My point was proven in this very thread alone. I got 24 responses, and the majority of them differed from each other.

Not really. The window dressing may be different but almost every one of them said "eat less, exercise more". No one wants to hear that though - they hope there's some magic formula that will make the weight just fall off. Sorry, its work (and rarely enjoyable).

You'll get lots of weird advice from various sources. If you're serious about this, then it just takes some hard work and motivation. Only the old-fashioned way works for sure--eat less, eat smart, exercise a lot more. Stay hungry, stay active, you'll see results. Don't convince yourself that "it's okay to eat this and this because of this and this..." No. I'm afraid it requires some suffering... just keep in mind that losing too much too quickly is also very dangerous. If you're concerned about the dangers involved, speak to a dietician. We can't really prescribe anything here, but this is the basic idea.

This is the best advice in this thread. See a nutritionist, then a trainer, and stick to the plans they give you. Work hard and don't make excuses.

The problem is you're thinking that means what you eat. What it really means, as the others have said, is how much you eat vs. calories burned per day. If all you do is sit on the couch playing video games all day, you're going to have to eat a very small amount of food to lose any weight, because you're hardly burning any calories. If you're exercising like a madperson, you can (usually) eat a lot more and still not gain weight.

So what you need to do is do some research on how many calories various foods that you personally like to eat contain, (vs. how many calories you think you may burn a day)and adjust portion sizes/meals accordingly. Salad's are great, but if you drown them in high-fat dressing and put lots of meat, cheese, and croutons in it, calories consumed can still be very high. There are some salads that have can just as many calories as a burger.

Also note, as I think someone already sorta mentioned, while you can theoretically lose weight eating nothing but small amounts of Cheetoes every day, that would not exactly be healthy.
You don't have to eat a super special diet of only certain foods to purely lose weight. Just eat lower calorie food items or smaller portions.

P.S. Not saying it's easy. It's not. Try Weight Watchers if you want/need a plan/structure to follow...as well as learn something.

There is no secret to weight loss. Expend more calories than you intake. That's it.

Some people have slower metabolisms than others, and it will take them longer, but as long as you follow that one statement, you will lose weight, unless you have a glandular problem (which 99% of overweight people do not).

A simple rule for eating right is to stick to whole foods, and avoid processed foods as much as possible. Whole foods = fruit, vegetables, meat and fish in their whole, untouched form. Eating a hotdog is not good. Eating a lean cut of beef is. Simple. Processed food = bread, pasta, anything that comes in a packet. Cut down on this.

Soft drinks? Massively calorific. Avoid. Fruit juice? NOT GOOD. Avoid. A glass of orange juice has about the equivalent of six oranges in it. Would you sit down and eat six oranges in one go? No.

Whole foods 90% of the time, whatever crap you want the other 10%.
Spend more calories than you intake. It takes a calorie deficit of 3,500 to lose a single pound of fat. Most of this deficit will come from your diet.

Use a site like http://www.fitday.com/ to monitor your calorie intake and track your progress.

Losing weight is not complicated, it just takes a fair amount of willpower.

It's just as much about what you drink. If you drink lots of soda, juice, and beer etc. your botdy will convert the sugar to fat.

That's my issue, I don't overeat, but do drink all of the above =P

Lots of calories to spare there.

Diet coke or diet soda and more water will save you many kilos in a year, or in a month even.

Eat like a caveman. If you can make sure you don't eat fruit, it contains sugar. If you drink milk cut it down to skim. What you need is protein and not very many calories.

If you eat eggs don't eat the yolk, buy egg whites or separate the eggs yourself (egg whites are quite expensive). Chicken and beef are healthy, preferably chicken, with rice or carrots/broccoli and Italian dressing for added flavor. To snack eat almonds.

The thing is when on a diet like this, you have to eat at the same time every day and you have to eat atleast 5 times a day because your body will be craving more food an hour after eating. Portion control is essential. If you drink alcohol I would cut it out of your diet, too much booze is not good. If you have a beer or a glass of wine every night, that's fine, but alcohol in excess will lead to weight gain in the majority of people.

