to the way that I eat and exercise.
Always eat something for breakfast, even if you are not hungry. Eat a small bowl of cereal, or have some oatmeal. Breakfast is the MOST IMPORTANT MEAL OF THE DAY!!!! It gets your metabolism going.
Eat 4-6 Times a Day When somebody first told me that I told them that they were crazy!!! I was trying to lose weight, not gain any more weight. They told me that eating more proportioned meals a day would speed up my metabolism, so I burn what I was eating a lot faster than before. And they were right. I now eat about 4 or 5 proportioned meals and I have really noticed a difference in the way that I feel. I never get really really hungry anymore and over-eat and eat everything in site. I have more energy all throughout the day. I don't crash anymore in the afternoons from being hungry.
Portions Make sure that you are eating the right size portions.
Eat Fruits and Vegetables. I eat a lot of bananas, nectarines, apples, broccoli, spinach, carrots. There are a lot of different kinds of fruits and vegetables out there. I am sure that there is something out there for everybody!!!!
Find Different Recipes and always try and make new and different things when you diet. For example I love salads, but I try and make different types of salads and I put a lot of different things in my salad like skinless chicken, hard boiled eggs, baby tomatoes, turkey bacon, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, walnuts, etc.
Exercise If you can't join a gym, or even if you don't want to leave the house, that is fine. You can exercise from the comfort and privacy of your own home. Get yourself some 5 and 10 pound hand weights. Do different exercises like Weight Training, Cardio, Yoga & Pilates. It keeps it more exciting and fun if you do a variety of exercises. And you will see that you will lose weight and inches faster by doing it this way.
I have found that there are still little ways to cheat, because not everybody can just cut out all sweets or carbs or whatever their favorite "bad" food it is that they just love and have to have. I LOVE ice cream and used to just eat an entire gallon of it like it was nothing. I have actually found some low fat yogurts that taste better than some of the ice cream that I used to eat. The ice cream that I used to eat tastes really artificial. But the new frozen yogurt that I eat tastes fresh, and it is so delicious, and it is so much better and healthier for me.
Dark chocolate is better and better for you than milk chocolate.
I love cheese, but there are a lot of new cheeses out there that are low fat or only 35 calories, and I was surprised to find that they do actually taste really really good. So I was excited because again I didn't have to give up one of my favorite foods

I find that it is better for me if I tell myself that I am not on a diet. If I just eat breakfast, eat 4-6 times a day, eat more veggies and fruit, find fun and different recipes, and do a variety of different exercises I lose weight and I feel great
