There's No One-Size-Fits-All Diet

Some people want to be told exactly what to eat, how much, when, etc., in order to lose weight. I suppose a nutritionist could do that for you. But the truth is, you already know what to do. You know which foods to focus on and which to avoid in order to be healthier and lose weight. The real work comes in when you figure out how to incorporate this knowledge into your daily life until it becomes second nature. Once you do this work, you'll be well on your way to keeping that weight off for life.

I can't tell you exactly how much cereal to put into your bowl, when you can afford to eat a Reese's peanut butter cup or how many miles to run tomorrow morning. But when you get to know your own body, how it reacts to certain foods and certain amounts of foods, and how it feels after you run 5 miles vs. 8 miles, you won't need me or anyone else to tell you those things.

I realize that not everyone has been gathering information on health, nutrition and fitness their whole life the way I have, but we're all certainly exposed to enough information about food, exercise and lifestyle to know where to start. The people at weight loss get educated about these things, then they apply that education to themselves and learn from their experiences. It's the best way I know to really change and maintain what you've achieved.

So I won't tell you exactly what to eat or how much exercise to do--although I'll tell you what worked for me, and advise you to try it for yourself and see what works. Tweak it. Make changes. Maybe you'll discover you hate some of the foods that worked best for me, and maybe you'll discover others that work better for you. Customizing this eating plan in a way that makes you happy and gets you results is the only way you will achieve long-lasting results. This is my one-size-fits-all advice to you.