Every time I see these "food/fitness" posts here or elsewhere, I really wish the only responses were these. Whatever works for one person isn't going to work the same for the next. Every single person's body is different and reacts differently to both diet and exercise - that's why there's so many contradictions in the nutrition world. I know people who do Paleo and see success, I see others that gain weight. I've known people to lose weight on gluten-free, but I've also seen some gain MASSIVE weight. There is no cure-all, so you need a professional who's actually educated on the scientific proofs to help you wade through the crap you hear from everyone everywhere and find what works for you.

In the end it isn't always as easy as "burning more calories than you take in". Some people - and I'm not saying you - can have medical issues that cause weight gain and diet/exercise isn't enough.

I've always been pretty thin my life. However my friends how have lost weight never lost bit by drinking "diet soda" or going on some crazy diet. The best way to lose weight is simple as moving more and eating less, or if you move a lot more, you can eat the same amount. You don't need a professional or trainer to tell you that.

Diet with exercise helps. Diet alone won't do much.

Eat large breakfasts and fairy large lunches, and lighter stuff at night. Try exercising in the morning if your schedule allows. If you can't do it in the morning, at least try to do it at the same time each day, so your body has something to get used to.

Don't cut back too many calories right away. Your body stores fat if you withhold food, so despite eating less you will get bigger, and you may also lack the energy you need to exercise. It's generally a good idea to cut out pop, fast foods, anything greasy, etc... but make sure you replace those with something else, and maintain your walking/jogging stuff. Eat less red meat. Or none, if that's possible.

It's tough at first, but eventually the cravings for crap food go away, and even become replaced by cravings for good stuff. At some point, after a jog, you'll just really want a big fruit smoothie, and snub the idea of "snack" food.

That is why you pick one method and follow it. anolysis paralysis damnit

EDIT: This is why I don't like to over-complicate things, tracking all of your progress and sticking to strict rules just overwhelms a lot of people (that's why there are services to do it for you these days). However, as long as you know you're making progress you're on the right path, which just means: go and exercise, clean up your diet. I've noticed some will say to eat less than you burn rather than eat different, that's not necessarily true depending on how you want to interpret that. Eating healthier generally means eating less fatty foods, which means you can eat more of them. Obviously the less than you burn rule still applies, but you should be eating healthier, not just eating less.

This is just an excuse not to do anything. The majority agreed that you probably just eat (and drink! soda and alcoholic drinks are bad, mmmkay) too much. It sounds to me like you're falling in the trap that many fat people get caught up in. You're looking for the perfect diet and as long as you haven't found that, you just do nothing. Guess what? Doing anything at all is better than doing nothing. Whether you just cut soda, go on a walk a few times a week or just don't take desserts any more, any of those minor things will net you at least some improvement over your current situation. So just do something.

It is simple! Eat fewer calories than you burn in a day through exercise and you will lose weight. Stop sitting there and, because you get different tips, say its confusing - I'm not going to do anything! Go to a doctor then. Your GP can work out what is best for you.

It's simple, go to the doctor and/or a trainer at a gym to get in shape. Most personal trainers will set a diet up for you based on your metabolism and body size. Just do it yourself. Asking others won't do much because they are not you, all they can do is SUGGEST.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/289122
Recommended viewing.

(Be sure to watch all the way through to the end, but don't skip.)

my two cents is to make sure not to over do it with the exercise. if you really bust your ass your going to be a lot more hungry than you normally would be, which can lead to eating more than you should in order to loose weight. Or on the other hand you don't eat more but it leaves you feeling weaker. When i worked in a lumber yard i was burning 4000 calories a day, but i'd get so hungery i'd eat Two large combo bacon cheese burger meals with a shake (their burgers are actually large when they mean large) every day. I didn't loose as much weight as i could have, then again i simply don't care about my health. Hence the eating fast food every day for 8 months.

The reason there is so much contradictory advice is because everyone is different! What works for the person next to you may not work for you.

