I calculated how many calories my body burns per day to sustain internal organ function and I made sure to eat at least that many calories every day so my body doesn’t think it’s starving and shut off my metabolism. I try to eat as little sugar as possible, I try to make sure I get at least as much protein as my body needs, I try to eat at least 500 mg of sodium (which is required for brain function), but no more than about 1200 mg, I try to get at least 25 grams of fiber, I try to drink at least 70 oz. of water. I don’t really watch my fat in take, but it tends to be about 40 g or lower as a result of my trying to meet my other dietary goals. I also jog 3 times each week. Lastly, and most importantly, if I want to eat something, I do… even if it puts me over my calorie limit for the day. I just try to make up for it the next day, but I never ever go below 1200 calories regardless. If I need to go under 1200 calories to make up for it, I don’t. I give myself an extra day to make up for it. I enjoy what I eat and I don’t sacrifice taste. I will say that I measure absolutely everything that goes into my body and write it down with all the appropriate nutrition facts I’m interested in. I’ve noticed this is a really important step, but I realized I had been mistaken about what I had actually been consuming. I’m trying to put my health first and the weight just falls off. If you take care of/respect yourself and stop stressing out and being hard on yourself, it works out. Stress causes the level of cortisol hormone to shoot up and this makes your body hold on to fat, especially on the stomach. Anything you can do to stop your body from feeling stressed is good. You body can be stressed by work outs that are too intense, long, or frequent and also by not giving it the calories it needs. I hope this helps!