Just because I've lost over 100lbs people automatically assume I'm a weight loss expert! Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy helping people who want lose weight and answering any questions they might have, but I can only help people who are willing to help themselves!
I've done a lot of research and experimentation on this and found what works and what doesn't, at least what works for me, the big secret to losing weight is simply cutting the empty carbs out of your diet, that's it, it's really as simple as that, stop eating rice, pasta, bread, ...etc and watch the fat melt away!! The funny thing is that I found this secret in body building forums and not in nutritional forums, that's what professional body builders and figure competitors do, they eat healthy natural carbs like fresh fruits and vegetables instead of the empty carbs!
So I decided to put a little summary together of steps a person can take towards a healthier lifestyle and feeling and looking great. I don't claim to have come up with any of this shit, I simply researched it and tried it and it worked for me, this doesn't mean it will work for everybody.
Step 1: Find the reason you want to lose weight.
Losing weight isn't about getting on a diet for a few months and then life is back to normal afterward, I'm sorry but that's a fucking fairy tale, this is about a life style change, you're going to want to live like this for the rest of your life, because if you don't then guess what? all that weight you worked so hard to lose is coming back and it's coming back worse than before.
This is why it's important to know why you're going to do this and you better have a good reason, doesn't matter what that reason is, it could be because your loved one wants you to and it could be because you want to become a nude model.
Step 2: Set a goal.
Having a set goal will make it easier to gauge your progress as you go, the goal can be losing 10lbs in 10 months or losing 10lbs in 2 months! A reasonable and achievable goal is to lose 2-3lbs every week, any more than that and you'll be losing too much muscle mass. Saying you want to lose 10lbs a week is just stupid, so don't be stupid.
Step 3: Calculate your calorie budget.
There are tons of calorie calculators available online to help you figure out what your daily calorie intake should be. Here's one that I like, freedieting - Calorie Calculator, it gives you the recommended calorie intake for maintenance, fat loss and extreme fat loss. I'd recommend sticking with the fat loss calorie intake.
Step 4: Track your calories and macro-nutrients.
It's important to track your calories and macro-nutrients, since the big secret is to remove the empty carbs from your diet. Removing all those empty carbs will leave you at a great calorie deficit that needs to be filled, you will notice how much more you can eat when you don't eat rice, pasta or bread. You can do this the old fashioned way with a pen and paper or you can use one of the million and one websites available for that purpose, my favorite is MedHelp - Food Diary.
Step 5: de-junk your house!
Get rid of all the junk food from your house, for any non perishable items you can donate those to your local food bank. Having junk food easily and readily available makes it harder to stick to your new life style!
Step 6: Go shopping.
Go buy a pair of pants, a dress, a bikini, ...etc whatever it is that you want to fit in when you reach your goal!
Step 7: Learn to cook.
Since all you're going to be eating is lean meats, vegetables, fruits, nuts, ...etc The frozen dinners aren't going to cut it anymore, learn a new recipe every week, just because you're eating healthy doesn't mean it has to be bland or taste bad.
Step 8: Start looking at the nutritional facts labels.
Pay attention to the amount of calories and carbs in some of the things you eat, just because some label claims it's healthy that doesn't mean it's true, usually if it's low in fat it guaranteed to be high in sodium or sugar to make up for the lost taste and the other way around, if it's low in carbs it's high in fat, and all of this jams a ton of calories into it. Sometimes I think marketing people are worse than serial killers, twisting facts to make their shit sell better than the competition and all they care about is how much money their companies are making, they're not thinking of you!
This is all I can think of for now, I'll edit this post and add more if I think of anything else.
Cheers and good luck!
