Summary:

-1200-1500 Calories per day divided into 4 meals
-No more than 20g fat per day
-Exercise 30-45 mins. EVERY day
-Set obtainable weight loss goals

Diet:

-1200-1500 calories per day should be divided up over 4 meals. No more than 20g fat in those 1200-1500 calories.

-Try to eat 0g fat during the 1st meal and then again, 0g fat during the 4th meal. That will then allow you to eat 10g fat during your 2nd and 3rd meal of the day.

-After you eat your 1st meal, try to eat your other 3 other meals 4 hours apart. A good schedule is 8 a.m., 12 noon, 4 p.m., and then the last meal around 7 p.m. or a little later. This can be adjusted an hour earlier if needed.

-A typical 1st meal could be 1 serving of almost any kind of cereal and skim milk. Fruit is also a good 1st meal, or if you can't find anything with 0g fat, a low fat muffin is fine.

-The 2nd and 3rd meal should be the "good" meals for the day. Aim for no more than 10g fat (20g total between the two) at the 2nd and then 3rd meal. A 6" low fat Subway is a good 2nd or 3rd meal as well as Chik-Fil-A (grilled or fried) or just about any fast food restaurant's grilled chicken sandwich is fine, Low fat hot dogs (Healthy Choice), Healthy Choice frozen meals are usually around 300 calories and 7g fat, Broiled/grilled Fish/Seafood, Hamburgers made with low fat hamburger (usual around per lb, but only around 4g fat per 4 oz. serving), Regular Arby's Roast Beef, or if you eat fast food, just about all fast food restaurants have nutrition guides available for the asking. Pick one up and look up what you can have for around 300-400 calories and 10g fat. Skinless BBQ Chicken, or just about any chicken or fish on the grill as long as it's skinless. If you're cooking at home, read the nutrition guide on the side of the box of the food you're preparing and follow the proper proportions to stay within these guide lines.

-The 4th meal can be another bowl of cereal, or baked potato, or just about any kind of vegetable or fat-free food.

-You must count ALL calories, this includes soft drinks and fruit or fruit juices. There are no "freebies" on this diet, everything counts and you need to stay within the 1200-1500 calorie window. (Note: Mayonnaise is BAD...VERY high fat content, stay away).

-Having a good "eat out" meal isn't a problem...just plan for it during the day. If you know you're going out to eat out at 6 or 7 p.m., plan for it. Eat the 1st meal just as you always would, but then at your 2nd meal, you can still eat 300 calories, but try to have as little fat as possible. Example: If you're at Chic-Fil-A, the reg. Chik-Fil-A is 290 calories w/9g fat, but the grilled sandwich is 290 calories but only 3g fat. Have the grilled. Then combine the 3rd and 4th meal for your "eat out" meal and that leaves you with around 600 calories and the remaining fat that you've not used for the day (17g, if you use the example) for one big meal. Try not to this often though.

Exercise:

-30-45 mins. of exercise EVERY day. Of course, you can't start off this way. Start with 20 mins. every day and then add 5 mins. per week until you get up to 30-45 mins.

-Walking is EXCELLENT. Try to walk a mile in 15 mins. This will take a little time to work up to, so 20 mins per mile is a good starting pace, and then after you cut it down to a 15 min. mile, add a mile at a time, until you're doing 3 miles in 45 mins.

-Other Exercises: Any Aerobic workout that will get your body moving is fine too. Exercise bike that also works out the arms. Just do something that will get your hear rate up for 30-45 mins. EVERY day.

Goals:

-Set obtainable weight loss goals. Example: I started this program on 1/31. My starting weight was 213 lbs. My final goal was 160 lbs., My goal was to lose 53 lbs. But I set mini goals to get there. My 1st goal was to be down to 200 lbs. by 3/27, my next goal was 180 lbs. by 5/22, then my final goal was 160 lbs. by 7/31. (I ended up going on down to 155 lbs.).

-If you're dieting AND exercising, a starting point for setting you goals would be to average losing 2 lbs. per week, but adjust that once you get into the program to suite your individual pace.

Comments:

I came up with this program myself. I knew I wanted to lose weight, so I researched several diets and noticed that just about all of them had the following things in common: Eat less calories AND Exercise, that's the bottom line and if you want to lose weight, you've got to be willing to do BOTH. It's not easy, but the results are well worth it!


1/31/00: 213 Lbs.
7/31/00: 160 Lbs.
9/04/00: 155 Lbs.

January 2010:  155 Lbs.

2010 UPDATE:

It's now 2010 and I'm VERY proud to say that I am currently at 155 Lbs.  However, I had to put myself back on my diet plan a little over a year ago to lose the weight again.  I managed to keep the weight off until about 2004 and then I started to gradually gain bout 10-15 Lbs. per year because I just simply stopped watching what I was eating.  In December of 2008, I had a wake-up call one Fri night/early Sat. morning and I went to the hospital thinking I was having a heart attack.  I thank God it wasn't, but my doctor told me I had high cholesterol, obese, etc. and I had all the conditions needed for being at risk for one...I was up to 230 Lbs!!!  I immediately put myself back on my diet.  I lost 60 Lbs. in the first 6 months and then I spent a few more months getting the final 15 Lbs. off, but I did manage to lose a total of 75 Lbs. following my diet plan again.  The only difference that I did this time, though, was the exercise.  I wasn't as strict with the exercise part as I was when I followed my plan 10 years ago.  I still exercised, but not daily.  I bought a mountain bike and I take rides on it, and I just make a conscious effort to do more physical activity whenever possible.  I've updated the last picture below with one from the Summer of '09.