However, under lab conditions, all of the major diet types were put to the test for a documentary - low carb, Weight Watchers, SlimFast and another one. Every participant lost weight. Every participant consumed about the same number of calories. If you consume 3500 fewer kcal per week, you will lose 1lb of weight per week - how you do that is up to you. Look up the Twinkie diet - someone literally ate nothing but junk and lost weight - but I dread to think what effect that would have on your skin!

Some people need to snack regularly, and some don't. If you don't need to eat every 3 hours, then don't - it's just calories for the sake of it. If you do need to eat every 3 hours, stick to small portions of what you fancy as your morning/afternoon snack - I find a 20g packet of crisps (potato chips) more satisfying than an apple, with about the same amount of calories, so that's what works for me - but the key is in the size: some of the packets you buy in the shop are 50g! Sure, it's not the healthiest food in the world, but if you have a healthy lunch and dinner, it's not going to kill you.

A portion of carbs (rice, potatoes, pasta) should be the size of your fist, and likewise for protein (a piece of meat or fish) - really keep an eye on portion sizes because that more than anything else is what is holding you back. Weigh out your portions, especially breakfast cereals - you'd be amazed at how much you are overeating. I measure out my cereal every day and every day I am astonished by how small it looks in the bowl.

Oh, and there's a custom in some parts of the world (China, I think) where when you reach the natural pause in your meal - the moment when about 3/4 the way through, you pause eating and put your cutlery down, that's when you stop. Leave the rest. It's not "wasting food", it's just stopping when you're full.

Avoid sugary drinks.

Japan has the saying "Hara hachi bunme" which means to stop eating before you feel full. The thought is that we shovel food in faster than our bodies can compensate for so by the time it registers that we're full, we've severely overeaten. There's a lot of psychology involved in eating that most people never realize.

- Eat varied. Fruits, nuts, vegetables, meats, eggs, berries, cheeses etc.
- Avoid processed foods. The more processing a foodstuff has gone through, the less nutricious it is. A twinky is worse than white bread is worse than oatmeal. Make meals out of stuff like vegetables, potatoes or rice and a bit of meat instead of ready-made.
- Avoid added sugars and salt. Dont add salt to your meals. Except in the case of a boiled egg or a tiny bit to make gravy its not really neccesary.
- Cut sodas and fruit juices from your diet. One bottle of soda or fruit juice a week is enough. Drink water, tea, coffee. Dont add sugar.

Really the biggest culprit are processed foods and their overload on sugar, salt and fat. Just eliminate the candy, sugary drinks, cereals and ready-made meals and sauces and youre almost there. There rest is a moderate bit of excersize. Swimming is good, uses a lot of muscles while not putting strain on joints etc.

I was in the same boat as you. I was always a bigger guy. Through highschool, I worked out daily. I was still a big dude, but nowhere near as big as I'd gotten after I graduated. I was 270 pounds a few months ago. I'm down to 235 now, almost back to where I was in highschool. The key is to eat small meals through your day and work out. It sounds simple, sure, but it really isn't. Watch what you eat, only eat until you're 'not hungry'. Never, ever, ever be full. It's a waste of time, money and food. And remember to get your heart rate up. It's easier for us big guys to do weight training, but we gotta do cardio or the muscles will never show.

Good luck brother.

EDIT - Oh man, one huge thing I totally forgot. Pick one diet and stick to it. You're gonna get a lot of suggestions in this thread and from people in general. Don't listen to them. Your diet needs to reflect your lifestyle. If you switch off carbs and do weight training, nothing is going to happen. Do some research and find out what you want to do and if you match your diet with your exercise, you'll see results faster.

I've heard that eating small amounts, but many times a day, is better than eating large amounts only a couple of times a day.


Although, I've got to say, simply by standing 8 hours a day rather than sitting at a shcool desk has made me lose weight these past 8 months. 15 kilos (33 pounds) in total. But I will see a doctor for it, as it doesn't make any sense that I've gone down that much without something being fishy. (my body mass index is currently 18,6..)

Standing burns considerably more calories. Same as sleeping as opposed to laying down, watching TV. The little things seem to matter most. Water instead of whatever, standing instead of sitting, eating until you're not hungry instead of full etc. etc.