“You've been eating low-cal, low-carb, and low-fat but still the weight isn't falling off or you just can't stand the food anymore. Here's the low-down on low-food.”

When embarking on a new life plan of eating better and treating our bodies with some respect, it seems like there's nothing to eat. Worse yet, we switch our junk food for what we perceive to be health food. Many low-whatever cereal bars, rice cakes, reduced-something chips or cookies, and chemically sweetened drinks are not only unappealing, they are nutritionally deficient. Additionally, while they may be low in one area, they often make up in another health-zapping area: sodium, sugar, or fat may be increased. These choices probably won't fill you up, satisfy you, or make you healthy. Stop wasting calories on these low-foods. Instead, get real. The more unprocessed the foods, the better they are for you. Eat whole grains, plenty of veggies and fruit, good proteins like fish and chicken, and nuts. Start with a good palette of truly healthy foods as a base for your diet and ditch the "low" mentality.

Not too much happening over on the forum I Userally frequent- came over here on a lark- so glad I did.  Just spent 15 minutes or more "strolling" through some of your posts.  I'll be back for more.  Thank you for for the words for thought.  Keep them coming.  Bonnie.

“You know you need to take better care of your health. You keep waiting for some motivation. Here's your ton of bricks.”

Exactly what are you waiting for? Heart attack, diagnosis of diabetes, for the scale to actually break when you step on it? You're going to have to find the motivation inside of you. You have to decide that THIS is the moment. Not tomorrow, not next week, not next month, and not the next time you DON'T have leftover cake in the house. Make a list of how your life will be better if you do make some healthy changes. Make another list of how your life will likely be if you don't make changes. Pick the list you can LIVE with.

“If you need a pair of binoculars to see your goals completed, here's how to break some tape now. ”

When you were a kid, if Christmas were the only celebration of the year, it would be almost unbearable to wait for it. But, with Easter, your birthday, a few fireworks, and pumpkin carving, you get pretty close before you really start drooling over it. The same works wonders for your health and fitness goals. It's okay to have more than one goal at a time. You can make your long term goal like "lose 50 lbs by the time I turn 50," but take the pressure off with a few shorter term goals. Maybe a one year goal of 25 lbs off, and even a weekly or monthly goal to shoot for. By focusing on more attainable "mini" goals, you'll more successfully move closer to the big celebration for your final goal.

“You want to eat better to lose weight, but you're not sure what you're doing wrong. Here are a few figure friendly tips. ”

1) No multi-task eating. Don't eat while driving, watching TV or sporting events, or doing chores. It's too easy to not pay attention to how much you're putting in your mouth.
2) Portion-control. When serving yourself get a salad-sized plate or a small bowl - one that holds no more than one and a half cups, not the one that your cat could curl up into. For a serving of meat think "deck of cards," for pasta, potatoes, or rice think "baseball." Veggies - knock yourself out. For donuts, candy bars, and potato chips think "I should eat some broccoli".
3) 80/20. Eat more green beans than burgers. Eat more fruit than French fries. If you eat well (lots of vegetables, fruit, plus fish, chicken, and eggs [not fried], whole grains (cereals, breads, pasta) 80% of the time and have goodies in moderation, you'll do just fine.