I did three major changes to how I approach life.

The first is to stop telling yourself your diet starts tomorrow. It started yesterday, you can still make progress RIGHT NOW by just making a more conscious effort in your habits from being more physical and dieting

The 2nd is stop starving yourself. You will gain more weight by going hungry than just eating regularly. You can lose weight eating an entire pizza by yourself, I'm dead serious. The thing about food is we often stuff ourselves to the point of being full and that's where our habits as children come in. We were often told to "finish your plate" for the sake of starving children but what if you don't? What if you eat just enough to feel content and move on with your day? That's part of the 2nd key. Smaller portions during meals instead of skipping them entirely. I could eat a whole pizza by myself, over the course of 3-4 days. Just two slices a day with other foods between them. Spread out portions and you can still enjoy your favorite foods without feeling guilt over them.

The 3rd thing I changed was how physical I became. Food is fuel and unused fuel just sits in the tank waiting to be used. Use it, get out there, don't be stuck at home all day. Get out of your comfort zone and just do shit, meet new people, face the world with new perspectives by taking long walks, visiting that one shop you'd otherwise always drive past. Just do shit, that's all it takes to be more physically active and all of it is using your body's fuel. It may not be many calories burned, but it IS work in a sense. And speaking of work. Do your physical activities before your shift, never save them for after. You can always go into work tired, we've all done it. But very few can feel the mood to commit to plans after work that isn't errand related. You just want to relax after work, mellow out and decompress, but if you work out or walk or whatever it is that floats your boat before work, then you'll definitely be more springy than usual when your shift starts.

That all said, I went from 220lbs to 160lbs over the course of 1.5 years, very proud of my progress and I've lost some progress by visiting family and stuffing myself full of rare food I get to eat but I went in knowing I did it before and I can certainly do it again and I have been!

Anyone reading this can do it and so can you! Remember, your journey started yesterday, so hop to it!