The only sustainable way to lose weight is to make long lasting lifestyle changes, not go on diets. Put it this way: if eating a certain way made you a certain size, and then eating a different way made you lose weight, how on Earth can you go back to eating the first way without regaining weight? The difference between a normal weight and fairly overweight can often be only 200-300 kcal a day, especially if you’re a short, sedentary woman.
I lost around 80lbs in 2 years through sustained lifestyle changes and have kept it off for around 2 years and counting (lost another few lbs in my maintenance phase). I might want to lose some more vanity lbs (another 10 maybe), those are slowly going. The way I shifted my mindset was the following two questions: “what are the sacrifices I am willing to make to lose weight? And what are the sacrifices I am not willing to make?”
I didn’t want to exercise when I first started trying to lose, because I was morbidly obese and exercise was difficult. So that was out (it’s now back in, since I now love exercise). I love cheese, can’t imagine my life without it, so I didn’t want to give that up. So that stayed. I figured I can live without starches and simple carbs, so those went.
I eat in a light IF pattern of eating my meals in a 8-9h window (I skip breakfast, eat an early light lunch and a big dinner, and have coffee in the evening). I eat meats and seafood, eggs in huge quantities, good quality cheese, lots and lots and lots of veggies, fruits in small quantities as dessert, certain grains, dark chocolate if I have a serious craving, nuts and seeds and nut flour for baking, stevia/erythritol instead of sugar; water, plain soda water and the occasional diet soda for liquids. I rarely drink alcohol but when I do I have either straight spirits or water/plain soda water with it. I don’t eat wheat, sugar, honey, rice or corn. I don’t consume polyunsaturated fats to keep my omega 6 levels in check, so no hydrogenated or unnaturally derived vegetable oils like canola. The only “cheats” I have are eating out once in a while, but even then I don’t consume wheat or rice etc.
I’m a lot healthier and happier. I get blood tests done once a year as part of my general check up and my cholesterol, blood sugar, kidney function, hormones and vitamin levels are all normal. And I’m glad I took charge of my health at a reasonably young age!